Everywhere you look, you see advertisments saying you can create your own web page withinn minutes (or hours) and have it up in one day.

Well, yeah! If you want a site that looks like it crawled out of the back-end of a TRS -80.

I decided to forgoe the "Template" thing because, well... they sucked! At least for me they did. So I am building my site from scratch and man, o man! It's been two weeks and I'm still at it. Granted, I have had many interruptions such as meetings at my son's school, medical appts and such but still.

Either way, this is not something I want to do for a living. For those of you that do, I don't know how you do it. I am going nuts!

I come on Mpix (like right now) just to kinda relax my eyeballs and most importantly, relax my brain.


Arrrgh!

Ok, vent over, back to the grind.

-Koa-

I think building a website depends on what software you are using and if you have the understanding how to build a site. I always used Dreamweaver. Years ago I use Frontpage. Frontpage is alot easier then Dreamweaver, but with Dreamweaver you can do so much more. If one hard codes a site it's even harder if one doesn't know scripting (or knows very little of it). The hardest thing about designing a site is figuring out the layout. Once you have the layout, everything else is just putting in images and text. Making a photo gallery can be a hair pulling task. Depending how you want the gallery and how many photos there are. Do you want just photos across the page, or thumbnails that click to enlarge, thumbnails that scroll and the large image popups underneath etc..

The software is Super Duper easy to use. That's not the problem.

The probme for me is layout and content.

I have seen so many websites where things are so plain that I feel as if I'm in the desert. I'm in and out in five minutes or less because there is little content. The layout... I am driving for a base look to every page. By that I mean all pages are black, they all have a header (title) at top and the navigation buttons are all in the same place. That's where the similarity ends.

I have dawn oiut each page individually and it's much easier to draw my ideas than to actually implement them.

As for content, get this. One of the pages is a Taino dictionary. I have spent hours searching the Internet and culling all the data. The, I type each word and it's meaning. This dictinary is small, about 200-300 words. But that takes time. I spent the better part of the day yesterday sifting through links to place on the "Resources " page. I now have 64 links directly relating to the Taino culture. Each link will have it's own clickable button. When I see links on sites and it's just the link from the address bar, that, to me, is tacky. So I made a distinctive button with a TAino petroglyph on it and then the name of the site next to that. The Taino Culture page is started and I'll add to that bit by bit so I consider that one finished.

I know, I may be going overboard but this is my first site that I have put together and if I'm going to do it, I'm going to do it right. Well, as best as I can get it.

So, yeah. This is taking me longer than expected.

Arrrgh!

Either way, the site is up to 13 pages and I have nine completed. I should have #10 done tonight or tomorrow.

-Koa-

Are you using the intuit software for this?

 Is this a flash or html site?

Always good to do a test run on a subdomain.

Also a good idea to run passed several browsers.

Do not forget interpest exploiter, check past that piece of...

Looking forward to seeing it when your done.

Good luck

Teani

shannonc:

Are you using the intuit software for this?

Yes, I am and it really is Super Duper easy and it does everything I need it to. It's just what I mentioned. It's tough coming up with content. Ok, not tough but ver timr consuming to do the research, compiling and then typing it all up. Then designing the pages. I am almost sick of doing graphic designs to make the thing look "classy".

I really don't know how people do this for a living is what I'm getting at.

-Koa-

Boriken Warrior:

shannonc:

Are you using the intuit software for this?

Yes, I am and it really is Super Duper easy and it does everything I need it to. It's just what I mentioned. It's tough coming up with content. Ok, not tough but ver timr consuming to do the research, compiling and then typing it all up. Then designing the pages. I am almost sick of doing graphic designs to make the thing look "classy".

I really don't know how people do this for a living is what I'm getting at.

-Koa-

 

Which version did you end up getting, I still want to look at intuit in the future. Can't wait to see it all finished!!!

swirkes:

Which version did you end up getting, I still want to look at intuit in the future. Can't wait to see it all finished!!!

I opted for the Gold plan.

I finally finished the links page but I know there ae going to be some links I will have to repair. I'll have to check them all once it goes live.

And I have three pages left to do and I could not get a thing done today. I had a major issue with my son's school yesterday where I had to call the police. The science teacher got so upset with my son that she locked him in the classroom and then went to punch out for the day. I'm waiting at the gate and my son is nowhere to be seen and then his classmates start running up to me saying, "Mrs. "I wanna lose my job and pension" locked Raven in the classroom and left. He's in there crying, yelling and kicking and punching the doors and wallstrying to get out.

I ran up to the class room and my son was out. The teacher told him she was locking him in there and then closed the door all the way. He really was'nt locked in but he thougfht he was.

So, a 10 year old who is ADHD, sees two psychiatrists, is taking meds and barely speaks a spanish get's the special treatment he's supposed to get.

I went to the office and caught her already punched out on the clock and talking $hit about my son to the other teachers when the shock hit her face as I walked in.

"Why did you leave him in the classroom like that!?

"Well, it's three and that's the end of my day. I'm going home".

"You know, there is such a thing as professional responsibility!" and it went from there. The guard ran into the office and told me to leave. On my way out I said I wanted the form to file a complaint and if I don't get it then I'm going to the police.

He put me out the gate, locked it and never came out with the form.

So, I went to the police and am in the process of filing criminal (and other) negligence charges against the teacher and the school.

What that B!t%H did was cruel and uncalled for. If she had a problem with my son, that's what the Security Guard is for. Then again, theres another parent who's daughter is in my son's class and she's already looked into hiring a lawyer against that same teacher and the school.

So, I spent the entire day talking to Social Services and the police. Once I get off here, I will open the office and get to work. Yep! It's another all nighter... again. I expected to have the site live by Friday and that has just been set back,

Tomorrow, I have a three hour drive, if I can, to the District Shcool office to file a formal complaint.

I'll let you know when the site gets published.

By the way, my brothet stopped by yesterday and i showed it to him. He did'nt say much but as he was walking out he stopped by to see my mother and told her that my web page was very professional and one of the best he's ever seen. My wife overheard him. Hee! Hee!

-Koa-

Wow, Koa, I hope you get things straightened out. I would have beat the sh*t out of that teacher myself!! I will be waiting patiently for the website.

Holy moly! You've had your hands full! Good for you for stepping up to the plate. Looking forward to seeing your site when it's up!

 I am in the middle of mine. I can pick photos for galleries, but I just cannot write about myself! Man ohhh man.

devanmarie:

 I am in the middle of mine. I can pick photos for galleries, but I just cannot write about myself! Man ohhh man.

Yeah, see!? The programs have gotten so easy that even a caveman can do it.

But it's the initial design and content which is time consuming.

By the way, I am so full of myself that it took me no time at all to write about myself. And I wrote quite a bit. I even thru in a few of my top ten lists such as my top ten favorite foods, movies, television shows, comics etc. Just gives folks a better idea of why I'm so crazy.

-Koa-