Revised with new information as of June 1, 2005

 
Information On and Links to
Web Tools & Tutorials

It is possible to do a Web site for your organization yourself. When I first launched the Coyote Communications Web site, I used my little Mac Classic II with 8 megabytes of RAM -- just to show that a lot can be done with just a little technology. I had also never taken a class in .html! HOWEVER, I also had many years of experience in professional communications, including developing publications and setting up internal communications, so all that writing, layout, design, quality control, and software experience helped!
;-)

Contents:

• Your computer probably already has all the tools you need
  
• BEFORE YOU BEGIN
  
• Learning .html and advanced functions
  

You can prepare a World Wide Web site with just a few tools:

• a basic text writer (on the MAC, SimpleText or TeachText; on the PC, .txt) or word-processing program that lets you save as text

• an art program that let's you save files to .gif format

• any Web browser that lets you view your pages without having to go on-line

If you don't have an art program that lets you save files to .gif format, try shareware! It's cheaper than what you buy in a computer store, and often easier to use because it's "no frills" -- just the basic features you need to get the job done. You can find shareware:

• Via the shareware.com Web site

• through software libraries on local bulletin boards

• if you are on America Online, use the keyword SOFTWARE LIBRARIES to search for the kind of shareware you need. AOL also has the Web Diner, which has everything you need to build a Web site, from tutorials to shareware to clipart (I am NOT a big fan of AOL, but the Web Diner is a really wonderful service for AOL users, and I encourage AOL users to take advantage of it).

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You need to think about what you want out of your Web site, what the rest of the staff wants out of the Web site, what your customers want out of your Web site, and how you are going to get there. Take a look at Coyote Communications' in-depth tip sheets on Web site development, to help you define the purpose of your Web site and understand the basics about its development (just as you do your other publications!).

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Learning .html

It's a good idea to understand the basics of .html, even if you use an outside consultant. Basic web language is simple to learn!

If you are going to embark on constructing Web pages, I also encourage you to learn the basics of .html before you start using software that automatically marks up text with .html, because such software WILL make mistakes, and often, you have to know how to correct mistakes manually.

NOTE: I've decided that maintaining links to .HTML tutorials, as well as tutorials for advanced features, is much too time-consuming. So I have removed all such links, and am recommending that you visit TechSoup to find this information. TechSoup is an initiative by CompuMentor designed especially to help mission-based organizations with computer and Internet issues.

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Return to Index of Coyote Communications' Web Site Tip Sheets

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