Creating a the website was more difficult than anticipated. I didn’t struggle much with actually getting my own blog and page but the instructions were tricky to work around. I set up my website through the WordPress application, which you can see here: https://lugod2.sites.carleton.edu/
Moving from the front end user experience to the cPanel-end made me realize how many parts go into a website that isn’t necessarily designing it. In fact, I would say designing the website was the easiest part. I struggled a lot in making sure the website was secure. There were several parts of the instructions the required installations within installations. Navigating these pages was overwhelming because I had to keep a tab open at every step of the way. I installed the cache protectant and used the plug in feature but was unsure of whether or not it is active and how to navigate it. In the process of designing my website I found it hard to find the “theme” feature that was mentioned in the instructions, although not necessary I would still like to know how to access this in the future.
Hosting my own website offers a level of control that most social media platforms can’t match. On most websites and applications the design is rigid, users are filling in boxes that someone else has designed, and what you view is subject to their algorithms and ters of service.
When self-hosting, I own the data and the page. I can completely restructure how my page looks or how the users navigate it. There are no permissions needed. The drawback with having so much creative freedom on a website is that you also carry the responsibility of securing it and maintaining it. An example of this is spam protection (hence the Akismet plugin). I believe one could use this platform to create a digital portfolio somewhat like linkedin, a research blog about a comp study, and most of all just as testing grounds to see whats possible outside of the academic side.