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Getting Started - Questions to ask yourself about your web site Many people know they would like a web site, but they don't know what they want that web site to be about or what they want it to look like. These questions are designed to help you begin thinking about your web site and how you want it to be. The following questions and answers are based on information compiled and developed by Professor Bruce Robinson, a member of the Cumberland County Technology Leadership Team. Did I draw a rough draft of my web site on paper? Visualizing your web site by drawing it out on paper can help you translate your ideas to the screen. Don't only mark out your content and topics, but also where you would like to place pictures and banners. What do I want on a web site? The content is the most important part of your web site. If you have a community organization, you may want to put up information about your activities and how to join. If you are a business, you may want to put up information about your products and how people can find you and contact you. Outlining this information before you begin designing your page can help you in the design process. What types of graphics suit my site? There are several different types of graphics, such as clip art, animations, and photographs. Do you want your page to be serious, or fun? Professional, or silly? What do I want as the focal point of my site? There should be one section of your page that you want visitors to notice first. Is this your title banner? Links? A picture? Contact information? How do I want my information arranged on the page? Information can be centered, left-aligned, right-aligned, or a combination of all three can be used. Keep in mind that most people look at a page from left to right, like reading a book. What colors work best together? You can get color ideas from other web sites, but this is mostly a trial and error process. Use what you like and what looks good to you! Do I want a textured background or a plain, smooth color? This is another personal choice and trial and error process. When using textured backgrounds, you should keep in mind the impact it may have on the readability of your text and how your chosen graphics may look. Are there copyright issues for "capturing" graphics from other sites that I need to be concerned about? You should always be concerned about copyright issues when using graphics and other information you find on the web. Look around the web site you capture the graphic from to find out what their requirements are. Many sites will let you use their graphics as long as you provide a link to their web site from your site. How often should I save my page? Save your pages as often as possible. You never know when there may be a power outage or a program crash, and losing your work can be very frustrating. What should I name my page? The front page of your web site should be named index.html or index.htm. Most servers are set up to only automatically show your first page if it is named one of these two things. Any other pages can be named whatever you want them to be named. Keep in mind that your page file names should not have any spaces or special characters in them. It is also helpful to you if you name pages something related to what they contain. For example, a photo page could be named photos.html. Where can I find graphics for my page? A few links to graphic sites can be found in the Frequently Asked Questions about Composer section and in our list of Web Development Resources. Also, you can use a search engine such as Google to search for images. What kinds of information should I not put on my web site? Remember that your web site will be visible to anyone on the Internet. Do not put up any information you are uncomfortable with people knowing, such as your Social Security Number. Can I change my mind after so much thought and energy has gone into my site? Of course! Web sites tend to be ever-changing entities. As you learn new techniques and develop new ideas, you will want to show them off! It is recommended that you save the older versions of your web site for reference and historical perspective. Should I copy formats and ideas from others? Looking at other web sites is often the best way to format ideas about your own web site. Just make sure that you check copyright information if you wish to use anything that may be copyrighted. |
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This site was developed as part of a U.S. Department of Commerce TOP grant awarded to the Blacksburg Electronic Village and the Virginia Cooperative Extension. Comments or questions about this site should be sent to Cumberland Comments. Comments or questions about BEV in a Box should be sent to BEV Comments. |
