So you’re seeking to make a website but your developer know how is a bit shaky. The tutorials on Dreamweaver Made Simple are great for learning how to code but there are other ways to create a site. WordPress and Joomla are two content management systems that don’t need any previous knowledge of coding to use. Once installed onto your web server you can make use of their in built admin sections to add content to your website. If you’re learning your first coding language then building a website can be very difficult. Learning about syntax and such can seem very unfamiliar if you’ve never seen code before. If you find yourself in this situation then look into Joomla and WordPress first.

Pre built content management systems are an alternative from coding from scratch. WordPress is a blogging CMS and has many benefits from pure coding. There is a load of free customizable themes you can assign to your site very speedily. You can add widgets such as a twitter feed or list of post tags with just a button click. WordPress isn’t the only CMS choice, Joomla is also a worthy option, particularly if you’re looking to do more than just blog. It’s a tool more regularly used for organizations’ websites and provides more than just blog content with the ability to integrate ecommerce systems and communication tools too.

So these content management systems have a lot of benefits, why use Dreamweaver? Do these online tools have drawbacks? The main one is that they don’t leave a whole lot of room for creativity and originality. Content management systems don’t provide a blank canvas for you to work on. For a simple project, all the additional services WordPress and Joomla provide might not be necessary. If you are a large organization then constructing a site via a template might give the wrong impression. It could possibly compromise the credibility of your organization. If the site is for personal use on the other hand this neglects to be an issue.

So lets think about your knowledge of code and what the best option is for you. You should think about exactly what your trying to create. For blogging, WordPress is the number one selection. Joomla is great for company websites but you need to think about the site’s complexity. If it’s simply displaying content (text, images, etc.) then Dreamweaver might be the way forward. You don’t need a massive amount of coding knowledge to put a basic, original site together quite speedily. However if you know in advance that your website might need something as complex as an ecommerce system then you should be aware that this takes some seriously good knowledge of different types of coding. Anything where people’s money is involved is advanced stuff and if done improperly could put your website at risk from hacking or even violate laws. Tried and tested code provided by Joomla could be a much safer option.

So to sum up, if you know what you can and can’t code you can make a good decision on how to go about a project. Think back to the things you’ve made previously and compare them to the task you are about to undertake to find the best way to go. There are great benefits to coding from scratch but it can be time consuming and difficult. Be sure you’ve looked into all the options available to you before beginning your project.

Mark Kostner has been building websites for over 5 years and runs http://www.buildingwebsitesmadesimple.com, showing everday people how to
build a website

Filed under: Web Design