Step ONE checks to see if you are cut out for website building!

STEP 1- The Basics Throughout this and all other steps you will find links or hyperlinks that offer help, tutorials, information, or services to help you create your own website. Check this out:   A place where you can sign in to "judge" other people's websites and where you can post your website and get a report of what other people's opinions are of yours.  All this fun and, at the same time,you can make "money for advertising" your site. Internet: It's easy and it's FREE!     If you know how to access the web and send emails, you have learned the two most popular activities on the World Wide Web.    Just keep in mind, the World Wide Web is an international communications system.   It goes to anyone, anywhere, in the world.   -----24/7-----     twenty-four  hours per day  / seven days a week.    You can use a telephone line or a cable line.    This is a fast, easy and instant way of getting your products sold, information distributed, or educating yourself,  AND IT IS ALL FREE!!!!!!    BUT:  For those who use a TELEPHONE LINE,  you have to pay the normal telephone company monthly charges.   BUT:  you may also be charged for USAGE.  Sometimes, your provider gives an 800 number that would be a long distance call.    You would be charged for each time you go line!    Be sure to look for a  local access  telephone number close to your home or business.   So there will be no charges to go online.     Here are links to several telephone access companies:       SUGGESTION:  If you can find a local cable,  digital, or satelite company in your own community  (Internet Services Provider (ISP) they may offer a much faster access to the internet.  You still have a monthly charge and there may be a charge for the use of their modem.  Companies offer these as incentives to use their service.    These are easy to install and many companies have a "do it yourself kit".   Always consider the FASTEST way because no one likes to wait for a page to come up.  When that happens,  your potential customers will just move on and may never come back.  SO, be sure to consider the FASTEST WAY you can afford.  Keep in mind that it may be a little more expensive up front, but TIME IS MONEY and when you are selling,  your time is valuable.  You might need to cut costs in other places but get the fastest connection you can afford.    It will save your sanity, time and money in the long run. You might want to check out these links for high speed internet access:  Or try this one for half the price:  This can be dial-up or high speed internet access for ($7.95* per mo) . My neighbor has just installed this one with the accelarated speed and it is working very well.  (It does seem somewhat faster than just the dial-up with AOL,)  No pop-ups, easy access to her email,(outlook express) and simple HOME page.  She likes it very much!

		A HOBBY or a BUSINESS: Are you in this as a business or as a hobby?   One definition of the difference between them is that a business makes money, while a hobby costs money. However, many people have turned a hobby into a moneymaking hobby/business.   The changeover may be a gradual progression, or you may decide to take the plunge immediately.   The IRS. defines "business" as a "legal entity operating with the intent to make a profit".   The IRS understands that initially your business may run at a loss, and may do so for a year, or even two, but they want to know that your "intent" is to make a profit.   Also, they do not require that your business be a full-time endeavor - it may well grow gradually, as long as the intent is to be profitable.   If you decide that now is the time to turn your hobby into a business, or to start a business based on your interests or needs, there are a number of steps you need to take.    To get guidance in this, refer to STEP 3 -THE BUSINESS SIDE  for information on the options and choices available to you.

Profiles of a Website Builder: Have you always been an entrepreneur at heart?   Have you always felt unhappy working for a large organization and doing what other people told you to do?   Have you sold other products on the marketplace, as you and your children grew up?   Do you always watch the papers for opportunities you could possible work on for yourself?   Are you out of work and need a better way to make money?   Have you been laid off  - this might be the time to think bigger and better for yourself and your family!    There is no "perfect' combination of qualifications to be a website builder, but look at the list below and see if you fit in anywhere.    There is no right or wrong answers.      but if you find somethings you are great at, then get going.   If you find something that you are not so good at then start updating yourself, by reading, getting educated, learning new skills, taking time to update your computer skills, etc.  NOW IS THE TIME FOR ALL GOOD WOMEN AND MEN TO COME TO THE AID OF THE INTERNET!    THEY ARE WAITING FOR WHAT YOU HAVE TO OFFER!   ·                     Energy and Good Health -  No more feeling sorry for yourself and sitting around watching TV.  Starting your own business takes a lot of time and energy.  Plan on working long hours, well into the evening and early mornings.  To do this you need to be in shape.  Get up an hour earlier and jog around the block. Eat sensibly, and take breaks often when you are working.   ·                     Do you know who you are? -  Do you know what you are good at and what you like to do?  This is how you choose what you want to do on the internet.  LOVE AND ENJOY WHAT YOU DO!  Then everything will go smoother and happier.   ·                     What do you know? -  Knowledge is power!  To succeed you must know a lot about your subject.  You choose it because you love it.  You choose it because you know all about it. If you need to brush up, then get out your books, go on the internet, talk to friends and relatives and get your knowledge refreshed.  Never be shy about investing time and money in YOUR education online degree?   Go Here: online degree   ·                     Are you AMBITIOUS?  Do you set goals for your self on a daily basis.  Do you get out your 3 X 5 cards and write " do today< FONT>"?  Do you plan ahead.  Do you set money aside for vacations a year ahead? THESE ARE GOALS!.  You know how to set them.  You know they wont happen unless you PLAN.  So MAKE THEM HAPPEN by Setting Up Your Life NOW! Get your family involved. Let them help plan your way of getting on the internet and setting up your website.   An old saying goes "failing to plan is planning to fail".     ·                     Focusing and getting Self Motivated - You know what the plan is. You know the steps you have to take. Get going on it.  Use this guide to get you through step by step.  Get going on your job, you know what it is. Now GET GOING!!!   ·                     Can you achieve Better Results? -  If you are personally in control, do you feel better about yourself and your achievements?  Most entrepreneurs are unhappy working in large organizations, especially when they have very little control on what happens and no one listens.   YOU ARE NOW IN CONTROL OF YOUR LIFE, GO FOR IT!   Do you make lemonade when life gives you lemons?   Yes, I believe you do. Get  your goals set. Make lists of what has to be done.  Get a calendar out and start setting time frames to get things done.  YOU ARE IN CONTROL, go for it!   ·                     Do you see the future Rewards?  Life is not perfect, but you can guide it to suit yourself.   Entrepreneurs feel challenged, not discouraged, when life gets in the way and things don't go perfectly.  They analyse and solve the problems and get going again.   ·                     Can you Persevere?  Do you have what it takes to get everything together and start putting it in order? It takes time, energy and money to get a website up and running, and then to advertise and find traffic. Can you keep your eyes on the future success of your website and your life.  If not, find out what it will take and get yourself educated and trained to do it.    If so, you are going to be a great addition to the Internet family of websites.  Go for it!   These are not all the traits of an entrepreneur, but they are close and going in the right direction.  Judge yourself on how many you have and how many you can accomplish as your vision of success comes to you. Just keep in mind the reason why 90% of small business succeed it is because they perservered.   If you answered yes to most of these questions , you can be a successful entrepreneur.  The No's just shows you where you need to improve.  If you need help with searching for the right tools, then e-mail us and we will try to steer you in the right direction.   E-MAIL ME

Glossary: As in many other activites, the Internet has a language of its own.  Some of the words have different meanings than we are used to, and there any many words or terms unique to the internet.  How can you tell what they all mean, and know how to use the correct term?  An easy way is by using an internet dictionary or Glossary.  We use and recommend NETLINGO'S Pocket Dictionary it is an excellent choice:   GO AHEAD AND TRY IT!  (Look up the word HOSTING)        Browse a list of NetLingo.com terms by clicking on the Pocket Dictionary, or Search for a specific term An extra benefit with NETLINGO is that you can download the dictionary, FREE, into your C drive, name it "GLOSSARY", use your mouse and right click to bring up a list, and highlight  "Shortcut to Desktop", and it will be there for your use.

HTML:    We use and recommend the FREE TUTORIAL on HTML: GO SEE!   (Hyper Text Markup Language).   If you do any but the simplest design changes to your site, you can benefit from using HTML.    It is a markup language, as opposed to a programming language.    With it you can "tag" a word, phrase, paragraph, link or graphic and use that to place or relocate it on your site.    Once you have some knowledge of HTML, it is relatively easy to make changes.     After a day or so you feel capable of linking one of your website pages to another page or link to another site.      You can manipulate documents or pages as you wish.    Another plus is that it does not require extensive study before starting to use it - you can learn in small doses as you go.   Is a system of marking up, or tagging, a document so it can be published on the World Wide Web.   You, as the author, can markup your document anyway you want.    As you create your web pages and if you know some HTML it is very, very helpful.  Believe me it is!    We use and recommend the FREE TUTORIAL on HTML: GO SEE:  For the very beginners, here is a tutorial written by young teens at kids level. It is basic, simple and well written.You can learn a lot here and participate in their FORUM if you like.  http:www.lissaexplainsitall.com We can recommend this site because it has a forum where you can go to ask basic information and get ready answers almost immediately:                    http://www.killersite.com Here is an educational site that offers a FREE HTML tutorial which might be of interest to a lot of teachers and students.                        http://www.mcli.dist.maricopa.edu/tut/ Here is a site you can connect to and get a report back as to how your HTML is set up and it will tell you how to correct it: http://www.Validator.W3.org

Bookmarks and Favorites     These are areas on your toolbar that saves your favorite website addresses.   You can see these tags shown at the top of your browser (look on the same line as BACK, SEARCH, FAVORITES, etc.   "Bookmark" is the name Netscape Navigator uses and is in the same location on your pages.  "Favorite" is the name Microsoft Internet Explorer uses.  They mean and do the same thing.  They save and file your most interesting website so you can go back and find them again easily.  Be sure to keep them organized!             Back to Top                                               OR                                                  BACK TO HOME