Welcome!

Welcome to the Internet Producing page. Here you'll find tips, information, and links for getting your web site started and keeping it maintained. Much of this information is items I have found along my journey towards developing and maintaining the many web sites I am involved with.

If you're putting the finishing touches on your new site, or doing a face-lift on your existing one, drop me a line and send your address. I'm always looking for new ideas and different views on the joys of being a webmaster.

"Its supposed to be SIMPLE!"

Internet surfing is supposed to be simple--for both you and your users, right? Then why fill your web site with confusing scripts or code that only works with the version 2.99999B version of the browser? The idea of publishing on the Internet is the information should be UNIVERSAL. But it doesn't stop there...

When arranging your information, make it so the site is easily navigated and information is not duplicated. The best way to do this is make an organizational chart before starting to develop the site. Figure out all the areas you plan to post and what information will be on each HTML page. Also be sure you have links to each area from at least the index page. Some type of graphic or "button" works best. I like to have links from each page so the viewer can keep surfing through to the other pages.

Style is EVERYTHING!

A web site should have a consistant style to it. Usually that includes background images, colors, fonts, etc. A web site that tries to see if they can use every font in their list is more than likely not very effective.

Here's some tips on style and shortcuts:

Changing the font in plain text

The best fonts to stick with is Times New Roman and Arial...its best not to try to put in font tags which point to unusual fonts. Remember, whether or not the font will appear depends on if the viewer on the other end has the font installed in his/her machine. If not, you could get very mixed results.

"What do YOU use?"

Here's the programs I use to write the pages you see:

A Home for your Homepage

Some of the best things in life were meant to be free...your web site is one of those things. Here's a list of places that will host your site for free:

A lot of times, your Internet Service Provider provides server space with your subscription. The best way to find out how much and how to upload is through the service's web site. More than likely, the site has posted detailed instructions explaining exactly how to get your information to their server.

Blinking Text

Better to highlight the text with a different color or some kind of graphic. Blinking text, especially more than one word, is hard to read because they eye has to catch the words when they're actually on the screen. If its that important, highlight it with a graphic. For example, if you're trying to highlight the word "hot," create a graphic with the word "hot" around flames or something red or orange. It will stand out to the viewer even more with this method.

Outlines vs. Long Text

We're in an age where people look for information - they want it very fast. They probably won't spend long at your site if they have to read War & Peace to find what they're looking for. Using bullets is very effective. There are many throughout this web site. If you still need to use long paragraphs to explain, putting the main idea at the top helps tremendously.

Embedding Music

You're at work, you're surfing the net when you're not supposed to. Then, you visit a page where the author just HAD to embed some music into their page and your computer is roaring the theme to Rocky. That's when you're spotted by the boss! Well, maybe its not like that for everyone, but its true that people would much rather have the option of listening to the music. A link is a better alternative.

"How do you do layout stuff with HTML?"

There's three sizes of screen settings out there:

So how are you going to get the same results on everyone's different screens? Tables solves the problem. Define in your HTML what size the entire page is going to be by making all of the HTML a table with a set width--a height doesn't need to be included. That means you do the opening table statement right under the heading info with your title and such. Then after your last HTML statement, close the table. This way, if you set your table for a width of 600 pixels, everyone will see the table with a width of 600 pixels--no matter what screen setting they have. This method is used on all of my pages and on most corporate sites to better control where text and images are placed--so everyone gets the same view.

Which image format is better?

Buttons and boxes work best (both in file size and quality) as a GIF. Because they don't have the advanced features of a picture of someone or Max, the family dog, the formatting works out OK for a relatively clean, clear picture. When you're saving things such as pictures of people, places, etc., JPG works the best. The file size is a little bit bigger, but you need that so you have the necessary quality so the person on the other end doesn't see a bunch of dots that seem close together to resemble "something."

Whenever you're scanning pictures, ALWAYS be sure to scan in the TIF format, and then archive the file. It will come in handy someday if you have to modify or recreate an image on your site.

What's the bottom line?

What type of site you're creating, the time you have to do it, and the tools you have to get the job done often dictate what type of end product you'll have. Your job as the webmaster is to find ways to effectively utilize the tools you have to make effective sites that meet the need.

Remember, our job is never done. There is always a page to be updated, a site to be born, or a site to be face-lifted. Always keep looking for new and more efficient ways to get the job done--that's what we do, as the "maintainers of the web."

"What's Yer Thoughts?"