Starting a website...but don't know where to start

**stompeeeee** · 02-08-2010 12:01 AM

Hi All,

I want to create a website. I want to create something that other people can use. I have a couple ideas in mind that I feel might work.

My problem is this: I know close to nothing about how to actually create a site. I know very very basic html and could probably pull off something using joomla but the sites I have in mind would require much more programming and designing knowledge.

My question is this: Would you guys recommend that I try to go and learn everything on my own? Or would it be better to hire some contractors?

**bestill** · 02-08-2010 12:09 AM

You have some questions to answer my friend. What are you trying to design? Do you really want to spend your time designing or just managing, promoting and growing. What do you really want out of the site? Anyone can learn, but it takes time and lots of it (classes, books, research). If you want to learn on your own, start by reading the basic stuff and go from there. The best way is to practice, trial and error. Mess around with code. Hope this helps. Good luck!

**foxsie** · 02-08-2010 12:53 AM

Your quickest route to reality for your idea would be to find a reasonably rated web designer willing to work with you! That isn't hard now-a-days with sites like Guru.com, Deviantart.com and even YE. Craft your ideas, play your part strong and enable the designer to do his job well! A CMS like Wordpress or Joomla would cut costs and time.

**ndawson293** · 02-08-2010 08:33 AM

It would depend how complicated what you want to do is, I faced the same decision and I'm learning myself. If you do decide to learn, I'd be happy to help and share ideas, PM me.

**ElijahRYoung** · 02-08-2010 02:14 PM

Please, please don't hire a contractor. In fact, the only thing you'll get if you hire someone right now is a bill, and a lighter wallet. You don't know enough about your project yet to decide if it's something you want to build, or something you want to farm out.

Sounds like you may need to have a brainstorming session, coupled with a nice mind map.

Is there a problem that you're trying to solve specifically? Give us some more details...

**stompeeeee** · 02-09-2010 12:06 PM

Hi All,

Thanks for all your responses. To say a little more about the website I have in mind. I would need the website to have the capability to have people sign on and create accounts that would be stored. These people would then have access to their own profile page that may be viewed by others. (basically like the facebook model) That's pretty much the bulk of the website. (no it's not a social networking site) I would also of course need a main page that contains site links to all the different parts of the site. Does something like this sound like something I could learn on my own or would I be better off looking for a developer/contractor?

**veikoh** · 02-10-2010 04:44 AM

There is plenty of free software available depending what kind of site you want, either eCommerce (osCommerce), publishing (wordpress), video/media, etc. You do not need programming skills to start a website.

**jsayers** · 02-13-2010 07:29 PM

I am leaning towards hiring a professional website designer, but here's how you can decide:

Estimate how many hours this elaborate website project will take you to brainstorm, learn and build. Multiply that by the cost of your time.

Compare this figure with an estimate from a local website designer. I wouldn't go with some random company on the web - you want someone you can meet with and will provide you with actual customer service.

**SparkDesign** · 02-16-2010 02:32 AM

Hi,
The standards you are looking to create a very high and will be almost impossible to do yourself. However, even if you manage to pull it off after hours of learning and effort, it wont be of a high standard to which people will want to stay and browse. Let me know if you need any advice or recommendations.

SparkDesign
Web Designer

**Alexishost** · 02-16-2010 04:50 AM

Learn html:
You may start learning html to create your first site.

vidio to help you strat.
This is the vidio tutorial that I can refer you to learn and create your own good looking website

Success:
I hope you get success for project that you do.

**SpecHosting** · 02-16-2010 12:15 PM

What I am about to say depends on what you want to do, of course, but you might want to try looking at Hotscripts.com, they have many free scripts that are user friendly, then you will need a web hosting provider, there are many out there, make sure the one you get has a 99.9 Uptime Guarantee!