Post A Reply
my profile
|
directory
login
|
search
|
faq
|
forum home
»
Flare Sci-Fi Forums
»
Sci-Fi
»
Designs, Artwork, & Creativity
»
Tips?
» Post A Reply
Post A Reply
Login Name:
Password:
Message:
HTML is enabled.
UBB Code™ is enabled.
[QUOTE]Originally posted by MinutiaeMan: [QB] Substance over form, absolutely. :) Also, getting the word out about your site is important. But by no means am I at all endorsing or encouraging useless spam on message boards. The only advertising I've done on message boards is to have a link to my website included in my signatures. That's all. Otherwise, I've listed my site at a couple of Trek search engines, and Bernd was kind enough to give my site a mention or two on Ex Astris Scientia, from which a large number of my visitors came in the first few months. Getting my site listed on Google was the biggest boost, though. I went from 6,000 visitors in February 2001 to 12,000 visitors in March 2001. Google doubled my hit count in only one month. However, you can't expect to maintain the kind of steady visitors that you'd hope for unless you have fairly regular updates. Bernd (this may sound silly, but he's my role model ;) ) hasn't missed a single week that I can recall (maybe one or two at most) -- he's always got something new to add, even if it's just a page or two. A website is more than just a one-off project. It should be a long-term hobby. If you want to be "successful," you've got to give it constant attention and updates. If you want to stand out, I strongly suggest some decent graphics editing of some kind. Take a look at these three versions of my site:[list] [*][URL=http://www.st-minutiae.com/graphics/history-3.jpg]July 2000[/URL] with images created exclusively in AppleWorks, which was never intended for web design. [*][URL=http://www.st-minutiae.com/graphics/history-4.jpg]July 2001[/URL] with some improved graphics that I got using Photoshop 5.0 LE. [*][URL=http://www.st-minutiae.com/index.shtml]July 2002 (current)[/URL], which was released only a few days ago and designed using Macromedia Studio MX. [/list] Interactivity (like rollover buttons) aren't a necessity, or even desirable if you've got a simple page. I only decided to add the rollovers in order to enhance the effects a little bit (and I only used it in a few places). In fact, on simple pages like what you're probably going to start with, I'd say that rollovers and other advanced stuff like that would be pointless and make things look worse. (Unless done perfectly, I mean.) Start out simple, and then build on the foundation later. Once you've got the hang of the basic web site down, I'd also strongly recommend that you ensure that your HTML (or XHTML) code is validated. There's a [URL=http://validator.w3.org/]free validator service[/URL] provided by the World Wide Web Consortium that allows you to link to or upload web pages and it will tell you whether the code is correct, and what needs to be fixed. Perfect coding is not always essential (I lasted for two years with some horribly non-standard code created by my original editor, Claris Home Page), but it shows the extra effort that you put into your site, and also pretty much ensures that your site is going to be viewed properly in any recent browser. There's all sorts of other stuff I could tell you, but I won't ramble on. I will, however, point you to the [URL=http://www.wpdfd.com/]Web Page Design for Designers[/URL] site, that's got some pretty useful articles about how to develop and publish your site. Check it out! [/QB][/QUOTE]
Instant Graemlins
Instant UBB Code™
What is UBB Code™?
Options
Disable Graemlins in this post.
*** Click here to review this topic. ***
© 1999-2024 Charles Capps
Powered by UBB.classic™ 6.7.3