Use http://www.1asphost.com/ instead. It's FREE! 100 MB, unlimited bandwidth, and hotlinking images are not restricted:

Free Deluxe Features

• 100 MB of Space
• Instant Account Activation
• Online Control Panel
• Online Unzip Capability
• Unlimited Bandwidth
• SSI (DHTML)
• WAP
• Active Server Pages Support - ASP 3.0
• Free Database Connectivity:
  • MS Access databases
• Macromedia Shockwave support

I like to use macromedia fireworks to create websites, it think its supposed to be an imaging program, but it makes very high quality websites, plus i like that i can create slices on large images in the same program that i make my website, i usually use it to make all my drop down meus, roll overs ect, makes very advanced java script easy.

Sayvari,

I would say first, it depends on the quality of the site you are looking for, and who your prospective market is.

For beginners, I would definatley recommend you do not start off creating your corporate identity as a web site until you have some practice - since prospective clients are apt to visit, a bad representation can do more harm than good.

With that said, I would first play around with any of the above refrenced WYSIWYG editors and create a personal page - maybe about your family --- that I would say would be fine for publication to a Yahoo! (Geocities) spot.

For your business, I suggest purchasing your own domain - and hosting. I would never put my business on anything else, that is unless it is product driven, then a Yahoo! Store would be ok.

As for design, as a professional, I create all interfaces for my designs in Photoshop. For a novice designer, I would say get a free version of Paint Shop Pro, and read some tutorials on it. It is really better to create your graphical "look" then integrate your content.

Also, don't give off an amature feel --- stay away from scrolling words, flashing stuff, too many animated graphics, and clip art.

Good luck, and if you have any other questions, I would be happy to help you

**edited for spelling errors

And very Internet Explorer-centric. By default, it creates pages that have problems under Mozilla, Netscape, Opera, and other browsers--and that's under Windows. From character-set choices to the embedded tags it uses, FrontPage is just a bad choice all-around.

Firstly, I'll concede that there is some value in the "drag and drop" programs that will graphically put a site together for you. When i need a very complex table built, I'll go to Dreamweaver and export it, for example. They do make some things easier.

That said, I'll say this: if you are serious about building and maintining your own site, do not overlook the virtue in learning how to hand-code HTML at the very least. I learned years ago at http://www.htmlgoodies.com and have since utilized many other sites like asp101.com, four guys from rolla, etc - work up to those.

In this respect - if your using a PC - I would say that the best "free" software for building webpages comes with your PC - its Notepad!

You can make it fun and, while they wont look on-the-mark when you stat, you'll continually get more sophisticated as you learn. Also, you'll be able to update it much more precisely and with greater efficiency if you can hand code updates and other "tweaks".

my $0.02

-gkd

think about WHY you are setting up the site. To attract new customers? Then look into providing information they need. Sell benefits to customer.