Apr 29, 2013

Planning To Create Your First Web Site?

You bought your hosting account, domain name and you have an idea. So, now that it’s time to start your website, you might be wondering how you actually go about doing it. Do you have to start scarfing down textbook after textbook of HTML, PHP and CSS knowledge? While this could be helpful if you really want to do everything yourself and you have months to learn the languages, the truth is that you can create a website within a few minutes without much technical knowledge. In fact, you don’t need to know the first thing about programming to get your website started. These are the exact steps that you need to take to create your first website.


Install a CMS

Log into your cPanel account (or whatever control panel your host is using) and select the script installer program. There are several different script installers commonly used with cPanel, but the two most popular are Simple Scripts and Fantastico. Both of these are similar and they mostly have the same scripts.

A CMS allows you to create, edit and manage content. It also allows you to add a template to your website so that you can dress it up and make it look good. While there are many CMSs, the easiest one to use is WordPress. However, if you want a CMS with better customizability, then Joomla or Drupal are better.

Just select the CMS of your choice, type in a username and password and click the “Install” button.

Find and Install Template

While you don’t necessarily need a template, it will make your website look and function better. There are both paid and free templates. Paid templates are often better, but they can cost $20-$60 for a good one. If you want to start a business with your website, then it might be good to invest in one of these. If you just want a blog to share your thoughts, then a free template will be ideal.

You can find free templates by just going to your favorite search engine and searching “free (CMS) template.” Just replace (CMS) with the name of your CMS, such as WordPress or Drupal. Look through the templates until you find one that you like. Before downloading it, be sure to check reviews to ensure there aren’t any viruses or bad files linked to the template.

Now just download the template and keep the ZIP file somewhere easy to find. Log into your CMS’s admin panel and click the “Appearance” or “Design” link, depending on your CMS. Select the template’s ZIP file and the template will be uploaded and added to your website.

Test the Site

The last thing you need to do is visit your website and make sure that everything worked. Click all of the links, look at the design and use the features to see if they work. If not, then go back to your admin panel, uninstall the template and then install it again. You can also contact the host’s support team for additional help.

Conclusion

Setting up a website is incredibly easy. You can even do it in a few minutes with very little technical skill. Most of the work is done for you, you just need to tell the software what to do. Check out Reviewpon, if you need any other tips on setting up your web hosting.

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