If you have a lot of photos and videos that you would like to share with your family, the best way to do this is with a personal website. A personal site is a great way to stay in touch with friends and family because it allows you to share multimedia content and information like birthdays, weddings, parties and more. The good news is that you don't need to know HTML nowadays, anyone with some free time and patience can make a great website.
Steps
Step 1. Decide which software to use if you have no programming experience
If you are well versed in HTML, skip this step.
Step 2. Find a host
The host is the company that stores the files that make up your website. It can be free or paid (see 'Tips'), you will need to set up an account first.
Step 3. Get a domain name (optional). If the host doesn't provide a domain or subdomain name, you'll need to get one. It's easier for people to remember a simple domain name (like: www.example.com) than a long URL like (https://www.wikihowexample.com/user/creator/index/pg223/creatorhmpg.html).
Step 4. Decide which content to publish
You know this is a website for friends and family, so think about what to offer them when they visit your site. Some ideas are: photo galleries, a calendar, a guest book or forum, a list of emails and news on your front page.
Step 5. Create a logo
While you may think that a personal website doesn't need a logo, a logo unifies and makes your site more welcoming to your guests. Use a program like Corel Paint Shop Pro to manipulate text into an attractive and pleasing design. You can save money by using open source software, such as gimp or inkscape.
Step 6. Create pages
Use HTML code or software like Microsoft Frontpage or Macromedia Dreamweaver, create a "Home" page with an introduction to the site, a news page, and some instructions for navigating the site. You could also create pages like "Biography" and "Contact". Save pages as.html.
Step 7. Publish the site
Upload the pages and files to the root folder ("/"). Use an FTP program or web browser to access the server. Type in the browser the address "ftp://yourdomain.com" and press the enter key, then fill in the prompt with username and password (provided by your host). You can browse folders like you would on your PC or Mac.
Step 8. Keep the site updated
Keep family and friends up to date with news and photos. Share new stories frequently to keep them coming back to visit your site.
Advice
- Save your home page as "index.html".
- It may be a good idea to give family members an email account @ yoursite.com.
- Your host can provide tools such as photo galleries and guestbooks.
- Some hosting companies also sell domain names, but you can buy it from any other registrar if you want. Basically it's easier to buy the domain from your host, but you could pay a little more for it. Many domain names cost around € 10 per year.
- Freewebs.com offers free hosting and shorturl.com can give you a good subdomain name.
- You don't have to spend a lot of money on software and services, there are free options all over the place; search and you will find.
- Learning HTML is not necessary, but it will help a lot if you want a more complete and varied web-design. Try and practice as much as possible.
- A great forum system is [phpBB https://www.phpbb.com] (requires PHP and a Database to be installed; ask the host).
- Remember to use the same layout and logo for all pages on your website. Keep the same colors, fonts and icons.
- Don't go with the first host you find; search the internet well and compare prices.
Warnings
- People would have you believe that you have to spend a lot of money on a website. You really don't have to spend a lot. Take the time to delve into these topics: apache server, php coding, html coding and opensource software. It can save you a lot.
- Do not use copyrighted media unless you are the copyright holder or have full permission from the copyright holder.
- Make sure your hosting provider allows you to upload the types of files you are going to share.
- Free website templates can often be used to save time and maintain a quality design.
- Read your host's terms and conditions thoroughly before creating an account. It may not be what you are looking for.
