Laura Lemay's Guide to Sizzling Web Sites swsxb.htm

B

Top Twenty Design Tips

The following twenty tips were selected to

Draw the reader to significant, contemporary issues in Web design that he or she might want to research in depth

Point the designer to the most common problems in Web design and offer solutions so those problems can be avoided in the future

• Cascading style sheets. Style sheets, once supported by all of the common browsers on the market, will be one of the primary methods of controlling page style with ease. They are covered in Chapter 5, "Sites to Live By: Beauty, Fashion, Health, and Lifestyle," under AEGIS (AIDS Clearing House Information Service).
  
  
• How to generate HTML source code. You might have asked yourself what the best method of generating HTML is. There's a lot of information on the market, and many very good packages. The discussion in Chapter 4, "Sites that Teach: Arts, Culture, and the Humanities," under Maison Europeene de La Photographie, offers a sensible breakdown of how to decide what type of package might be right for you.
  
  
• Avoid horizontal scroll bars! One of the more unsightly phenomenon on the Web, the horizontal scroll bar can be avoided. Read about some of the methods to design for common-denominator space, and look at one solution in action: Chapter 10, "Sites for Kids: Education, Games, Items of Interest with Children in Mind," Mello Smello site.
  
  
• Creating margins. All too often, the text on Web pages runs the full horizon, making it difficult to read. Learn how to use two HTML techniques to create margins in Chapter 10," World Surfari Site.
  
  
• Domain Names. Do you really need one, how do you get one, and how much do they cost? Learn how to research and register domain names for your Web sites. Chapter 2, "Sites that Play: Movies, Music, and Entertainment," The 40k Miracle Monthly.
  
  
• ActiveX. Microsoft's heavy contender into client-side applications. A fun example of ActiveX in action, plus a discussion on where to study it more. Both are available in the discussion of the Quantum Chess site in Chapter 2.
  
  
• Animated GIFs. The current animation style of choice, animated GIFs can be fast-loading, fun, and easy to create. Learn how to make them while browsing through Bloomingdales, in Chapter 11, "Sites that Sell: Company Presence on the Web."
  
  
• Client-side image maps. This effective method of mapping images can be learned in Chapter 3, "Sites that Speak: Newspapers and Magazines," in the coverage of the Boston Phoenix.
  
  
• Interlaced GIFs. Progressive rendering of graphics keeps the eye engaged while other elements on a page are downloaded. Learn how to make interlaced GIFs in Chapter 8, "Sites with Spice: Food and Beverage on the Web," in the Penelope's Restaurant discussion.
  
  
• Consistent design. Have you ever gotten to a great page and thought the entire site would be as well designed, only to find bland design behind the pretty door? Consistent design is an important part of making the Web visually strong and keeping sites logical from page to page. I discuss this issue in Chapter 8, Border Grill.
  
  
• Tables as design layout tool. Underlying some of today's best Web sites are tables, which are being used as the fundamental layout tool on the Web. Table fundamentals are addressed in Chapter 2, The Film Vault.
  
  
• White space. Having a balance of space with visual and text elements helps designs flow, the eyes rest, and the experience of a page more pleasant—a design essential in any media. A look at the importance of white space can be found with the Gadabout Salons Web site, Chapter 5.
  
  
• Designing for the audience. Knowing your audience is one of the most powerful driving forces behind good communications, and a foundation of effective design. Health Girl in Chapter 5 offers up an example of how to create Web sites specific to your audience.
  
  
• Promoting Web sites. What if I built a Web site and nobody came? The effort and money that went into it is wasted. Learn how to promote your sites effectively, as JCPenney has, in Chapter 11.
  
  
• Safe palettes. It's important for Web designers to understand how to select background colors that won't dither on less sophisticated systems. Safe palettes allow for this; read about the importance of safe palettes in Chapter 10, Kid'n Around.
  
  
• Link color matching. Just as with backgrounds, matching link and text colors to design is going to be more visually stable when selected from a safe palette. This discussion can be found in Chapter 11, in the Konika Business Machine coverage.
  
  
• Treat space as an entire unit. Instead of breaking up space, let it flow! See how this has been done by the designers of the attractive Lumie[as]re Web site, Chapter 5.
  
  
• Splash pages. When do you use them? How can you make them effective? Look at the study of splash pages in Chapter 3, under the Smithsonian Native American Indian Museum.
  
  
• RSACi ratings. Put Web site ratings in the hands of parents and schools, not special interest groups. RSACi allows for intelligent, controlled ratings for Web page content. This is discussed in Chapter 7, under the Expedia site.
  
  
• Keeping up in an ever-changing Web world. Where do I go every day to read about what's new in this rapidly evolving field? Find out about the resources Web designers should be using as frequently as possible in Chapter 9, "Sites that Express: People on the net—Unique Home Pages," in the Tale of Four Iguanas section.