subject: Create And Publish Your Free Website [print this page] Hello, dear reader! I would like to teach you today how to create (and eventually publish) your own free website like the professional webmasters.
Follow the steps carefully: they are useful.
1) Creating the pages
There are two ways to create the pages contained by your website. The first one (called by some people "the hard way") is learning two markup languages: HTML and CSS. But right now you don't want to become a web designer, so the second way is for you. That's what you have to do: Google for Nvu and click on the first link, then download their free piece of software.
Install and launch it. Using their toolbox, add text, images, links, tables and forms. When you are done with the Home page, press CTRL + S. A window will popup, asking you to add your site's title. Write an unique and cool name, then press Ok.
Another window will popup, asking you where you want the page to be saved. Go to the folder you wish, but rename it to "index" (this is extremely important).
Continue creating your other pages. This time, don't save them with the "index" title. This title should be used just for the Home page.
2) Creating a free hosting account
(Note: All of our examples are based on this free web hosting site)
Go to Mint Hosk and Sign Up. Fill all the fields with the information you wish, enter the confirmation codes and check your E-mail address.
You should have received an E-mail address, containing your Username and Password. Note them down, you will use them on the next step.
3) Publishing the website
I'm sorry to tell you this, but this is probably the most complicated part. And not because the action is complicated, but because people don't carefully read the instructions.
So you have your Username and Password for Mint Hosk. Use them to Sign In and access the Online File Manager.
In the Online File Manager, access the "htdocs" folder and delete all the files you find there. Now click the "Upload" button, and select the pages you created at the first step. If there are any images, upload them too.
Click the green V and you're done! Wait a few minutes (usually you shouldn't, but do it to be sure), then visit the address you selected during Sign Up (it should be something like Username.Hosk.Info).
Ta-da! Your website is up and running. You can edit it at anytime by opening them with Nvu and uploading them again.
I hope you found this article useful. You can read it again and again until you learn all the steps. And don't underestimate HTML and CSS, it's good to learn them too when you have time!
