Freelance Home-Based Small Business BUILDING A WEB SITE? AVOID GETTING SNAKE BIT

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BUILDING A WEB SITE? AVOID GETTING SNAKE BIT

Developing your site can be a "trying" experience if you don't have some idea about how things work or have a clear idea of your goal. Is customer service your main goal? What about that Gen-X crowd? How bare does it need to be? White space, huh? Content? Feedback? What the heck is all of this? When developing your site there are so many directions to pursue that it is very easy to get lost. Pull out your compass, set your azimuth and get started on your path. Along your stroll you may find yourself ducking brush and jumping over logs. The main thing is not to get snake bit.

The tools of the trade: HTML, PHP, ASP and JavaScript are just a few of the "tools" used by web developers today. Perl, CGI, VBS, XML, DHTML, Flash and Director are a few more to add to the list. All of these technologies are needed for developing the vast and varying array of websites you surf today. Putting all of the techno mumbo jumbo aside there are a few key issues that I would like to cover for you when you are developing your site.

When building a site here are a few things to keep in mind other than how you create it, such as:
1. Page loads (amount of time)
2. Browser compatibility
3. Topic (content)
4. Links (navigation support)
5. Scrolling text or images
6. Frames or no frames
7. Meta tags
8. Fonts
9. Color schemes / themes

Other things to keep in mind are the length of your pages, Interactivity, and feedback.

Lets take this a step further and breakdown a few "don'ts" in web design. This is my equivalency of the David Letterman's top ten list but I am going stop with eight.

1. The number one grievance (one I am quite guilty) is long download times. Everyone is aware of it but do you really want to sacrifice your really cool media or script just because the surfer is gone in 8-15 seconds? YES! Still I am guilty. Flash movies are personally the only thing I will wait more that 20 seconds to load.

2. The number two pitfall that I hear about is long scrolling pages. A very small percentage of users will get beyond the initial information that comes up on a page. Make sure it is the critical content! I try to stick with the three scroll rule.

3. There are dozens of rules about "POP UPS" and I will happily supply you with links to some very enlightening sites if you request it. I will simply state that If it is selling something then just don't do it. How often do you actually read them? All they do is annoy the surfer and if not scripted properly they can get completely out of control. Pop-Ups are used by some sites for registry or as viewers; those are expected and acceptable.

4. Outdated material - give your surfer a reason to return. Stay fresh with assurances of new upcoming articles, revolving offers, or new downloads. Television calls this a "teaser" and they do work.

5. Orphan pages - make sure surfers can get to your main site from any other page on your site. They may not enter through your main page. You never know.

6. Navigation, Navigation, Navigation - not everyone knows your site as well as you do. I have read this everywhere for years. I guess not everyone channels the same places that I do so here is one more chance for it to be posted. Have your friends surf your site and give you honest feedback. If they get lost (without you standing over their shoulder) then think about revamping your navigation system. A good standard rule to follow is to have two sources of navigation for each page. A top or side NavBar accompanied by a small text navigational system across the bottom should suffice. Continuity is key! Make sure your nav systems are the same on each and every page.

7. Scrolling marquees and flashing pictures - Guilty as charged. Unless it is crucial to the ambience of your site then try to limit it. The marquee tag that we use so often in MS I.E. is not compatible with a lot of other browsers. My guilt lies within Flash usage. Just use it sparingly so that it does not distract the reader. Side note: Cross check your site with more than one browser and more than one resolution.

8. Frames- To newbies on the net and the casual surfer these can be very confusing. Just be careful with your navigation and don't lock people into your site due to poor scripting. Keep in mind of the bookmark and favorite factor. They were more interested in returning to your article about "Intergalactic Intelligence" but could only mark the original opening of the frameset.

These are the very basics in design. No matter what your goal or demographic, follow these simple rules and avoid that snake bit.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Eric Zabinsky
webmaster@z3design.com
www.z3design.com
Owner/Webmaster

Eric is an accomplished webmaster and author of the book "Shoppers." He attended college at Texas Tech University as a music major and moved on to
the University of Maryland changing his major to business. After college he joined the armed forces where he served for nine years.

Eric is skilled in several internet technologies such as HTML, ASP, CSS, Flash, Director and CGI. He is an active member in the awards community evaluating web sites for
two high profile award programs and writes articles on different aspects of web design for award indices.

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