New website

[dangerman 0]

I'm currently building my website on frontpage express. I don't no much about website building, but I no enough to get me a website good enough for what I need.

I just wondered if there were any pit-falls I can avoid. Is there anything I should keep away from like contence or lay out?

 

I want it to look simple but give the clients a good impression while they get the information needed.

 

At the moment I have a intorduction, services, booking, prices and contacts page drafted.

 

I don't think it needs anything else just some tips off you guys to point me in the right direction.

 

Also does anyone know what I have to to get it on the internet I was looking for a co.uk or something along them lines.

 

Any help would be very greatful

 

Cheers

 

DM

[YourBigEvent 0]

Darren, Hugmaster, amongst others is your man, I don't know the first thing about it, HTML, Frontpage etc, might as well talk Hungarian to me...

[ChrisPointon 0]

Okay the first thing to do is to perhaps have a look at other DJ's websites, you can find these listed on the Forum's website area, or look at the DJ Listings. Don't copy anybodies work like for like but it will give you an idea of content and layout etc, and what you should be including.

 

Next, you need to find webspace. Don't be tempted to get free webspace, since they always smother your site in banners and pop ups, and not only can this look very unprofessional for a business site, but it can also prove harmful to visitors PC's as spyware can also be embedded without your knowledge by the hosts!. If you have BT, Freeserve or any other popular ISP you'll probably find that you have 10 or 20mb of free webspace included in your internet package http://www.dj-forum.co.uk/html/emoticons/smile.gif . This space is always banner free, although it will have an address similar to www.mysite.wanadoo.co.uk or along those lines - this however won't be a problem if you can use a referer on your domain name.

 

If you wish to buy webspace (The better option) you can do this very cheaply. One of the companies I have used in the past was PurpleCloud who offer webspace for £10 - £20 a year!. The £20 a year package is better if you expect a lot of visitors!.

 

A.co.uk or .com domain name, can be registered cheaply from a number of companies, however I always use Cteck.net the advantage of using Cteck, is that if you do take advantage of using webspace given to you by your ISP, then you can easily divert your domain name to forward your visitors to your ISP's webspace, without the divert being visible.

 

Site building is a bit of an art, and you need to experiment a little with HTML and Frontpage. If you run a google search for 'frontpage tutorials', or frontpage advice' then you'll probably find a lot of advice on how to use the basics of frontpage http://www.dj-forum.co.uk/html/emoticons/smile.gif .

 

If you find difficulties in building your own site, then have a word with Joe when he gets back from his Holiday next weekend. I know that he is happy to help people, or even build their sites for them for a small price.

[Hugmaster 0]

Hi

 

Another good idea would be to learn the basics of HTML, which is the code used to write websites. The reason for this is simply to debug irritations...I'll explain.

 

Frontpage and other web tools can occasionally generate code that is unnecessary or alys your site out in a way you didn't intend. Obiously the simpler you can lay your site out the better, but if you get one of these little annoyances, a little knowledge of the HTML code will be useful so you can get in there and edit the code until it looks right.

 

Frontpage World is a useful site in all matter Frontpage. You might even want to invest a few quid in buying a professionally designed template, so you don't have to worry about colours, lay out etc, it's all done for you.

 

Just a quick tip, don't put your site up until you feel it's ready and protraying the right image for you. Remember you site is you silent saleman, so you need to make sure your site is showing the company in it's best light. Having pages that are "under construction", images that don't load, speling errors, etc can all damage you company image.

 

Goo luck and if you need any further help, just ask.

 

Darren

[Speaker 0]

Hi dangermouse, Frontpage is probably the worst possible software for building web sites. The main reason is that Frontpage uses Extensions to display certian web page animations, and unless the web site host supports Frontpage Extensions your site will be a bit of a mess. Not all web site hosts support FP Extensions. Another reason, as Hugmaster mentionjed, is that FP generates a load of unnessessary Micrtosoft HTML code. I can recommend another way to get a really good looking web site up and runnning, really easily and quite cheaply, and I'll do that in another thread so everyone can see it.

Edited September 8, 2004 by Speaker