Make changes to Go Daddy website

[ABabeNChrist]

I have a friend that has a website through Go Daddy and he wants me to assist him with some minor changes. I personally use yahoo site builder for my web pages. I know yahoo site builder is different and I was wondering what free website builder tool would be a good choice.

[Rudi]

Hi,

You may want to wait for some more opinions, but here is my TOP picks (in order of preference) for developing a free website, including some descriptions of what is said about them...

Moonfruit
In respect to almost all other free-website-building websites, Moonfruit is off the charts. It may be the best website builder website on the net, as well as one of the best free website designers. Moonfruit offers a newbie-developer all the instructions required in an easy to use platform.
However, Moonfruit’s also has all kinds of wicked cool tools for the semi-pro developer including drag-and-drop capabilities, free templates, backgrounds and images, and an in-platform image editor. You can design in either text or code view and believe it or not, they will host websites under a certain size for free.

WIX
There is one thing that makes WIX stand out as the best website builder on the internet for a select group of people, Flash. While the trend over the last few years has been minimalist pages optimized for search engine rankings, there are still people that appreciate a website that is original, interactive and dynamic, websites that can only be created in Flash.
For the person that wants to develop that type of website, WIX is the free website builder for you.

web.com
50 million websites have already been built on Webs.com. So in terms of sheer numbers, Webs might be the best website builder website out there. The development platform is free and Webs will also host smaller websites for free.
The nicest part about Webs’s site builder is that the icons used for development are big and bold. The design platform makes great use of icons that most of us already recognize like their icons for audio, video and map. You may not know them off the top of your head, but you’d know exactly what they mean if you were to see them.

FreeWebsite
FreeWebsite offers one of the most powerful and best website builder platforms out there for those seeking free flash website builders and free website hosting. The FreeWebsite platform accepts all of the latest and greatest source codes including: HTML5, jQuery and CSS3. The best part about FreeWebsite is that there are no third party ads on the website you build, even if you choose the free hosting option.
For those people that have coding experience, FreeWebsite is probably the best website building option for you if you want the service free.

[BobH]

I am certain that there is value in using those software tools to develop a web site; but, being the old bit-twister that I am, I just use an HTML/CSS/PHP editor and explicit instructions plus a program to manage FTP (file transfer protocol). I found that all the web site development tools just created a lot of bloat. Certainly, there are probably some very neat effects and functions that I did not use - because I didn't need them - that those tools facilitate and make easier than specific coding.

YMMV

[ABabeNChrist]

Having a problem with uploading files. I have the ftp address, username and password to access site that I wish to make changes too, but I cannot seem to find a way to upload files to Moonfruit for free, they are requesting a $15.99 fee to upload. Does anyone have any experience with Moonfruit or any other site builder that could assist?
I only want to make simple verbiage changes and key words

[BobH]

Didn't you say that the friend's site is hosted on GoDaddy? If so, what does Moonfruit have to do with it?

You should be able to make an FTP connection to GoDaddy and upload the files you want without any problems. What am I missing?

[ABabeNChrist]

You are correct Bob, this site is hosted on GoDaddy. I do have the hostname, username and password. I’m just not familiar with the process into uploading files to a website design tool or even what website tool to use so that I can make small changes. I personally have a couple yahoo sites for my business that I make changes to all the time, but there I use Yahoo SiteBuilder, which of course is a very user friendly. Any suggestions you have would be greatly appreciated.

[BobH]

When I have edited web page files, I've used a file editor named HTMLPad 2010 published by Blumental software (this is not a free program but the cost is nominal) to make the changes to the files on my computer. If editing an existing file, of course, it must first be downloaded to my machine before using the HTML editor. I use Filezilla software (freeware) for downloading and uploading files using FTP (File Transfer Protocol).

Here's a screenshot of the Filezilla interface:

Filezilla.jpg

As you can see near the top of the screen are panels for entering Host information, Username and Password. With this information Filezilla connects to the Host and displays data about what resources are available to the User. That allows you to see the files that make up the web site and its pages. You can then select the file and download it to your computer, edit it and view it to your satisfaction. Filezilla shows you the path to the file and allows you to select it and upload it specifying where to place it in the directory that contains web site files.

I hope this helps a bit. You might be familiar with a different HTML editor and FTP management program. If so, use them. I like the HTML Pad features and have invested a bit of time learning to use it. It gives me an interface for editing HTML, PHP, CSS3 files. I find that Filezilla is very straightforward and easy to use. Not everyone would agree with me about either of these programs.

As I've said before, I have no real experience with Moonfruit or other web page generators other than looking at them cursorily (I do not recall looking at Moonfruit). I have no experience with Yahoo web sites and the tools available to hosting there. My first attempt would be to use Filezilla to see how the directory and sub-directories are organized on the GoDaddy host. I don't know if Moonfruit uses proprietary file formats or simply creates the base HTML, PHP, CSS, et al files. If proprietary files are used, I don't see how just any browser would be expected to deal with them in native mode; therefore I would infer that there is some interpreter software that stands between a browser pointed at the URL and the proprietary files on the host. I just don't know because I have no experience with it.

Again, I hope this is useful information. If I have confused you, please ask further questions and I'll do my utmost to answer them. Feel free to PM me if you like.

[ABabeNChrist]

Thanks Bob for a clear and detailed answer, I'll give your suggestion a try. I'll repost my results and any questions as they may arise......

[Leif]

I use Filezilla software (freeware) for downloading and uploading files using FTP (File Transfer Protocol).

(I have been meaning to reply to this for some time....)

I gave up using an 'FTP client' some time ago when I realised there is a much simpler method:

Open up Windows Explorer (not Internet Explorer)
In the address bar, enter the ftp address (e.g. ftp://www.mywebspace.com" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;):

x.jpg

A login window should popup, into which you enter the appropriate credentials.
And you should now have your FTP destination open for business, and you can then open up another instance of WE and drag, drop, copy, etc. with ease.

[BobH]

(I have been meaning to reply to this for some time....)

I gave up using an 'FTP client' some time ago when I realised there is a much simpler method:

Open up Windows Explorer (not Internet Explorer)
In the address bar, enter the ftp address (e.g. ftp://www.mywebspace.com" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;):

x.jpg

A login window should popup, into which you enter the appropriate credentials.
And you should now have your FTP destination open for business, and you can then open up another instance of WE and drag, drop, copy, etc. with ease.

That's good to know, Leif. Thank you!

One of the reasons I use Filezilla is that it provides clear path information for both source and destination. I'll have to give your method a try, though, because I really like the drag and drop idea.