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MAKING AN EXCITING WEB SITE
Web pages do not need to have a specific purpose, you
can create your own site just for fun. Share information
about a topic that interests you, show off your favorite
pictures, write poetry, keep a journal, share those
great recipes you have, create a fan club, just to name
a few. At the same time you are learning a new
skill.
PLANNING YOUR WEB PAGE
Organize your Contents. Lets say
you want to create a Recipes page as your
main theme. Gather all your recipes, sort them by
categories, desserts, main course,
appetizers. Visit some of your favorite
personal recipe sites for some ideas on how to layout
your web pages. Note what you really like and what you
don't. Remember not to duplicate what you see, make
yours unique.
Divide your contents. Your
home page will be the enter page. This page should
contain a title area, some introductory information about your
site and navigational links to your other
pages. Here is where you will welcome your
visitors. Tell them what your site has to offer, make it
brief, most viewers scan information so too much text is
usually ignored. This main page is usually
referred to as your index page.
Adding Graphics. If you just
included text on your index page, don't expect too many
visitors. These days graphics make your pages more
attractive. Almost everything you see on a web page
these days offers some graphics as well. The
secret to graphics is a little goes a long way. Don't
overcrowd your page with pictures, animations, bars, buttons,
etc. Think of why you are using them and if they are
really necessary. A nice colored background or maybe an
interesting graphic that will instantly tell your viewers what
your site is all about. There are many sites
offering free background sets, clip art etc. the choice is
endless. CAUTION make
sure you have permission before taking any photo or graphic
from anywhere. Many sites will have a terms and
condition for using their graphics. If
unsure, email the owner of the site and ask him or her
if you may use it on your site.
How do I put my site on the
Web? You will need a web host for your
site. Choose a provider that lets you store at least 1 mb of
information, which is equal to about 10 web
pages. Internet service providers usually offer a
limited amount of space where their customers can
place their web site free of charge. There are many
Web hosts that offer free space so spend some time reviewing
them. One of the most popular ones to offer free space
is Bravehost. They
also offer a premium pkg. for as low as $4.99 a month.
When you have decided on a host think about what name you
would like to be known as when people visit your site.
e.g. http://www.coolhandluke.bravenet.com/
.
I know, we all sometimes just scan the Terms and Service of
a site, but this is very important. Before you join,
please read this very carefully, you would hate to have
your site removed after all your hard work if you violated the
user policies.
How do I Upload my files? To upload files
from your computer to your web host, there are two ways,
through a File Manager that may be provided by your host, or
by using an FTP software program (File Transfer Protocol) that
allows you to transfer files between two computers. WS_FTP home and
CuteFTP are two shareware
programs that you can download and try for free. If you decide
to keep it, you must purchase it. That's the premise of
shareware - try before you buy.
Do I need to know HTML to build my
Site? Knowledge of HTML is helpful but not
absolutely necessary. Bravenet offers many tools
such as Vititi!
Ready to Begin!
Now that you have decided how you will build your
website, it's time to begin.
To create your website you will need
an text editor. you do not have to be connected to the
Internet to create your website.
What is a Text Editor?
A text editor is a program where you type the text for your
pages and then add HTML tags to define how you want the text
to appear when viewed on the web. Popular text editors
include Notepad for Windows and SimpleText for the
Macintosh.
Away We Go!
Now that you have a host, take some time and
familiarize yourself with the many goodies they
offers, such as Guestbook, Counters, etc.
These excellent resources will help you build your
site.
| Design Tips |
| Navigational Area |
Always include navigation links on each page users
will enter. Place your navigation link in the same
section on every page, be it on top, bottom, left or
right. |
| Graphic Questions to ask
yourself |
Background - Is it too dark? Is it
hard to read the text? Does it go with my theme? |
| Test your web pages |
Check spelling, verify links, test your pages
without images to make sure readers will still see your
data. |
| W3C HTML
Validator |
Have W3C validate your HTML tags |
| pagetutor.com
|
Here you'll find free HTML tutorials, tables, frames
and forms tutorials, a MouseOver tutorial, a solid
javascript tutorial, password protection script and lots
of resources for the beginning and advanced HTML author
and web designer. |
| FREQUENTLY ASKED
QUESTIONS |
| How do I remove the blue border
around my buttons? |
set the border attribute of the image to 0 so it
should look like <img src="button.gif" border=
"0"> |
| How do I make a thumbnail of my
image? |
You'll need some kind of image-editing program, such
as Paint Shop Pro; the Web won't do it for you. Open up
your image and scale it down to the smaller size. |
| How do I add my email
address? |
Type the text or insert an image you want readers to
select to send an e-mail message. In front of the text
or image, type <a href="mailto:?"> replacing "?" with your e-mail address.
Remember to always close the <a> tag.
(example: to email me) <a href="mailto:dotjo.geo@yahoo.com">Email
Me</a>
Email Me When a
reader selects an e-mail link their e-mail program will
start. The appropriate address is already filled in to
ensure that the message will be sent to the right
person. |
| How do I make this popular layout
as you show here? |
One way to achieve this bordered look is shown in my Triple
Border Tutorial |
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