About websites and web design/development

This section is meant to be something like a scrapbook where I note new things I have learned regarding the different techniques used to make a website. I have started with describing them and adding a few resources.

I have also started to write (euphemism for "put together some bullet points") about "ways to a website"  which is going to be about a, the different ways of getting a website and
b, the complexity of a HTML and CSS based website  that follows today's web standards (and why it needs to be so complex, or does it not, perhaps?). 

What is the best answer to a question like "I want a really simple webste that doesn't cost anything. Where do I start?" I want to fill this text out over time, and hope it can be a starting point for people who want a website but don't know any of the technical background.