| Basic Web Design Tips... |
| Trials, Tribulations, Basic Things Learned and Plagiarized Material... |
| Method of Madness |
| Posted: October 01, 2007 |
Content First of all - try to find something to write about. Just a page with a lot of links isn't that interesting, to tell you the truth... But links that associate with the topic of your page is good. If you have a page about dogs, for example it is good if you have some links to other good dog pages. Your Design When you think of some kind of design. Think about to coordinate the colors at your page. And to make all your pages look like they "belong together." I have been to too many pages that want to use all kind of different backgrounds and graphics, and sometimes I don't even know where I am - everything looks so different. Navigation Another thing that is very important is to have some kind of navigation at EVERY page of your site. If I search for something at a search engine, I don't necessary end up at your index page. Then it is good if you have a link back to your main page - if not - I surf on. And if I stay for a while at a site it is nice to surf around without having to go back to your main page every time I want to go to some of your other pages. Backgrounds Choose a background that isn't "messy." The text must be readable... Visitors can't concentrate at the text if it is very hard to read. Use a Lot of Air Use a lot of air/space! Put in some <BR> (Break row) quite often! That will make your layout "more clean." And it will be easier for the visitor to see everything. Width and Height Always set the "Width" and "Height" for your images in your HTML code. If you don't do that the browser has to "stop and think" every time it comes to an image. Setting the width and height also makes your page load a lot faster. The Text Don't have text that is too big! Many homepage builders think it will be more readable if it is big - but it is the opposite! So use something "normal looking." Try to use the same font color at your text as well at the same page. And be careful not to make too much text "blinking." If you want to point something out in the text don't underline it. It is confusing when it is used at a WebPages - visitors think it is a link! Then it is better to make it bold or italic. Unusual Fonts Think twice before you use an "unusual" font... Even if I have that font in my computer and can see it the way it is supposed too, those unusual fonts never look as good as the "usual" Arial, Times, Comic Sans etc. Those unusual fonts are very hard to read. Long text lines Don't let your text go from side to side at your page... It is VERY hard to read no matter how interesting. Use a table to "shorten" the width put the text in the table and then center the table. I have used it here at this page. This is an example of how you write it in your code: <TABLE WIDTH="500"> Annoying "Tricks" Some new homepage builders like to use a lot of "tricks." Like pop up signs that says "write your name here", or background music. The first time a visitor see or hear this, he or she may be impressed. But - after a few more pages like this, the viewer will just be very annoyed. I have to admit that I always turn off the sound - I have my own music at my stereo when I surf... And I NEVER write my name in that little java pop up. Sounds used on interface elements are funny the first three times you roll over them. After that, they're just annoying. Small images in Kilobyte Make your images as small as you can in Kilobytes - No matter how fast an Internet connection is, graphics on web pages take a long time to load. The average computer user is only receiving 28.800 bits of information per second. Select only graphics that add value to the site content, and shrink your large graphics by using a graphic program. If you want to have many images - split them up at more pages than one - or make thumbnails! Then if people click the thumb they go to the bigger image. Gifs and JPG's Talking about images... Gifs are good to use when you have an image with FEW colors. JPGs is best to use for photos. Many people think that a gif is automatically smaller in Kb than a JPG - but that isn't true... But if it is few colors it is! Under Construction Do not have any "under construction" signs at your webpage! Every good page is always under construction. If you think that you are "excused" if you have those signs, it is wrong. If I see a sign like that I "judge" that page immediately. If you feel that it isn't ready to show - don't make it public. Animations Don't have too many animated images. It is very annoying to try to read the text at a page where everything is moving. Maybe one (or maybe two) at a page is enough. Links Check your links OFTEN. And make sure they go to the right page... Nothing is more annoying that a link that isn't working. I often see at pages that use my graphics that they have written the wrong URL to me. CHECK your links before you make the page "public." Copyright at the Internet Do NOT take images from other sites without asking for permission. Check if the image or text is copyrighted first! Most stuff IS - even if it doesn't say so at the page. Someone made the image, photo or text from the beginning and that person still has the right to his/hers work. Please think about that. It is illegal to use copyrighted material! The copyright rules are the same at the Internet as everywhere else. If you use a graphic set from a "free site" be sure to give credit to the artist and provide a link back to him/her at EVERY page where you use the graphics. Learn more about this at my page about copyright. Use Line Art Line art is especially well suited for the Web. Generally speaking, if you use Adobe Illustrator - rather than Photoshop - to create your Web art, it's going to load a lot faster. The most important aesthetic consideration is transmission speed. If it takes too long to download, go back to the drawing board. Less is More If the copy won't fit, don't be afraid to tell whomever wrote it to chop it down. After all, less is more, right? Feel free to use this trite expression on them if they refuse to edit their copy. Use Color Wisely If you have the luxury of using full color, don't abuse it. Often people feel they need to get the most out of their money, directly translating that to the number of colors they try to jam into their design. Learn HTML Structure Learn the structure of HTML and why it works like it does. Design in ways that take advantage of what HTML can do well, and route around what it cannot. The rest of the team will be happier, and the site will work much better. Ninety percent of good programming is resisting the temptation to be a dumb-ass. Learn what mistakes and typos you generally make, and remember to check those first. Don't Waste Users Time You have three seconds to convince a user not to use the Back button. Three seconds. So, get something on the screen immediately, and make it really interesting. You have 30 seconds to load everything on screen. And that's probably a liberal estimate - it's actually more like 15 seconds. Be very fast. Users are completely uninterested in learning anything about how your site works. They came for your content. Give it to them - fast and simple. Where do you Stand? How well does your site show up in search engines? Why don't you know? Find out, then tweak your meta content accordingly. |
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