Building a Web Page

It is not very difficult to build a quality web page. But it does require time, thought, commitment, patience and planning to make a good one.

Choosing the Subject Of Your Web Page

First, what will this web page - and ultimately the web site - be about. There are literally thousands of subjects to choose from -- the only limitations being your knowledge, interest or imagination. Scour the internet for subject matter, look at the books in your home library, discover what your spouse, children or friends are talking about, look in the encyclopedia, and so forth.

Qualities Of A Good Web Page

Web pages should be:

informative,
interesting,
attractive,
easy to read and understand,
logical,
consistent,
grammatically correct, and
have a reasonably fast upload time

Getting Started Building A Web Page

After deciding what the general subject will be, make a list of specific details you'll need in order to tell your "web story". You will probably want to write and rewrite, scrutinize, ponder and write again until it seems you are making the points you intend to make.

All of this can be done on a word processor and later transferred to a text editor, or directly on a text editor. Search the internet for a text editor of your choice. They range in price from free to expensive. Also, examine their ease of use which also runs the gambit. I am now using HTML-Kit which I find very easy to use and not intrusive.

What Next

After the basic ideas are laid out and in place to your satisfaction, the next step would be html (hypertext markup language) and css (cascading style sheet) formatting. Both of these tags/languages will tell internet browsers how words and paragraphs will appear on the web page.

Is a word to be bold faced?
Is a word to be italicized?
Should the title be centered?

These are just a few of the options available as you build your web page. There are many very good sites on the internet that teach html, css, meta tags, etc. You might start with W3 Schools, Dave's Site or Website Tips, and Web-Source. All four have excellent tutorials for beginners on html and css.

Be sure to consider the advantages of incorporating cascading style sheets as you build your web page from the very beginning. It is the wave of the future, and will make it much easier when you want to make certain changes on your entire web site using only a few clicks.

It is always interesting and instructive to actually see the source document behind the web page you are viewing, especially as you are starting out on the venture of building your own web page. For instance, you can go to the "View" menu (at the very top of the page), then select "Page Source". You'll see the html tags that govern this page or any page currently in your browser window.

Using Images In Your Newly Built Web Page

You can choose to get the images you use on your web page by downloading free clip art or graphics, purchasing higher quality graphics, creating your own graphics, using digital pictures, etc. -- usually .gif or .jpg format. Do a search of the internet to find sites that discuss the pros and cons about if, when and how to use graphics.

With planning, graphics can be the just the right addition to help make your web page a joy to visit.

Be sure not to overuse images because they do slow down the loading time of your pages.

Using Colors In Your Web Page

In lieu of, or perhaps in conjunction with, graphic art, you might want to consider using color as design on your web pages. Colors have no effect on load time and can be used in many unique ways. If you have imagination or artistic ability, using color might be a perfect choice to make your web page a point of interest.

Sources for internet colors can be found at the following places: Web_Source:216 Web Safe Color Chart, Web Design Group's RGB Values Page, and Webmonkey.

Final Steps for Publishing Your Web Page

The final steps for getting the web page you have just built published on the internet include getting a domain name, finding a suitable web host and uploading your page to the internet for others to see. These are all the basics. These details and more are discussed fully at Create Your Own Web Site

Wrapping Up - Using Alternative Methods

As a rule, I enjoy the challenge of learning and doing things myself, attempting to know the ends and outs of a project from the ground up. But this philosophy is not for everyone and certainly not all the time for anyone. There are situations which require you to save time and energy and yet get a superb end result.

There are several comparatively new, top of the line, software products available which make the job of building your own web page (sites) simpler, faster, and easier. They are listed here and in more detail at creating a complete web site.

The newest software for building a website is JDD's View it and Do It web business software. It shows you exactly how to build a website so you can start or expand your business on the Internet. It's on a CD, easy to follow and easy to get your site up and running very quickly. A great concept!! Very reasonably priced.
Site Build It! (SBI!) is the only all-in-one site-building, site-hosting, and site-marketing product that makes it easy for you to build a professional, popular, and profitable business. It delivers success. You make a good choice if you choose this way!!
WebPosition Gold 3 provides results for the small business owner by providing a comprehensive set of tools for your web site - design, submit, analyze and optimize with a single solution. Get a Free Download - see for yourself!

Final Thoughts

Before you upload, be sure to check very carefully for errors. Spell check your spelling, look for typos, make sure your links are going where you intend them to go, check the looks of your color scheme. Do read your pages thoroughly, and re-read. As we all know, it is very easy to overlook our own mistakes.