Can see website in edit mode, but 404 error when logged out?

but the home page content disappear once logged out

I could see it – no 404!

Try clearing cache before viewing the page.

Hi Tara
Thanks for your time in looking at my problem. I waited a long time and as I didn’t have any help, I kind of cheated.
I changed the permalink to a different page Advisers …… side and duplicated the homepage. That seem to turn up.
When I try to set the front page, the Home page does not show up in the drop down menu, but all other pages do.
If you actually click Home on the menu from that page it is linked to a different or the actual Home page. I don’t want to keep duplicating. This will give me a temporary solution.
It is so frustrating I am on the verge of ditching WP altogether and go somewhere else to set up a website.

Have you reviewed creating a static front page?

Yes the Home page does not appear in the drop down menu for front page selection. However, if I make the Home page a child of another page it is seen in the drop down menu.
This is what I have done now.

But what I don’t understand is WP is promoted as an easy to use platform, but after all these years there is no straight forward way it works.
Just crazy, my opinion.

the Home page does not appear in the drop down menu for front page selection.

That’s because you have to create a publish a Page called Home first. It’s Step 1 in “Creating a Static Front Page” in the instructions I linked to above.

Appreciate all of your feedback.
@esmi I did have a “Home” page in the beginning, but it would not show up in the drop down menu for Front Page selection.
It only appears in the Front page drop down if I don’t make it a parent, but a child of another page.
It seems to work.

Can you replicate the problem using the default Twenty Eleven theme?

Hi Esmi
Here is an update for you.
As you suggested switched to Twenty Eleven it worked as Home as child.
Re-instated Home as no parent and it works in Twenty Elev and Thirteen now.
So just the switch from Parent-child-Parent seem to have resetted the defaults.
I had also deactivated all plug-ins yesterday.
So happy at moment, except 2013 is not rendering perfectly in IE. It is ok in Safari, chrome, firefox etc. Any suggestions?
Thanks.

Not sure. It could still be an issue with your theme. Or a combination of the theme & your plugins.