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In days gone by, the very idea of building a
website used to be daunting, even to the most skilled of ‘geeks.’
Those were the ages when the only way a person could create a
website was through coding in HTML, a cryptic language that requires
considerable cramming powers if you are to create a website with any
appreciable design or functionality based on it alone. In that era
then, anyone without a very intimate knowledge of HTML had no chance
of getting a website online, and the few people managed to master
HTML had a field day creating website for the rest of ‘us poor
souls.’
Then came the HTML editors like FrontPage and Dreamweaver, and those
of us who had given up on the hope of ever putting a website online
got a new lifeline, as these were what were referred to as WYSIWYG
(What you See is What You Get) tools; which handled the coding part
of website creation, leaving the aspiring webmaster to only trouble
themselves with design considerations. The design consideration were
in turn pushed to a minimum when the WYSIWYG tools started coming
with templates from which an aspiring webmaster could select one,
and get online in a much shorter time.
The problem with WYSIWYG, however, tended to be in the fact that
updating the website would require for one to have to upload the
updates they had made online through the FTP, which was quite a
chore – especially to the people with websites that required
constant updating.
The constant updating problem was eventually solved through the
development of Website Content management systems like Joomla – and
it is at this point where the possibility of building simple
websites became a reality, as a web developer no longer needed
knowledge of packages like Dreamweaver or FrontPage, and neither did
they need knowledge of protocols (like the FTP) for uploading their
websites to the Internet.
A lot of developments have since taken place, as far as the
possibility of building simple websites goes. We are today at an age
when someone who doesn’t actually know what HTML stands for – but
who has an idea they want the whole world to see through the
Internet – can get that done; without seeking third party
assistance.
To further make building simple websites a possibility, we are
seeing a trend where ‘website builder’ tools have become a standard
installation for web hosting companies, (essentially what are called
HTML generator software programs that automate the more technical
bits of website creation) making the whole process a walkover for
anyone who wants to do it.
Blogging software, like what is available at WordPress or Google’s
Blogger services, too, have taken building simple websites to yet
another level – by adding another layer of simplicity, which content
management systems like Joomla didn’t have.
In the meantime, there are people who have made a career out of
building simple websites, which they then monetize through programs
such as affiliate marketing, and end up making what can at times
turn out to be relatively good income streams; especially with good
investments of time and effort. |
