Yet another web design software question

[Frank Petronio]

I started in the web biz in 95 too. And while I didn't become an internet zillionaire... well... the last real website I worked on was for a Fortune 500 company using table cells (do the math). So far I've only made $600 from my "full-time" photography in 2011... allowing me thousands of hours to pontificate on RFF ;-) Oh and shoot pretty girls for free.

Free and simple is best.

And having better content - words and pictures - puts you out ahead of 99.9% of the rest of the internet.

Most of my clients who spent major $$$$$$ on the web never got that last point no matter how I explained it. They wanted technology, most of which had a lifespan measured in months.

 

[Roger Hicks]

Why not have your brother-in-law design a site for you through Wordpress that you can then fill with the content that you want? He could keep track of the technical stuff and the rest you could do yourself. Wordpress is pretty easy to use and it is free if you are using your own hosting.

I prefer to do things in Dreamweaver etc, but I have been using it for over a decade now so I am pretty familiar with it. Dreamweaver is like Photoshop in many ways. It is a very complicated program if you want to make it so, but you really only need to use a little bit of it. Whatever you do, don't use Flash. Flash was great when it was new because of the wow factor, but it is just plain tiring these days, but you probably already know that.

This sounds like the very best idea but I'm waiting to hear back from him.

And yes, 'tiring' is the kindest thing you can say about Flash. Then again, it never had a wow factor for me: more of a yuk factor.

Cheers,

Rr.

 

[ampguy]

I'd use wordpress. Hard to not beat the dashboard interface, and ton of resources (books, web sites, kindle e-books) for non-techies. Most non tech graphics folks I know use it by default.

It doesn't need any special subscription hosting. It does need Mysql and php on the server. Doesn't even need linux. This little site that a friend runs is on bsd and took 10 minutes to install and lock down (but that was because the mysql and php were already securely installed on the web server)

The security issues are mostly with php and mysql, and ensuring the wp logins to those modules is secure.

www.handcraftedespresso.com

 

[Gabriel M.A.]

Firstly, the term "webmaster" is some relic from the 1990s.

No. We still exist, and still get paid, just like those of you professional photographers that still get paid. And just unlike the "not expensive" photographer that people hire for $100 for those horrible shots that people get anyway, there are the so-called "geeks" (thusly called by the so-absolutely not-a-geek) who charge $100 for something that really sucks.

Yes, "anybody" can do it. But can "anybody" make it well and not "so what?"-ish? No. It does not answer the question.

I don't use a "software" that publishes a website (just like professional photographers cannot answer "which easiest lens is the easiest one for wedding photography?"), so I cannot answer the question either. Like professional photographers who have flashes, flash meters, camera systems, lenses, editing software, types of memory card, kinds of insurance, consent forms, etc., so do "relics of the 1990s" webmasters/designers/programmers: a set of tools, skills, know-how.

For content alone, one piece of software isn't enough: it relies on you knowing who will host it, how it will be hosted (is it Linux? Windoze? Do you need a database? Do you need PHP, Perl --which modules?--, MyopicUnique --"geek" joke--; there are some who are targeted to a certain demographic: Lightroom for the "I have no clue about anything but somebody will publish what I put together somehow", Muse for the "I'm a typewriter who *really* has no time to code and loves the fixed column canned website, Dreamweaver for the "my boss still has a job description from the late 1990s and doesn't like to try anything new", FrontPage for the "I inherited this Windows 98 machine and it's great so far for storing my aunt's recipes"...

It's like building a house: you decide first how you want it, how big, where, and then you get the contractor as needed. Don't hire the contractor first and let him decide what you want.

 

[Kevin]

What's the simplest web design software you can buy (or get free, for that matter)?

What exactly is this website supposed to do for you?

 

[slm]

Joomla is what you need for content management. Requires your hosting site to be running the software (it probably is). For look and feel, there are a lot of templates available (some free, some not) or you could hire a template maker to custom make one for you, I don't think it would cost that much.

cheers
steven

 

[ampguy]

I looked at Roger's current website, and assumed he wanted to update it by a few decades. Roger, let me know if I am off base, and you want to do something new.

Google "free wordpress templates" and I'd be very surprised if there wasn't one that met your needs.

For the rest of you, check this out, and read it all, done in WP, of course 😉

http://measureofdoubt.com/2011/05/26/how-to-argue-on-the-internet/

 

[TobiasL]

As being a web developer/designer for the last 15 years I would say making a website hasn't been easier, even if you have no interest in learning code. But I wouldn't recommend a software like Dreamweaver, I was completely lost when I tried it even though I have long experience in coding websites.

There are a couple paths you can take. If you do want to learn to code a webpage I would use the software NetBeans (it has a very simple interface and user-friendly) along with a tutorial like this http://htmldog.com/guides/htmlbeginner/ or buy a book.

Second option would be use a tool like WordPress or Drupal. You can create any sort of site with these, there are bunch of plugins and templates. If you decide to have someone do a design for you then there are many web designers out there that are already familiar with WordPress and Drupal.

Third option. If you are familiar with Photoshop and have the skills for layout design then you can do the design there and ask someone to convert it to a html page. All you do is give them the PSD file.

Fourth and last option would be use a online service, this can be a shortcut for getting a website, blog, gallery etc. but they have their limits and price.

My general recommendation would be to try a CMS (Content Management System) like WordPress because they make your life easier in many ways. My mom is over 60 and used to hate computers but now she blog everyday, upload her pictures etc. thanks to WordPress.

 

[Rogier]

Check out http://500px.com pay them $50 and be done with it....

 

[Kevin]

Exactly. Separating content and form is, for me, a bit like handing an editor a dictionary and a camera and saying "Here's my latest article."

I didn't quite understand that but I get the gist that you wish to publish articles as you have been doing up until now. What is the basic problem with the way you are currently doing things? Is it simply a layout improvement you desire or are you looking for more "features"?

 

[Gabriel M.A.]

I have a new (content-driven) idea which I think may work. I'll give it a few years -- two or three -- and if it doesn't, I'll just pull the plug on the lot. The amount of work has never been justified by the income; I'm not doing it purely as an ego trip; and if it goes, it goes.

Ah!!! Language is a funny thing: it depends on the tribe. No, not "dialect". You go to a farmers' market and ask who sells blackberries, you'll find someone who sells fruit. You go to the shopping mall and ask who sells blackberries, you'll find someone who sells cellphones.

I think we'll need to pick your brain as to what "content" and "content-driven idea" means. Je peux te donner un coup de fil, and we can hammer zis zing out. Ditez-moi.

 

[Roger Hicks]

I didn't quite understand that but I get the gist that you wish to publish articles as you have been doing up until now. What is the basic problem with the way you are currently doing things? Is it simply a layout improvement you desire or are you looking for more "features"?

Dear Kevin,

Highlight: yes, exactly.

The basic problem with the current route is simply the hassle of my sending imperfect HTML to my brother in law so that he (a) has to do more work on it and in doing so often (b) changes the look from what I want. Basically, I just want to save time for both of us. No, I certainly wouldn't want more 'features'.

Cheers,

R.

 

[Jamie123]

No disrespect to Roger, but I think his website looks very 90s basic html (i.e. outdated) so I can certainly understand the wish to update.

Roger, I think Wordpress would be a pretty good fit for what you want to do. Go for it!

 

[Kevin]

Dear Kevin,

Highlight: yes, exactly.

The basic problem with the current route is simply the hassle of my sending imperfect HTML to my brother in law so that he (a) has to do more work on it and in doing so often (b) changes the look from what I want. Basically, I just want to save time for both of us. No, I certainly wouldn't want more 'features'.

Cheers,

R.

Okay, that's clear to me now. Do you still wish to follow the home-grown strategy, write html and collaborate with your brother-in-law or would you prefer a self-service solution, as others here have been suggesting (Joomla, WordPress, etc)?

 

[Kevin]

No disrespect to Roger, but I think his website looks very 90s basic html (i.e. outdated) so I can certainly understand the wish to update.

"Dated" looking websites have surprisingly strong brand recognition and appeal in the internet space. Take for example Luigi's website (Leicatime) or even the one authored by Ken Rockwell.

 

[ampguy]

Roger, if you like old fashioned designs, then you can get even more authentic old fashioned by doing away with the straight lines and frames you currently have, with crooked boxes like this theme:

http://www.obox-design.com/demo-theme.cfm?theme=left-handed

actually, i like this theme very much, and where it's sister scribble for tumblr

 

[Roger Hicks]

Okay, that's clear to me now. Do you still wish to follow the home-grown strategy, write html and collaborate with your brother-in-law or would you prefer a self-service solution, as others here have been suggesting (Joomla, WordPress, etc)?

Dear Kevin,

Stick with brother in law if at all possible. We both travel a lot, and I couldn't fit web maintenance in with that.

It is very difficult to convey how extremely grateful I am to you and to the others who are bearing with me so patiently and slowly.

Cheers,

Roger.

 

[Gabriel M.A.]

Roger -- if you learned how to do the WordPress thing itself (if you've never done it, it can seem a little scary ---like using a manual car in rain-soaked one-lane Scottish roads for the first time---, but once you get used to it, it's extremely easy.

I could arrange to show you a quick demo (with caveats). I'm trying to set up a free-hosted WP site for my own use while I get my personal webhosting situation done with.

 

[Ade-oh]

"Dated" looking websites have surprisingly strong brand recognition and appeal in the internet space. Take for example Luigi's website (Leicatime) or even the one authored by Ken Rockwell.

Easy there, tiger! Ken's a web design genius: he must be, he keeps telling us so!

Funnily enough, faced with a similar problem to Roger, I have just enrolled myself on a course in basic web design at my local community college. It's a little over £200 for 60 hours tuition and does appear to get me a nationally recognised qualification, if I pass. I shall report back...

 

[Kevin]

Roger -- if you learned how to do the WordPress thing itself (if you've never done it, it can seem a little scary ---like using a manual car in rain-soaked one-lane Scottish roads for the first time---, but once you get used to it, it's extremely easy.

Online blogging solutions like WordPress are indeed simple and straightforward ways to perform self-service authoring and publishing, and solutions such as these usually incorporate features that you may find extremely useful:

WordPress Features