Web Page Editors
You may be surprised how many web
page editors are available and that you probably already
have some on your PC . Most Microsoft Office and Apple
Office Software usually allows you to save in html
format which is the web page file type. However, you may
be disappointed with the way your documents appear in
the web browsers - the format is typically rearranged
into something awful. Then how do you link it and
publish it on the web for other people to read?
The most diligent web designers will use nothing more
that a text editor such as Notepad. This method makes
them think about every aspect of the web page format the
efficiency of loading times. If you are unfamiliar with
HTML then text editors are not you cup of tea.
Then there are specialised web page editors that apply a
term called WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get).
These specialised editors don't always format the web
pages correct, add unnecessary code, and may require
more patience to learn but they are an excellent place
to begin. I often use
MS
Expression Web and
Photoshop Dreamweaver.
Web Page Construction
Web pages are made up a format structure called HTML.
The HTML structure and text (words) are combined into
one file. You may also insert other file objects into
web pages, common files types may be images (gif, jpg),
Portable Document Format (PDF), and movie plug ins
(often YouTube). Each of the inserted objects
are separate files so they must be available
when you publish the web page.
Search Engine Friendly Web Pages
Well, there is a lot of hype and scams about making web
pages search engine friendly. This topic is often
encompassed within SEO (Search Engine Optimisation) and
there are tools and knowledge needed to make sure that
your web page is fully read by Google, Bing and Yahoo.
Some basic principles are:
- Inserting an accurate, short page title
- Apply the same page title as you do for the first
"Heading" of document
- Label every picture and iFrame with meaningful
descriptions
- Applying well structure code and tables
There are tools to test how search friendly your web
pages are and I prefer to apply
WooRank to test all
aspects of the web pages within a website.
Usability Basics
Usability measures the quality
of a user's experience when interacting with a product
or system-whether a Web site, a software application,
mobile technology, or any user-operated device.
It is important to realize that usability is not a
single, one-dimensional property of a user interface.
Usability is a combination of factors including:
- Ease of learning - How fast can a user
who has never seen the user interface before learn
it sufficiently well to accomplish basic tasks?
Efficiency of use - Once an experienced
user has learned to use the system, how fast can he
or she accomplish tasks?
Memorability - If a user has used the
system before, can he or she remember enough to use
it effectively the next time or does the user have
to start over again learning everything?
Error frequency and severity - How often
do users make errors while using the system, how
serious are these errors, and how do users recover
from these errors?
Subjective satisfaction - How much does
the user like using the system?
More information may be found at
Usability.Gov.
Publishing A Web Page Onto
The Internet
To allow other people to view your web page on the
Internet, you must save it onto a, "Web Server"
sometimes called a, "Host Server." There are a millions
of servers and they have a wide range of costs, features
and capacity. Typically the provider will provide a
simple tool that allows you to save the files on the
server but usually it is easier with software that allow
you to transfer the files to the server, those tools are
called File Transfer Protocol (FTP). If you purchase a
web address, www.[yoursite].com.au, then you may link it
the the web server.
Is There An Easier Way To
Start A Web Page In Australia?
Yes, there are easier ways to try some out. The web
technology is advancing rapidly and to publish simple
web page then you may want to try some of these free
services out:
- Facebook
- A simple single page to share with friends
-
HotFrog - A preformatted web page for
businesses to advertise
- Webs
- An easy to use hosting service
Of course nothing is really free and the above have
restrictions about using your own web address and hey
will place advertisements onto your web pages.
Good luck with your web page and call us if you would
like help.
|
