Build Your Site


So by now you have spent a few hours planning for your new new website. You have registered a domain/purchased hosting and figured out how your site should be organized. Now it’s time to begin making your website. The thought of actually building a website can make many web newbies cringe and is often the biggest hurdle in their road to success.

Now here comes the fun stuff.

It can be done. I’ve built numerous websites and have tried many of the tools available online. Some cost big bucks, some charge to add cool functionality, and some charge you before you even begin building your site. But the best I’ve found can be done for free.

The best thing about free websites (outside of domain and hosting fees), if you don’t like where you end up, you can start over and try again, all for not cost.

Open Source Content Management Systems are the Key

Open source simply refers to any program whose source code is made available for use or modification as users or other developers see fit.

Search in Google of any other search engine “Open Source Content Management” You will get a number of open source providers. Below is an overview of the system that I cover on this website. Plus a few additional tutorials for free social sites that offer free services.

I know are tons of other options for building websites, but I decided to concentrate on a few of the more popular ones. However, if you would like to see a review of any other system, send me an email so I can review it and possibly add it to the list.

Wordpress

View the Tutorial

It’s an open source software originally designed for blogging but is so powerful and popular that it is being used by many business websites. It uses mySQL database as the back end. View the Tutorial

Sites Built Using Wordpress

Joomla

View the Tutorial

Joomla is an award-winning content management system (CMS), which enables you to build Web sites and powerful online applications. Many aspects, including its ease-of-use and extensibility, have made Joomla the most popular Web site software available. Best of all, Joomla is an open source solution that is freely available to everyone. View the Tutorial

Sites built using Joomla:

SiteBuilder

View the Tutorial

SiteBuilder is an easy to use, scalable web application designed to create and manage websites. SiteBuilder included are: Blog, Image Gallery, Guestbook, eShop, SitePal, Forum, Feedback, Registration, RSS Reader, Voting, Script, Area Map, File Download, SiteMap, External Page, and Flash Intro. View the Tutorial

Sites Built using SiteBuilder:

Tumblr

View the Tutorial

Tumblr is a blogging platform that allows users to post text, images, video, links, quotes, and audio to their tumblelog, a short-form blog. Users are able to “follow” other users and see their posts together on their dashboard. You can like or reblog other blogs on the site and other users can do the same to your posts. The service emphasizes customizability and ease of use. View the Tutorial

Sites Built Using Tumblr:

Posterous

View the Tutorial

Posterous lets you post things online fast using email. You email them at post@posterous.com and they reply instantly with your new posterous blog. If you can use email, you can have your own website to share thoughts and media with friends, family and the world. View the Tutorial

Sites Built using Posterous:

Blogger

View the Tutorial

Blogger is a blog publishing system. It was created by Pyra Labs, which was bought by Google in 2003. The service itself is located at www.blogger.com, and blogs that do not publish to their own websites are hosted by Google at subdomains of blogspot.com. View the Tutorial

Sites Built Using Blogger: