Google Sites
What makes a good researcher? Is it only when a person finds fact and keeps it only with him? Or Someone who finds the fact and share it with everyone? When knowledge is being shared it increases. The best tool for sharing thoughts and research is blogs. Google sites is the best tool to provide the platform to build your own websites and let the world hear you.
With the help of google sites any person with or without coding background can make thier own site for Personal, Profession, Academic, Industrial, Commercial, Agricultural purposes.
Google sites provide you with pre-designed template for website according to your intended use. I started with portfolio template to create my site, Templates have so many things that may required to be deleted. Instead using the new blank file makes it easy to create the site and one can make more his/her website with more personalised touch.
When I started creating site I see two major components, One is main body of site and second one is editing tools. In main body HOME page is already provided where peroson can start making his/her site. On this page the hero banner is available where I have written my favourite quote by Dr. B. R. Ambedkar, I decided to display my name on site and selected the logo and fevicon as can be seen on this website. To start editing site, on right plane there are three sections viz. Insert, Pages and Themes.
Insert section has options to add text, image, embed other website or add files from google drive. The next subsection of insert is Layouts, which is most important function of sites, as we can select the arrangement of the main body of site. Person can select Photo and text side by side, oo multiple photos and texts in one plane. For different pages in website I used different layouts, like in home page I have used my photo and my brief information in text side by side. Third subsection of insert is type of information to be shown on website like collapsible texts, table of contents, image carousel, google plugins like docs, slides, presentation etc. I have used table content for Tools page.
In Pages section the arrangement of different pages on website can be done and you can add or delete the pages just by dragging the other pages belove the intended page. I have created multiple pages like Project, About me, Tools and separate pages for individual tools. Tools like VUE, Google Sites, Brainstorming, Ideation, Decision Matrix, Tinkercad and OBS recorder are created below Tools page.
The aesthetic part of sites is mostly handled by Themes section where we can decide how our site would look like, what would be colour tone. I have used a Vision theme and blue color tone for website.
When all editing is done we can publish the website with google domain for free. After publishing, we can still work on our website that,s the best part.
The Best:-
Google Sites are free and easy to use and edit.
It is synced with your Google account so you can edit it on the go without any expert or computer professional.
Layouts and Drag and Drop options for pages are helpful.
Could be better:-
Themes are limited.
Google domain are free, but for personalised domains some bandwidth has to purchased.
Overall its the best tool for a researcher like me to share my thought, findings and work.