Advice On opening a website..

[scifi]

Hi Friends!!
I am thinking of opening a website..
I want to know if there is some links which can provide me with detail information about the procedures & resources that might be needed...
Also I would like to know how the advertisement business can be operated using the websites???
Information on such Glossary, rates of advertisement, website maintenance rights, etc........

[Nazreen]

I don't have a website so I might not be so helpful in this area Scifi. The other members of the BAF community should be in a much better position to advise you on opening a website.

But, I did try to learn about building a website before and would like to share the links that you might need in your endeavor.

W3Schools Online Web Tutorials (http://www.w3schools.com/) - learn about HTML, CSS, XHTML and also scripting.
Web Design Tips (http://www.entheosweb.com/website_design/webdesign_tips.asp) - from Entheos website
Html Editors - Dreamweaver (http://www.adobe.com/products/dreamweaver/), Microsoft Frontpage (http://www.microsoft.com/frontpage), Hotdog (http://www.sausagetools.com/), and many others
Graphics Editors - Photoshop (http://www.adobe.com/products/photoshop/photoshop/), Paint Shop Pro (http://www.jasc.com/)

After that, I stopped at the part of using Html editors and Graphics editors.

Oh yeah, BAF's sister site Hostbidder (http://www.hostbidder.com/) also has a lot of web developers that can also help you.

[scifi]

I don't have a website so I might not be so helpful in this area Scifi. The other members of the BAF community should be in a much better position to advise you on opening a website.

But, I did try to learn about building a website before and would like to share the links that you might need in your endeavor.

W3Schools Online Web Tutorials (http://www.w3schools.com/) - learn about HTML, CSS, XHTML and also scripting.
Web Design Tips (http://www.entheosweb.com/website_design/webdesign_tips.asp) - from Entheos website
Html Editors - Dreamweaver (http://www.adobe.com/products/dreamweaver/), Microsoft Frontpage (http://www.microsoft.com/frontpage), Hotdog (http://www.sausagetools.com/), and many others
Graphics Editors - Photoshop (http://www.adobe.com/products/photoshop/photoshop/), Paint Shop Pro (http://www.jasc.com/)

After that, I stopped at the part of using Html editors and Graphics editors.

Oh yeah, BAF's sister site Hostbidder (http://www.hostbidder.com/) also has a lot of web developers that can also help you.
Thanks a lot Nazreen!!
The links are extremely useful but I am not interested in building a website... I am interested in opening(my friend will develop it for me because he knows HTML) a website i.e. I need information on domain name, maintenance of website, advertising related information & procedures & other general information!!!!:)

[silent_thunder]

The best place to learn is forums.

And there are several good forums that will help you develop

I used digitalpoint, v7n and sitepoint to learn. I think if you will find answers to every question you will have in DP and sitepoint

[Fergal]

Scifi, if you make your questions a little more specific we will be able to give you more specific answers which will help you more.

You could purchase domain names from registers such as http://www.815domains.com/. I use them myself and have been very happy with their service. They are an Enom (http://www.enom.com/) reseller.

Once you purchase a domain name you will need to set the nameservers to those provided by your hosting account. You can do this quite easily through the site where you have bought your domain name.

You can get a basic hosting account from any of the major hosting providers such as http://www.hostgator.com/ or http://www.dreamhost.com/.

One tip I would give, is to get your domain name from a different provider than your hosting company. In this way you will have full control over your domain name and can easily change host if you run into any problems with them.

If I was you I wouldn't worry about selling advertising space until you have built up some decent traffic to your site. When you are ready to sell advertising have a look at Google Adsense (https://www.google.com/adsense).

Another tip I would give you is to start a site in an area that interests you. This will motivate you to work on your site and to keep adding content to it.

The links in our Useful Online Business Resources (http://www.businessadviceforum.com/showthread.php?t=377) thread should be very helpful to you.

The 0 to $500 / Mth from Blogging should be particularly helpful to you, even if you are not setting up a blog.

[Swastik]

Hi Friends!!
I am thinking of opening a website..
I want to know if there is some links which can provide me with detail information about the procedures & resources that might be needed...
Also I would like to know how the advertisement business can be operated using the websites???
Information on such Glossary, rates of advertisement, website maintenance rights, etc........

Hey scifi,

It's not hard to start a website. You need two things in order to start a website :

# A domain name - Like http://www.google.com
# A host - There are many, like hostgator etc.

For domain names, Godaddy is running a promotional offer where you can get a .com for $1.99. Coupon code to be used is '199TEST'. Or there is a namecheap twitter contest, where you have to follow namecheap on Twitter and they'll ask a simple question every HOUR, and three people to answer it correctly win a domain name. Another option would be Hostbidder.com, BAF's sister concern.

For Hosting, there are many free as well as paid hosts. I'd recommend going with paid hosts, such as Hostgator. Use the coupon code "Wordpress" to get hosting for just $0.01 (one cent) for a month. Or you can just google "Web hosts" and choose anything that suits you.

Then you need to have webpages, which you'll upload to the host and people can see. You can get templates from OSWD.org, Templatemonster.com etc.

An even better option would be to install wordpress (+ (http://www.wordpress.org)), makes it quite easy to handle things in the backend.

[Fergal]

Thanks for sharing those helpful suggestions Swastik.


...You can get templates from OSWD.com....

Is that domain correct, it looks like a parked page to me?

[Swastik]

Thanks for sharing those helpful suggestions Swastik.



Is that domain correct, it looks like a parked page to me?

Oops.. It was a .org, I corrected my post.

Thanks! :D

[scifi]

Thanks Everybody ! for posting such useful links!!
I was thinking of starting a website which will be designed by my friend who have pretty good knowledge of both java & HTML & I will be managing the part of making it functional, operational & other issues related with it.
In this context I just want to know what are the series of steps involved in making a website fully operational & how advertisement business is operated..
A glossary of such terminology link would be very helpful in this regards...

[Kay]

Thanks Everybody ! for posting such useful links!!
I was thinking of starting a website which will be designed by my friend who have pretty good knowledge of both java & HTML & I will be managing the part of making it functional, operational & other issues related with it.
In this context I just want to know what are the series of steps involved in making a website fully operational & how advertisement business is operated..
A glossary of such terminology link would be very helpful in this regards...


Scifi, Fergal's given you the steps already.


You could purchase domain names from registers such as http://www.815domains.com/. I use them myself and have been very happy with their service. They are an Enom reseller.

Once you purchase a domain name you will need to set the nameservers to those provided by your hosting account. You can do this quite easily through the site where you have bought your domain name.

You can get a basic hosting account from any of the major hosting providers such as http://www.hostgator.com/ or http://www.dreamhost.com/.

One tip I would give, is to get your domain name from a different provider than your hosting company. In this way you will have full control over your domain name and can easily change host if you run into any problems with them.


That's it. It takes maybe 24-48 hours to all be ready, but after that you just upload whatever scripts etc you plan to use to your cpanel whether it's Wordpress or whatever, or your webpages, set up your email addresses etc.

I don't mean to burst your bubble but thinking about advertising is way, way down the list - you need to figure out how the cpanel works first and foremost because that controls your entire site, unless your friend knows how to actually install a site and will do that side.

I'm not sure what else you're asking, sorry. Here's a dictionary that might help you of website terms. If you tell us what kind of site you're thinking on we'll be able to help more.

http://www.abacus.ca/website-dictionary.php

[Fergal]

Scifi, have you registered a domain yet for your site? That's the first step.

[pendelton]

http://www.gimp.org is a free photoshop like editor.
http://bluefish.openoffice.nl/download.html is a great HTML/PHP/CSS editor, that is free.
http://download.openoffice.org/ is an open source suite of tools, like MS Office and WordPerfect Office, but, again, it is free.

All have great support forums in several languages.

Although Fergal has a great point.

[Nazreen]

I think that you need to come up with a good and meaningful domain name first, Scifi. You can see this link for Tips on how to choose a good domain name (http://www.thesitewizard.com/archive/domainname.shtml). It would also be good if your domain name also contains some of the keywords that you'll be using for your website.

Also, most of your questions on getting started with your website are answered in Thesitewizard tutorials (http://www.thesitewizard.com/gettingstarted/index.shtml).

[Fergal]

Thanks Nazreen, those Site Wizard Tutorials look excellent, very helpful and useful advice.

Has anyone actually used them?

[silent_thunder]

You can also check my signature for web design,,Wrote the tips for noobs lol

[scifi]

Scifi, have you registered a domain yet for your site? That's the first step.

I have not yet registered domain for the site because I am waiting for my friend to complete his website development...In the meanwhile we are looking for some third person as a partner who might have some knowledge in this area to give ourself a solid start ....

[Fergal]

Scifi, have you defined clearly the skills you are looking for in a potential partner?

How do you plan on finding a partner?

[Swastik]

I have not yet registered domain for the site because I am waiting for my friend to complete his website development...In the meanwhile we are looking for some third person as a partner who might have some knowledge in this area to give ourself a solid start ....

Regarding partner, I'd give one advice - Be very very very very careful.

I've been ripped off more than a couple of times, and have lost much valuable time. It's better if you guys get a contract signed up or something like that. :)

Just my 2 cents.

[silent_thunder]

If this is your first website I strongly recommend going about it alone or partner with some one offline and not online. I have not partnered with anyone in the fear of being ripped off like swastik. It must be really heart breaking to lose time and money

[Swastik]

It must be really heart breaking to lose time and money

Exactly. You waste a lot of time and hard work put into, if you're dumped at the end.

Plus, it'll take a whole lot more courage to start again next time. So yeah, be careful and partner with someone who you believe, and even in that case, sign up a contract.

[silent_thunder]

Swastik, what should be the terms of contract for website can you please explainon that front I am inexperience when it comes to working with partners. I am interested in learning

[Nazreen]

Thanks Nazreen, those Site Wizard Tutorials look excellent, very helpful and useful advice.

Has anyone actually used them?

Well I'm not sure if anyone has used these tutorials before Fergal but I certainly have. These and a couple of other websites helped me understand about websites and domains.

Btw, good luck in finding a partner Scifi.

[scifi]

Scifi, have you defined clearly the skills you are looking for in a potential partner?

How do you plan on finding a partner?

Hi! Fergal
Well I want a partner who has some advanced level of skills in a JAVA, HTML, & other languages.. who might have also some knowledge of other stuff related to websites like maintenance etc.
Regarding finding a partner, I am giving this offer to my many of close friends who want to pursue this as an side business or something like that...

[scifi]

Regarding partner, I'd give one advice - Be very very very very careful.

I've been ripped off more than a couple of times, and have lost much valuable time. It's better if you guys get a contract signed up or something like that. :)

Just my 2 cents.

You are absolutely correct Swastik that we must sign some sort of contract or agreement to avoid being ripped off...
Can you send me some example documents of the terms of that sort of contract..
One more thing is that, don't you think that it will be costly thing at the beginning itself???


Well I'm not sure if anyone has used these tutorials before Fergal but I certainly have. These and a couple of other websites helped me understand about websites and domains.

Btw, good luck in finding a partner Scifi.

Thanks A LOT Nazreen for your wishes!!!
I think I definitely need them:)...

[Fergal]

Scifi if you don't find a partner from amongst your friends and acquaintances you might consider having a look at some of the Webmaster and Trading Forums and Freelance Sites listed in our Useful Online Business Resources (http://www.businessadviceforum.com/showthread.php?t=377).

Good luck with everything and please keep us updated as to how it works out for you.

[Swastik]

You are absolutely correct Swastik that we must sign some sort of contract or agreement to avoid being ripped off...
Can you send me some example documents of the terms of that sort of contract..
One more thing is that, don't you think that it will be costly thing at the beginning itself???

It doesn't need to be something which involves big money. Just a contract with both parties signing on what their roles are in the venture, what their profits are should be good. Sorry, but I'm not knowledgeable in this part, so I won't be able to help much. :(

[Fergal]

Scifi, if your project does not involve a huge investment a legal contract is probably not required. What is most important is that you document everything that you require and you get the supplier to acknowledge that s/he understands what is required and will deliver it at a certain price, by a certain date. All this can be done through email or at least confirmed by email, so that you will have a record of what was actually agreed.

[Swastik]

Scifi, if your project does not involve a huge investment a legal contract is probably not required. What is most important is that you document everything that you require and you get the supplier to acknowledge that s/he understands what is required and will deliver it at a certain price, by a certain date. All this can be done through email or at least confirmed by email, so that you will have a record of what was actually agreed.

Yeah, keep screenshots and proof of important talks going between. That's what I missed :o, and lost a lot.:rolleyes:

[scifi]

Thank you all here !!
Thanks Fergal & Swastik a lot for making me aware of how to avoid being getting ripped off...!!
I will definitely try to keep updated everybody here of my progress from website development to its final uploading on the net..

[Fergal]

Scifi, also try to avoid paying up front. If possible don't pay until the work is delivered to you and you have had a chance to inspect it. Most designers wont accept this, but perhaps they will accept half payment upfront and the second half when they have completed the task.

[scifi]

Scifi, also try to avoid paying up front. If possible don't pay until the work is delivered to you and you have had a chance to inspect it. Most designers wont accept this, but perhaps they will accept half payment upfront and the second half when they have completed the task.

Yeah Fergal !!
I will definitely keep this in mind !!!

[tmijs789]

I don't have a website so I might not be so helpful in this area Scifi. The other members of the BAF community should be in a much better position to advise you on opening a website.

But, I did try to learn about building a website before and would like to share the links that you might need in your endeavor.

Just wanted to comment that for not having a website yourself, you posted all the valuable like I would have offered. Right ON!
Cheers.
Tim ... providing business solutions ..... online fax

[Fergal]

Welcome to Business Advice Forum, Tim. Thanks for joining. Looking forward to seeing more of your posts.

[Nazreen]

Just wanted to comment that for not having a website yourself, you posted all the valuable like I would have offered. Right ON!
Cheers.
Tim ... providing business solutions ..... online fax

Welcome to the BAF Tim. Hope to see more of you in the forum.

Well, I did want to make a website for myself before so I read about HTML, XHTML, CSS and so forth. I've also read about information on domains and web hosting and stuff. :)

Please feel free to ask questions, comment on topics that you might find interesting or just share your experiences and chat in the forum.