Whittaker is a lecturer in journalism, media and English in the UK, specilising in international journalism, and the academic slant can be seen in the book, which is quite theoretical. He doesn’t want to get too technical, but feels a good understanding of the history, structure, workings and limitations of the Internet are important so that designers can work within the limitations. Web production and management is now a career choice, rather than a hobby, and throughout the designer must remember that effectiveness is the most important aim.

Before a site is produced, questions should be asked: what do you want to achieve from it, are you prepared to put in the long haul to achieve not only the initial site, but the updates. The structure and homepage are important elements of design, with flexibility within designs to allow for different elements of content, whilst maintaining an overall consistent look. Whittaker approves of Bauhaus design, where form follows function, and “Less is More” is a motto. Although interactivity can be achieved through scripting and multimedia (he discusses various scripting languages currently available), these should not be used just because they are available, as they may interfere with the sites purpose, and users are not interested in the latest technology, but is good design which facilitates usability and content (can learn a lot from newspaper techniques).

Whittaker discusses the use of colour, and graphic optimisation, legal, regulatory and ethical issues, how to promote the site post-production, and how to optimise the site for good search engine rankings. He details building a site using Netscape Composer (although he feels there are many similarities with other editors), whilst stressing the need to understand HTML in order to fine tune the site. He stresses the need to test the site for technical and usability problems before uploading. A website accompanies this book. (January 2002)

This book is now in its second edition, written by a pair from a graphic design background, who love to use Macintosh computers, and with a slightly wacky sense of fun. It is very good as a basic introduction to the Internet, how it works, and how to search it. The basics of making a site and what to consider before starting on the site itself, such as defining the audience and site goals, are considered in the initial chapters. There is a lot of practical information in the book, particularly with regard to preparing and optimising graphics for the web.

Tips are given for those who have never been involved in design, for instance, text alignment, page balance, etc., although they stress that designers have to let go of total control over the appearance of the site. Key areas of good and bad design are defined, the importance of a clear site ‘personality’, and the danger of a poor site is noted. The use of colour is discussed, they note that you can get involved in colour theory and psychology, but basically use your own judgment as to what looks good.

Aesthetic considerations are considered very important, but so are other elements, such as the organisation of materials within a site, navigation, and naming conventions. Differences between print and web media are considered, particularly download times, with the web considered cheaper, easier to update (an essential part of web design), and more interactive. Multimedia is considered as an option, but having a clean, attractive design and good information makes for a good site: simplicity is the key. Users can learn from other sites, although they must take care not to plagiarise.

The book also considers how to test the site, both technically, and for users, how to upload the site, and how to market the site once the initial site is complete. (January 2002)

Niederst comes from a background as a web designer, and a teacher of web design. Aimed at the beginner, it also prepares the reader for more advanced work. She stresses that there is no need to learn everything, but that it is good to recognise the elements of a web page, so that they can be investigated further if required.

She assumes no knowledge of how the web works, and so defines the key terms and concepts to work with, including a good idea of how the web works. The book is a very strong visual ‘how to’ text, but there are also plenty of points to think about regarding functionality and usability. She is particularly strong on the use of HTML and optimising and utilising graphics at their best. Some of the topics she covers include the lack of control over how a web page is seen (‘the unknowns’), how to get a site onto the web, a list of do’s and don’ts for web design, helpful advice on organising a web site, and an introduction to advanced techniques. Throughout the text she refers to several different web authoring and graphics packages. A website accompanies this book. ( February 2002)

See also Web Design in a Nutshell (1999), and Designing for the Web : Getting started in a new medium (1996).

Mandel trained as a cognitive psychologist. The book largely focuses on software application design and testing, but it was being recognised that the web was starting to have an impact, Chapter 16 focuses on the web, and a lot of the other design principles apply to web design. Interaction is defined for people by their past experience and expectations, and if something doesn’t work as expected, people tend to blame themselves rather than the product, so designers must ensure that their product works in a consistent manner. Mandel complains that magazines give the impression that it is easy to build web pages, which physically it is, but believes there is an art and a science to perfect a web site (not pages).

GUI interfaces for computers have added a time-delay factor, designers tends to play with the visual layout rather than focusing on the information, and what the product is trying to achieve. Define goals and information first, add design later. Designers must take into account the impact of memory, sensory systems of users should not be overloaded with, for instance, unnecessary animations. Designers must be user-focused, users used to have to adapt to systems, now there is a more common need for the system to adapt to the user; users can be given clues through the use of, for instance, visual metaphors. Now that the Internet has become more common, designs no longer need to be simply user-friendly, but should also be ‘user-seductive’. Goals must be realistic, achievable and testable.

Users want consistency across the web, but compromises are often needed, and designers should understand rules, but not follow them blindly, but know what they are breaking. Designs must be continually tested and reviewed to see if they work successfully, based in a sound structure, and the first site design is unlikely to be the last. Often web sites are based on TV models, but these don’t transfer successfully as the TV is a passive medium, whereas the web is an interactive medium, with a wide audience base with different skills sets, and differing paths should be offered for the new user, and the frequent user. There are new issues, such as legal and copyright, for web designers to deal with. (January 2002)

Buy from Amazon (yes, it’s still in print!)

Flanders, Vincent & Willis, Michael, Web Pages That Suck: Learn Good Design by Looking at Bad Design, Sybex, 1998

Flanders was a webmaster for Lightspeed Net until 1997, having previously completed a degree focusing on the classical Greeks, where he appreciated the Greek ideas of moderation, proportion and beauty, which he feels can be applied to web design. He also taught HTML to various businesses, designing a website demonstrating bad design, so that his pupils would not repeat the same mistakes. This was so poplar it was converted to a book, with Willis, a designer. The book is still hugely popular, and is well illustrated with exemplars from both real companies (they stress they are not critical of the companies, just their site design) and sites created to demonstrate particular points.

A humorous approach to the writing has been taken, and the book is easy and fun to read, whilst being educational, with an unpretentious, to-the-point, style. They constantly stress the need to think before doing anything on the site, and are in favour of using what is needed to convey the message to the audience, rather than using all the technology available to web designers. Flanders & Willis define three purposes for sites, although the book is largely focused on making sales, establishing trust through a professional looking site, and getting the user to part with money. They emphasise the importance of a well structured site, with easy to find information, with the homepage particularly important as first impressions count. They deal with optimising download time, paying particular attention to graphics, on producing ‘sticky’ and communicative content, and on marketing and maintaining the site once the initial site is complete. A website accompanies this book. (January 2002)

See also Son of Web Pages That Suck: Learn Good Design by Looking at Bad Design (April 2002).

The authors come from a graphic design background, and this lavishly illustrated book is aimed at those with a basis in print design, although the advice is useful for all levels. The first three chapters are the most useful for general design points, although the remaining chapters provide good exemplars (from real companies) which consider different types of sites and looks at the ways they have implemented the ‘design rules’ from the first three chapters. The whole purpose of a web site is deemed to be communication, with a focus on the needs of the customer; a site should identify a problem, and identify the solution that the site will provide.

The authors question whether the web is the best medium for the message in mind, as other multimedia and print options are available, and identifies some the special properties of the online media, including the interactive, nonlinear approach. They address some project management aspects, particularly whether one has the time and resources to see the project through to completion, and to do so well. They are very hot on having a consistent approach to design, particularly on the the use ‘metaphors’ to give personality to the site, whilst maintaining functionality. Sites must be well organised, and use appropriate technologies to get the message across. (January 2002)

Reviewed for Web Usability and Accessibility Project.

Buy from Amazon

“Your one-stop guide to using CSS with CHTML to create dynamic sites.

Things move quickly on the Web, and you want to make it easy to keep your site up to date. So you’ll want to know how HTML, CHTML, and CSS work together, and this book makes that easy! Handy minibooks get you started, explain how to use the most up-to-date standards, and show you how to put it all together for sites with pizazz.”

Buy on Amazon.

SEOmoz Whiteboard Friday – The SEO Fundamentals Pyramid from Scott Willoughby on Vimeo.

Google Analytics
Learn more about where your visitors come from and how they interact with your site. You’ll get the information you need to write better ads, strengthen your marketing initiatives, and create higher-converting websites. Learn more about the benefits. Google Analytics is free to everyone, whether you are an advertiser, publisher, or site owner.

Keywords
A ‘keyword’ campaign needs to be selected very carefully, and form the basis of content, meta-tags and search-marketing campaigns.

Link Popularity
Search engines rank websites according to other sites which link to them, and not all sites are created equal! A number of factors come into play in this, of which the main is still quality, relevant content.

Google Alerts
Google Alerts are email updates of the latest relevant Google results (web, news, etc.) based on your choice of query or topic.

There is also be some helpful information in the blogs I follow.

Microstock Photography
There are many different microstock photography sites, in which you can purchase Royalty-free (free from licence restrictions) images for as low as $0.20 per image if you sign up to a subscription plan. Pay as you go images are more expensive per image, and credits usually need to be used within a year, although the image is then yours to use. Check the small print as, for example, Shutterstock says that an image must be first-used within 6-months of download to prevent stockpiling.

Purchasing Credits
It is rare that you will find a site which will only let you buy a single image credit, so expect to buy several photos from each site if you sign up, usually with a credit card, sometimes with PayPal. All will let you sign up and add images to ‘lightboxes’ for free… in the hope that you will return and purchase them!

• Bigstockphoto approx $20 for 10 images
• Dreamstime approx. $20 for 22 images, but also provides free images
• Fotolia from 57p – £3.99 for a single-image
• iStockphoto starts at £9.00 for 10 credits, cost per credit decreases as more are purchased
• Shutterstock £29 for 5 images, or by subscription
• Snapvillage images from $1
• Stock.xchng offers free images or refers you to Stock Expert where small web images are around $1 each. (now part of  iStockphoto!)
• Photobucket mostly designed for the MySpace user, but has some gems tucked away through the search function

For historical (and very creative recent) images Getty Images comes highly recommended. To search for images created in a particular era search for e.g. “Image created 1940s”. Royalty free images start at £39 for web-use only.

You Tube
You Tube is of the course the ubiquitous video-posting site, so I’ve set up an account there and increasingly uploading videos (just from my digital camera), as well as favouriting a number of other videos!

A time-honoured website, recommended by many web developers (and I hasten to say that I’m not a developer or a designer, but someone who is largely interested in the possibilities offered by the web as a medium of communication – and will learn as much programming as I need to) is W3 Schools – a great site offering introductions to the most common web languages, and also more advanced skills for those who already have some expertise in this area, including

• asp
• css
• flash
• html
• javascript
• php
• xhtml

What do W3 Schools Say?

• Because time is valuable, we deliver quick and easy learning.
• At W3Schools, you can study everything you need to learn, in an accessible and handy format.
• “Never increase, beyond what is necessary, the number of words required to explain anything” William of Ockham (1285-1349)