You're probably anxious to put up a nice looking, quality Web site. You have several options available to you as you decide how to create your site. The options you choose depend completely on you, your goals, interests, and resources. Some options are:
Learn about HTML and Web publishing yourself and use a text editor, HTML editor, and other tools to create your Web site. This option requires the use of FTP (File Transfer Protocol).
Use a Web site creation tool such as Microsoft® FrontPage® 2000, which allows you to create documents in a word-processing environment, and then translates your work into HTML code and uploads it to your Web server automatically.
If you choose to learn HTML yourself and code your pages by hand, the best place to start is with a beginner's HTML book or to learn about HTML through the Internet. You can create your pages using a simple text editor such as Windows Notepad, or a commercial HTML editor such as Allaire HomeSite. If you create and edit files on your desktop computer rather than through an online text editor, you will also need to use FTP to transfer them to your server.
If you would rather not learn HTML, but would still like to create your Web site yourself, a Web site creation tool such as Microsoft FrontPage 2000 is a great alternative. FrontPage 2000 allows you to create, edit, and maintain your Web site in a graphical environment and transfer your site's contents automatically without the use of FTP. If you choose this option, you'll need to purchase the FrontPage 2000 client software from Microsoft or your local software dealer. The Microsoft FrontPage Server Extensions are pre-installed on your account.
Another option is to hire an expert to create your Web site for you. Professional Web designers have extensive knowledge of HTML, as well as all the latest trends in Web site creation. Most produce very fast results. If you choose to hire a professional Web page designer to create your site for you, you will need to choose one of the following methods to publish the material:
Upload their content to your Web server through FrontPage or FTP.
Trust them with your administrative password.
Provide them with your administrative password and then change your administrative password once their work is complete.