BJ Clark | Stinking Desert Ceramics on sun 28 aug 05
I can only reccomend the phone book.
What your talking about is ecommerce. It's not something you can learn in a=
=20
day, week, or even month.
Hire a professional.
BJ Clark
(who does ecomm to pay his way through college, and most of his clients hav=
e=20
wasted lots of time/money trying to DIY)
--=20
BJ Clark
Stinking Desert Ceramics
bjclark@stinkingdesert.com
www.stinkingdesert.com
On 8/28/05, Paul B wrote:
>=20
> A friend of mine was going to have a computer tech who works for him buil=
d
> a site for me last year but his job got to be too much for him so the pla=
n
> is on hold, but i do have the domain and a "landing page", so the site is
> technically on-line already and i even have the on-line credit card=20
> payment
> set up. But nothing else is on the site and to date all it amounts to is =
a
> web hosting bill every month so i think i have to learn to do all this
> myself, at least i have a start.
> All i really want to do is have pictures of my pottery that can be
> purchased on line, and then some pictures of my studio.
> Can anyone recommend a book i just purchase and read that would provide=
=20
> the
> info i need to get things rolling? The one advantage i have is that i=20
> could
> ask the computer tech dude some questions here and there and he could hel=
p
> out from time to time, he just can't do the project for me due to time
> constraints. So i am thinking this is a good thing as it will force me to
> learn such a valuable skill, i know there are potters out there who have
> done this.
> Any help most greatly appreciated!
> thanks,
> Paul
>=20
>=20
> _________________________________________________________________________=
_____
> Send postings to clayart@lsv.ceramics.org
>=20
> You may look at the archives for the list or change your subscription
> settings from http://www.ceramics.org/clayart/
>=20
> Moderator of the list is Mel Jacobson who may be reached at=20
> melpots@pclink.com.
>
Paul B on sun 28 aug 05
A friend of mine was going to have a computer tech who works for him build
a site for me last year but his job got to be too much for him so the plan
is on hold, but i do have the domain and a "landing page", so the site is
technically on-line already and i even have the on-line credit card payment
set up. But nothing else is on the site and to date all it amounts to is a
web hosting bill every month so i think i have to learn to do all this
myself, at least i have a start.
All i really want to do is have pictures of my pottery that can be
purchased on line, and then some pictures of my studio.
Can anyone recommend a book i just purchase and read that would provide the
info i need to get things rolling? The one advantage i have is that i could
ask the computer tech dude some questions here and there and he could help
out from time to time, he just can't do the project for me due to time
constraints. So i am thinking this is a good thing as it will force me to
learn such a valuable skill, i know there are potters out there who have
done this.
Any help most greatly appreciated!
thanks,
Paul
MudPuppy on sun 28 aug 05
I'd recommend a book on HTML by Laura LeMay.
Not sure what versions are out there these days, and there is so miuch =
more than HTML around now, but her books are great.
You can take a look at my web stuff at http://www.box49.com and if =
anything catches your eye I could help you get something up and going :)
Cathi Newlin, Mercer, Mo
MudPuppy@box49.com
http://www.SquarePegArts.com
----- Original Message -----=20
From: Paul B=20
To: CLAYART@LSV.CERAMICS.ORG=20
Sent: Sunday, August 28, 2005 1:30 PM
Subject: NEED A BOOK ON WEBSITE CONSTRUCTION
A friend of mine was going to have a computer tech who works for him =
build
a site for me last year but his job got to be too much for him so the =
plan
is on hold, but i do have the domain and a "landing page", so the site =
is
technically on-line already and i even have the on-line credit card =
payment
set up. But nothing else is on the site and to date all it amounts to =
is a
web hosting bill every month so i think i have to learn to do all this
myself, at least i have a start.
All i really want to do is have pictures of my pottery that can be
purchased on line, and then some pictures of my studio.
Can anyone recommend a book i just purchase and read that would =
provide the
info i need to get things rolling? The one advantage i have is that i =
could
ask the computer tech dude some questions here and there and he could =
help
out from time to time, he just can't do the project for me due to time
constraints. So i am thinking this is a good thing as it will force me =
to
learn such a valuable skill, i know there are potters out there who =
have
done this.
Any help most greatly appreciated!
thanks,
Paul
=
_________________________________________________________________________=
_____
Send postings to clayart@lsv.ceramics.org
You may look at the archives for the list or change your subscription
settings from http://www.ceramics.org/clayart/
Moderator of the list is Mel Jacobson who may be reached at =
melpots@pclink.com.
syrylyn on mon 29 aug 05
I used Netscape composer, which is about on the same level as front page. It
comes with the Netscape browser. (except you can't mix the two, sizes seem
to change). I know nothing about HTML. As someone else suggested, you need
to find a shopping cart method to sell your stuff. That's something I
haven't tackled. I have heard that my web site is fine, but I'm not sure
how "professional" it is, but it is attractive-so I've been told.
Sandy Meadors
syrylyn@iq.quik.com
http://syrylynrainbowdragon.tripod.com/arts.html
"Magic Happens"
you can buy Front Page software which makes it easy
> to create a web page.
Rick on mon 29 aug 05
You can easily learn some basic HTML, and be able to make some simple
pages, but that really wont help with what you need right now.
What you really need, is install on your site a good shopping cart
program that you will feel comfortable with. The right program will
help you and let you post pics of an object, and asign a price to it.
Depending on your hosting package, you may even have such a program
preinstalled, or available for a small fee. If so, it should be very
easy to get it working. If not, you will certainly need someone to
install it for you. Then you can use simple html pages for background
info, contact list, and so on. Just be sure to match fonts, and colors
from one type of page to the other, so they blend together as a whole.
Then even if your site isnt completely professional looking, at least
it wont look completely amaturish either. This will get your site
functional and generating income in a fairly short time, and after
that you can work on improving its appearance.
Hope this helps a bit.
Rick
--- In clayart@yahoogroups.com, Paul B wrote:
> A friend of mine was going to have a computer tech who works for him
build
> a site for me last year but his job got to be too much for him so
the plan
> is on hold, but i do have the domain and a "landing page", so the
site is
> technically on-line already and i even have the on-line credit card
payment
> set up. But nothing else is on the site and to date all it amounts
to is a
> web hosting bill every month so i think i have to learn to do all this
> myself, at least i have a start.
> All i really want to do is have pictures of my pottery that can be
> purchased on line, and then some pictures of my studio.
> Can anyone recommend a book i just purchase and read that would
provide the
> info i need to get things rolling? The one advantage i have is that
i could
> ask the computer tech dude some questions here and there and he
could help
> out from time to time, he just can't do the project for me due to time
> constraints. So i am thinking this is a good thing as it will force
me to
> learn such a valuable skill, i know there are potters out there who have
> done this.
> Any help most greatly appreciated!
> thanks,
> Paul
>
>
______________________________________________________________________________
> Send postings to clayart@l...
>
> You may look at the archives for the list or change your subscription
> settings from http://www.ceramics.org/clayart/
>
> Moderator of the list is Mel Jacobson who may be reached at melpots@p...
Steve Irvine on mon 29 aug 05
Paul,
I'd recommend "HTML For The World Wide Web" by Elizabeth Castro, publ. Peachpit. This book has
all the information you'll need to get your photos and text online. It's written in a step by step
format that is logical and easy to understand.
Once you get a bit more into web design, you could try "Cascading Style Sheets The Definitive
Guide" by Eric Meyer, publ. O'Reilly. This book will teach you how to format just about any layout
you could imagine.
Hope this helps. Good luck with your website!
Steve
http://www.steveirvine.com
On Sun, 28 Aug 2005 14:30:55 -0400, Paul B wrote:
>All i really want to do is have pictures of my pottery that can be
>purchased on line, and then some pictures of my studio.
>Can anyone recommend a book i just purchase and read that would provide the
>info i need to get things rolling?
>thanks,
>Paul
June Kinsinger on mon 29 aug 05
Good Morning gang, I have also developed a web page for our store which is a coop of local artists. Everything is hand made and what I have found is no matter how nice your web pages look, the trick is getting it out there on the major search enguins. Since we are a coop, we have a very low, if not at all, budget for these monthly charges. We are getting a very slow increase in out hits but still not enough to support the monthly charge of te hosting. What I have been told is you need to have meta tags and search words to list you in the top listings of the enguines.
I have a gentleman that has donated time to help us since many of the artists have donated to a local school charity auction. Will have to get with him and get going now that my computer is fixed.
Good luck to everyone and any sugestions wold be most helpful and appreciated.
Visis our websight and comment if you like.
June Kinsinger
Archway Artisans
www.archwayartisans.com
Centerville, IN
-----Original Message-----
From: Rick
To: CLAYART@LSV.CERAMICS.ORG
Sent: Mon, 29 Aug 2005 04:46:19 -0000
Subject: Re: NEED A BOOK ON WEBSITE CONSTRUCTION
You can easily learn some basic HTML, and be able to make some simple
pages, but that really wont help with what you need right now.
What you really need, is install on your site a good shopping cart
program that you will feel comfortable with. The right program will
help you and let you post pics of an object, and asign a price to it.
Depending on your hosting package, you may even have such a program
preinstalled, or available for a small fee. If so, it should be very
easy to get it working. If not, you will certainly need someone to
install it for you. Then you can use simple html pages for background
info, contact list, and so on. Just be sure to match fonts, and colors
from one type of page to the other, so they blend together as a whole.
Then even if your site isnt completely professional looking, at least
it wont look completely amaturish either. This will get your site
functional and generating income in a fairly short time, and after
that you can work on improving its appearance.
Hope this helps a bit.
Rick
--- In clayart@yahoogroups.com, Paul B wrote:
> A friend of mine was going to have a computer tech who works for him
build
> a site for me last year but his job got to be too much for him so
the plan
> is on hold, but i do have the domain and a "landing page", so the
site is
> technically on-line already and i even have the on-line credit card
payment
> set up. But nothing else is on the site and to date all it amounts
to is a
> web hosting bill every month so i think i have to learn to do all this
> myself, at least i have a start.
> All i really want to do is have pictures of my pottery that can be
> purchased on line, and then some pictures of my studio.
> Can anyone recommend a book i just purchase and read that would
provide the
> info i need to get things rolling? The one advantage i have is that
i could
> ask the computer tech dude some questions here and there and he
could help
> out from time to time, he just can't do the project for me due to time
> constraints. So i am thinking this is a good thing as it will force
me to
> learn such a valuable skill, i know there are potters out there who have
> done this.
> Any help most greatly appreciated!
> thanks,
> Paul
>
>
______________________________________________________________________________
> Send postings to clayart@l...
>
> You may look at the archives for the list or change your subscription
> settings from http://www.ceramics.org/clayart/
>
> Moderator of the list is Mel Jacobson who may be reached at melpots@p...
______________________________________________________________________________
Send postings to clayart@lsv.ceramics.org
You may look at the archives for the list or change your subscription
settings from http://www.ceramics.org/clayart/
Moderator of the list is Mel Jacobson who may be reached at melpots@pclink.com.
June Perry on mon 29 aug 05
There are web sites which give free html instruction. You can just do a
google search to find them.
Also, for around $65-$75 you can buy Front Page software which makes it easy
to create a web page. It converts your text to html code as you type. You
can select it's page layouts or create your own. It's a good and very easy
program to use if you're not bent on learning HTML or don't want to pay for a
professional to create your page.
Good luck!
June Perry
_http://www.angelfire.com/art2/shambhalapottery_
(http://www.angelfire.com/art2/shambhalapottery)
Tony Ferguson on mon 29 aug 05
Rick,
Can we see your website?
Tony Ferguson
Rick wrote:
You can easily learn some basic HTML, and be able to make some simple
pages, but that really wont help with what you need right now.
What you really need, is install on your site a good shopping cart
program that you will feel comfortable with. The right program will
help you and let you post pics of an object, and asign a price to it.
Depending on your hosting package, you may even have such a program
preinstalled, or available for a small fee. If so, it should be very
easy to get it working. If not, you will certainly need someone to
install it for you. Then you can use simple html pages for background
info, contact list, and so on. Just be sure to match fonts, and colors
from one type of page to the other, so they blend together as a whole.
Then even if your site isnt completely professional looking, at least
it wont look completely amaturish either. This will get your site
functional and generating income in a fairly short time, and after
that you can work on improving its appearance.
Hope this helps a bit.
Rick
--- In clayart@yahoogroups.com, Paul B
wrote:
> A friend of mine was going to have a computer tech who works for him
build
> a site for me last year but his job got to be too much for him so
the plan
> is on hold, but i do have the domain and a "landing page", so the
site is
> technically on-line already and i even have the on-line credit card
payment
> set up. But nothing else is on the site and to date all it amounts
to is a
> web hosting bill every month so i think i have to learn to do all this
> myself, at least i have a start.
> All i really want to do is have pictures of my pottery that can be
> purchased on line, and then some pictures of my studio.
> Can anyone recommend a book i just purchase and read that would
provide the
> info i need to get things rolling? The one advantage i have is that
i could
> ask the computer tech dude some questions here and there and he
could help
> out from time to time, he just can't do the project for me due to time
> constraints. So i am thinking this is a good thing as it will force
me to
> learn such a valuable skill, i know there are potters out there who have
> done this.
> Any help most greatly appreciated!
> thanks,
> Paul
>
>
______________________________________________________________________________
> Send postings to clayart@l...
>
> You may look at the archives for the list or change your subscription
> settings from http://www.ceramics.org/clayart/
>
> Moderator of the list is Mel Jacobson who may be reached at melpots@p...
______________________________________________________________________________
Send postings to clayart@lsv.ceramics.org
You may look at the archives for the list or change your subscription
settings from http://www.ceramics.org/clayart/
Moderator of the list is Mel Jacobson who may be reached at melpots@pclink.com.
Tony Ferguson
...where the sky meets the lake...
Duluth, Minnesota
Artist, Educator, Web Meister
fergyart@yahoo.com
fergy@cpinternet.com
(218) 727-6339
http://www.aquariusartgallery.com
http://www.tonyferguson.net
__________________________________________________
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Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around
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Carole Fox on mon 29 aug 05
Depends on the toolset you want to use to build and maintain the site. I
found the book Microsoft FrontPage 2000 quite useful in learning to use
FrontPage 2000. It has a quick start section for building a basic site
quickly without a lot of knowledge, as well as lots of detailed reference
material and examples for doing more advanced things. There are versions
of this title available for FrontPage 2002 and FrontPage 2003 - if you buy
it, you'll want to make sure the version matches your software.
You can always build the site using FrontPage, and edit or add to the
generated HTML if you want or need to to get an effect that FrontPage
doesn't provide. I don't recommend trying to use the templates that come
with the FrontPage software - they are too restrictive and difficult to
modify. I would start from scratch.
Carole Fox
Dayton, OH
D M Serley on mon 29 aug 05
Paul -
Normally I would have responded off list, but I think what I have to say
is probably worth having in the archives. Your request for web help
brings up several notable issues.
There are lots of "websites for dummies" type of books out there. Most
are very good. Its hard to recommend one above another, because every
reader/student learns in a different manner. And there is a difference
between learning about web design and learning the code used to build a
site.
First, learn a bit about web design. Your site will be the first
impression that lots of folks will have of you. You want to look
professional, which doesn't necessarily mean formal or antiseptic. But
an unprofessional site is the kiss of death. I am a partner in a company
that makes sites for artists, small businesses and non-profits. Most of
our customers come to us with no site or with one they (or their spouse,
best friend, friend-of-a-friend) made. The clients with no site are much
easier to work with. We all want to believe that what we (or those we
love) have made is wonderful. My family thinks the mugs I've thrown are
wonderful. But just about anyone who reads this list could tell you they
are crap - bottom heavy, misshapen and aesthetically unpleasing. They
may hold water, but that doesn't mean they are good mugs. The same is
true for websites. Just because Cousin Sue read a book about HTML, it
doesn't mean that she knows how to make a site.
A book I'd recommend for the basics of web design is Robin Williams'
(no, not /*that */Robin Williams) Non-Designers Web Book
.
This will lead you to other web design books.
Next, its time to move on to coding the site. HTML is the basic language
of the web. HTML for Dummies
,
or a similar type of book is a good place to start. You can also learn
some of the basics of HTML online at the W3Schools
.
You will also need a program to help you build the pages. A great,
/*free*/, program is Arachnophilia
. Assuming you use a PC, not a
Mac, you can use the Notepad built into Windows - or go out and buy an
HTML editor like Front Page (which I generally don't like), HotDog
(which I learned with years ago), or even PhotoShop (if you happen to
have $800+ to spare). Arachnophilia can do everything that a basic HTML
coder needs. there's no need to pay if you don't have to.
HTML is just the start of learning about writing the code for a site,
but you can make a professional site with nothing more. If you want to
do something more advanced in your design you will probably want to
learn about CSS (Cascading Style Sheets). CSS is a method for separating
the content (words) from the layout (images, colors, etc). A good
beginners tutorial can be found at the W3Schools. Eric Myer on CSS
,
is probably the best book to start with. Its not too hard to read and
understand, and Myer is one of the gods of CSS. To get a sens of the
power of CSS you can check out CSS Zen Garden
. The Garden is a
collection of demo pages that web designers have submitted. The
intriguing thing is that the code for each page is exactly the same -
yet each pages is amazingly unique.
And dont forget to read up on e-commerce solutions. E-commerce for
Dummies
is a decent place to start.
Next you have to plan the structure of your site. Don't just plop a
bunch o' pages up on the web. Think about how you want the visitors to
navigate through your site. How are you going to lead them to a
successful resolution (i.e., buying your wares)? Dont' Make Me Think by
Steve Krug
is a great book for this.
Next make sure that the images that you take of your wares are uniform
in lighting, background color, and size. And edit/resize your images so
that they aren't large is MB size, no matter what the width x height
size. There are still a lot of people out there who have dial-up
Internet connections and large image files will take a long time to
load. The optimal image file size for a dial-up user is between 10 and
20kb per file (assuming that you are going to have a page with many
small images on it). That's very small!
Finally, register your domain name and sign up with a hosting company. I
recommend GoDaddy for both. They are cheap,
good with customer service, and I've never had a site go down.
Now, having said all this.... you mentioned that you already have an
e-commerce store through your web hosting company. Most hosting
companies offer a cheap and easy "do-it-yourself" wizard for setting up
your shop. It probably came as a freebie with your hosting package. Use
it. You'll be ready to go in an evening's work.
Oh, and I know this marks me as a pedantic dweed, but to all those who
might read this posting in years to come....its a web "site", not a web
"sight". ;-)
Diane Serley
(clayart lurker and webmaster)
Paul B wrote:
> i think i have to learn to do all this
>myself, at least i have a start.
>All i really want to do is have pictures of my pottery that can be
>purchased on line, and then some pictures of my studio.
>Can anyone recommend a book i just purchase and read that would provide the
>info i need to get things rolling?
>
>
Tony Ferguson on mon 29 aug 05
Paul,
I agree with BJ. But if you have the time, get yourself Frontpage or Dreamweaver. And yes, it will the 2-3" books (at the binding) you will need. Also, some basic html books will help to. And then theres Flash, learning CSS (which I am in the process finally!) and a plethera of other web related technologies--but keeping your website simple and easily navigable I think is key as well as clean design. I do not recommend a shopping cart. Do you see shopping carts at galleries? Emails from potential buyers about your work gives you the opportunity to communicate. My mother had a store. We talked to the customers, eduated them about what we were selling--they bought, tried, and came back. Shopping carts, in my opinion, are a pain. However, I think paypal has a very simple setup. None the less, it requires more maintenance.
Anyway, I knew I couldn't afford paying someone to do what I wanted to do with http://www.aquariusartgallery.com and other ecommerce ideas I had, so I taught myself--it took time away from pots but I was determined to figure it out. Keep in mind, in college and before in high school, I was a computer geek, learned programming, setup and administered networks, trained people on software, etc. But if you have a can do attitude and are patient, go for it. My view has always been this: I will figure it out eventually.
Tony Ferguson
http://www.tonyferguson.net
BJ Clark | Stinking Desert Ceramics wrote:
I can only reccomend the phone book.
What your talking about is ecommerce. It's not something you can learn in a
day, week, or even month.
Hire a professional.
BJ Clark
(who does ecomm to pay his way through college, and most of his clients have
wasted lots of time/money trying to DIY)
--
BJ Clark
Stinking Desert Ceramics
bjclark@stinkingdesert.com
www.stinkingdesert.com
On 8/28/05, Paul B
wrote:
>
> A friend of mine was going to have a computer tech who works for him build
> a site for me last year but his job got to be too much for him so the plan
> is on hold, but i do have the domain and a "landing page", so the site is
> technically on-line already and i even have the on-line credit card
> payment
> set up. But nothing else is on the site and to date all it amounts to is a
> web hosting bill every month so i think i have to learn to do all this
> myself, at least i have a start.
> All i really want to do is have pictures of my pottery that can be
> purchased on line, and then some pictures of my studio.
> Can anyone recommend a book i just purchase and read that would provide
> the
> info i need to get things rolling? The one advantage i have is that i
> could
> ask the computer tech dude some questions here and there and he could help
> out from time to time, he just can't do the project for me due to time
> constraints. So i am thinking this is a good thing as it will force me to
> learn such a valuable skill, i know there are potters out there who have
> done this.
> Any help most greatly appreciated!
> thanks,
> Paul
>
>
> ______________________________________________________________________________
> Send postings to clayart@lsv.ceramics.org
>
> You may look at the archives for the list or change your subscription
> settings from http://www.ceramics.org/clayart/
>
> Moderator of the list is Mel Jacobson who may be reached at
> melpots@pclink.com.
>
______________________________________________________________________________
Send postings to clayart@lsv.ceramics.org
You may look at the archives for the list or change your subscription
settings from http://www.ceramics.org/clayart/
Moderator of the list is Mel Jacobson who may be reached at melpots@pclink.com.
Tony Ferguson
...where the sky meets the lake...
Duluth, Minnesota
Artist, Educator, Web Meister
fergyart@yahoo.com
fergy@cpinternet.com
(218) 727-6339
http://www.aquariusartgallery.com
http://www.tonyferguson.net
---------------------------------
Do you Yahoo!?
Yahoo! Mail - You care about security. So do we.
Rick on mon 29 aug 05
--- In clayart@yahoogroups.com, Tony Ferguson wrote:
> Rick,
>
> Can we see your website?
>
> Tony Ferguson
>
>
You can, but there is not much there to see now. My site was a
commercial site to help support my political interest (Teen and youth
rights). But I have retired from that now, so my site is presently
dormant, and I am using the welcome page as a bookmarks list. Behind
that, I host a sub domain that my fiance and I work on sometimes, and
a few web features that I use for myself or my other groups. In
reserve on the site, I still have 450 meg of space, a terrabyte of
monthly bandwidth allowance, and many preinstalled programs that I can
set up and use within minutes, for if and when I start a new
commercial venture, or if I host any other sub domains. (All
preinstalled programs can also be used by any hosted sub domains.)
My site is at http://www.blackpaladin.com . My hosted site is at
http://castleofthedragon.blackpaladin.com/ .
If you go to my site, and use the "View page source" function of your
browser, you can see some brief examples of meta headers intended to
help with rating services and search engines. Some commercial sites
overload their meta headers with truckloads of keywords, often
repeating them many times. But the major search engines are getting
away from relying on such headers, and are focusing more on the number
of other sites linking to a given site, and on actual word searches of
the site. They still view the keyword headers, but they apply less
"weight" to them. The engines also have a certain amount of lag time
between when you change a site, untill the time those changes are
reflected in the engine listings. They claim a lag of up to 6 months,
but in my experience its been more like a few days for existing sites,
to a few weeks for new pages and sites.
BTW, that page and others were created with a CARE WARE program called
Arachnophilia. Its a great program I use for almost all my editing.
Dont get me wrong, I am no professional at web work. It always gives
me headaches. But I've been at it for several years, and have learned
a few things along the way.
If I can help anyone, I'll be glad to give any help I can. But rather
than continue an off-topic thread, maybe it would be better to contact
me off-list by email.
Rick
Tony Ferguson on mon 29 aug 05
Rick,
You know a thing or too--go buy Frontpage (much cheaper than Dreamweaver but many of my friends use Dreamweaver). You will easily beable to pull your site into Frontpage and then edit, for the most part. Knowing a thing or two about HTML is very very helpful when you run into a snag and need to edit in html, but don't worry about it. You will figure out what you need to learn along the way.
Tony Ferguson
http://www.tonyferguson.net
Rick wrote:
--- In clayart@yahoogroups.com, Tony Ferguson wrote:
> Rick,
>
> Can we see your website?
>
> Tony Ferguson
>
>
You can, but there is not much there to see now. My site was a
commercial site to help support my political interest (Teen and youth
rights). But I have retired from that now, so my site is presently
dormant, and I am using the welcome page as a bookmarks list. Behind
that, I host a sub domain that my fiance and I work on sometimes, and
a few web features that I use for myself or my other groups. In
reserve on the site, I still have 450 meg of space, a terrabyte of
monthly bandwidth allowance, and many preinstalled programs that I can
set up and use within minutes, for if and when I start a new
commercial venture, or if I host any other sub domains. (All
preinstalled programs can also be used by any hosted sub domains.)
My site is at http://www.blackpaladin.com . My hosted site is at
http://castleofthedragon.blackpaladin.com/ .
If you go to my site, and use the "View page source" function of your
browser, you can see some brief examples of meta headers intended to
help with rating services and search engines. Some commercial sites
overload their meta headers with truckloads of keywords, often
repeating them many times. But the major search engines are getting
away from relying on such headers, and are focusing more on the number
of other sites linking to a given site, and on actual word searches of
the site. They still view the keyword headers, but they apply less
"weight" to them. The engines also have a certain amount of lag time
between when you change a site, untill the time those changes are
reflected in the engine listings. They claim a lag of up to 6 months,
but in my experience its been more like a few days for existing sites,
to a few weeks for new pages and sites.
BTW, that page and others were created with a CARE WARE program called
Arachnophilia. Its a great program I use for almost all my editing.
Dont get me wrong, I am no professional at web work. It always gives
me headaches. But I've been at it for several years, and have learned
a few things along the way.
If I can help anyone, I'll be glad to give any help I can. But rather
than continue an off-topic thread, maybe it would be better to contact
me off-list by email.
Rick
______________________________________________________________________________
Send postings to clayart@lsv.ceramics.org
You may look at the archives for the list or change your subscription
settings from http://www.ceramics.org/clayart/
Moderator of the list is Mel Jacobson who may be reached at melpots@pclink.com.
Tony Ferguson
...where the sky meets the lake...
Duluth, Minnesota
Artist, Educator, Web Meister
fergyart@yahoo.com
fergy@cpinternet.com
(218) 727-6339
http://www.aquariusartgallery.com
http://www.tonyferguson.net
__________________________________________________
Do You Yahoo!?
Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around
http://mail.yahoo.com
Carole Fox on mon 29 aug 05
Sorry, I just noticed that I mis-typed the name of the book I recommended
in my previous post. The correct title is Microsoft FrontPage 2000 Bible.
The authors are Elderbrock and Karlins.
Carole Fox
Dayton, OH
bonnie staffel on mon 29 aug 05
I have the book Microsoft FrontPage 2000 which looks pretty thorough. I
bought it with the purpose of learning how to do it. However, my webmaster
suggested that I keep making pots and let him make my web page. Just
looking through it though it looks quite thorough. I believe my webmaster
used it when he was first starting out. It is written by Ned Snell. There
may be a later edition too.
I am afraid the computer language and I don't mesh. So I just write the
text and my very kind webmaster sets it up.
Check it out, it may be just what you are looking for.
Regards,
Bonnie Staffel
http://webpages.charter.net/bstaffel/
http://vasefinder.com/bstaffelgallery1.html
Charter Member Potters Council
MudPuppy on mon 29 aug 05
One issue with Front Page is that you need to make sure your hosting =
service supports it, otherwise, well, you may be SOL. The same is true =
with PHP, CGI and SQL utilities.
You will also want to make sure, if you are intending to accept credit =
card charges, that your server uses a Secure Socket Layer.
If your hosting service provides PHP and SQL support, you may be able to =
use one of a number of shopping cart scripts available either free or =
for some lisence fee. There are tons out there and most have extremely =
easy step-by-step installations. You might also contact your ISP or =
hosting service and see what they offer.
All in all, there are as many ways to set up a sell-an-item website than =
there are ways to throw a ball of clay :)
Cathi Newlin, Mercer, Mo
MudPuppy@box49.com
http://www.SquarePegArts.com
----- Original Message -----=20
From: bonnie staffel=20
To: CLAYART@LSV.CERAMICS.ORG=20
Sent: Monday, August 29, 2005 5:52 PM
Subject: NEED A BOOK ON WEBSITE CONSTRUCTION
I have the book Microsoft FrontPage 2000 which looks pretty thorough. =
I
bought it with the purpose of learning how to do it. However, my =
webmaster
suggested that I keep making pots and let him make my web page. Just
looking through it though it looks quite thorough. I believe my =
webmaster
used it when he was first starting out. It is written by Ned Snell. =
There
may be a later edition too.
I am afraid the computer language and I don't mesh. So I just write =
the
text and my very kind webmaster sets it up.
Check it out, it may be just what you are looking for.
Regards,
Bonnie Staffel
http://webpages.charter.net/bstaffel/
http://vasefinder.com/bstaffelgallery1.html
Charter Member Potters Council
=
_________________________________________________________________________=
_____
Send postings to clayart@lsv.ceramics.org
You may look at the archives for the list or change your subscription
settings from http://www.ceramics.org/clayart/
Moderator of the list is Mel Jacobson who may be reached at =
melpots@pclink.com.
Frank Colson on tue 30 aug 05
Cathi- We dumped FrontPage for Dreamweaver which cuts thru
most of the hang-up we encountered w/FP!
Frank Colson
----- Original Message -----
From: "MudPuppy"
To:
Sent: Monday, August 29, 2005 7:58 PM
Subject: Re: NEED A BOOK ON WEBSITE CONSTRUCTION
One issue with Front Page is that you need to make sure your hosting service
supports it, otherwise, well, you may be SOL. The same is true with PHP, CGI
and SQL utilities.
You will also want to make sure, if you are intending to accept credit card
charges, that your server uses a Secure Socket Layer.
If your hosting service provides PHP and SQL support, you may be able to use
one of a number of shopping cart scripts available either free or for some
lisence fee. There are tons out there and most have extremely easy
step-by-step installations. You might also contact your ISP or hosting
service and see what they offer.
All in all, there are as many ways to set up a sell-an-item website than
there are ways to throw a ball of clay :)
Cathi Newlin, Mercer, Mo
MudPuppy@box49.com
http://www.SquarePegArts.com
----- Original Message -----
From: bonnie staffel
To: CLAYART@LSV.CERAMICS.ORG
Sent: Monday, August 29, 2005 5:52 PM
Subject: NEED A BOOK ON WEBSITE CONSTRUCTION
I have the book Microsoft FrontPage 2000 which looks pretty thorough. I
bought it with the purpose of learning how to do it. However, my
webmaster
suggested that I keep making pots and let him make my web page. Just
looking through it though it looks quite thorough. I believe my webmaster
used it when he was first starting out. It is written by Ned Snell. There
may be a later edition too.
I am afraid the computer language and I don't mesh. So I just write the
text and my very kind webmaster sets it up.
Check it out, it may be just what you are looking for.
Regards,
Bonnie Staffel
http://webpages.charter.net/bstaffel/
http://vasefinder.com/bstaffelgallery1.html
Charter Member Potters Council
____________________________________________________________________________
__
Send postings to clayart@lsv.ceramics.org
You may look at the archives for the list or change your subscription
settings from http://www.ceramics.org/clayart/
Moderator of the list is Mel Jacobson who may be reached at
melpots@pclink.com.
____________________________________________________________________________
__
Send postings to clayart@lsv.ceramics.org
You may look at the archives for the list or change your subscription
settings from http://www.ceramics.org/clayart/
Moderator of the list is Mel Jacobson who may be reached at
melpots@pclink.com.
Bob Nicholson on tue 30 aug 05
Quite a bit of discussion on this topic, which seems to interest a
lot of people.
There are a lot of reasonably good books on website construction, and
most people can learn at least enough to get a basic website
running. In my opinion, this is rarely a good use of time and
money! It's kind of like someone learning to throw just so they can
make a set of dinnerware for themselves.
In most cases, unless you have other reasons for wanting to learn
website construction, you a better off hiring someone to build your
site. Take all the time you would spend learning, experimenting, and
building your site. Instead, spend that time making and selling
pots. You'll come out way ahead - and you'll probably end up with a
much better website as well.
Having said that, I should also add that building the website is the
EASY part. Many people build websites and are very disappointed with
the results. What they lack is a clear plan for using the website to
benefit their business. Part of this requires website "marketing,"
which is a discipline in itself... and even many web designers are
clueless when it comes to the business and marketing aspects of the web.
I've spent a lot of time working with artists and art groups to
develop and teach these skills. In fact, if any of you are in the SF
bay area, I am teaching a one-day workshop on October 1 at Mother
Earth Clay Art Center. You'll find details at http://
www.mamasclay.com/cgi-bin/DJcalendar.cgi?
TEMPLATE=workshopevent.html&EVENTNO=00099
Randall Moody on tue 30 aug 05
Also, check out Adobe GoLive! It is pretty easy (I can do it) and it is=20
directly compatible with other Adobe products such as Illustrator and=20
PhotoShop.=20
On 8/30/05, Bob Nicholson wrote:
>=20
> Quite a bit of discussion on this topic, which seems to interest a
> lot of people.
>=20
> There are a lot of reasonably good books on website construction, and
> most people can learn at least enough to get a basic website
> running. In my opinion, this is rarely a good use of time and
> money! It's kind of like someone learning to throw just so they can
> make a set of dinnerware for themselves.
>=20
> In most cases, unless you have other reasons for wanting to learn
> website construction, you a better off hiring someone to build your
> site. Take all the time you would spend learning, experimenting, and
> building your site. Instead, spend that time making and selling
> pots. You'll come out way ahead - and you'll probably end up with a
> much better website as well.
>=20
> Having said that, I should also add that building the website is the
> EASY part. Many people build websites and are very disappointed with
> the results. What they lack is a clear plan for using the website to
> benefit their business. Part of this requires website "marketing,"
> which is a discipline in itself... and even many web designers are
> clueless when it comes to the business and marketing aspects of the web.
>=20
> I've spent a lot of time working with artists and art groups to
> develop and teach these skills. In fact, if any of you are in the SF
> bay area, I am teaching a one-day workshop on October 1 at Mother
> Earth Clay Art Center. You'll find details at http://
> www.mamasclay.com/cgi-bin/DJcalendar.cgi/DJcalendar.cgi>
> ?
> TEMPLATE=3Dworkshopevent.html&EVENTNO=3D00099
>=20
>=20
> _________________________________________________________________________=
_____
> Send postings to clayart@lsv.ceramics.org
>=20
> You may look at the archives for the list or change your subscription
> settings from http://www.ceramics.org/clayart/
>=20
> Moderator of the list is Mel Jacobson who may be reached at=20
> melpots@pclink.com.
>
BJ Clark | Stinking Desert Ceramics on tue 30 aug 05
Paul,
There were some good suggestions made, and bad (from my perspective).
Tony Ferguson made a good point about already being a computer geek. If you=
=20
don't know html from css from xml from php, I wouldn't go about setting up =
a=20
site that takes credit cards. However if your already a computer geek, or=
=20
have months or years to figure it out, then have at it.
Also, Don't buy frontpage. It seems like an idea up front, but it's one of=
=20
the worst products made and is the bane of every designer/developers=20
existence. Adobe Go Live is the same way. Dreamweaver is what ALL the pro's=
=20
use and it's what you should buy. You don't need the Macromedia Studio, jus=
t=20
Dreamweaver.
BJ Clark
(this post has been spell checked cause someone emailed me a nasty note tha=
t=20
I needed spelling lessons, I tried to reply but they have stupid spam mail=
=20
filters so they never got it)
On 8/29/05, Carole Fox wrote:
>=20
> Sorry, I just noticed that I mis-typed the name of the book I recommended
> in my previous post. The correct title is Microsoft FrontPage 2000 Bible.
> The authors are Elderbrock and Karlins.
>=20
> Carole Fox
> Dayton, OH
>=20
>=20
> _________________________________________________________________________=
_____
> Send postings to clayart@lsv.ceramics.org
>=20
> You may look at the archives for the list or change your subscription
> settings from http://www.ceramics.org/clayart/
>=20
> Moderator of the list is Mel Jacobson who may be reached at=20
> melpots@pclink.com.
>=20
--=20
BJ Clark
Stinking Desert Ceramics
bjclark@stinkingdesert.com
www.stinkingdesert.com
Randall Moody on tue 30 aug 05
From CNET's review of Dreamweaver. (I really don't agree with the FrontPage=
=20
referal, but what the hey.)
Hobbyists, look out. Macromedia Dreamweaver MX now caters specifically to=
=20
professional Web designers and developers. And that's great if you know wha=
t=20
you're doing. Dreamweaver's new integration with UltraDev lets you create=
=20
dynamic, database-driven Web applications. In addition, Dreamweaver's=20
thorough ColdFusion,
ASPt.ex_webopedia1&destURL=3Dhttp%3A%2F%2Fwww%2Ewebopedia%2Ecom%2FTERM%2FA%2FA=
ctive%5FServer%5FPages%2Ehtml>,
and JSPextxt.ex_webopedia2&destURL=3Dhttp%3A%2F%2Fwww%2Ewebopedia%2Ecom%2FTERM%2FJ=
%2FJSP%2Ehtml>support
gives it a slight edge over our former favorite, Adobe
GoLivext>.=20
We recommend Dreamweaver for building a heavy-duty commercial Web site, but=
=20
casual Web builders should try Microsoft
FrontPage=3Dtxt>instead.
On 8/30/05, BJ Clark | Stinking Desert Ceramics =
=20
wrote:
>=20
> Paul,
> There were some good suggestions made, and bad (from my perspective).
> Tony Ferguson made a good point about already being a computer geek. If=
=20
> you
> don't know html from css from xml from php, I wouldn't go about setting u=
p=20
> a
> site that takes credit cards. However if your already a computer geek, or
> have months or years to figure it out, then have at it.
> Also, Don't buy frontpage. It seems like an idea up front, but it's one o=
f
> the worst products made and is the bane of every designer/developers
> existence. Adobe Go Live is the same way. Dreamweaver is what ALL the=20
> pro's
> use and it's what you should buy. You don't need the Macromedia Studio,=
=20
> just
> Dreamweaver.
>=20
> BJ Clark
> (this post has been spell checked cause someone emailed me a nasty note=
=20
> that
> I needed spelling lessons, I tried to reply but they have stupid spam mai=
l
> filters so they never got it)
>=20
>=20
>=20
> On 8/29/05, Carole Fox wrote:
> >
> > Sorry, I just noticed that I mis-typed the name of the book I=20
> recommended
> > in my previous post. The correct title is Microsoft FrontPage 2000=20
> Bible.
> > The authors are Elderbrock and Karlins.
> >
> > Carole Fox
> > Dayton, OH
> >
> >
> >=20
> _________________________________________________________________________=
_____
> > Send postings to clayart@lsv.ceramics.org
> >
> > You may look at the archives for the list or change your subscription
> > settings from http://www.ceramics.org/clayart/
> >
> > Moderator of the list is Mel Jacobson who may be reached at
> > melpots@pclink.com.
> >
>=20
>=20
>=20
> --
> BJ Clark
> Stinking Desert Ceramics
> bjclark@stinkingdesert.com
> www.stinkingdesert.com <
> http://www.stinkingdesert.com>
>=20
>=20
> _________________________________________________________________________=
_____
> Send postings to clayart@lsv.ceramics.org
>=20
> You may look at the archives for the list or change your subscription
> settings from http://www.ceramics.org/clayart/
>=20
> Moderator of the list is Mel Jacobson who may be reached at=20
> melpots@pclink.com.
>
bonnie staffel on tue 30 aug 05
I would like to add a few comments here to help you build a better site.
First of all, on my very large monitor, I still had to scroll to the right
to see your whole page. You should design one that at least is standard
width for easy viewing. The scrolling also was jerky irritating. Some text
overlapped other text in a spot or two. I would also suggest that you edit
it for misspelled words. The last item at the bottom of the page had no
photo of the platter. You could also arrange the photos and text in a more
orderly fashion.
It really needs a little excitement to perk up the site, IMO. Hope you can
enlist some professional help at this point for the site.
www.archwayartisans.com
Hope this gives you some direction.
Regards,
Bonnie Staffel
http://webpages.charter.net/bstaffel/
http://vasefinder.com/bstaffelgallery1.html
Charter Member Potters Council
Alyssa Ettinger on tue 30 aug 05
the best option i used was doing a barter on craig's list. i was lucky
enough to find a design student who did mine, gratis, to use in his
portfolio. (i made pots for his mother.)
it's still under construction--BIG TIME--but take a look. and really, find a
barter: we're potters, not web designers. best we keep our hands in the
clay, i think.
alyssa
alyssaettinger.com
Vicki Hardin on tue 30 aug 05
In terms of time, I think you do have to be careful to maintain your focus
on your work and I can see where building a Web site does take one away from
clay. But, its sort of like doing your own photographs. If you don't learn
to photograph your own work, you are going to have to go get someone to do
it for you every time you want to make a change. I started with FrontPage
and also spent some time with Dream weaver. I find that FrontPage is much
simpler. I was in the process of going to Dream weaver but got an upgrade of
FrontPage 2003 before I converted my site. I am much happier with the 2003
version. With it came a resolution for the server upload problems I was
experiencing. Hosting is not as much a problem as one may think. You do
not have to get a Microsoft server to utilize FrontPage. I am using Unix
servers and can utilize forms, the search function. It will not do share
point services which I am not interested in anyway. I use 1and1.com for
hosting and it is really inexpensive.
If my focus were on Web design, I would go with Dream Weaver. But, since I
just need a good site that I can manipulate myself, I am using FrontPage.
Not to say that my site is professional, its probably not, but you can get
pretty close to professional effects with it.
In terms of a shopping cart, I have been reading that paypal has a new
service called PayPal Website Payments Pro which processes payments on your
Web site just as if you had a shopping cart without any reference to Paypal
at all. The cost is 20.00. Also, being set up with a terminal is not
required. I am not sure, but I think if you have a shopping cart, you also
need a terminal. Anyway, not an affiliate of Paypal. Just thought I'd
share.
Cheers!
Vicki Hardin
VickiHardin.com
Kathryn & Stuart Fields on wed 31 aug 05
Usually it is not possible to combine web design softwares. If you are not
too tied to the Netscape composer and want to understand the how's and why's
of professional web site construction, etc, try Cerro Community College's
On-Line web design class. The very original web page online class was
created and taught by a fine potter, Paul Meyers. I took this class and
found it excellant. When it was time to design a web site (business), I
found their class
http://cconline.cerrocoso.edu/classlists/courseinfo/fall05/ma101-70303.asp
perfect, as it covers both the how-tos and the why's. Taking any class will
also get you student rates for both the books and the software (savings of
hundreds of $$$). The class is taught by Suzi Ama sama@cerrocoso.edu, who
is highly knowledgable of both the web design field and art field. You can
check out one result by going to www.experimentalhelo.com , which is our
ongoing site and works well for our business.
The drawback to you is that Dreamweaver is used as their software. It is
excellant, but not what you are using.
If you need/want to stick with Netscape, check their help section for a
tutorial. It is possible that such a basic software does not offer
"shopping cart" attributes, which are not basic.
One way we've found around shopping carts is to use PayPal (yes, I know the
'everyone' pays argument) however, since we're interested in web sign ups
for our magazine, this method works. It is extremely easy to set up once
you have a PayPal account; they are very helpful if you have any difficulty
(good phone assistance). One item of importantce, you have to price every
piece you sell. No "varies" options as far as I can tell.
Hope this helps
Kathy Fields
Stuart & Kathryn Fields
Experimental Helo magazine
P. O. Box 1585 / 8075 Seibenthal
Inyokern, CA 93527
(760) 377-4478 ph
(760) 408-9747 publication cell
(760) 608-1299 tech cell
www.experimentalhelo.com
eh@iwvisp.com
Rick Bonomo on wed 31 aug 05
I have been using Adobe PageMill since 1997
It is simple cut and paste
Doesn't get much easier than this
Rick Bonomo
used for this whole site:
www.ricks-bricks.com/pottery.htm
including all the bricks stuff
Kathy Forer on wed 31 aug 05
On Aug 31, 2005, at 9:20 AM, Rick Bonomo wrote:
> I have been using Adobe PageMill since 1997
> It is simple cut and paste
> Doesn't get much easier than this
>
> Rick Bonomo
> used for this whole site:
> www.ricks-bricks.com/pottery.htm
> including all the bricks stuff
Except for the front page which I made and he never paid for.
I contracted to do the whole site. Actually three "pages" at $200/
page which should have been half a site at the rate I've been
charging other people but I was expecting to work with client helping
him do the work after developing a template but client resisted doing
any work himself or made errors and blamed me accusatorially for his
misuse of template and stylesheets and for minor errors on my part
while still in development.
After two months of fully working on three different designs, first
the exact thing he had sent me, then a creative revision then a
simpler cleaner template finally, client said he was satisfied with
site and I made it live and we were done. Then he had problems with
his host because they are on an ancient MS iis server and couldn't do
htaccess or error redirects and his old google links weren't coming
up. There would have been workarounds but client lost patience and we
agreed to cancel site, each taking a loss. Then he stole fully half
the work I had done without paying me and copied the other half.
I had reorganized entire site in a form client claimed he was very
happy on several occasions, taking a flat file site with 400 images
in one directory and splitting it out into proper directories. But
this caused problems with google and links he had given to people. I
suggested ways to correct it but his host was unable to do anything.
There were other options as well such as making some dummy files and
doing page redirects but it never got that far. Basically ricks-
bricks has locked himself into organization of site as it was done in
1997.
Ricks-bricks or his host modified the front page with a 1985 apple
logo and completely messed up a 404 error redirect, causing front
page to blink and client then asked me to remove all that I had done,
to "Restore the site to where it was before you started, I'll be glad
to take a $300 loss, to be done with it, and you." Most unpleasant!!
And then a day later turned around and said he was taking one of the
three pages (I had really done about ten "pages," and a Dreamweaver
template and tutorials, but that was never acknowledged) as some sort
of compensation for his loss. Outright theft of services and artwork.
And now he claims to have done it himself in Pagemill. The
unmitigated nerve.
This is unethical theft and I am angry and disgusted. I worked for
two months on this Ricks-Bricks web site (see it here at http://
testing.jerseymac.com The 3 pages I contracted for were photography,
the main front page, statement and recent work, but I also did what
you can see here) and then got totally shafted. Now he goes and lies
about work he stole. Incredible!
Small claims court is my next stop. I just have to wait for enough
time to pass. I don't suffer fools gladly and this one has abused my
generosity. I was looking forward to making a pottery web site this
summer and responded to his request for a designer back in June.
Perhaps it was a bad match, perhaps he is an impossible and utterly
unpleasant person (more likely), but I had a hard time enjoying
myself or doing anything good here. Ricks-bricks was more concerned
with punctuation than design or development and exceedingly
intolerant of one particular problem I had with a browser bug,
blaming me and being impatient and demeaning. And when I went for my
niece's 21st birthday over July 4, and told him I'd be gone then for
a few days, I received about four emails on July 5th and 6th wanting
to know why I hadn't responded to his constant requests earlier.
Client then proceeded to be nasty and ingratiate himself with clayart
folks. Don't be fooled like I was!
Kathy Forer
sculptor, web designer and Mac OS X Administrator
www.foreverink.com
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