The group projects from both groups really brought up some interesting discoveries for me. I have been an regular Internet user for at least a dozen years now. I began creating web pages as far back as 10 years. First free pages with places like Homestead and Geocities, and Tripod. To express myself and to share my interests and support various causes. Then I advanced to my own domain and building pages all with html coding and then with FrontPage and FTP programs to upload the files. The domain name registration had cost and the monthly server space had cost. It was also time consuming. Very time consuming. You started with a blank screen. And had to create everything from scratch.
Now there are places like Ning.com where you can create an entire social networking site, with no coding skills, no software needs, and no cost. You can create it, then let the people who join build your community with their own content. Then there is Wetpaint.com where you can create a site-- again at no cost, no software and no coding skills needed. Here you have the ability to create a site with potentially unlimited content and can allow multiple people to provide that content. So you are creating the site and everyone else is keeping the content fresh.
It makes me think that the only advantage of having your own individual unique site is that you are the only one who is creating the content and keeping it updated. If you are looking out for your integrity, then that would be your way to go. But what would happen if you forgot to update, or were unable to update for whatever reason? Your site would suffer. And when you start losing visitors, you don't get them back. It seems that using the free sites that already have templates and allow for multiple authors is the smarter way to go for the average person.
About Me
- Carol Williams
- I'm a lot of things. A wife, a mother, a librarian, a writer, a student.
2 comments:
I can relate to what you're writing. For my web design class, I made a site for the Indiana Writers' Consortium. The professor who asked me to do the site also asked if I could continue to work on it after the semester was over. I agreed, but it seems like it's going to be a bit difficult. I used Adobe Dreamweaver to create the site. I would like to work on it from home, but I don't have the program. So... I'd have to travel to PUC whenever I have to update the site. I'm pretty sure that the organization won't buy me the program.
However, I would like to make a site for myself and my writing pieces to accompany my resume. Maybe that's reason enough to buy Dreamweaver.
I understand what you're saying, Carol, about sites losing their viewers. I've run across a lot that I've found interesting only to find that they're not being updated on a regular basis. It's really frustrating when every time I go back it has the same old information that I've seen before and sometimes the links don't even work anymore. For people like that I believe the alternative would be a collaborative site that anyone can add information to and keep it going. No one person has all the knowledge. But, there are lots of other people out there who, when combined, do.
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