Page Design Tips

Sue's HTML Help Pages

Tips For Great Page Design

We all want a Home Page that is so wonderful it wins awards, has many many visitors, and causes us to get wonderful letters of praise? How do we do that? I'm often asked for advice from people designing their first pages, and these are some of the things I tell them, to help them design and publish a Fantastic Home Page. These are my thoughts, tips and opinions only, but if you incorporate just a few, you'll be well on your way to having an Award-Winning site. Here they are, in no particular order.

Always add the height and width to your images. This helps the page appear to be faster-loading. The browser doesn't have to search for the size, and can put aside the space while it displays the text.
Limit the size and amount of your images. Images are nice, but they do tend to slow down everything. No one wants to wait for a page to download.
Never link to another site for your images. Besides making it slower due to having to find the other server, you are stealing bandwidth. This means that you are bogging down someone else's server and they may get tossed off, and your images will disappear. They may anyway, as pages aren't static and the site owner may remove them, leaving you with broken images. More Info
Don't copy any images, backgrounds or text off another page unless you have permission. Once a site is on the Web, it is governed by International Copyright laws. Ask before you use...most will say yes.
Limit the use of java applets and script. Not everyone has a java-enabled browser, and those that do may crash if there is too much on the site.
Background colors and text need to contrast to be seen. Use the Color Tester at this site if you're not sure. If the text is unreadable, no one will stick around.
More on backgrounds...make sure the images aren't gaudy, too bright or wildly patterned. Again, it makes the text hard to read. Also, make sure the image you are using is small for faster loading.
If using sounds at your site, consider giving the visitor the option of starting the music himself or herself rather than autostarting. If you don't want to do that, be sure to provide a console so your visitor can turn it off, or lower the volume.
Content is everything...make sure you have something to say, and say it with proper grammar and no misspellings. Nothing turns me off more than those two little things. It implies the sloppiness of the author of the pages. A page of nothing but images and links is a waste of my time and I'm out of there, never to return.
Never design for a specific browser. Not everyone uses the same as you. I hear more cries for help from people saying, "What's wrong with my page? It looks great in (fill in the blank browser) but when I view it in (the other browser) it sucks." Get both of the main browsers and view your page in both. Remember that some tags aren't compatible...nor are java scripts.
Speaking of Tags...if I end up on a site making use of the BLINK Tag, I'm outta there. And fast! That's one of the most annoying things on the web.
Remember that not all Browsers are graphically based. Many people use Lynx, particularly those accessing from schools, and that is text only. The blind access the web with Browsers that "read out loud." Never forget those people. They can be your most loyal if you accomodate them.
To accomodate Lynx and Speech Browsers, ALWAYS add the ALT Tag to your images. This gives the graphically imaired browsers and their viewers something to go on. They'll know if it's a link, if it's a lovely piece of scenery, or a family photo. Be descriptive, don't just use the words ALT="PICTURE"
Remember Image Maps are graphical elements also. You can add the height and width to the image, and the ALT tags for those having their image loading turned off. Also, provide plain links even if you have an image map, as Lynx can't view the anchors at all, nor can speech browsers. Also, for speech browsers try and put the links on separate lines, due to the way they are read.
Be careful using frames. They can be slow to load, and some people downright hate them. Always provide an alternate entry for the browsers that don't support frames (Lynx, Mosaic, others).
To make your frames fast loading, use no more than three, and repeat the same background, bars and icons throughout. This way the later pages will load faster as the images are already cached.
Tables are great for page layout, but some browsers (Mosaic) still don't support them. Keep this in mind, and use them as sparingly as possible.
Another question I hear is, "What should my page be about?" Make it about yourself...if you have certain interests, a particular cause, a fascinating hobby, design your page around that theme. Make it an educational experience for me and other visitors...we're out there to learn and enjoy. Remember...Content is everything.
Provide easy navigation through your site. Make sure you have all your internal links on every page...don't rely on people using their Back Buttons on their browsers. And place them in the same spot on every page, so they are easy to find.
Limit use of animated gifs. A couple are okay, but too many are annoying. Not to mention they are large in size.
Have an E-Mail link to you on each page. This gives people an opportunity for instant feedback on your page, without them having to search and search through the pages they've already been through to find it. It's the impulsive, "I love this page" letters that you'll be missing if you don't have that link available.
Check your links regularly. Nothing is more aggravating than clicking on an interesting link and getting the "dreaded" 404 error - URL not found. If you don't want to do it manually, there is a wonderful Freeware program called Infolink that you can have do the work for you. Links move, disappear, change every day, so running this program once a month will keep your pages lively and fresh.
When you're using a background, set a BGCOLOR ATTRIBUTE as well, and match the BGCOLOR closely to your BACKGROUND. For instance, if the basic background is black, set the background color to black. This way, since the background appears last, there will not be a great shock to the eyes when it finally does. Believe me, it's very much appreciated.

I hope these tips, thoughts and opinions get you thinking a bit about your page design. I will be adding more as time goes on, so please check back for more.