Your boat have its own Website?

30Irwin · #1 (**permalink**) 03-01-2010

I've maintained simple Websites for my sailboats, and find them very useful for a bunch of purposes. For example I have been in my chandlery, referring to my boat site's Specifications page on the store's browser, to confirm parts sizes. I've also linked YouTube videos, and recently caught the interest of an engineer at Whale Pumps who made a suggestion on how to improve my installation of their product. On a previous Website for my old Mirage 26, I had people contacting me from across the country who'd found my boat information through the search engines. (I'm currently top of Yahoo! for my new Irwin Citation site, but haven't cracked the Google code yet!) I've also documented every maintenance item I've undertaken. This practice for my last boat helped sell it in 9 days when the buyer could see everything I'd done to improve her.

My boat's site is Our 30' Irwin Citation Sailboat (30irwin)

Does your boat have a virtual home? I'd like to share ideas and examples of how it's benefited your boating life. Post here, or send me the URL directly if you'd like.

If you don't have a site for your boat, start with Google Sites: it's about a 10 minute exercise to get going, it's dead simple, and it's free. It's a great way to enjoy your boat, even when you're not on it.

Zanshin · #2 (**permalink**) 03-01-2010

I started my boat's website prior to my last trip to the boat - I needed something to do to pass the time and learned about html, php, javascript and MySql connectivity in the process. My favorite feature, an interactive map of the Caribbean with geolocated pictures, seems to have stopped working last week and I'll need to see why that happened. The site is at Sailboat "Zanshin" Homepage
I went the route of starting the site from scratch and borrowing ideas from the network and refined it a bit after that. I ended up using Adobe Dreamweaver to help create and maintain the site.

Stillraining · #3 (**permalink**) 03-01-2010

Mine is right here and at Cruisers Forum...Its has stretched my public exposure well beyond what i use to be comfortable with... Face Book and personal websites will not be in the mix for me i am quite sure....at least with the knowledge I have at this time anyway.

Perceptions change and so could my thoughts on the matter but it is what it is for right now...I can still be a little anonymous here or video posted to YouTube...a web site is just a little to transparent for me yet.

What you say makes sense about the selling of a boat and documenting everything in one spot...but I see that easily being done in another fashion as well...the part about being able to log in while at a Chandler is novel but really don't know how often that is really a benefit...I know where to find my boats info from Irwin's site as well. ( what is there anyway, which ain't much)

Still the benefits of attracting someone with specific knowledge about your boat you have not solicited for can be very welcoming indeed and is worth pondering that and that alone IMO...

So thanks for the seed planting anyway...

zz4gta · #4 (**permalink**) 03-01-2010

How do you set up a blog or website for your boat?

sailingdog · #5 (**permalink**) 03-01-2010

ZZ—

If all you want is a blog, go to Wordpress.com...and start there. It is almost simple enough for Craigtoo to be able to do... almost.

eMKay · #6 (**permalink**) 03-01-2010

Yes. VVVVVV

n0w0rries · #7 (**permalink**) 03-01-2010

Definitely cool idea. I'll have to make one for my boat as well. Right behind updating my business website and personal website. Just learned flash but have had no time... and as soon as work slows down and the weather cooperates--I'm going sailing--the website will wait!

I'm really dying to get some good pics of my boat. Problem is it's hard to be behind the camera on the beach and at the tiller on the boat at the same time.

Architeuthis · #8 (**permalink**) 03-01-2010

Yep, we've had at least one website since the mid 1990's but these days I don't use notebook to program HTML, hell I don't have to program anything these days, LOL.

It is easy, I would suggest anyone interested to just give it a shot.

tager · #9 (**permalink**) 03-01-2010

reversebicyclerider.blogspot.com

Sequitur · #10 (**permalink**) 03-01-2010

I've kept simple websites for my past three boats, and for the current one I have both a site and a blog