creating a basic sharepoint site ?

Question

if i want to create a basic sharepoint site. do i need a sharepoint designer ? or some other sharepoint software ?

Answer 1

I believe you'd just need the WSS 3.0 piece; which is free but which needs a "Server" OS. Won't run on XP/Vista.

To make complex sites: you'd need a programming environment like VS with the Designer plugins/addins to create web parts etc. To use advanced features like document integration, search, etc. you'd need to buy the MOSS 07 piece of Sharepoint.

Answer 2

Depends what you meant by create*. If you want to customize site look and feel then you need to use SharePoint designer. If you just need to create a site you don't need to use any tools or other specific software. By default SharePoint has builtin support to create sites.

Answer 3

Just start with SharePoint. Don't do anything with SharePoint Designer or Visual Studio until you understand what SharePoint really is and what it can do. SharePoint has a ton of features, and it takes some time to understand its strengths and weaknesses.