Thanks Neilo
That is more or less where I had got to. With a lot of sleuthing I have now also figured out how to organise the testing server with MAMP and touch wood it seems to be working reliably both for your site designs and for my own site design.
My next question is this - how can I modify the site structure and design after creation? I know I can specify all the pages in that little interface, and I know I can change the content with the CMS but my understanding was I would be able to add and delete pages and the menu's would update but I dont see how to do this. I tried just deleting a page and the menu did not seem to update. Is there something else I have to do? Also I understood I would be able to change the overall layout and design after the site was created. For example I would like to try it with the vertical menu instead of horizontal and generally play around with the look and feel of my site. Surely I dont have to specify absolutely everything in advance?
Thanks again
Helen