Web Design Austin TX

In the interest of better Web design, we offer some tricks to improve graphic load time and presentation:

1.Be careful you do not have images (such as a banner or a masthead) that run across the top of your screen and off the right side of the monitor. This can happen if you are designing your web graphics using a high-resolution monitor. Many people still set their monitors to a resolution of 800 x 600 pixels. If you are working on a higher resolution monitor, the best way to avoid this problem is to keep graphics at a width of 750 pixels or less.

2.Save images as "interlaced." This allows a .gif file to load in the browser as a fuzzy, pixilated picture that slowly comes into focus. Whether this is a pleasing effect is a matter of taste. Test your graphics both with and without interlacing to see for yourself how it looks.

3.If you want to display large images, such as photos, give your visitors an opportunity to preview them. The best way to do this is to make a "thumbnail" or miniature version of the graphic, which links to a larger version of that image. If they want to view the larger version, they can click the thumbnail.

4.Typically, a border is displayed around each linked graphic, which may not be visually pleasing. If you do not like the way it looks, eliminate it by adding "border=0" to the <img> tag. You can also add additional tags to align the graphic to the right or left of text or to the top, middle...

The best planned and designed website may look significantly different when viewed on computers running different operating systems with different web browsers. There are a few reason why this happens. First of all, people access the Web with a wide variety of computer systems and monitors; many people also browse the Web with mobile devices like Smartphones. Second, all web browsers are not the same and do not support the same features. The design challenge is to address these differences.

Before designing a website, ask yourself this key question: who is your target audience? Do you want the site to be accessed by as many people as possible, or are you targeting a select group? For instance, without a high-speed Internet connection, downloading a graphics-intensive or media-rich web page will be painfully slow. For people with a 56 Kbps modem, it can be a frustrating experience; many of them will bail out quickly. On the other hand, if you are targeting services to Fortune 500 companies, it is reasonable to expect that they will have broadband connections. That means you can incorporate rich graphics and multimedia content into your site.

If you want to appeal to the widest possible audience however, your web pages should contain small graphic files and avoid the use of advanced features that are not universally supported. Keep in mind that you are designing in time as well as space, so take your users' hardware into consideration. Right now, most people worldwide still access the Web with a dial-up connection. although this is rapidly changing. Ideally, file sizes should be small enough to download in 15 seconds or less. [Studies indicate that 8 seconds is the optimum time.] The easiest solution is to keep your site simple and avoid tempting "enhancements." A good example is Google , which is enormously popular despite its basic design.

If you must make extensive use of images or you are absolutely determined to take advantage of features such as Flash, do a few things to accommodate, rather than frustrate viewers.

• Create separate versions of your pages tailored to different browsers. The browsers most commonly used are Internet Explorer, Firefox and Safari. Note that there are different releases and versions (Windows and Mac) of each one.


• Develop parallel sites--a simple one that does not use the "enhancements" and one that has all the bells and whistles.

The best way to accomplish any of these goals is to direct the user to the alternative versions with a link at the top of your home page. Keep in mind, however, that developing different versions is time-consuming and expensive. Maintaining them can be cumbersome.

Another solution is to use a CGI script that evaluates the type of bro...

As websites become more technically sophisticated, you may find yourself requiring help to get your site up and running and to add new features. Before bringing in Web professionals, determine your goals and budget. Then assess the skills and available time of you and your staff. Although you may have an interest in learning the skills required to develop a website, you will acquire them faster and come out with a more professional site if you hire professionals at the appropriate steps in the process.

Do yourself a favor: Put everything in writing. Get a written quote. Write up a contract or ask the consultant to provide a detailed work order. Describe the scope of the work, the timeframe, the hourly or project rate, expense reimbursement arrangement, frequency of billing, payment schedules, and any guarantees. If you want to retain ownership of materials or software and hold all copyrights, clearly state that this is a "work for hire" agreement.

Hold regular meetings with the people working on your project to make sure things remain on schedule. Bear in mind that as the project progresses, your thinking may change. Adding new features to a website may improve it, but it usually increases the development cost. As with most projects, everything will take longer than you think, so stay on top of the details. Establish milestones against which team members can measure progress.

Bear in mind that these are ballpark figures. Prices vary considerably, depending on geographic location and complexity of the site. For instance, sophisticated e-commerce sites can cost millions of dollars to develop.

• A basic website with a few graphics and no forms: $200 to $1,000 USD
• More advanced site with custom graphics: $1,000 to $5,000 USD
• Complex site with custom graphics, image maps, forms, search capabilities: $5,000 USD and up
• Site Planning: $...