This page is REALLY old. Hopefully, you'll still find some good info. If a link is broken... well, a lot has changed since the turn of the millennium.

If you are an aspiring web page junkie, or just want some new hacks, I suggest bookmarking the following links. Each site listed is well designed, informative, and useful. You won't have to wade through the fluff or wait forever for the page to load to get the information you need. It is my hope that the links on this page will help you on your way to designing a great web page.

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[ HTML | Graphics | JavaScript | Java | CGI | Publishing | Stuff | Reference | Search | Tips ]

HTML:

Beginner's Guide to HTML - This is where I started.

HTML 4.0 - The HTML spec.

The Bare Bones Guide to HTML - Print it for a handy reference.

NCD HTML Design - Excellent online HTML guide.

How do they do that with HTML? - Nuts and bolts, tips and tricks.

Web Wonk - Very useful tips for web page design.

Art and the Zen of Web Sites - Solid advice for site designers.

Guide to Web Style - Covers everything from basic HTML to advanced design.

Project Cool Developer Zone - Cool beginning through advanced HTML stuff.

Graphics:

GIF Animation on the WWW - Want to do this?

Non-dithering Colors in Browsers - Essential info about color choice.

The Bandwidth Conservation Society - Learn how to optimize those images.

JavaScript:

Javascript Guide | Javascript Reference - Netscape's documentation (downloads available).

Webcoder - Nick Heinle's newest JS repository.

JavaScript Tips! - Nick Heinle's archived JS gems.

View Document Source & Steal this clock!

Or this one:

Java:

Gamelan: Java Directory - All things Java. Applets galore.

CGI Scripts:

The Common Gateway Interface - What CGI stands for.

The cgi-lib.pl Home Page - The standard Perl library and other good stuff.

Matt's Script Archive - A bunch of cool (and free!) scripts.

Selena Sol's CGI Scripts - Useful collection (now has license fees for support) and lots of helpful info.

Publishing:

The Global Institute for Interactive Media - Excellent web publishing guidelines.

WebCom Guide - Site Publish - When you're ready to link up, go here.

Stuff:

Shareware.com - c|net's shareware database. I call it "Shareware Heaven."

Reference:

World Wide Web FAQ - Got a question???

The Web Developer's Virtual Library - Lots of info and examples here.

Search:

The general search forms below are included for convenience. Blast off from here, or View Document Source and steal them for your own page. Note: the WebMaster Reference Library searcher by excite (above) is geared specifically for web page related info. Have fun!

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- Ride 'em cowpoke!

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Tips:

Tip 1: When in doubt, "View/Document Source." I learned a lot from other people's HTML code.

Tip 2: Include HEIGHT and WIDTH attributes within all your image tags. This should be standard practice because it a works around browser bugginess with Java and JavaScript, and also allows text to load on the page before all the images are displayed. I just hate watching a blank screen while the whole page loads.

Tip 3: Don't use huge images. I bypass a lot of sites because of an image taking forever to load. Small, optimized images (under 50k) are big enough--even on a gallery site.

Tip 4: Java is cool, but it's buggy and can be slow loading. If you want to use an applet on your page, test it online first. If it's graphical, try to keep the image size down. Also, and this is a personal peeve, things that endlessly repeat are extremely annoying. Avoid looping. If you feel inclined to loop a sound or some wiggly text, give the viewer a break by setting a nice long pause between stop and start.

Tip 5: Update frequently and let the viewer know that you've done so somewhere on your main page. Don't just make your site and then leave it to rot. The web is a living, growing thing. Change makes it interesting.

Tip 6: Layout can differ dramatically from browser to browser. It's a good idea to have the main ones on the desktop and to check your pages against them from time to time while you're designing.

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[ HTML | Graphics | JavaScript | Java | CGI | Publishing | Stuff | Reference | Search | Tips ]

[This page is a special thanks to all the people who unknowingly aided and abetted me in creating my web site.]