Projects: Web Publishing Options

There are lots of free website publishing options that you can use for your class project. I provide detailed technical support for the Google Sites, so if you would like to have that kind of support, choose Google Sites. The other options are good possibilities also, especially if you like tinkering with software and figuring things out on your own. As always, if you have any questions as you make your choice, let me know!

ABOUT GOOGLE SITES. Students have used Google Sites for many years in this class, and then in November 2016, Google launched a totally new Google Sites platform, completely different from the old version. When you browsed the Storybooks from past semesters, you probably saw some examples of the new Google Sites and also the old Google Sites. If you go to the link lists for Myth-Folklore and Indian Epics, you can find all the examples of new Google Sites up at the top of the list (in the section below you will find links that go either to the old Google Sites or to other web publishing platforms).

Platforms and software that are more learn-on-your-own:

WIX. The students who have used Wix in the past have really enjoyed it, and they have not had any technical problems or difficulties at all. It offers a LOT of design options. You can find out more at the Wix website: Wix.com.

WEEBLY. Weebly is another really nice web publishing system, and it is very popular with educators. If you are a future teacher, then Weebly might be a really good choice (although Google Sites is also very popular with teachers). You can find out more about Weebly at their website: Weebly.com.

WORDPRESS. Although WordPress is a blogging platform, it is also a powerful website builder where you can use "Pages" instead of posts to add your content. OU has a fantastic project called OUCreate which makes it easy for you to host your own WordPress, so definitely check out OUCreate if you are interested in learning about WordPress and using it to publish your class project. You should know, though, that WordPress can be a bit intimidating at first, so this option works best if you have had some experience with WordPress already.

MOZILLA SEAMONKEY. Another option for publishing in your own webspace is the Composer HTML editor that is part of the Mozilla Seamonkey package. If you want to tinker with HTML and publish in your own webspace, this is a great option; here's a Tech Tip for getting started with Seamonkey. (Seamonkey is actually what students used in this class from 2002 until around 2010 when Google made Sites available, and Seamonkey is still going strong.)

TUMBLR. Like WordPress, Tumblr is technically a blogging platform, and also like Wordpress, Tumblr has all kinds of templates that are actually great for creating a website. If you have already used Tumblr for blogging, this could be an excellent option.

ADOBE DREAMWEAVER. And of course if you already have some web design skills, you can create your website using a design tool like Dreamweaver (or whatever web publishing tool you like to use) and upload it to an OUCreate webspace (or whatever webspace you like to use).