Book Review: Creating A Web Site - For the Do It Yourselfer

There's 2 ways you can create a web site: You can hire a professional

to do it for you or you can do it yourself. If you do it yourself you

can use a program such as Adobe Dreamweaver or Coffee Cup HTML, or you

can use one of the many dozens of online web site building tools from

However, if you persist in building your web site on your own,

which I don't recommend, at least read how to do it the right way.

There's many books on the subject, query Amazon.com and you'll find

more than you want. (Scroll down for the pros and cons of web site

building)

One new book from O'Reilly, Creating a Web Site: The Missing Manual, 2nd Edition is one you might want to look at.

In this new book you'll learn how to do just about everything that's

need for successful web site development. Some of the things you'll

learn, according to the press release are how to:

Create Web pages. XHTML (Extensible HyperText Markup Language) is

the modern language of the Web, and the latest stage in the evolution

of HTML. It’s surprisingly easy to use but maddeningly

inflexible--violate its strict syntax rules at your own peril. In this

book, you’ll learn how to write first-rate XHTML pages and get the most

out of the language.

Make pages look beautiful using CSS (Cascading Style Sheets). CSS

picks up where XHTML leaves off, adding formatting muscle that can

transform the drabbest of sites into a family of coordinated pages that

look like they were professionally designed. Best of all, once you

understand the right way to use CSS, you’ll be able to apply a new look

to your entire site by tweaking just a single file.

Put your Web site online. The world’s greatest Web site isn’t much

good if no one sees it. That’s why you’ll learn how to choose the best

Web hosting company, pick a domain name, and get your masterpiece

online. Don’t panic--there are plenty of cheap Web hosting companies

ready to show off your site for pennies a day.

Attract visitors. You’ll learn how to make sure people can find your

site using popular search engines and how to build an online community

that encourages repeat visits with discussion boards.

Remember though, building a web site is only one part of the equation. You've also got to market it and add content.

Check out my 10 Web Site Musts for some great tips on building business class web sites.

Hiring some else to build your web site is going to be an

investment. Expect to spend $2,500 or more for a decent web site. On

the other hand you know that a professional is building the web site

the right way. Building it yourself does save you some money, but you

might lose more in time lost trying to figure something out.

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