Several of you asked me to compile the responses to my question and I received a few responses that gave me a lot to think about. I am including them below instead of attaching them because michlib-l doesn't include attachments in digest form or the archive. Thanks, Janelle Here is my original question: For the techie people out there, (Please excuse any cross posting) I would like to create a new website for a small archive/collection (that our library has) that centers around the Newbery award winning author, Marguerite de Angeli. We had one previously (that was live when I started working here about 9 years ago) but it was on a server that died. We were able to salvage some of the pages and information from it. It will mostly be information about the author and her works but will include pictures of the collection and possibly pathfinder(s) for it also. I have the option of hosting a site through godaddy and using wordpress to create it or creating a google site. Has anyone created websites using wordpress and/or a google site? If so, do you have any feedback on creating, maintaining (etc.) websites with either method? Is one easier to use than another? Is either method unsuitable for this purpose? Is there a better but still cost effective option out there for this purpose? (Keeping in mind, that I had one or two webdesign and programming classes in college but I have not done anything since then.) I want to avoid creating a website with either method and discover that it can't do what I would like it to do, so I would be grateful for any feedback that you can give me. I can compile responses if anyone is interested. Thanks in advance, Janelle Here are the responses that I received: I have had a lot of luck with both Weebly and Wix for free website creation. Hi Janelle, I created a WordPress site for our church library website. On Blogger (Google) I've had 3 websites. The biggest problem with each is the blog format means order is the most recent first. It works on the 2 Blogger sites because of the way they are structured (although sometimes my main blog needs a reminder to catch all articles when I have a multi-part series). I'm also the webmaster for a storytelling site. <http://www.northoaklandcountystorytellers.org/> It uses a Google "classic" site and I'm not sure how the "new" sites differ. I am uncertain if both new and classic are still offered. I can tell you that the classic site gets past the blog problem of the last post is what you see first offered on both WordPress and Blogger. I think the Google sites will do what you want and is not only flexible, but easily maintained. Any reservations? Yes, I'm finding sites now need to be both full screen and mobile versions. I also find many templates look exactly like that...a template. My own storytelling website was made with a webdesign program that was a more user-friendly WYSIWYG program giving results comparable to Dreamweaver. I went through various versions and they've now made it a "legacy" product, so I won't suggest it. I've been holding off on how I'm going to create a mobile version. In that respect I look forward to whatever results you receive. I'm also going to give my own experience with GoDaddy. I started there and you can definitely do better even though it's a well-known source used by many. It's been ages since I worked with them, so my memory of problems is very hazy, but know I was able to do much better way back by switching to Earthlink (remember them?) and eventually away to my own provider. My recommendation, if you don't need to go with a freebie option, is contact Host My Site.com <https://www.hostmysite.com/> -- U.S. based and 24/7 support by phone, chat, or email. It includes domain management (my site and my blogs), automatic yearly billing if wished, and a webmail account, although I suspect the library's email will be what you use. I've been with them for many years. I also know someone who thinks equally highly of Kingwebhost <http://kingwebhost.com/> and has used them for many storytellers and storytelling organizations. I could put you in touch with her if you like. The de Angeli collection is a real gem that deserves online promotion! Best wishes in your efforts. In response to this, I have not used either of the other websites. I have, however, created a website for my church as was able to use templates to help make it look better. The website is wix.com. You have a free version, but you will be littered with wix ads. However, it does give you several premium options. It's best to try and snag it when there is a sale. But in the end I find this website to be easy to use and not too terrible on the wallet. The options we chose was like $28 for the domain this is covered for the year (extra was added to protect my identity), and $16 for the website premium for each month. Did you get some good information? I was going to respond earlier but it's been a crazy week. We started using Wordpress for our website and I love it. I used DreamWeaver for about 10 years prior and this is so much easier. If you had any specific questions, I am open to try to help you. We have regular menus and pages, plus a calendar. And we have a blog. There are many, many free templates that you would never know are free for wordpress because they look lovely. We used a free one for a couple of years and then decided to spend $50 on one that we liked. We pay for our web address and storage through Blue Host for all of our files. That costs 4.95 per month. These are the only costs involved. I can update from anywhere that I have internet access. A much better option for us. Hope this helps a bit. -- Thanks, Janelle Janelle Martin Head of Fiction Marguerite deAngeli Library Lapeer District Library 921 W. Nepessing St. Lapeer, MI 48446 jmartin@lib.lapeer.org 810-664-6971 ext 3218 Connect with us on: Instagram: lapeer_district_library Facebook: Lapeer District Library Tumblr: lapeerdistrictlibrary Grow. Enrich. Connect.