Want to start a website, don't know where to start

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DarcVidosa
Tufted Titmouse
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Joined: 23 Apr 2011
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11 May 2011, 11:17 am

Hello,

I have decided that I want to make a website, but I don't know what it should be about.
Could someone help me with this? I will be grateful. :D



Meow1971
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11 May 2011, 12:35 pm

You could start with something you know well. I noticed that your location reads Amsterdam which is a fascinating city for those of us who do not live there, especially if it is about something that does not get a lot of tourism press (e.g. the canals, red light district, etc).

My one trip to Amsterdam had our group staying in a hotel, half of which was a modern, newly built luxury hotel and the other which looked like it had been built in the 1920s. The architecture of that alone would be interesting to many people and possibly fun to research.



robh
Yellow-bellied Woodpecker
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11 May 2011, 12:48 pm

Buy a domain name and a server (or a combined package), install Wordpress(or another CMS), then start writing/posting images/podcasting or whatever you want to do. If you don't know what to write about, write about your special intrest.

Best way to learn this stuff is to just play with it.

Word of warning though, don't bother with Dreamweaver/Visual HTML editors and static HTML websites as a whole. They are nigh on impossible to maintain. Learn to work with one of the open source CMS's, don't bother writing your own.



anewman
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11 May 2011, 7:03 pm

Drupal is quite a good CMS. Main downside is it is quite technical for those unaccustomed to such things.



starygrrl
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12 May 2011, 9:44 am

The question is what type of website.
I will be honest, various types of websites require various levels of work, and sometimes multiple workers.
Probably the easiest website to do on your own is a blogging website. Content websites are a good model, but you have to know how to target and build up an audience. Which can take time, some of the more popular content sites took years to build thier respective audiences. Being a fantastic writer doesn't hurt either.

But when you start to talk about e-commerce or software as a service websites you begin to get into territory where it requires some level of technical expertise involved and months of hard work. Knowing how to do programming on the back end and design and user experience front end begins to increase in importance. It also often something that may not be good to do on your own.

Honestly, if you want to take on a tech project on your own, a phone app may be a better idea. Web development can be lengthy and complex. You have to have a solid idea.

I am not saying this to discourage you, just to say "I want to do a website" is a bit more involved than it looks. People assume it is simple, when in fact it is quite complicated.

So the question is do you know HTML/CSS, Javascript, Databases (SQL/noSQL), a Programming Language (C#, Java, Ruby, Python, C++, etc), UX principles, etc.

My advice is if you wish to do this is to find your local tech resources and learn from people who have done this.