Ideas
Module 18

This module will present some ideas about creating and using web pages.  Some ideas may be repeated elsewhere, but may make more sense now and others may be new information.

To get around the limits of HTML, use Tables to organize information on a page.  Tables can be used to line up information and clean up screen "real estate."  Tables within Tables can be used to create useful charts and layouts for entire pages.

Be careful to save your images in a folder inside your "local" folder.  Once they are placed there, do not move them unless you also update links that they contain or refer to.

If you want to use special fonts, sizes, layouts, or other visual representatons, you can create them in any other program (more or less) and then save them as a GIF.  Then insert the GIF into the web page and you will have the specialized images.

It is possible to divide a picture into regions and use those regions as linkable areas.  You may wish to do this in a program other than Composer, but once created, the rest of the work can be done in whichver program you select.  In general, HTML files can be created in one program, edited in another, and cleaned up in even another, as long as they are in HTML format.

Once you create your package of web files, you may want to use a program like DreamWeaver, FrontPage,or PageMill to "manage" your web site.   Depending on your program, these site managing programs (they also create pages) let you move files around and reogranize your pages.  If you want to rename the files or images, you can do this and the program also updates the links so you do not have any broken links.
 

Page Design:

When desktop publishing became available to us "common folk," the fear was that anyone with a computer would suddenly believe that they were now a magazine publisher.  The same concern was present when desktop video became an option. What has happened is that by using some basic rules of common sense, by knowing what appeals to a designer, by looking at other examples, and being aware of some basic elements of design, teachers are able to produce good print and video.  Teachers have always had to be certain that their handouts were legible, easy to understand, and that directions were always clear.  These same concepts apply to creating web pages.

An old cartoon shows a child saying, "Nobody ever notices when I do what's right, but everyone notices when I do wrong."  There is some comparison here to creating web pages.  There are many ways that a web page can communicate information, and if the viewer does not notice the page and can use the information, then the page has met its purpose.  If the design or layout of a page "gets in the way" of the information, then the design should be reconsidered.  The focus of the web page is the information... the web is simply another method of communication.

In our culture, printed pages direct the reader's eyes from left to right.  Typesetters use fonts that have little "feet" or "platforms" on the base of letters so that the reader's eyes follow the lines more easily  (This font has the feet (serifs)-This font does not (sans serifs)).

When you design a web page, the reader's eyes not only move from left to right, but top to bottom movement is important as well. The scroll bar provides a vertical reference just as the serifs provide the horizontal direction.

Since you will have limited control over some elements of web design, view the page as a "whole."   Consider the use of space and length of pages and readability.  Avoid overusing colors and pictures, but be sure not to underutilize those same elements.  Consider your audience, and keep aware of what others consider "good design."  Keep in mind how individual pages fit with all the other pages in your part of the Web.   A web page should not be lengthy.  Some sources suggest that web pages should be no more than 2 or 3 screens long.  A link on the DSISD web page provides some guidelines for design (certainly not a complete list, nor a list of "comandments").

For many years, teachers have been known for "scrounging" and "stealing from the best" and applying what they learned from others to their own teaching assignments.  We certainly will not advocate illegal acts here, but a good way to get ideas for your page is to look at other web pages and see what others have done and combine the best ideas to make your web pages your own to reflect your individual approach to education and communication.