<b>Web development tips</b> (stolen from IT Help)
<br>Following are general recommendations you may find useful as you begin to develop web pages.
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<br>Details:
<br>Following are general recommendations you may find useful as you begin to develop web pages.
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<br>Keep It Simple:
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<br>When developing pages, keep the pages simple, easy to maintain and fast to load. Use of the latest technology may only work under certain circumstances and could result in a page that is slow to load and difficult to maintain. The main purpose of any web site is to deliver information.
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<br>Plan the Structure of the Web Site:
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<br>Before you start development, it is very helpful to create a flowchart of the web site. Begin with the main page (index page or home page) on top and map out how the sub-pages will follow.
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<br>Organize the Web Site File Structure:
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<br>A site is a storage location for all the documents and files belonging to a particular web site. Organize and name the folders and files so that they can be easily recognized. This will help in locating a specific file to edit.
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<br>For example, the main page (first page a browser accesses) should be named index.htm (or can be home.htm). Keep all graphics in an images folder within the site folder. The sub-pages can reside on the same level as the main page or can be placed in a pages folder.
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<br>Use META Tags:
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<br>Meta tags do not contribute to the look or layout of a page, but provide a way for search engines to find your pages. Use the Keyword and Description parameters, which will allow you to embed specific keywords and a description of the content of the seb page.
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<br>Follow Accessibility Guidelines for Users with Disabilities:
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<br>When creating web pages, it is highly desirable to provide access for browsers that read text aloud for the visually impaired and text-only browsers. To assess this, test the pages using a text-only browser to be sure access to all the critical information is provided.
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<br>If using on the pages, be sure that the function of the script enhances the appearance of the page but does not limit access. For example, displaying a pop-up menu on a mouse over function looks and works well in most browsers, but the browsers that read text aloud for the visually impaired or text-only browsers will not be able to access the menu options. If a function of this nature is used, an alternative for the browsers that read text aloud for the visually impaired or text-only browsers should be provided.
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<br>Consult the W3C Web Accessibility Initiative web site for recommendations at http://www.w3.org/WAI/.
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<br>Test Web Pages:
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<br>It is very important to test your web pages. There are several ways of testing that you should consider:
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<br>Check your download times. Users don't want to wait too long to view a page. There are many testing services available on the Web for testing the download times of your pages. If testing a single page, most web browsers will display the approximate size and download time for you.
<br>View your pages in different types and versions of browsers. This step is very important to follow so as to avoid unexpected problems when your pages are viewed using different platforms as well as versions of the different browsers.
<br>View your pages using different monitor resolutions, for example 640 x 480, 800 x 600, etc.
<br>View your pages using monitors that display only 256 colors to be sure that dithering does not occur (image may look blurry or distorted).
<br>Have others from your intended audience view your web site. Others may see flow or other issues that you don't see.