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You can create great Web sites with simple HTML, but at some point you might want to extend your bag of tricks with some advanced features of HTML.
Yahoo's Page Design and Layout Links has links to advanced HTML sites.
Netscape has lots of information on advanced techniques, especially Netscape-specific extensions to HTML.
In particular, Netscape offers advanced tips at Creating High-Impact Documents. Web Developer's Virtual Library: Style covers all aspects of style.
As you explore advanced HTML, remember that not all browsers are capable of the advanced features.
If you stick to simple HTML you will reach more viewers, but if you use advanced HTML you can get more impact from your Web pages.
The choice is yours, and it depends on what you're trying to achieve.
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Your logo gives the first graphical impression of your Web site and it plays a key role in how your viewers perceive your site. Here's where you make your boldest statement! Take the time to design a logo that quickly creates that mood of your site. Try different designs, and don't quit until you're satisfied.
Some of the traditional rules for logo design apply to the Web. Your logo should be bold and easy to read. Choose a font that is appropriate for your theme. Try to create a logo that prints clearly, because sometimes people will print copies of your Web pages.
I recommend using the height and width HTML tags:
<img src="logo.gif" height=Y width=X>
This will allow the browser to layout and draw the outline of the logo immediately, and the whole screen will not shift when the logo is being drawn.
Have fun with your logo!
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Frames allow multiple scrollable windows in a document. You can have a fixed frame with multiple sub-frames of dynamic content, and you can assign a unique URL to each frame.
Frames have numerous uses. See Netscape's Description of Frames for a description of frames and how to create them.
Web creation tools like Microsoft FrontPage can save you a lot of time and effort in making frames.
Remember that not all browsers support frames. You might want to provide framed and non-framed versions of your pages as a convenience to your viewers.
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| | | | View other people's source | |
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If you like a Web site and want to know how it was created, view the HTML source.
Most browsers include a View | Source menu selection that shows you the HTML source of the site that you're viewing. Some browsers put the View | Source command on a menu that pops up when you click the right mouse button.
If your browser doesn't support View | Source, just use the File | Save As command to save the HTML file to disk. Then open the file in your favorite text editor.
You don't have to wonder how the magician performs his tricks - just view the HTML source!
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So you've just created a great Web site. Now what? You need to promote your site to get people to come in and see it.
The first thing you need to do is submit your site to directory services. The easiest way to get the word out is to use Submit It. Just fill in the form and Submit It will submit your listing to about 20 search engines. Before you make the submission, you should decide on about 20 keywords that you would like the search engines to use to identify your site. After you've done Submit It, check out Promoting Your Page for tips on other places to list your site.
Note that some of the directory services (like Yahoo) categorize your listing. It is important for you to choose the category that best represents your site, and you should do this before you submit your listing. It also helps if your name is at the front of the alphabet, like AAA CyberCool.
Other directory services (like Altavista) provide searches based on the content of your document - they actually scan your HTML for keywords. For these search engines, it is critical that your homepage contains all the keywords that you would like to describe your site. If your homepage is pure graphics, these search engines won't have any idea how to list you!
In addition to directory listings, you can also get other Web sites to link to you. You can exchange links (banner advertisements) with other sites at The Link Exchange. If your site includes links to other sites, you might send their webmasters a polite email informing them of your site and requesting that they link back to you. Many webmasters are happy to oblige.
Finally, you can place paid advertisements on the Web. Find a site that attracts your potential readers and offers advertising space. Give them a nice logo graphic to link to you, and them pay them for hits. Note that you will probably be charged per viewing of your advertisement, not per person who successfully connects to you.
Now that you have a great Web site, promote it!
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| | | | Use CGI forms and scripts | |
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CGI (or Common Gateway Interface) is an interface between a browser and your Web server.
Excepting Java, browsers do not have any way to execute programs. In other words, browsers just access text and graphics information and display them to the user. CGI allows you to execute programs (or scripts) on your Web server.
A CGI transaction consists of:
HTML form-based input from a browser to your Web server
Software execution on your Web server
HTML output from your Web server back to the browser
Setting up forms in HTML is relatively easy (see NCSA Forms Documentation). Sending HTML output from your server back to the browser is also easy.
The challenge of CGI is the software that runs on your Web server. Depending on your server operating system, you have to write a UNIX shell script, or a PERL script, or a C program. You also have to locate the program in a directory (usually called "cgi-bin") that is executable by the server software. Ask your Internet Service Provider how to do this.
Ready to try CGI? You'll need lots of help from places like The NCSA CGI Pages, Matt's Script Archive (for CGI Perl scripts), Matt's Script Archive - Snippets of Code (for more scripts).
CGI is a challenge, but it is a powerful tool when you get it to work. Give it a try!
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Image maps allow you to put hyperlinks into graphics images. If your viewer clicks on the picture, the browser connects to another HTML page. Image maps are often used for top-level indexes on homepages.
There are two kinds of image map techniques - server-side and client-side. Server-side image maps use CGI bin scripts that run on your Web server. Client-side image maps are an HTML 3.0 feature, and they are implemented in newer browsers.
Since image maps are so useful, most servers include a CGI script to handle them. CERN servers have htimage (see CERN htimage Documentation) and NCSA servers have imagemap. You need to ask your Internet Service Provider if they already have a copy of these scripts on the server. Then you need to create three things: an image file, an image map file that specifies the coordinates of clickable regions in the image, and an HTML file with a link to the image and a link to the image map file.
Client-side image maps include the coordinates of the clickable regions directly in the HTML page that links to the image. There is no map file and there is no CGI script. This is much simpler, but it only works with browsers that support HTML 3.0. See Netscape's HTML 3.0 Extensions for detailed information.
Image maps are easy to create. Add interactive graphics to your Web site today!
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Add multimedia to your Web site, and step up to sound and motion like HTML never dreamed of.
For simple sound files, check out this very cool sound file search engine at www.FindSounds.com. Pick up free sound files from the Web!
The best way to add multimedia to your Web site is with Macromedia Shockwave. This tool plugs into Netscape and allows it to display multimedia files from Director, Freehand, and Authorware. You simply prepare your multimedia presentation in your favorite tool, and Netscape can download and present the file to the viewer.
Download a free copy of Macromedia Shockwave at Macromedia - Shockwave Center, and make your Web site come alive!
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| | | | Use the single-pixel GIF trick | |
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The single-pixel GIF trick allows you to control the layout of your Web graphics.
First you create single-pixel GIF files of the colors you desire, and then you use them to create rectangular regions of any size. This allows you to use very small files to span large regions on your Web page. Check out The Single-Pixel GIF Trick for details.
Do you want more control over the layout of your Web graphics? Try using the single-pizel GIF trick!
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WEB Wonk Over 10 excellent tips for
designing better web pages. An emphasis on type, graphics, and layout.
Developing a High-End Website The Web
Developer's Virtual Library tells all. Guidelines for structure, layout, graphics, forms,
and more.
Designing Web Graphics Lynda Weinman is the author
of the excellent "Designing Web Graphics". Her homepage is exquisite, and her
domain name is her first name!
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