For those of you who do web design, you’ll want to skip this post!
It’s a simple process these days to secure a domain name. As long as no one else has it, a new domain name can be registered for less than $20 a year. In the case of operasound.org, it cost me about $250 for 10 years which includes a fee that keeps my personal information private. Otherwise I’ll end up getting loads of junk mail in my email box and in the mail offering me opportunities to secure other domains that are similar to operasound.org. In order for a domain name to be of any use, it needs to be hosted. In my case, I already have an unlimited hosting platform so it costs be nothing extra to host a new domain name with my existing account. Think of a domain name as a physical address and the web host as the house that sits at that address. With my unlimited hosting account, I basically own the whole neighborhood and am just waiting to assign an address (domain name) to the next vacant lot. Once you’ve registered your domain name and assigned it to a web host, the next step is to make sure it’s secure so hackers can’t install viruses and use your website to spread chaos. During the process of getting operasound.org setup, I learned that I needed what is called an SSL certificate so that your website isn’t flagged and black listed by the various search engines that roam the web looking for current information. Previously an SSL certificate wasn’t necessary but unless you aren’t serious about keeping your website safe, you want an SSL certificate for any website you manage. If you look up in the URL window of your browser, you’ll notice that operasound.org has “https” at the front of it. The “S” stands for secure and indicates that the website is being monitored and protected from malware and other forms of anarchy. Once all that is in place, it’s time to start creating the basic website. Fortunately I’ve been dabbling in web design for more than 20 years and the current tools that are available make it so easy, a child could do it. My preferred platform for website creation is WordPress which began as a blogging tool and quickly became the most popular web design platform in the world. There are many tools that are similar for developing a website without the need for coding but for my purposes, WordPress provides an interface that I enjoy using. Consequently, operasound.org is a wordpress site.