How To Make Your Own Rabbit or Cavy Website

Make 2007 the year that your hobby or club website is finally online!

So... you don't have a website right now, but would like to have one for your rabbit or cavy breeder hobby or club? A website is a great way to promote your rabbitry, caviary, or club, especially since the number of internet surfers is ever-growing. People from all over the world will be able to view your rabbitry, caviary, or club - opening up doors for you to 'meet' other breeders, sell stock, and gain club membership and recognition.

A website is one of the most popular and effective ways to sell rabbits and cavies also!

When you are just starting out, making your own website can be very intimidating, especially when you don't know much about computers or how the internet works. Inexperienced internet users might benefit from reading a printable guide called Internet 101, available at this website

Below are three common ways available for breeders and clubs to get their own websites, click on the links to jump to a detailed section for more help:

Make your own Free Site

There are many reasons people choose a free website for their first website; perhaps you don't have the budget to pay for a domain name and host, maybe you are attracted by the free design tools most free website hosts provide, and maybe you just are not sure of your plans to have a more permanent website yet, so you want a temporary solution-in any case, this would be a nice choice for you.

Make your site using a purchased domain name and web hosting package

This is for the breeder who desires a more permanent place on the web. Here you can choose your own 'domain name' and sign up with a webhosting package to publish your website under. This is not as expensive as you would think - I pay about $160/year for absolutely tons of space and resources, and there are much cheaper packages too!

Have someone else make and publish your website

If you don't have the time or inclination to work on your own site, this option may work nicely for you! Many other rabbit breeders sell their webmaster skills and hosting space. For varying fees, you can have someone design, publish and update your site, without all the hassles! You can choose to have your website published on a free server, or through a paid host if no hosting space is provided by the person you choose to help you.

Free Websites

There are many, many free website services on the internet! Most will offer a set amount of space for your site for free and most include either website templates or 'site-builder' software to assist you in actually making your site. Each host should also provide enough technical support to help you get started and assist you along the way!

The downside to free websites is the advertising the host will most likely place on your site - try to choose a host that has either minimal advertising or places the advertising in an area of your site that will not hinder viewers....nothing is more irritating to visitors than crazy pop-ups and flashing banners!

Also, find out how reliable the host's server is - you want to make sure the server is up and running at least 99% of the time if possible - when the server is down, visitors will not be able to reach your site. (actually, you will want to look for this reliability with any host you choose, free or not!)

Keep in mind that you will have to keep your pictures and file sizes small on a free server - they can take up a lot of your free 'bandwidth' and large file sizes could cause your visitors to get messages such as 'exceeded storage transfer-website temporarily unavailable' when they try to browse your site. Make sure all your pictures are 'optimized' before uploading them to your website.

Optimize the Use of Pictures with Your Free Web Hosting Home Page

Image n Photo Optimizing Tips

Below is a list of links to some of the more popular free website providers-there are many more available too- simply do an internet search for "free webhosting" or something similar.

Most have a simple sign-up procedure and will allow you to get started right away! Take a look at each to compare and see which one might work the best for you and your needs:

Make Your Website Using a Purchased Domain Name and Web Hosting Package

If you want to design and publish your own website, this is an excellent choice for you, especially for those who want a permanent (well...as permanent as one can be on the web) place on the web!

Basically, you will first buy a domain name, so you will know what your site url will be (usually you can purchase your domain name through the webhost you select), make your website on your own computer, then buy a 'hosting package' which is the server you will publish your website on, then upload your completed site to your host's server - voila! you have a published website, usually without advertising splashed across your pages!

I've made it sound simple, but there is actually some work involved. Below are some steps to help you get started:

Purchase your domain name: Your domain name is the unique name you choose for your website and this name is also in the 'url' displayed in your browser. Many breeders choose their rabbitry name as their domain name. Oftentimes your domain name can be purchased through the webhost you choose, and sometimes your webhosting package will include a free domain name of your choice! Otherwise, you can always purchase a domain name independently of a hosting package, and later, easily transfer it to the webhost you choose.

Tips on Choosing a Good Domain Name

Learn About Domain Names

DomainSearch.com

(to see if a domain name you want is already taken)

Design your website: Since designing a website is the most time-consuming aspect, most people make their website before signing up with a host-otherwise you might be paying for several months of hosting before your site is actually ready to be published!

It's still a good idea to look at your options and find a host you intend to use (you don't have to purchase the host package yet) before you begin making your website; some WYSIWYG website design programs require certain features be available on the host server in order to publish websites made this way.

Most webhosting packages include free 'site-building' software and design templates, but you may find these limit your creativity and expansion of your website. Otherwise you can make your own site either using a WYSIWYG program or you can design your site from scratch using plain HTML, active server pages or style sheets.

As you build your site, read through our website tips for rabbit and cavy breeders to help design an effective and efficient site. Below are just a few links to get you started - there are probably hundreds of resources for more software and info online, so don't limit yourself to just the following choices:

Macromedia

MS Frontpage

Beginner's Guide to HTML

[ Get CoffeeCup - HTML Editor & Web Design Software ]

Find a webhost for your site: You need to find a server to publish your website on, commonly included in what is called a 'hosting package' Depending upon what your goals for your website are, hosting packages vary by price according to services included, such as; the number of email addresses available for you to use, file space and bandwidth, advanced features such as online databases and internet merchant marketing capabilities.

There are so many web hosts on the internet - I personally use Network Solutions and have been happy with them, but you can browse the links below or simply search for more providers online:

Dummy's Guide to Webhosting

Choosing a Webhost

How To Choose a Webhost

webhosting providers:

Publish your website: Your website is finished (or almost), you have your own domain name and a webhosting package, and you are finally ready to publish your website! In most cases, you will log onto your webhosting package and follow their instructions for uploading your site to their servers.

Most website files are transferred to servers using ftp (file transfer protocol) software, which is usually included in your hosting package. I like to use an independent ftp program so I don't have to log onto my hosting package for every update - I've set up my ftp program to log on to my host's server, at the click of a button. Check out the following link for free ftp software:

CoffeeCup Free FTP

The first time you publish your site: well, this can be overwhelming, especially if you are new at all this. You may want your host's tech support to walk you through publishing the very first time - don't feel embarrassed - none of it makes much sense at first!

Don't forget to first upload all your graphic and picture files or they won't show up on your website!

Usually after you've uploaded (update your site) a few times, the task becomes easier and easier for you and soon you will be able to make quick updates as often as you choose!

After you've published your site: always check your website online after you publish it, to make sure all the pages, links and graphics work the way you intend them to. Visit our page on how to improve your website for tips on how to improve your website!

Enjoy!

Pay Someone to Make and Publish Your Website

This option may be the perfect solution for breeders and clubs who don't have the time or knowledge to make their own site and keep it updated.

Usually there is some cost involved, depending upon the design and size of your site and how often you want it updated. These charges are usually minimal in comparison to the work put into developing and publishing your site though - and the cost is well worth the bonuses you'll get just by being on the world wide web!

Because this is a rabbit and cavy breeders website, I will only concentrate on, and promote what other breeders can offer you in the way of website design and publishing services.

Please click anywhere on this sentence to be taken to a new page listing breeders who can help you get started with your new website!

Looking to improve your rabbit or cavy website?

If you need website help, please visit our list of website help links

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