Updated: 01/23/2004 05:32:56 AM               (Broken Link? Report It Here)      

Design Area

What can you learn from Design Tutorials?

Design tutorials are nothing more than one or more people passing on what they have learned from their own experiences or research efforts. My design tutorial will pass on to you what I have a learned about website building through a lot of trial and error, lots of research and loads of hints and tips I have received from visitors such as yourself.

Membership requirements for Giz Gears.

This interactive area within Giz Gears does not require an active Giz-Net Network membership in order to participate.

Step 3: Getting Space

Step 1: Deciding Content Step 2: Choosing Tools

Step 4: Picking A Webpage Layout Step 5: Creating A Basic Image Set

Do you need to get your web space now?

Absolutely not. I only made this step 3 because, depending on what HTML editor you chose, you will need a way to view what your webpage looks like as you build it. Now you could build it without worrying about how it looks until you are finished but you run the risk of having lots of errors to fix once you are done and that can be a daunting and tedious task.

Furthermore, even if you chose a WYSIWYG HTML editor your webpage still may not look exactly like what you see in the preview mode of your editor. The WYSIWYG type editors are not perfect so sometimes your webpage may actually look a little different than what you expected.

The best way to be sure is to build the webpage, post it to your web space and then view it by loading it into your browser as if you were a visitor. Then you can make whatever changes you feel are needed. Also keep in mind that a webpage will often look different in different browsers but for now we are only going to worry about how it looks in whatever browser you prefer to use.

Should you get a free web space provider or a commercial provider?

Since I am assuming that you are new to website building, my suggestion is that you get a free web space provider. This way you can try out your new hobby without worrying about losing any money should you decide to quit.

Using a free web space provider also gives you as much time as you need to become proficient at your new hobby without wasting money on web space during your trial and error period. This way you will be more proficient at your new hobby by the time you decide to rent some web space and then your rent time is spent building quality web pages instead of fumbling around trying to figure it out as you go.

What are the advantages and disadvantages of a free web space provider or a commercial provider?

There are several areas to consider when deciding the advantages and disadvantages of different types of providers. There are also several different areas to consider when choosing between the many providers within a type of provider. The table below covers a few of these areas. In the resources section, I have also posted a free web space provider comparison page that you can use to help you decide which provider to use. The list is not complete as there are many providers out there that I still have to research but it will help you get started.

Free Web Space Provider	Commercial Provider
Advantage: Cost is free	Disadvantage: Cost is not free and can be very expensive
Advantage: Nothing to lose if you change your mind	Disadvantage: Certain costs are not refundable
Disadvantage: Advertising gimmicks, such as banners & popups	Advantage: You control whether or not you advertise
Disadvantage: Tech support is often poor due to priority	Advantage: You are priority now so you get better tech support
Disadvantage: Restricted use of tools such as FTP, CGI, etc.	Advantage: Many tools come in the basic package with more possible
Disadvantage: Some search engines won't allow submission	Advantage: You choose what search engine you want to submit to

As you can see from the above list there are more disadvantages to free web space providers than there are advantages. However, as long as the cost is an advantage instead of a disadvantage then free web space providers will generally win out over the commercial public when it comes to personal websites and new website designers. Commercial providers are chosen when dealing with businesses and website designers who have made building websites a serious hobby.

Which one will you choose?

For the purpose of this tutorial, I have chosen Yahoo! GeoCities. Why? Because I used to have an account with them before Yahoo! took over so I am somewhat familiar with the workings of the provider. Also because I already have a Yahoo! account. Pick whichever one you think has the most to offer you.

What's next?

If you chose a different provider than I did, then you are finished with this step in the Design Tutorial. We have everything we need to get started now: Our content idea, our basic building tools, and our web space. Next we need to decide how we want our webpage to look. The next step in the tutorial is called "Picking a Webpage Layout".

If you decided to use the same provider I have chosen, the remainder of this step is designed to help you with the sign up procedures. If you do not have a Yahoo! ID, sign up for one by clicking here. Your Yahoo! ID comes with free email, an instant messenger account and much more. But what we are interested in is getting you the web space.

How do you register?

Assuming you have a Yahoo! ID, click here to begin the sign up process. You will be taken to the screen below. Enter your Yahoo! ID and Password and click the "Sign In" button.

The screen below will appear in your browser. Choose a topic and click the "Continue" button. This topic will determine the type of ads that appear on your website. You can also change your topic later if you wish. For my account, I chose Family.

The screen below will appear in your browser. Congratulations! You are now the proud owner of a website. Well, actually the proud owner of web space since we haven't built the website yet. Checking for your confirmation email depends upon whether you submitted an alternate email address when you signed up. If you did, the email will go to that address. If you didn't, then it will go to your Yahoo! email account.

Open the email and click the hyperlink where it says "Your main web page URL is:" My hyperlink is http://www.geocities.com/the_giznet/index.html This activates your account and you will see the webpage below. If you just type your URL into your address bar without clicking the link in the email you will receive an error page saying the page was not found.

Now what?

That's it for this step. The time has come for you to explore your new home at your leisure. Read the information in the confirmation email to get an idea of the types of tools Yahoo! GeoCities offers with their websites. Take time to play around with the tools or strike out on your own to start your webpage if you don't want to continue to the next tutorial step, which is called "Picking a Webpage Layout".

Step 1: Deciding Content Step 2: Choosing Tools

Step 4: Picking A Webpage Layout Step 5: Creating A Basic Image Set

Contributions for Giz Gears.

If you have a great web design source you would like to share, please let me know! I give credit for all sources of contributions; links, tutorials, downloads, hints, tips, etc. If you would like to see other pages added to this area, please let me know either through email or through the Forum.