Resources

My first website was hand coded on note pad. I still use note pad but there are a number programs and websites that simplify and expedite web site work.
Below are a list of sites I feel are useful. This list will change as new sites are found.

Learning and References:
HTML Goodies
Anyone should be able to learn basic website construction here. It used to be authored by a guy called Prof. Joe Burns but he either sold it or turned it over to the present owners. Although it is more of a commercial site now, there are still good tutorials and it's free.

World Wide Web Consortium
This is the first and last word on website development. Indispensable resource.

Forums and Blogs:
Matt Cutts Blog
SEO information. Matt Cutts is an engineer for Google and post to his blog regularly. Anyone who want to find out the truth about what goes on with google should read this blog regularly.

Cre8asite Forums
Free forum covering everything from site design to SEO.

SEO Chat
Ditto the cre8asite forum.

Bruce Clay
Bruce clay has a blog that deals with SEO. There is some free content and paid for training is also available.

Webmaster World
Pay for site with some free content.

Graphics Tools:
Adobe Products
Who has not heard about adobe? Search ebay for less expensive older versions.

Jasc Paint Shop Pro any version
Check on ebay.

FTP (file transfer protocol) Programs:
Cute FTP
Once the site is finished, you will need to load it to a server. I have used Cute FTP for years and find it to be easy and affordable.

A word to the wise ... There are a large number of website and SEO blogs and forums on the WWW. These sites contain a vast amount of information, much of it posted by anonymous users. While much of this information is very useful, a surprising amount of it is not.

Rumors abound and myths are passed on from post to post blog to forum.
So how can one tell if what is posted is good reliable information?
The first source of information should be the webmaster FAQs that are posted on all search engines. Take the time to read these and keep track of changes.

Next are sources like Matt Cutts, who have nothing to gain from false information.

After that it pays to use as many sources of information as possible. Read a number of blogs and forums and compare the result.

Finally, keep good track of your progress and note what seems to help and what hurts.