Graphic Design - Software Guidelines Ideas
With the assistance of modern software, developing a web site has never been easier. Now, even novice web site designers can utilize these software tools to develop a simple, yet graphically pleasing, website. But, it is important to keep in mind that simplicity does not guarantee usability. Attention must still be paid to the elements of good design, as well as navigability, usability, and readability. This article offers insight into the fundamentals of good web site design that can be applied to any web design software package.
The first rule of thumb for graphic design is to design web pages that are easy to read. Many people have visited sites with fancy, complex backgrounds only to find that the text and the content was unreadable against the background. The text color should be highlighted by the background through the use of opposing colors, such as black and white. Where a fancy background is desired, text blocks should be offset with by a background consisting of a single, opposing color.
The text should be large enough to easily read, but not so big that a small passage consumes the entire page. Headline text should be centered, while paragraph text should be justified on both sides. Fully justified text is supported by modern browsers. Older browsers will simply ignore the command, and align the text on the left side only. Just like in a newspaper, fully justified text, neatly aligned on both sides, makes columns more apparent and the page more appealing. Finally, the color of link text should make links easily distinguishable from normal text.
Your next guideline of graphic design refers to the easiness of the web page to navigate. The rule is every web page should be accessed in three clicks of the mouse. You can use a a table of of contents or another type of menu to help keep your site easy to navigate and organized, you can also use frames, which are pages within pages. The frame that consists of the table of contents should be on the left side of the page, while the links that open other frames should be on the right. This will keep your user fixed to your main page.
A web site that is hard to find might as well not exist. The proper use of keywords is critical to making a web site a popular web site. Keywords pertaining to the subject matter of the site, invisibly peppered throughout the site, will make the site easier for search engines to find and properly categorize. Search engines also provide forms for search engine submission which will further help the search engine serve your site to people who are seeking sites on a particular subject.
The software tools available today allow even the novice web designer to create an appealing web site that will captivate a large audience. By following these suggestions for good graphic design, the web site content will be presented in a concise and attractive manner. With practice, someone new to world of web design can prepare themselves for one of the various professional web design jobs.
A web site that is hard to find might as well not exist. Keywords pertaining to the subject matter of the site, invisibly peppered throughout the site, will make the site easier for search engines to find and properly categorize. Search engines also provide forms for search engine submission to further assist the search engine serve your site to people seeking information about a particular subject. By following basic graphic design guidelines, and using up-to-date software, even a novice web designer can create a site that will interest any audience. With a little practice, a new web designer can work toward applying for available web design jobs.
Published September 24th, 2008
Filed in Ecommerce, Internet, Web Design, Web Hosting
