The idea of having to create a website can make some people go into a cold sweat!
A lack of technical knowledge and skills may feel like a stumbling factor when building your own site. Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â
Well the good news for those wishing to build your own website, it is no longer the daunting technical feat it once was. If your planning to completely create and design a website on your MAC by yourself, there are also many helpful online tools at your disposal. Expert knowledge of HTML, CSS, JavaScript is no longer a prerequisite.
Below we show you how to create a basic website on your MAC:
What is Required to Build a Website
When it comes to building your website there are a couple of things you need to put in place before you get started:
- Select a web hosting provider for your site.
- Choose a custom domain for your website.
- Design and build your website
By following these steps, you will be on the right track in creating a basic website which you can then develop.
Hosting your own Website
All websites must have a host, which allows individuals and organisations to make their website accessible via the World Wide Web.
You can host your website by renting space on a server for a small fee, and typically this will include additional features like webmail and backup solutions. When you start your own blog a host company store all your blog files, delivering them to users when they type in your blog name.                                                                                                         Â
Mac hosts provide hosting services for Apple operating systems.
Here are some Mac-friendly web hosts:
- FatCow – Ignore the title, FatCow offers Mac-friendly hosting which is ‘udderly fantastic’ according to its site. Popular with small businesses.
- DreamHost – This company have been providing hosting services for more than twenty years and is particularly suited for Mac users.
- SiteGround – A highly rated web hosting provider which meets the needs of every Mac user, currently hosting over 2 million sites!
A Domain Name for your Website
Once you’ve signed up to a hosting service you are now the proud owner of an IP (Internet Protocol) address. Your IP address is a unique identifier which is made up of a series of four sets of numbers separated by full stops – e.g. 111.111.12.32. We don’t have to remember these addresses, so instead we create user-friendly domain names.
Upon creating a website, the name you give it should be descriptive and detail what your blog is about for any potential readers. Once you’ve chosen a name, next you must choose a domain. A .com extension is the most preferred, but you can also select .net or .org.                                  Â
You can check that your name and domain are available on the relevant domain registration site. If they are you can rent them for a year and link it to your IP address.Â
Design a Website on a Mac
Next, it’s time to start designing your website which can be put together using HTML documents, CSS documents and image files. If you are planning to design the website yourself learning basic HTML would be advantageous.Â
In creating a website for a blog, we highly recommend WordPress, it allows you add regular articles to your site. While you also have the option of choosing from WordPress’s thousands of themes for the design of your site, with in-depth guides and support available to help you every step of the way.