How it started
Setting up my first website was difficult and became frustrating on multiple occasions. I had a lot of trouble getting my chosen theme to look how I wanted and didn’t figure out how templates are supposed to work until quite a while down the line. I also had some difficulty linking my About page to the header on my front page, but it seems to work seamlessly now.
If you visit my site, it is also very clear that it is not completed. I need to work on the footer, switch out the image of honey on the front page, and decide on some defaults before continuing to add pages or post blogs.
That being said, I had a lot of fun setting it up and getting the foundation laid. I’m not happy with where it is currently and will likely revise it before next week’s lab, but it’s a good rough draft in my opinion.
Fun fact: I’m planning to digitally draw a sheep and use it to replace the image of honey and to serve as a kind of “logo” for my site.
Where it’s going
I don’t think I’ll ever use my website consistently, but it would be fun to share with friends so they can see what I’m currently working on art/music/writing-wise. As I mentioned in my About page, I also have some gorgeous pictures of campus from the past few weeks as well as lot of pictures and videos of the wildlife I’ve seen in the Arb thus far.
And Why not just use a commercial website?
The very obvious plus side of hosting your own website is that you have near complete creative freedom with the design, what goes on it, who can see it, etc. Posting or using a site overseen by a larger corporation means that your material can be taken down (for example: YouTube videos for false copyright claims), you have to agree to their terms of service and privacy agreements, and you get less say on how your material is presented. Running your own site, however, is not without drawbacks.
You have to learn how to use the program, you will potentially need some basic coding knowledge at some point, you have to take care of spam and bots on your own, and often, you also have to pay for the domain.
Whether someone decides to create their own website or use a platform that has already been made very much depends on what they want from it. Most parents sharing pictures of family vacations are perfectly happy to use Facebook and don’t have any real need for a personal website. Those interested in starting a business, however, would likely benefit from having more flexibility than Facebook offers.
At the end of the day, it’s up to everyone to choose what works best for them. Personally, I believe learning how to set up and design a website will benefit me.
Hi Lily! Your website looks so cute! I was wondering what the connection was between sheep and honey at first glance, but then you mentioned that you’re still working on building it. Overall, even though it’s not finished yet, your site looks really appealing and exciting! (Winter here will be stunningly freezing, but I hope you’ll enjoy it!) I agree with your point that a personal website mainly serves to present ideas and gives people the freedom to design, but isn’t quite as useful for instant messaging.
Hi Lily, I really like your website! The setup of the header especially is nice and very accessible. I liked your point about how different people and purposes might benefit from having a website, while other times it’s not necessary. I agree that the skill is generally valuable, even if you don’t end up needing to have a website. I’m interested to see the finished product of your website with the drawn sheep! 😀