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      CommentAuthorMartijn
    • CommentTimeApr 4th 2013
    FalkirkBairn wrote
    One of my main questions would be whether this is getting a bit ahead of myself?


    Why would you think so?
    It's not a question for us to answer, I think: only you can decide what you want or need.
    That's really the first requirement to website creation: get very clear in your mind what you want to say, what you want to offer and what you want to show. Define (even better: write down) the FUNCTION(S) of the website.
    What does it need to offer the visitor?
    WHat information is vital to get out there?

    Next think is to create (on paper) a model of what you want your website to look like: the format and layout.
    It helps indeed if you already have a template design that ahs caught your eye to base your ideas on.

    Thirdly you decide on the action content and the "interaction"(links inside and outside the web site; interlinking pages, stuff like that).

    Currently I am thinking that all WordPress themes will be administrated via the usual dashboard. Is this correct or would a theme such as this Medica need me to know more in order to use it?


    Yeah, everything is handled through the dashboard.
    Depending on the complexity of the theme, the dashboard may or may not have additional 'tools' (for example: multiple columns make for additional tool options than just one column; using 'widgets (little mini-"programs" -calendars, twitter boxes, social media functions, what have you- you can incorporate in your site) increases the number of settings per widget (which may be set/handled separately).

    I'm just wondering though why you decide on Wordpress?
    I think it's a fantastic tool, and is exceedingly customisable...but it's PRIMARY function is one of (inter)activity.
    If your goal is a static web site, why would you want to use WordPress?
    There are a great number of free as well as paid web site templates available that might suit your purposes?
    What's the added value of WordPress for you?

    Also, would this theme be available from other sites (i.e., are these sites selling themes just theme shops selling products)?


    Not entirely sure what you mean?
    A theme is indeed just a product: it's a way to dress up your standard, default WordPress installation.
    It's not bound to any provider (just as WordPress isn't).

    It all seems such a complex thing!!


    It's really not. But it all depends on what your own requirements are. I guess that at the end of the day is the really hard part! Getting the thinking out of the way! The doing is relatively easy!
    'no passion nor excitement here, despite all the notes and musicians' ~ Falkirkbairn
  1. sdtom wrote
    I'm a word press fan having used them for the past seven years and having a modicum of trouble with them. There are a large amount of themes that are free and as long as you don't require audio or video capability you get gigs of space for free as well. You're allowed to put up photos at no additional cost as well. I ended up purchasing the book word press for dummies and I found it to be extremely helpful. I could help you along the way if you wish.
    Tom

    Thanks for the offer of your help, Tom. I'll be in touch if I need some help.
    The views expressed in this post are entirely my own and do not reflect the opinions of maintitles.net, or for that matter, anyone else. http://www.racksandtags.com/falkirkbairn
  2. Thanks for the in-depth reply Martijn: very useful for focusing my mind! I think that one of my main concerns is that the sites that appeal look quite complex and I assume that I require a level of knowledge that is a step-up from something like a WordPress blog to a website proper (even using WordPress as a template). This concern is really as a result of my lack of experience with all things website-y.

    Martijn wrote
    That's really the first requirement to website creation: get very clear in your mind what you want to say, what you want to offer and what you want to show...

    I think that I have what I want to do pretty clear in my mind - to have a "footprint" on the internet where I can, 1) summarise my capabilities and what I have to offer, 2) briefly detail my experience and show how that experience can deliver what customers would want, and 3) to provide a way for potential clients to contact me. So, I think that that's a basis for what I want to have in a website, and the example I showed with the Medica template for WordPress is a good example of what I want: a "homepage" with tabbed sections that cover the points I want to express. I am not looking for things like social media linking to Facebook or Twitter as I do not want to have an ongoing blog-type presence for my work.

    There is the potential for me to act as a place where people come to find the latest news on my particular field - wound care - but that would be a mammoth task to keep up-to-date. I don't think that I could keep that sort of thing current and (currently) I feel I want to focus on what I can offer rather than have any site content being present but out-of-date.

    Martijn wrote
    I'm just wondering though why you decide on Wordpress?

    That's a good question! In the arena of internet presence WordPress is something that I am familiar with. This is the main reason. I am reasonably familiar with the dashboard and this familiarity has led me to assume that using WordPress would be the best way forward for someone who has no experience with setting up and running a "proper" website. I have this assumption that in order for me to set up a website I would need to become familiar with a program that would allow me to create and publish a website (and to administer as well.) I probably did not realise that there were website templates I could use.

    FalkirkBairn wrote
    Also, would this theme be available from other sites (i.e., are these sites selling themes just theme shops selling products)?

    Martijn wrote
    Not entirely sure what you mean?

    I was asking clumsily whether the same WordPress templates would be available from a number of these template-offering sites. Could I "shop around" for the Medica template if this was the template I favoured?

    Finding a template and setting it up doesn't seem easy part to me - the content is the easy part for me at the moment it seems! - but that's down to my inexperience.
    The views expressed in this post are entirely my own and do not reflect the opinions of maintitles.net, or for that matter, anyone else. http://www.racksandtags.com/falkirkbairn
  3. And by using WordPress via the people I currently have my email address with, I would be able to keep my current email address.

    If I created my own website, would I still be able to have it hosted by them (they do not have their own website-creating tools)?
    The views expressed in this post are entirely my own and do not reflect the opinions of maintitles.net, or for that matter, anyone else. http://www.racksandtags.com/falkirkbairn
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      CommentAuthorMartijn
    • CommentTimeApr 4th 2013 edited
    FalkirkBairn wrote
    Thanks for the in-depth reply Martijn: very useful for focusing my mind! I think that one of my main concerns is that the sites that appeal look quite complex and I assume that I require a level of knowledge that is a step-up from something like a WordPress blog to a website proper (even using WordPress as a template). This concern is really as a result of my lack of experience with all things website-y.


    What you'll probably find is that that template contains a great amount of functionality that you simply won't use and will cut out. That may well mean you'll find yourself paying for a template that aesthetically may look good but at the end of the day is rather overpriced for what you get out of it (but only you can make that call).

    Have you had a good look through the templates stats and do they fulfill your needs? Or is it massive overkill? Look through all the options at the right hand side. Will you use them or some of them? If so, do they justify the quite heavy price?

    At the end of the day the question is: does the price warrant the functionality that YOU need?
    Will it make your life easier?
    Will it make setting up and administration easier?
    DOes it give you the tweaking and customisation options that you need?

    To answer these questions you already need to have very clearly in your mind what your site is going to look like.
    You made a good step by listing your requirements, and it seems you have your content sorted out as well.
    So what is left is Step 2: go sit down for an evening, and simply create a model. On paper.
    Sketch what needs to go where. How pages interact. What the user will see.

    Then, at step 2.5 (yeah, I'm cheating by inserting substeps wink ) if at all possible, SHOW your sketches to an internet-savvy person. Do you count among your friends a web developer? A professional (or highly experienced) blogger? Is there a cousin or friendly neighbour who is webmaster of the Dalek Appreciation Society's web site?
    Let them/him have a look and make a rough estimate of the effort involved.

    Then match all that input to the template you want to buy.
    If there's a match (doesn't need to be one-on-one, just enough to fit your stuff), then you're in business.
    If not, it pays to keep on looking at templates that may fit your needs better.
    You're probably already aware of this, but this is a really good start for customisable inspiration!


    I understand your preference for WordPress and indeed even if it's not intended originally for static websites, there's no reason NOT to set it up like that. I'd say it's a definite plus that you are already aware of its workings, rather than having to start from scratch.

    Shopping around for the same template is amost always pointless: these are unique templates that are developed in house and sold through the developer's company or outlet. Even if they are sold elsewhere (which is highly unlikely) you'll pay the same price.
    'no passion nor excitement here, despite all the notes and musicians' ~ Falkirkbairn
    •  
      CommentAuthorMartijn
    • CommentTimeApr 4th 2013 edited
    FalkirkBairn wrote
    And by using WordPress via the people I currently have my email address with, I would be able to keep my current email address.

    If I created my own website, would I still be able to have it hosted by them (they do not have their own website-creating tools)?


    In a word: yes.

    Your mail or hosting address have NOTHING to do with whatever you PUT on a site (be it wordpress, joomla, a static site or nothing at all): the e-mail address is part of the hosting package. Not the content.

    E.g. if you purchased -hypothetically- Falkirkbairn.co.uk, that purchase, either included in the hosting deal or added for an additional fee, allows you to start using any mail address based on that URL. Usually this is set up with the inital mail address of "info" (so in this case info@falkirkbairn.co.uk), but you can change and add to that to your heart's content.

    EDIT: upon re-reading, maybe I misunderstood your question (probably because I don't fully understand how a hosting company could host a wordpress site but no other kind of site? That just makes no sense? ). But even if and when you'd host your site somewhere else ENTIRELY, why wouldn't you continue to use your current mail address?

    I'm just not entirely sure what the issue is here (if any!).
    'no passion nor excitement here, despite all the notes and musicians' ~ Falkirkbairn