Starting a website

HalfBlacko0000

HalfBlacko0000

Good Music
Hey guys I have a few questions regarding creating a website.
What's the difference between HTML and WordPress I understand HTML is coding to create a website..but what is the best route and if I got a WordPress template what do I need installed on my mac so I can make changes to the website?..I know I need a host but what's a good host? I see a lot of people use Host gator I want to be able to upload pictures, videos, drum kits, sound banks, and other digital content for purchase..so if someone could walk me through the process I'm new to the whole website building
 
HalfBlacko0000 said:
Hey guys I have a few questions regarding creating a website.
What's the difference between HTML and WordPress I understand HTML is coding to create a website..but what is the best route and if I got a WordPress template what do I need installed on my mac so I can make changes to the website?..I know I need a host but what's a good host? I see a lot of people use Host gator I want to be able to upload pictures, videos, drum kits, sound banks, and other digital content for purchase..so if someone could walk me through the process I'm new to the whole website building
Click to expand...

WordPress is a user-friendly layer on top of PHP, a type of server-side scripting language.
It's great for a site whose content is always changing.
Both my Reviews Site and my Blog are written using independent WordPress installations.
It's basically only a little bit more complicated than commenting in forums.

HTML, on the other hand, is mostly useful for static webpages, where the content doesn't change much (or the content changes are handled by a few widgets).
My Home Page is a handwritten HTML file.
The only content changes occur in the embedded myFlashStore Player and in the YouTube Player, and these updates happen automatically.
It's more advanced, but the bare-bones code loads faster than an equivalent WordPress page (a lot faster, if you check the difference in my sites).

Finally, if you create a WordPress site, you can still use some familiar HTML code to mark up your website.
WordPress has fully supported most of the HTML-based scripts and widgets I've tried to set up so far.

So, long story short:
* HTML for faster-loading static webpages (with maybe a couple of widgets of dynamic content embedded).
* WordPress for sites where the convenience of creating new content outweighs the hits to site loading speed.

-Ki
Salem Beats (+Reviews/Blog)
 
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A WordPress theme/template is mostly done for you. All you have to do is upload your photos, videos, music, etc. WordPress is customized in what WordPress calls a Dashboard. This is where you upload your content. You upload your WordPress theme to the Dashboard in WordPress. To really customize in WordPress, you need to know php.

A static HTML site is nothing more than the formatting of your website. The header first, then the nav, then the slider, then the body, then the footer of your site. What brings beauty to a static HTML site is CSS. A HTML/CSS website takes longer to develop.
 
Thanks Salem for the info
So since I'll be changing content a lot I should use the WordPress. How do you combine a WordPress theme with your host? I guess I'm not seeing the whole picture
 
Never used word press, but it looks like a safer user-friendly option, HTML 5 is where design is currently at and you can now create media devices out of code.

CSS (cascading style sheets) the main reason for a style sheet is to be able to input changes of multiple pages, so if you change text or maybe a background colour in CSS, it will alter all the pages that have that specific sheet attached to them = if you have 8 pages, you only need to alter 1 CSS sheet and all 8 change.

Coding is not easy, you only need to get one character wrong out of say 1000 and that specific functionality won't work. I've used dreamweaver in the past, even that has flaws in some web browsers (Explorer). Before you start you might want to create a wireframe on paper (a kind of rough blueprint of layout, styling and page hierarchy)What is a Wireframe? - YouTube

Free website hosts -
Free Hosting in UK with PHP and MySQL, Website Builder, No Ads
Free Web Hosting with PHP, MySQL and cPanel, No Ads

Some webhosts limit the size of each individual file you can upload to your site. You can get around this using using freeware called filezilla- FileZilla FTP Client - Setup/Install/Use [Tutorial] - YouTube once you get your head around it, filezilla is superfast and very reliable.
 
Yea I don't need anything to fancy I just wanna be able to add photos, videos, my music so I can generate some sort of income I think this weekend I'm gonna purchase a host and then the template...is there any other host you recommend I'm looking to spend no more then 10 to 15 a month..and I was told to never register your website with the host because if you leave its hard to get your stuff back
 
HalfBlacko0000 said:
Yea I don't need anything to fancy I just wanna be able to add photos, videos, my music so I can generate some sort of income I think this weekend I'm gonna purchase a host and then the template...is there any other host you recommend I'm looking to spend no more then 10 to 15 a month..and I was told to never register your website with the host because if you leave its hard to get your stuff back
Click to expand...

A list of web hosts-
Hosting Review: Compares, Rates & Reviews Best Web Hosting Companies.

I don't know about wordpress, but you do get complete control over your website with your host (excluding regulating illegal content), which means you can completely alter or remove anything you want, it isn't set in stone. I would keep a duplicate folder of content on my computer or a seperate hard drive, so if you decide to move just use whats on your computer to set up somewhere else. You could leave your old host with completely blank pages if you so desired, or better still a link to your new site. Hope this is of help.
 
HalfBlacko0000 said:
Hey guys I have a few questions regarding creating a website.
What's the difference between HTML and WordPress
Click to expand...

HTML is a web-based "programming language" used to format data for viewing in web browsers. There are several languages used to make web pages, but HTML is one of a couple 'languages' understood by your browser(with the other one being JavaScript).

PHP, Ruby/Rails, etc all work behind the scenes on the server to create custom web pages that have up-to-date data every time they are loaded - but the actual data sent to your computer is HTML/JavaScript.

WordPress is a collection of these PHP/HTML/JavaScript 'programs' which come together to form a really nice management system for blogs and other content on your web page - a Content Management System (CMS). This is an easy way for you to have private pages where you can write and review things for your web page, and then choose when to 'publish' them and make them visible to the general public visiting your site. It also provides features like post commenting, ratings, embedding videos, RSS feeds, and all sorts of other nifty tools.

Because web programming languages operate on interpreted code(the code is just in a text file and is read directly by the browser or server - there is no hidden compiled code) this means for something like WordPress you can see *all* the code for the entire system. This makes it extremely easy to modify and add/change/remove features and themes, so there are thousands of people providing thousands of themes, plugins, and site templates.

Hope this wasn't just a TL;DR! :rolleyes:

-Rob
 
html is not a language for programming but for formatting and structuring your page

it is fully defined as Hyper-Text Markup Language; the hypertext component is the ability to link to other locations from your text/images; the Markup part refers to the formatting and structure tags that are applied to your text. We have been using markup languages for a long time in word processors and other text processing programs. In fact it was the advent of the mac that saw most folks dispense with knowing the markup language that had been prevalent up to that point, opting instead for the WYSWIG

a while back we saw the advent of CSS - cascading style sheets - this removed most of the specifics about formatting from the html you write and put it into a single location in your css files

As for programming languages that are used in creating, managing and rendering web pages, in most cases you will see php used in preference to javascript, PHP (and the many variants) are known as server side programming languages, whereas javascript is a client side or browser based programming language.

A server side programming language delivers content to your browser without using the browser or your computer to compute the data used.

one of the benefits of server side programming languages is that they can deliver content that does not release your proprietary code or formatting
- hiding the details whilst sharing the content
- it can even be used to hide the location of your images and audio files

as for your current journey, halfblack, going with wordpress to begin with is not a bad idea - there is so much to learn about music let alone web development, that I think the time spent mastering the ins and outs of html, css, scripting, sql, might be better spent creating music
 
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I think your right BC, I really don't wanna learn to program I just need something eye appilling enough and easy enough to sell music that's why I'm sticking to a templatehttp://musicmakertheme.com
You think I should be alright with this?
 
Looks like a nice theme to me, as long as they keep it updated with the latest 3rd party widgets.

If i was you i'd first instal wordpress on your system as it's nice having your site local so you can try things out, troubleshoot etc. Plus you can muck around and get familiar with it before you start paying hosting costs etc.

Wordpress needs php and mysql as well as a server. OSX come with its own server (apache), and also has php installed, so you only need to instal mysql and you're good to go.
 
Yada so after I DL mysql and the template I can add everything I want as far as music and videos..it just won't be on the web yet right?
 
It should be fine for you to use that theme package, HalfBlack. It looks slick and it seems like they handle everything for you. If you want a completely hands-off site where you just upload posts or audio, that would be a good choice.

If you don't mind messing with control panels and configurations, you can set up WordPress on most hosting packages out there either by uploading some files or many have an automatic install for that system. Once installed, you can add your theme of choice, set names/styles/layouts, and start uploading files or making blog posts.

On WordPress, when you create new content, it will very clearly give you the option to 'Publish' what you're working on which will make it visible to the public. Until you press that, only you and any other 'admin' members will see it.

-Rob
 
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It makes more sense to 'initially' use a company with the right level of experience, necessary resources and general know how to help create and implement a website with your specific needs in mind. (Wordpress)

Webdesign is a career choice, and not unlike music production, it requires the similar kinds of commitment and dedication. Advanced webdesign involves mastering an expanse of user-specific software, and, at the very least, it requires a basic understanding of the most up to date code, since technologies are on the increase. (Smartphones/ipads..)

Just like music production, webdesign has it's own copyright/patent stumbling blocks, although you can still customize and add your own personal touches.
Create your own recognizable company logo just like Native Instruments/Ableton/FL Studio....
I've used adobe Photoshop and Fireworks, to create more interesting images, like animated GIFs, or headers using stylish fonts - maybe some of the cool one's 'not' considered web safe.

You might also consider. -

Page layouts. Studies suggest we read from top left to the right, then downwards left to right.

Using a 3 click rule, You should be able to navigate within your website within 3 mouse clicks.

Choosing your own colour scheme.-https://kuler.adobe.com/create/color-wheel/

Using license free images.-Stock Photos, Royalty-Free Images and Vectors - Shutterstock

Adding video content/Audio content.
It's important to choose universally recognized video/audio formats, so its easy to access or view the files.

Wordpress seems to have most of these basics covered, send your commission through post :rolleyes: just kidding Wordpress.

Oh, it may be a good idea to embed your business premises/address in google maps on your site, in your designated contacts page.

Adding external links to other websites will increase your websites appeal, links to blogs and other reviews, helpful links to manuacturers websites..etc.
 
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