Material found in banners above not endorsed by author of this site!   How To's Web Design Programs  When I first started my web page with Geocities in June, I knew absolutely nothing about putting together a web page. But, I found that the easy editor they provided, though useful in the beginning, left much to be desired. Soon I was going to every html help site that I could find and printing out the info they had for easy reference. I soon found, though, that writing out the html codes takes forever! So, the first of my purchases was Adobe Pagemill 2.0. Adobe Pagemill is a fabulous web page editor. It's very easy to use, just click & place. It allows you to set up forms, frames, tables, everything at the push of a button. And it is much, MUCH fast than trying to write out the html codes yourself (although you can still do that in Pagemill, if you like). You design your page, and then upload it to GeoCities. Very simple. Their are other programs like Pagemill out there. My brother uses Netscape 3.0 Gold, which has a web page editor included with it. He likes it a lot, and says it's just as easy. Only problem is that it takes loads of memory to run. But, the nice thing about Netscape is that you can download it from their site, takes about 30-45 minutes. Graphic Programs As you can see by my page, I enjoy designing my own graphics. Not only do I have loads of fun doing it, but it makes a web page look unique. The program I use exclusively is Adobe Photoshop 4.0. It's a little difficult to learn to use, but once you do, the sky's the limit. I have just recently upgraded from 3.0.4 to 4.0 and I'm loving it, though it does take a bit of getting used to. One problem with Photoshop is this: it's expensive. I was a college student when I bought it, so it made it big difference in the price. But I think it's worth the price if you use it every day like I do...it does EVERYTHING! But if you can afford to plunk down the money for it, I suggest you go for it. It you have a scanner for it, it's even more fun. Photoshop does pictures great, exports in jpeg & gif formats (as well as many others) & can do almost anything. Also, there are lots of freeware & shareware plugins for Photoshop to download off the net. Three that I especially like are Blade, FeatherGIF & Drop Shadow. I downloaded them from Shareware.com, but I've seen them at other shareware sites as well. Blade allows you to make things 3-D looking, like the title at the top of this page. Drop Shadow does just what the name says...it drops shadows. Very handy & easy to use. Ever try to just MAKE a drop shadow? It can be difficult. And FeatherGif lets you easily put a filter over a picture. Great plugins, and not too expensive (about $10 each). For those of you that already have Photoshop, Silver's Place has a fantastic tutorial to those just learning Photoshop & those looking to advance their capabilities. Check it out! The Other Alternative  With the right programs & a little creativity, the skies the limit. But, if you don't feel like running out & spending a couple of hundred dollars on programs, their are lots of people out there making some great, unique graphics that you can download for free. Some will even customize them for you. Below are listed some premium graphics sites to check out for great free graphics. Also, check out my Free Graphics. Silver's Place - Do you need a banner for Link Exchange or GeoGuide? She's also begun make graphics sets. Silver's work is beautiful. Web Grafx - Very fun & creative graphics. They have a bit of everything. Ann-S-Thesia Aesthetic Pharmacy: The Visual Apothecary - This site is for those looking for very original, unique web art. The graphics here are absolutely fabulous. Need some GeoCities links? Or a logo for Heartland Partners in Prayer? Or maybe some seasonal graphics? Check this out. Things That Annoy Me | Free Graphics main | site explanation | wife | christian | community leader | musician graphic artist | teacher | writer | mom | chef | champion | crafter | sign guestbook © 1997, 1998 Sheila