Web Site Development and Basic Design

So you need a web site. But how do you get started? Between the hundreds, if not thousands, of combinations of hosting companies, programming languages, style techniques, design templates, and development environment, what's a budding new online star supposed to do? Answer: you come talk to me.

The first step to any web site is to determine exactly what you're going to do with it. In many cases, just sitting down and having me interview you about goals for your web site can help to solidify a plan of action.

Once you know what you're going to do, the next step is to begin to learn what it takes to do it. I'm a big believer in working with my clients so they understand what I'm doing for them. That way, they are more informed and capable of taking an active part in the design of their site.

The biggest sticking point for most fledgling sites is figuring out how it's going to look and how best to make a site look the way you want it. In many cases, with a bit of discussion, you and I can work from sites that you like or from designs that we've sketched to make a site that's uniquely yours.

And, finally, it's time for me to get down to some programming. After the above preliminary work, I'll get to work and produce design templates which include, at the least, HyperText Markup Language (HTML) files and Cascading Style Sheets (CSS). Armed with these files, you may be able to take over the handling of your web site; many of my clients have. Or, if you'd prefer, I can work from content that you provide to finish up the the rest of the site's files