Linked here is my webpage. During the creation of this site, I realized the almost limitless possibilities involved in building a website. WordPress allows for many different add ons, and it even allows you to use code to insert features that would otherwise not be possible. I started by creating an “About” page, which is linked in the upper right hand corner. There, I share a bit about myself, my plans for the site, and include a photo of myself. As I continue working on this website, I want to learn all the plug in and extensions I can possibly add. I used CSS code to change the color of my first post on the main page, and I anticipate using CSS for many other elements throughout the site. For this website, I would love to create a digital humanities project similar to some of the ones we have already explored. In my most recent blog post, I analyze a website focused on discovering food trends, and I think studying human nature through a similar project would be very interesting. I would also love to learn how to add graphs and data visualization tools so I can create a comprehensive, interactive project that clearly presents my ideas and allows viewers to engage with the data. In addition to using CSS I was also able to successfully activate and install Akismet as a plug in to protect from spam and hackers. Finally, I chose a new theme that I feel fit my style and installed it.
In my opinion, creating your own website is a real sign of initiative. When you create an account on social media or join an already well-established platform, you automatically gain access to viewers and an audience. Not to discredit any content creators, but in my opinion, creating a website is similar to starting your own small business. All of the attention, audience, and clients come from your own promotion and initiative. To visit someone’s website, people must actively open the web and type in the address, rather than simply scrolling past it as they would on Instagram or TikTok. That being said, this creates an atmosphere of hard work and pressure to build a well run website if you want people to use it frequently. I look forward to the challenge of creating a well run website.
I really like the website that you have created and I also appreciate how you have used CSS to make changes to the title. I absolutely agree with you about how creating your own website means bringing control and power to your own hands, and I also must agree with your comment on how this is similar to running a small business. With that said, I also think there are certain disadvantages to hosting a website by yourself. Just like running a business, I would expect hosting a website will require a lot more attention and routine care for it to be hosted properly. Staying up to date with the modular plugins and different web infrastructure packages would require a lot more work than using a third party service to host a website.
Your reflection really captures the excitement and challenges of building a website from scratch. I like how you connect WordPress flexibility with your plans for using CSS and adding interactive elements like data visualizations. I also agree that running your own site feels like managing a small business—it’s rewarding but demands initiative and consistent effort. Excited to see your digital humanities project in the future!