Building your site and GETTING IT on the Web.

If you're here, then I assume you are going to attempt building that web yourself..GOOD FOR YOU!
  
My first recommendation? 
Make sure you have a comfortable computer chair!  
You'll be sitting there many many hours.  

I think I know a little something about you.  By deciding to create your own site, I'll bet that you enjoy the computer and love a challenge, and I predict that you'll have a great deal of fun creating the site that will be YOURS and YOURS alone.  That's not to say there will not also be a great deal of frustration, because there probably will be (I still run into frustration..just not as often as in the beginning) but you will work through it and be proud that you did!

You're going to find it's much like the little guy above.  In the beginning, you are going to come across lots of brick walls.  You'll just figure out how to get over one wall, and almost immediately, there will be another..and another..and another.  Eventually though, the walls get further and further apart and smaller and eventually, YOU'LL BE A WEBDESIGNER in charge of YOUR OWN WEB!  And I'll bet you find yourself telling others..Oh, building a web is easy! 

Ha!  But that's only because time dilutes the memories of those brick walls!

IF YOU DO NOT LIKE TO READ AND FOLLOW DIRECTIONS
You might want to reconsider, and go find a good search engine.  There will be a LOT of reading and a LOT involved when you are learning webdesign.

You're still here!  Hurrah!  
Then let's get started with leaning a few boring (but informative basics) about the internet and websites.

HOST SERVERS
(gotta put that site somewhere)

When you click on a hypertext link, or put a website address in your browser's (The browser is the program you're using to view this web page, either Explorer, AOL, or Netscape) address line, it sends a request, via your modem. The request is heading to another computer, asking for a particular web page to be sent back to your computer so that you can view it.

That request heads down the phone line, stopping first at your internet access provider (the company you dial into to connect to the internet). From there it jumps onto one of their larger lines (T-1 or ISDN lines) then heads to another location where the request is directed to the right connection. It finally ends up at the specific computer (which has an identifying number) that houses the website you are seeking. The whole signal could have taken many "jumps" to reach it's destination...the final computer housing the web site which also has one of the larger connections, either a T-1 or ISDN line, or if they are really lucky, a Cable Access (almost Instant downloads). 

The computer housing that web page you requested is called a host server. Servers, because they serve the requests from various computers around the world and hosts because they are a central location often hosting hundreds of web pages. 

The original request never goes directly to someone's home computer, unless they have specially configured server computers and fast connections. Most individuals don't have the knowledge or want the technical headaches and expense of running their own "host servers". So almost all webpages are not on personal computers.  You may create your web on your computer, but for it to be accessed by others it has to be on a Host Computer with a direct link to the Information Super Highway.

Your host server could be your internet service provider (the company that you subscribe to for your dial up access, often called your ISP). Many ISP's also act as host servers, often providing "free" space for personal homepages. They usually charge "rent" to commercial websites. What you are paying for is "space" on their host computer...a certain number of Megabytes in which to house your website files, as well as their technical expertise to keep the servers running smoothly.

Your host server doesn't have to be your internet access provider. Prices for host sites vary widely, and you might find a host that offers the same host packages as someone else, for half the price. You should shop around, as not all host providers are alike, in service or in prices.

You wouldn't purchase a car from only one dealership, without doing a bit of shopping first would you? Many people are doing just that when putting their site on the internet. It's because they don't know how to shop for a host server, or even that they can.  They not only can, but they should! Prices vary widely!!

Use the internet to find out about host servers, their prices, and what they offer, then make an informed choice. You will often save money, get more space and additional features, simply because you were willing to spend some time "shopping" the net for a server to host your new website.

A great site to start your search for a host server is...Web Host Rating. This is a site that rates web hosts on the net.  Visit their site, read how they rate web hosts, and visit the sites of the Host Servers they rated. This will take some time, but it's worth it in service and savings. You've gone to a lot of trouble to create that site...start with the right host server!

And another good site to learn about hosting options - www.webhostingtalk.com

Here's still another site worth paying a visit to find more hosting options
Web Hosting Stuff - http://www.webhostingstuff.com

You might want to check out the company I use to host all my sites,  www.halfpricehosting.com.  I've been with them for almost 11 years now.  Prices are reasonable and tech support is very good.  

SO NOW YOU'VE FOUND A HOST SERVER....
where do you go from here?

Time to FIND A DOMAIN NAME!  

All Websites have a specific address (which are actually a string of numbers) called a Uniform Resource Locator (or URL for short). Since it's not practical to remember a site such as 206.47.98.2, and it's not easy to share that name with friends, someone came up with the domain name system.   The domain name system matches the URL numbers with letters...something much easier to remember.

Since that name points to a specific web site, once the name is purchased then that name is unique and will point to only one place on the net.  Your site! Just as your home address directs mail only to your house, domain names direct requests from other computers seeking that name only to your website housed on your host computer.

The five major URL endings are - .com (commercial sites), .net (often, but not always, sites dealing with the internet, such as service providers), .org (not for profit organizations), .gov (government sites), and .edu (schools and universities).

You may not use Copyrighted names...such as McDonalds, unless that is actually your name...(The name McDonalds is gone anyway). REALTOR© is of course copyrighted and their rules are that you may only use it in a domain name if you are a member of the National Association of REALTORS© and if you use your name or your company name with a - or a * between the name REALTOR©..such as www.johndoe-realtor.com. You may not use the word REALTOR© as part of a name without the dash between, such as  http://www.newyorkrealtor.com/.  The National Association of Realtors will find out and you will lose the name and the money invested.

If you have a domain name in mind, you'll want to visit www.netsol.com and click on their "who is" link at the top of the page.   You can type in a domain name idea there to see if it is available.  If so, it will often bring back who the name belongs to.  If it says "Mountainrealestate.com is available", you're in luck!

If someone has registered the name, you'll want to go back and try another name until you find one that isn't taken. Names are given on a first come first served basis.  Once a name is decided on, go ahead and purchase it through Network Solutions.  The cost is 35.00 for one year, less per year if you purchase the domain name for multiple years.

(time saving tip...millions of domain names are already gone, so don't even bother trying realestate.com, realestateweb.com, topproducer.com, and other obvious names.)

Domain names are all one word, beginning with www (world wide web), the name in the middle, and then ending in one of the extensions. There are never any spaces in a domain name, and if you don't put one in, the net will put it in for you by using a _ such as  Real_Estate.com

OK...you know all about domain names now right?

CLASS DISMISSED!
but not for long...you're only just beginning!