Becoming an HTML enabled
person:
Basic
Web Page Design Elements
Header
Since it's the first (and sometimes
the only) thing a person sees when they enter your site, make sure
you think about the following when designing your header.
The header text and graphics should
be (1) Interesting, (2) Informative, and (3) Tell the audience what your
site is all about.
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Graphics should not take so long
to load (especially with slower modems) that your audience loses interest
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Include navigational elements in
the header (navigational bar and/or text links)
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Headers on all pages should be consistent!
People should be able to tell immediately that they are still on your site
by glancing at the top of the page.
Body
The body contains the main content
of the page, the "guts" of your site. The body is what keeps people returning
to your site. Possible techniques you can use:
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Text
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Graphics
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Animation
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Links
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Tables
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Navigation
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Forms
Design elements you must consider:
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Style
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Structure
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Consistency
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Proportion
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Dimension
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Balance
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Contrast
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Rhythm
Footers
The minimum information that should
be included in a footer includes contact information (especially an email
address and a name) and the last revision date. Basic elements of
footers:
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Last revision date
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Contact information
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Credits
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Disclaimer(s)
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Copyright information
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Navigation to other pages on the site
Footers may also contain:
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Counters (over 3,000,000 people have
visited this site)
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Banner ads
NEVER assume that someone will visit
your main (or home) page, especially if they link into a specific page
on your site. That's why contact information should be given as part of
every footer. Headers and footers provide a flow of continuity from
one page to the next. Make sure they're consistent!
Other
Important Elements in a Web Page:
Page title:
most search engines use this information to catalogue your web page. Pick
your page titles wisely!
Top-of-the-page
graphics header: identifies your page as part of the overall web
site
Provide a text
title for all graphics
you add to your page. Not everyone has a
graphics capable browser, and you want them to know what they're missing.
Essential
Web Page Design Considerations:
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The arrangement of
text. A webpage is not
a book. Readers need much more white space when they are reading
text on a computer monitor.
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Use of different
fonts.
Don't
use so many different fonts that it detracts from the overall page design.
Unless you're a graphic designer, limit yourself to three different fonts,
maximum.
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The blending of colors.
Check
your page on different kinds of browsers and different kinds of computers
to make sure your colors blend harmoniously...no matter who's viewing it!
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Addition of background
and foreground images.
Be
sure that your background and foreground images reinforce your webpage
message. Backgrounds that are too busy will make your pages hard
to read.
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Use of white space.
The eye needs a place to rest. Make sure there's plenty of white
space on your page(s) so that your audience stays a long, long time.
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Leaving out certain
elements. The lack of
basic page elements can be used to create an effect or mood, but the benefits
of creating a certain mood must be weighed against the benefits of the
functionality of the elements.
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Last update 1/19/06
