I have a good idea for a website and was curious what I have to do to get a good looking website up and online.

Was curious if anyone here is experienced with website design and how to setup a website with a download server and what not.

I want the site to be able to be downloaded from (small size files). I also need a search function.

Where do I start with this kinda thing?

To put a website online, you must hire a server company. To be able to let people download stuff from your site you'll need to purchase from the server a bandwidth so users can download the stuff. example: you have a file that is 100mb and your site bandwidth is 500mb/month, them only 5 people will be able to download it per month.

Do you know the rate on these things?

Hosts like bluehost usually have unlimited space and usually unlimited badwidth or high bandwidth, and costs about $80 to $100 per year. Then ypu would need someone to code and design the site for you.

How much does a good coder/designer cost? Do they charge for the service? Per hour? or what?

Some charge per hour, some will charge by project. Usually a basic site will run you about $300+ and more for additional coding.

Ah ok, thanks alot man.

Remember this when you hire someone: Ideas are worthless if you can't implement them. Remember that when negotiating how much you will pay and remember that with programming you get exactly what you pay for.

It kinda depends on the project. Bigger projects, developers tend to charge per hour ( here at my city at least ), and for small projects it would be a price for the full project.

It really depends on how many features you want implemented, as well as the complexity of said features.

Are you willing to disclose what this site is about? I can give you a rough estimate for how much a freelancer would cost.