I've heard people say there are three things: "cheap, fast, good" and you can only have 2 out of the three. I'm willing to put in time learning and building my own site, but I don't have any knowledge of the technology so I don't know where to start. I've heard peple recommend programs like FLASH for building a website. But, I don't know where/with whom I should register a domain name, and then where to go from there. Which comes first-- domain name, hosting, building? I don't understand the connection between all of these things, hence, my stagnating confusion.

Please Help!

First of all you dont need a domain name. A domain name is simply a name for your site and is stored in the domain name data base. It IS however, useful for helping people find your website. I would suggest purchasing a domain name after you have your site up and running. Secondly, you need web space. You may find that you already have 10 to 20 megs of space you are already paying for with your Internet Service Provider. It may also have web authoring tools. I think Netscape Navigator still has web authoring tools also. You can also take the hard way and learn html. A page can be written in a program as simple as notepad. There are also tons of web page building software on the market. Most of them have drag and drop capabilities. You can start a page and simply drag pics or text into them and they will do the html for you. Next comes transfering your creation to your web space. If you choose web authoring software, it will most likely come with a built in File Transfer program. This is called FTP. You can also download FTP software for free. It is also possible that your provider has this feature. Okay now, get your space, create your page, upload it! Done deal....now that you have your page up you may want that domain name which gives your site a little class! Domain names can be purchased for as little as three dollars a year now! When you are done let me know where your page is so I can check it out! Good Luck to you! If you have any questions feel free to im or email me.