Learn the Basics...

Building a web site is a lot of fun and a great opportunity to let loose with your creative urges BUT there are a few basic rules for good design technique.  If you follow most of these simple rules you will end up with a site that looks elegant and professional, a site that visitors will admire and that you can look at with pride and say "I did that."  (It goes without saying that a basic knowledge of HTML is assumed.)

All the books and tutorials agree on these few points:

• DO NOT use patterned backgrounds.

They are a distraction, make the pages difficult to read and are a sure way to let everyone know that you are an amateur.

• DO NOT overload a page with pictures.

Too many graphics, or overlarge graphic files can slow down load times to the point where visitors give up in frustration and surf on to somewhere more appealing.

• DO NOT tell everyone you're an amateur.

Never announce to one and all that you really don't know what you are doing by using the "This site is best viewed with..." that is so often seen.  Learn to test your pages so they look good in all browsers at different screen resolutions.

• DO be consistent.  

Keep your colour scheme, navigation set-up, and fonts consistent throughout your site.  Consistency will project a much more favourable impression to your visitors.

• DO make sure your site is easy to navigate.  

Whatever page you are on you should ask yourself "Can I get there from here?".  Visitors shouldn't have to rely on their browser's "Back" button to dig themselves out of a labyrinth!

• DO look at the overall effect of your pages. 

Ask yourself if they are visually appealing.  Unless the pages look inviting no one is going to take the time to read them.

• DO write correctly.

Make sure that your writing is grammatically correct, properly punctuated and without spelling errors.

• DO keep your "image" in mind.

Your web site is a reflection of you, and it is the only way that some of your visitors will know you, so make sure you "dress to impress".

On the rest of these pages I'll  be discussing most of the above in more detail. I'll include a few tips on things I have learned the hard way, and be sure to check the Links page for web sites and tutorials to help you on the road to creating your own beautiful web site.  So stay with me and we'll take a look at ways to dress up your pages...

Graphics on these pages are from

Design by