jpmk12 Posted March 2, 2006 Report Share Posted March 2, 2006 (edited) I have been designing web sites for a long time and I have seen plenty of sites that are hard to find and poorly done. This is a list of some of the things that can really detract from your content.1. Using FramesFrames can be very disruptive to users. They have some good points but I would not recommend them. Certain browsers and screen sizes aren't able to show frames properly and this makes frames unreliable. Remember, a designers goal is to make a site viewable to everyone. 2.To many extrasSome people tend to put to many java scripts and extras on their sites. Background music and js can be cool, but to much can be annoying. All these extras can also spike your load time chasing away people with slower connections.3.Under Construction SignsGood web pages are always under construction. These signs just give you an excuse not to have fully functioning content. Wait till you site is finished to place it on the web. 4.Missing GraphicsMake sure that all your graphic links are in place and that you don't use graphics with huge file sizes. 5.Outrageouse FontsMake sure that you don't use crazy fonts when you are trying to display information. These fonts can make it hard to read and annoy some users. Try to limit you use of crazy fonts.6.To many animationsMake sure that you limit the amount of animations on your site. To many can be confusing and take away from your main content.7.Orphan PagesYou need to try to make sure that all you pages give a clear indication of what they are and where they belong. All pages should also include a link to the index page.8.OrganizationMake sure that all you pages are presented in a sensible and organized manor 9.Outdated InformationMake sure that you keep your web pages up to date. Eliminate old material or move it to an archived page10.Broken LinksMake sure to maintain your links and that you don't link to any dead web pages. 11. Bad Color SchemeMake sure that your color schemes match and arent to hard to follow. Text colors should be easy to see over background colors.I hope these tips will help you.JPMK12 Edited March 2, 2006 by jpmk12 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jpmk12 Posted March 2, 2006 Author Report Share Posted March 2, 2006 The comment line can be your best friend when designing an html page. Especially if you are new and are trying to keep your thoughts straight. I use a comment line every time i start a new section or idea in a web oage. It makes for quick and easy editing.The comment line look like this. <!-- Enter your design comment here -->It is invisible to the browser and can only be seen when you view the source or edit the page. You can use it to separate parts of code and keep you mind straight.Learning to use the comment can help you a lot. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jpmk12 Posted March 2, 2006 Author Report Share Posted March 2, 2006 (edited) Website Validation is also very important for web designers.What is meant by validation?A group known as the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) develop a set of standards for html and other web languages. If your website complies with all of their standards, your site is considered valid. If your site doesn't meet the standard, you are invalid. If you page is not valid, it may load slowly and incorrectly. A few small errors wont cause you site to display horrible, but it just looks nicer when you go the extra mile. Why validate?Validation is important for 3 reasons Browsers display Web pages and trying to display them even if they're not legal HTML. Usually this means that the browser will try to make educated guesses about what you probably meant. The problem is that different browsers (or even different versions of the same browser) will make different guesses about the same illegal code; worse, if your HTML is really pathological, the browser could get hopelessly confused and produce a very poor web page. That's why you want to make sure your pages are legal HTML. The best way to do that is by running your documents through one or more HTML validators. The second reason is speed: Validation can increase the speed of loading the documents. If your full of errors, It will take longer. The final reason is your honor as a coder. No good coder wants to put out something riddled with errors. The extra time spent validating shows your visitors that you care enough to make a good product. Validation is important to having a web developed site. A free validation service can be found at http://validator.w3.org/ Edited March 2, 2006 by jpmk12 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Pierce Posted March 2, 2006 Report Share Posted March 2, 2006 Another design technique is, if you cant draw it on paper, or in a paint program. Then you should not expect drawing it in html will naturally flow.Also best designs usualy go though quite a few processes till one that "fits" is found, developed or designed.Dont be discouraged if your current designs are not satisfactory to you. The more designs you do, the better they will become, and easier to think and develope. Everybody has to start somewhere...Pierce Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jpmk12 Posted March 2, 2006 Author Report Share Posted March 2, 2006 Creating web sites really is like an art. You start with a basic design then you grow that design. They key to a good website is to keep improving. Never just quit on a site once its up. You should always be learning and trying to improve your skills. As you learn and grow, your web site will grow and look better.JPMK12 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Dragon Posted March 4, 2006 Report Share Posted March 4, 2006 I have pinned this topic as it should not be lost as the community grows. these are great tips and tricks, and if you know of any please post them in this thread. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jpmk12 Posted March 4, 2006 Author Report Share Posted March 4, 2006 I was talking to some people about web safe colors the other day so i thought i would post my thoughts here. Web Safe colors were originally created because computers were limited on the amount of colors they could display back in the day. A list of SAFE colors was created so designers would know which colors were accepted by all computers. I posted a list of those web safe colors here: http://www.jpmk12.net/modules.php?op=modlo...&artid=7&page=1Most people say that web safe colors arent a big deal any more because computers can display millions of colors. I usually try to stay withon this list just to be say but most people agree that web safe colors are no longer practical. Its really up to you and the audience your attracting.If nothing else, you can use the list to create some colors you may not have known about.Hope This was helpfulJPMK12 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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