OK, before we get going with creating your own website, there are a few things to think about and gather together.

An Idea

Before creating your own website, you need to have some idea of exactly what you are trying to do with it and what you would like to accomplish. You can consult the Reasons To Have a Website lesson in this course for more information on the different types of sites that are out there.

The reason I mention this again on the checklist is because I believe you should put a little planning into your new website. It is best to think about your ultimate goal and then work backwards. For example, are you looking to create a site to talk about yourself and potentially “sell” you to recruiters? The goal here would be an impressed recruiter. They will need to have information about you (i.e. a resume) and will want to see that information on a professional-looking website. Want to keep your family updated on what is happening in your life? You’ll probably want a site which allows easy updating often (a blog).

With a relatively firm grasp of where you want to go with this, let us get into the different tools you are going to need to get moving.

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This simple checklist of tasks should get you started on using your router to its best ability, enhancing your LAN security. These are generic features that should be on most routers out there; consult your router’s user manual if you have doubts about where to find these settings. If you are still in the market looking to buy a router, a good idea is to go through the online manual to see if these settings are available on the router in your budget. Some of these security settings are to be used in conjunction with others; some provide an additional layer of security to what another setting already provides.

1. Administrative password

Establish an administrative password, there are far too many users out there running their routers on the factory default password. Make sure you choose a strong password, remember if your router password gets compromised, your entire LAN could be compromised. On the plus side, even if you forget your admin password, resetting the router will default your password to factory settings (and will remove all your other configurations). If you are administering a LAN that is frequented by people whom you do not entirely trust (or it is your job not to trust them); make sure that you set your browser not to save your username and password to the router’s configuration page. In addition, it is good practice to clear the history and cache of the browser you use to configure the router – using this in conjunction with a router IP address that isn’t the factory default 192.168.0.1 (see 3. Router IP address) will add an additional layer of security.

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