{"id":673,"date":"2020-02-04T17:06:22","date_gmt":"2020-02-04T17:06:22","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/sites.carleton.edu\/support\/?page_id=673"},"modified":"2020-02-04T17:06:33","modified_gmt":"2020-02-04T17:06:33","slug":"getting-started-guide","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/sites.carleton.edu\/support\/getting-started-guide\/","title":{"rendered":"Getting Started Guide"},"content":{"rendered":"
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  1. Getting Started<\/a><\/span>
    1. Choosing your domain name<\/a><\/li>
    2. Signing Up<\/a><\/li>
    3. Privacy<\/a><\/li>
    4. What Can You Do with Your Account?<\/a><\/li>
    5. What Exactly is a Web Application?<\/a><\/li>
    6. Static and Dynamic Websites<\/a><\/li>
    7. Technical Requirements\/Limitations<\/a><\/li><\/ol><\/li>
    8. When You Leave<\/a><\/span>
      1. Export from WordPress<\/a><\/li><\/ol><\/li><\/ol><\/div><\/div>

        1.<\/span>Getting Started<\/span> #<\/span>
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        Carleton College provides students, faculty, and staff with the opportunity to register a domain name and create a digital presence through various mediums such as blogs, portfolios, and wikis. You can easily install open source applications such as WordPress, MediaWiki, Drupal, Scalar,\u00a0and Omeka to your own domain, and use this space to create your digital identity and express your creativity.<\/div>
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        1.1.<\/span>Choosing your domain name<\/span> #<\/span>
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        Choosing your domain name is the first step in getting started with staking your claim on the web. Your domain name is a unique Web address (e.g.\u00a0yourname.sites.carleton.edu)<\/em>\u00a0that can be used to build out your own digital presence. As you make your choice, there are a few considerations to keep in mind:<\/p>\n

        Your Domain Name Must Be Available<\/strong>:\u00a0Domain names must be unique, which means in order for you to claim your own, you need to be sure that it is currently available (and not being used by anyone else or any company or organization). There are lots of tools to check on domain availability, and when you sign up on sites.carleton.edu, we\u2019ll actually check the availability of your choice for you. If you\u2019d like to spend some time thinking about your choice and checking availability before you actually sign-up, we recommend using\u00a0whois.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n

        Choose a Domain You Can Live With<\/strong>: You should choose a domain name that you feel you can live with for quite some time.\u00a0You should pick something that you won’t find embarrassing in the future.\u00a0<\/strong>A good rule of thumb is to pick a domain that you would be comfortable putting on a future job application.<\/p>\n

        You May Wish to Include Your Name in Your Domain<\/strong>: There is no requirement that your domain reflects your specific identity in the form of your first and last name. However, choosing a domain name that includes your name may make it easier for you to achieve higher rankings in search engines when someone queries your real name.<\/p>\n

        Pick a Domain you Like<\/strong>: At the end of the day, your domain should reflect you. Pick a domain you like and are proud of. It can reflect your interests, sports you play, or your hobby. Or it could just be your name. The \u201cright\u201d domain for you is the one you’re comfortable with.<\/p>\n<\/div>

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        1.2.<\/span>Signing Up<\/span> #<\/span>
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        Review the Guidelines<\/strong><\/h3>\n

        Before you get started, we recommend that you review our information about\u00a0Choosing a Domain Name<\/a>.<\/p>\n

        Getting Setup<\/h3>\n
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        1. Once you’ve reviewed the guidelines, you can proceed to the\u00a0sign-up page.<\/a><\/li>\n
        2. Scroll to the bottom of the page and fill out the Request Form.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

          Additional Domain Name Options<\/h4>\n

          If you would like a different domain name, there are 2 additional options. Please indicate in the Request Form if you are interested in the options outlined below.<\/p>\n

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          1. Buy a top-level domain from Reclaim Hosting: It is easy to create your own top-level domain. This allows you to select a URL for your website that is easy to remember and share. While you are at Carleton College, this is available for a nominal cost (currently $15\/year). You can continue to use this domain after leaving Carleton College Sites, although the cost may increase<\/li>\n
          2. Connect an existing domain to your cPanel: If you already have an existing domain that you’ve previously registered elsewhere, simply point your domain’s nameservers to ns1.reclaimhosting.com<\/strong> and ns2.reclaimhosting.com<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/div>
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            1.3.<\/span>Privacy<\/span> #<\/span>
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            What you add to your sites.carleton.edu webspace rests entirely with you. You can choose not to pick a domain that reveals your name. You can use a pseudonym on your actual site. However, when you sign up through the default process, your name\u00a0does<\/strong>\u00a0get published as part of the public record about your domain name. Anyone can find it by looking up details about the ownership of that domain name through a public \u201cWhois\u201d request.<\/p>\n

            This is NOT an issue if you\u2019re already planning on using your name openly on your site (in your domain name or elsewhere). This option is aimed, specifically, at those who, for whatever reason, feel they want to take every precaution to hide their identity on their site.<\/p>\n<\/div>

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            1.4.<\/span>What Can You Do with Your Account?<\/span> #<\/span>
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            Your ability to do things on Carleton College is dictated to a large degree by the limits of your imagination. That said, there are some technical requirements and limitations that you\u00a0should be aware of and might want to review.<\/p>\n

            To spark your imagination, here are some ideas that might help you get started:<\/p>\n

            Install a Web Application in Your Space<\/h2>\n

            Carleton College makes it very simple to install certain Web applications in your Web space.\u00a0Web applications\u00a0are just special software that run on a web server. Usually, they allow you to build and manage a website. The kind of site you can build depends on the type of application you install. Here are some examples of applications that you can easily install within the sites.carleton.edu web hosting interface:<\/p>\n

            \"\"WordPress<\/strong>: WordPress is a simple-to-use blogging application. The tool also comes with a huge<\/em> array of plugins & themes to allow you to create virtually any kind of website imaginable. We have guides on using WordPress here<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

            Omeka:<\/strong>\u00a0Omeka\u00a0is an open-source web application that can be used to create and display online digital collections and archives. We have\u00a0information available to help you install and use Omeka here<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

            \"\"Scalar:<\/strong> Scalar is a content management system with the idea of creating non-linear books on the web. You can learn more about its functions and how to install it here<\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>\n

            \"\"<\/p>\n

            Grav:<\/strong>\u00a0Grav is an open source, flat-file CMS made for folks who are looking for something a little more experimental. Grav provides a straightforward framework for creating pages and inserting media. We have additional resources for Grav here<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

            \"\"Mediawiki:\u00a0<\/strong>It is the open-source wiki software that runs the online encyclopedia, Wikipedia<\/a>. This tool may be right for you if you’re interested in publishing documents and then collaborating with others on them. Find our guides on Mediawiki here<\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>\n

            These are just a few<\/em> of the open-source applications that are available to you in your Carleton College web space. \u00a0We encourage you to read more about what Web applications are and which ones are available to you through this project.<\/p>\n

            Organize Your Site with Subdomains and Folders<\/h2>\n

            Through this project, you’ve received a domain name that you can actually subdivide and organize anyway you like. One easy way to organize your domain is to\u00a0create subdomains<\/a>, in which you can then install other applications. In addition, you can just set up subfolders for your site (which can also have their own applications installed in them). Here’s an example of how you might organize your site (using the subdomain vs. the subfolder approach)<\/p>\n

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            Subdomain Approach<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/td>\nSubfolder Approach<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
            yourdomain.com (“root”)<\/td>\nInstall WordPress as your “main site”<\/td>\nyourdomain.com (“root”)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
            course1.yourdomain.com<\/td>\nInstall a second WordPress instance for a course you’re taking<\/td>\nyourdomain.com\/course1<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
            photos.yourdomain.com<\/td>\nInstall ZenPhoto for a public photo gallery of your photos<\/td>\nyourdomain.com\/photos<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
            docs.yourdomain.com<\/td>\nInstall MediaWiki for a club you belong to that wants to collaboratively edit its bylaws<\/td>\nyourdomain.com\/docs<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
            files.yourdomain.com<\/td>\nInstall OwnCloud so you can access your files on your laptop and at work<\/td>\nyourdomain.com\/files<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n

            This is just an example<\/em> of a way to organize your site and then use different sections to do different things. There is no one solution to this challenge, and what you do should be driven by what makes sense to you. To start, you may just want to install one thing at the “root” of your domain, and then let the rest evolve as you get to know more about what’s possible.<\/p>\n

            Map Your Domain (or a Subdomain)<\/h3>\n

            If you already have a digital presence that you’d like to pull into your Carleton College space,\u00a0domain mapping<\/a>\u00a0is an option you may wish to explore. This allows you to assign your domain (or a subdomain) to another service. Some services that work with domain mapping are:<\/p>\n