Yes, I’m clueless – I’m not even sure what I need, other than that I need some kind of online presence to post writing samples, photos, links to my published work, etc. One-stop shopping for people who are thinking of giving me work (as a single-click destination, does that make a difference?). I’m thinking “twicksrealname.com,” not a Facebook page or something.
Pretty sure I won’t be doing anything bloggy, but am not ruling out having some writing specific to that site.
Needs to be something with an idiot-proof do-it-yourself template for set-up; the result doesn’t need to be fancy or elaborate.
Why don’t you give Wordpress a try? It is a blogging software, but it’s extensible to the point where it doesn’t have to look or feel like a blog at all.
You can post your writing samples and put them under the category “writing samples”, and a link to the category “writing samples” will show up in your site navigation. Same with photos, and links to your other work.
You can also add other pages like “About Me.”
Go to the Wordpress.com site and sign up for a free blog, and see if it suits your needs. Your site will be http://whatevernameyouchoose.wordpress.com. Once you play with it, if you think it’s right for you, you can upgrade to a Premium account (no idea of the cost, there) which lets you turn off ads and also lets you use your own domain name.
Something like Wordpress’s hosted solution will work best for you because you don’t have to do any of the work maintaining or upgrading the code. If you got Wordpress’s standalone version and put the software on your own Web host, then you’d be in charge of all the code and the maintenance…yuck.
I’ve been using LunarPages for many years and they are terrific. They have an abundance of plans to choose from (at very competitive prices), and a list of extras that I haven’t seen matched anywhere. One extra is from “Coffee Cup” which makes establishing a web page easy. LunarPages also has excellent data base (how-to articles) and tech support. Give 'em a look.
If you’re looking for a webhost I have used 1and1 and never had any issues with them. They can give you a cheap starter package, which is more than enough for what you’ll need.
They often have sales or deals so if you don’t like the price now, keep them in mind and check back at the start of each month.
I’ve never had any issues with them and you can use things like PHP, e107, drupal, Wikimedia all with them or write your own. They even have a blog for you that is auto setup or a simple website that is also easy to setup.
I cannot say the same - I’ve had to deal with 1and1 several times over the last few years on behalf of clients and it has been a gong show of rudeness, ignorance, and ill-preparedness every time. I was also not a huge fan of their admin panel.
I recommend one of two hosting services to my clients depending on their needs and budget:
Dreamhost is the cheaper of the two, but both of these may be more expensive than you’re looking to spend. I don’t have anything for (mt), but I can get you a discount off the advertised rates with Dreamhost.
I will also second the recommendation of Wordpress - although I generally recommend hosting your own copy of the software as opposed to their hosted solution as it allows for more flexibility. There are thousands of themes for WP, suited for a number of specific types of websites - many are free, and the others are usually quite inexpensive ($25 or less). If you’re artistically inclined, you can create your own design in Photoshop and have it converted to a fully functional WP theme for as little as $50 in some cases.
Thanks for the info, everyone – esp. you, fubbleskag. I think DreamHost is more than I need – I looked at their “what you get” list and didn’t understand what 90% of it meant, which I generally take as a sign that I don’t need it. (Regardless of what the “it” in question is. I’m such a freaking luddite.)
Sounds like WordPress is the way to go – I’ll start playing around with that and see if I’m getting most of what I need there. If not – no harm, no foul, since it’s free. (The possible disadvantage of their hosting is just bells and whistles, not safety, right? WP claims to use three different servers to back up to ensure that no one’s stuff gets lost.)