14 DAY TRIAL // It's been quite a while since my last review of a website builder, and since there are enough nice programs belonging to this family, here's another one!
BlueVoda Website Builder is a program that I've never used before, but it reached its eighth version already. Well, you can't get them all, but, after all, better later than never! The installation kit is small, having only 4.3MB in size, and the program is completely free to use, but you have to get a hosting account from VodaHost in order to be able to publish your site on the Internet.
Once you have installed the program, you'll find yourself facing a nice interface that can be completely customized to your will. For example, you can take away the menu bar, drag it and drop it wherever you think it will serve you better. The same applies to all toolbars that can be found inside this application.
This website builder doesn't require any programming! Don't get too excited, since not every grandma can use this tool in a blink of an eye. No matter if you like it or not, since even a hammer requires its user to know how to hold it, the same way you will have to know some basics about terms like Flash, ActiveX controls, Navigation Bar, Image Map and many others, but that's not hard at all, since the program comes with links to some good video tutorials available for free on the Internet, just great to get you started.
If we leave the menu bar aside, we still have seven toolbars available - Standard, HTML, Align, Advanced and Extra Tools, Form Fields and Format. Each one has a lot of options available, and you can further customize them by adding and removing buttons as needed.
For example, the Extra Tools allows you to add banners, image rollovers, ad banner rotators, photo galleries and more. Talking about each of the toolbars will take away your pleasure of discovering the program, so my advice can be only one: after installing it, hit the Video Tutorials button that you will find in the lower left corner of the interface (it took me a while to see it...) and you'll have the world at your feet soon!
Templates is a magical word today, and BlueVoda couldn't miss such an opportunity. There are a lot of templates that you can get and install from the producer's website, which is good, but after installing the program you won't find any template built in, which is bad.
Don't hurry to leave your seats, there's still something hidden! BlueVoda Website Builder comes with a free FTP client, called Blue FTP. That would be great, only if this handy little tool wouldn't be limited to connect only to VodaHost's servers, which is pretty unfair, I think. This is like giving somebody a free car that won't work unless it uses your gas and your roads.
Hurry up, install this and hit the Video Tutorials button!...and the Templates! Most of all, don't forget about the Community Forum! Hit'em all and prepare for having a lot of fun building up your website!
The Good
This program is small, has a nice interface that's highly customizable and easy enough to use for most of us. Add the fact that it's free to use and if you want to publish your sites to the Internet you will have to get a hosting account well priced...
The Bad
...which is good but also bad, since I don't want to be forced to buy a product, even if it's a good one! Of course that the preview files should be saved somewhere, and could be found, and...but that would be a little like stealing, since the right way would be to be able to publish your sites using Blue FTP where you like. Good programs like this don't need to force their users to do anything!
The Truth
If you don't plan to get a completely free website using a free webhosting service, than choosing BlueVoda Website Builder combined with a VodaHost account can be the right choice, but otherwise you can go and try something else. No matter your choice, trying this program can be fun, so if you have the time for this, hit it!
Here are some snapshots of the application in action:
