Repairs

The starting point is that you have a PC (I suppose Macs and others will work as well), with a working web connection and Internet browser (e.g. Internet Explorer or Firefox), and that you can use Word Processing and Internet software.

You need to be able to download certain software, so there must be no restriction on 'admin rights', so your own or a friend's PC is probably better than one at work (and definitely not a public one!).

Webpages use a language called HTML. Whilst a lot of techies can write HTML directly, my view is that life is too short and you would be better off downloading an 'HTML Editor'. This is a programme in which you type and insert pictures in a similar manner to Word, and it automatically writes the HTML (which is invisible to you, although there is a way of viewing it if you really want to). In other words, what you see is exactly what you get. You can do everything you would expect - choose font, size, text colour, background colour, insert pictures, etc. all in the same way as Word. You can even copy text from other programmes, though you'll probably have to edit fonts and spacing a lot. Importantly, you can insert links to other files or websites.

The HTML editor I use is Sea Monkey, but Dream Weaver is another very popular one. Both are free to download. Best thing when downloading is to choose Save, rather than Open, and open it once it is on your hard disk. The files you save will also be HTML files (e.g. palestine.html).

Important - start by creating a folder with the name of the site, and make sure all files associated with a single website, including associated image files, pdf attachments, etc, are kept in the same folder. Also the home page which you want people to see when they first visit the site must be called 'index' (in lower case letters).

Keeping all the files in the same folder makes it much easier to upload all the pages at once. It also means that if a host objects to the content of your site and closes it (which has happened to some political campaign groups), it is not too much hassle to upload again once you've got your new host.

- a host. This is someone who has a web server, which runs 24/7, and is always connected to the web. When you type a URL (e.g. www.pscsoton.org.uk), your browser locates the web server and sends a request for the pages, which are subsequently downloaded to your machine. Normally, the host is a company (see below for examples), and you register with them online, for a nominal fee (I pay £30 a year, but they can vary considerably). Some people have their own servers; if you are reading this, you haven't the necessary expertise to run these (and neither have I), but you may be lucky enough to know a sympathetic person or a small local organisation who has a server and will host your site for free.

- a domain name. This is simply the name of your site that comes after www, e.g. google.co.uk or pscsoton.org.uk. You have to register a domain name with a registrar (and you will be the registrant). Again, this costs a nominal amount which varies considerably - I think ours is £7.99 for two years. The registrar will check whether your preferred name is available; e.g. if you asked for google.co.uk, it would tell you it was taken).

Quite a number of companies do both hosting and domain registration (without obbligation to take both), some are even Internet Service Providers as well. I use Low Cost Names (http://lcn.com) for both, though I initially had some problems getting the pages online. I know someone else who has used www.fastnets.com.

Once you have sorted your host and your domain name, you will need an FTP (File to Transfer Protocol) programme to transfer the HTML files from your hard disk to the remote directory (the host's hard disk). I use FileZilla Client; Coffee Cup is another programme. Both are free downloads (again should be saved then opened from your hard disk).

The FPT programme should be simple to use - it shows two columns, one with the local disk (your hard disk), and one for the remote directory (your space on your host's hard disk), and you simply transfer from one to the other. Remember start with the index file, and to transfer all associated files, e.g. images, PDF attachments, music files, etc. You will need your host's upload address which they will provide, and your username and password for the site.

Chris Bluemel