Once you have assigned hardware and a maintainer to support the everyday updates for your Web page set, you will need to decide what software packages you will need to use for the task. While you don't need to go out and pay top dollar for the finest software available, what you purchase does have to meet your needs.
At Cyberkon Consulting, we use several different high-end and intermediate level software in building your site. Although much of what we use consists of commercially released products, there are also a few really useful shareware and freeware utilities we have downloaded from the Internet and purchased licenses for. (You, too, should always make sure you are using your software packages in a legal manner --- software producers, for instance, frown on the concept of loading a single software package on all of the systems you own without purchasing a license for each machine the application is loaded on...)
A Web Page Design Package
You can either purchase an HTML editor or a page composition package that will allow you to build your pages in a more "what you see is what you get" environment. There are several that will do the job, and most are not very expensive. We will be happy to work with you to determine the best "fit" for your business. Our favorite package for this work is Macromedia's Dreamweaver, which comes in both PC and Macintosh versions.
A High-End Photo Publishing Package
There are a couple of packages that spring to mind right away. One of the more expensive options is Adobe PhotoShop. However, you don't have to go all the way to the premier software in one step. There are other applications, such as Micrografx Picture Publisher, which is highly functional, but will save you a fair amount of money. A more recent addition to the playing field, and one that we really enjoy using, is Adobe's ImageReady (now included in PhotoShop),available for both the PC and the Mac.
An Easy-to-use FTP Package
FTP stands for "File Transfer Protocol". Simply put, it's the application that moves your new or changed page files from your computer to your directory on your Internet Service Provider's (ISP's) Web server. Again, there are several applications that will do the job. Our favorite is WS-FTP, which is available as a downloadable file on the Internet. CuteFTP is another excellent alternative.
That's really all you need for routine maintenance of your site. Once you have a good, clean overall design, it's really not very difficult to keep your site freshly updated. We are happy to teach you how to do this, so that you will be able to have more control over your Web site.