Aug
21
Stylesheets Advantages
08:22 am
Because you are able to create a separate Stylesheet and link it to all your webdocuments, you have great control over how your website looks. So if you want to change a certain aspect of your page, you only need to alter one file: your Stylesheet!
This Of course, generates some great flexibility. This flexibility is not available when your website is using tables for layout, inline font tags or inline defined colors.
A single CSS file can contain positioning, layout, font, colors and style information for an entire web site.
2. You site uses less bandwidth and loads faster
Because stylesheets are so lightweight, your website will load much faster. The main reason is because you do not need table layouts anymore for the positioning of elements. Since text loads really really fast your website will be visible in a flash.
This means that visitors will be happier when surfing your website. They only have to download the Stylesheet once, and it’s automatically reused for every page. So the only thing that needs to be loaded is the actual content.
On average a website will load five to ten times faster if it makes use of cascading style sheets.
3. Your website will automatically gain better search engine results
With CSS, you can position any element, anywhere you want. So if your menu is at the bottom of your HTML document, you can bring it up using absolute positioning. The reason this is useful is to make sure the search engine spiders pick up the main content first.
Another advantage you automatically gain is that your HTML code is much cleaner. So the search engine spider will not have to separate the junk code from the real content.
So make sure you put your logo text and your menu at the bottom of your HTML document at put it at the top using CSS!
4. CSS is compatible with newer browsers
Because more and more browsers are used other than Internet Explorer on a Windows machine, you need to be sure that your website is accessible by all major and newer browsers.
By using webstandards, defined by the w3c, you are making sure your content is viewable in the future.
Because there are so many browsers these days, it is impossible to test your website in all these browsers on different configurations. Coding to standards is then the only practical solution.
5. CSS can be used to display the same content on different media.
Because you are able to define different stylesheets for different media you have great flexibility in presenting your content.
The printer for example, is a medium on itself. If someone prints out your website, you will be able to modify the look of it. Add an extra black and white logo, remove the advertisements and change the colors to black and white values. It’s all done easily by using cascading stylesheets. And the best thing is, visitors do not even have to know you created a new Stylesheet especially for the printer.
Stylesheets can also be created specifically for PDA’s and such. As you will understand, this adds some great flexibility to the presentation of your web document.
Conclusion
Cascading Style Sheets are created to make things easier. It gives you great control of your website and makes your visitors happy when they are surfing your website.
You are prepared for the future and will gain better search engine results automatically. Start using CSS to its full potential today! It will suit you well.
Filed Under CSS, SEO Tips and Tricks and Web Layout Design | 2 comments
Aug
19
Basics About Web Hosting
08:40 pm
When you decide to take your business to the internet, you need to know some basics. First, you select a name for your site that is catchy and descriptive of your service or product line. Avoid picking a name that does not include a description of what someone would find at the site. One or two word names work well. When you have picked a name that you like, you need to register this as your internet domain name. There are several options in Denver for this if you search online. Remember that you do not have to host your website at the same company where you register your domain name, so look for the best deal you can find.
Denver web hosting can be complex for someone who is just starting out. In fact, most people don’t really understand what hosting is or what a hosting company should offer you. These services are places where you can store your website, basically. They range from free services to hosting that you run yourself on your own server. So the first thing you need to do is figure out how involved you want to be. There are several different types of hosting:
• Internet Service Providers. Several ISPs offer basic web pages for free to their email customers. For example, Yahoo! users can set up a website for free when they join Yahoo!. But these sites are really good only for personal sites with a few pages because alongside your content, an ISP will run advertisements. These sites also do not come with any extra features or very much storage space.
• Free Web Hosting. For most businesses in Denver, web hosting needs to be more sophisticated than most free services can provide. If you want to display your pictures on the web or start a blog online, a free service might be good for you. But for business needs, they simply do not offer the space, the features, or the reliability that you need.
• Paid Hosting. This is the most common type of hosting used for small businesses and more complex personal websites. You pay a monthly or yearly fee to a web hosting company in return for space on their site and certain services. The services and features vary widely from company to company. And you can pay anywhere from two dollars to two hundred dollars per month, depending on the company, how much space you need, and what extra features you employ. You can get CGI services, ASP, ecommerce, SSL, database support, extra space and bandwidth, and other features for maximizing your site for the customer. Paid web hosting, in Denver or elsewhere, is the only way to go for a business site, no matter what its size.
• Domain Hosting. This is a great way for small businesses to host their pages at any location, rather than at the hosting company’s site. You can use an ISP, a free hosting service, or any other viable location. Basically, you buy your domain and then the provider forwards all the requests to the web location. The biggest benefit of this type of hosting, besides the savings you may see, is the fact that you can brand your URL.
• Co-location. If you want to run your own web server and be the owner of your machine, but don’t have the dedicated IT department to maintain it, you can use co-location. This service provides a server holding room where you can store your server, even rent one if you want, and then keep control over your web server and architecture.
• Direct Internet Access. To get the most control over your server, you need to host your site yourself. Obviously, you need some experts on staff to maintain it, but for companies with large data centers this is the only way to go.
Filed Under Tutorials and Web Hosting | 8 comments
Aug
16
The Freedom of Saying NO!
07:16 pm
We live in a fast paced world and often we believe that the way to get ahead is to take on more and more. The price we pay for doing “more” or too much is feeling overwhelmed and out of balance. “NO” is just a simple two letter word. Yet it is often the hardest word to say. The challenge is to set limits and boundaries for ourselves which requires us to learn how to say “no”. Why is this so difficult? Some of the reasons we may have trouble saying “no,” are because we want to be liked, may be afraid that others would get angry or upset, or perhaps we may have been taught to always be agreeable and give others what they want. Women in particular often have been conditioned to say yes to all requests.
Whatever the reason, there are consequences of our inability to say no. We might feel that people are constantly taking advantage of us. We could experience feelings of being overwhelmed, angry, irritable or resentful. Our bodies could be experiencing constant fatigue, tension, headaches or various other aches and pains. Our behaviors with others might be more abrupt, bordering on rude and we probably would be doing less of the things that we enjoy.
One client I worked with was very accommodating and took on every thing she was asked to do at work. She began to notice that she was doing a lot of tasks that really were not her job but rather the responsibility of others. She became resentful and angry but did not know how to get out of the situation.
Another good natured individual was always willing to give a helping hand to her friends, family, colleagues and community. She sat on numerous committees, baked for fundraising events and was seen as someone you could always count on. She enjoyed this picture of herself. However she had less time for herself and her family. She would stay up late to finish all the tasks she had agreed to, didn’t get enough sleep and was impatient with her husband and children. At work she was short tempered with her staff and it actually took her longer to accomplish less.
Not being able to set appropriate boundaries and limits for ourselves can ultimately lead to all kinds of difficulties. It is important to fully understand what is being asked of you, prior to making a decision. If we make assumptions before we have all the facts it can negatively impact our ability to complete a project. Keep all projects manageable, it is less stressful and the outcome is more successful.
So let’s look at some creative ways of say “no”.
* “Can I get back to you on that?” This allows you the opportunity to think about whether you actually want to do it.”
* “I’m sorry I’m unable to take on any new projects for the next 3-4 weeks.”
* “Why don’t you ask (name) to do that as I won’t be able to get to it.”
* “I can’t do it right now, why don’t you ask me again later and perhaps I’ll have time.”
* “I can do this part, but you’ll have to find someone else to do the rest.”
* Just say “no” without any explanation.
Notice the people around you who are able to say “no” and how they say it. Perhaps some of their strategies could work for you. Trying something different takes practice so say no to something every day, so that you begin to get comfortable with the word.
Filed Under Inspirational | 1 comment
Aug
15
Ecommerce web design solutions – keep it simple
03:27 pm
Most of the web design enquiries coming through these days are requests for ecommerce web design solutions. Not only are we buying more and more of our products and services online, it would appear that many of us also want to sell online. Indeed, it’s not only large corporate companies trading online nowadays. In fact most of the web design quote requests come from individuals trading from home. People are selling flowers, their own music cds, chocolates. So there is a definite market for ecommerce web design solutions. It is however a very particular market segment and offering the right product at the right price is the key to securing the ecommerce web design business.
The best way to getting the right product to market is to start with the target clients profile and needs. Although we do design complex ecommerce web design solutions for corporate clients, there is a large market for the smaller customers. These customers are looking for 3 key product features: bespoke web design, budget price and simple to use. What is budget price for a bespoke ecommerce web design solution? And how simple should the web design solution be?
The web design industry is very competitive and sales is very price sensitive. Targeting the budget web design industry can be tricky. Price your ecommerce web design too low and run the risk of losing money or appearing too cheap. Price it too high and you could miss out on a whole range of the ecommerce web design market. Indeed, even an individual potential web design customer selling from home would expect to pay a price for a bespoke quality web design. People know that they have to pay a price to get a decent quality ecommerce web design.
Remember also that individuals selling from home generally require a simple backend from where they can easily upload their products. A standard and adequate web design feature set would include a dynamic category list, individual product image upload , title, description and price update through a simple secure backend page. This is all most potential ecommerce web design clients require to start selling online. Occasionally some clients may require special features like a simple stock management system. This is usually optional and is charged as an-add on from the outset. Keep the web design quote simple, transparent and explain everything before taking payment.
Security is an important issue as well. The standard ecommerce web design solution uses Paypal secure site to take credit card payments so security is less of an issue. However, if a web design customer requires secure credit card transactions on his/her own site then it is vital to use a reliable merchant provider and an ssl on the web site for security.
Filed Under E-Commerce and Tutorials | 4 comments