Getting Started
Organizing your thoughts and ideas when beginning your first website can be a bit overwhelming. I'll do everything possible to make it as easy and painless for you as I can. Let's take it step by step, beginning with...
{Domain Registration and Hosting:}
What would you like your domain name (www.) to be? It's a good idea to think of two or three alternates in case the name you want is already being used by someone else. Once you know what you want, you're ready to register your domain name and set up the hosting service where your website will reside on the web.
We have used iPower web hosting since 2003 and have always been happy with them. I had a bunch of alternative hosts listed here, but realized why recommend someone you don't use yourself? If I put someone like GoDaddy because their prices are good, people would have to find out the hard way that using a ZenCart shopping cart on their site wouldn't be possible. iPower has always treated us well and they continue to add new services, software addons, seasonal sales on your first year of hosting and more, yet they just lowered their regular pricing - so they get a thumbs-up from me.
You will need to set up your hosting before we get started on your site, and iPower will give you the first year of your domain registration free with the purchase of one year of hosting services, too. Just click the banner below to get started.
I understand not everyone is confident doing these things online. If you need help, with your contact information and I'll give you a hand.
7/22/09: IPOWER IS NOW GREEN! And at no extra charge, either...A recent announcement tells us iPower's offices and data centers are now running on power 100% generated by wind, joining a select few Internet Hosting Providers taking the lead in this arena. Still winning awards year after year...we've used iPower since they came on the scene in 2003 and have always been satisfied with their service. Our experience tells us that their claim of 99.9% uptime is true. They include free domain registration with their packages, along with 1500Gb of server space and 15000Gb of data transfer, unlimited subdomains, 2500 email accounts, 24/7 customer service and lots of extras, including $75 in Google and Yahoo search credits. The regular price for the iPower Pro hosting package has been reduced to $5.95/month, and they frequently have sales during which you could get your first year of hosting for 30-50% off!
{Next: Metadata}
