1. Identify, analyze and research the problem to obtain a complete description of the project.   2. Think of solutions to the problem and make layout sketches of all ideas.   3. Discuss all ideas with other designers, graphic artists, web authors and technicians.   4. Revise and combine ideas after discussions into final layout plan.   5. Prepare a complete file and folder specifications list prior to generating solution.   6. Create individual files (graphic & text) inspecting each for memory size and accuracy.   7. Check the final solution and test operation of integrated files for security, accuracy, and reliability.   8. Revise final solution if necessary and prepare or upload files to final destinations.

The number of people involved in a Website development project varies by project. Typical team members include a client liaison representative, project manager, Web author, Web designer, Web developer, and Webmaster. All team members work toward the same goal of creating a site that meets the needs of the client/company.

Building a Great Web Site

 

The K.I.S.S. (Keep it simple stupid) principle works well for a Web page because the information, text, images, and animations, takes time to get from a server to the users computer. Keep your ideas focused, and make sure everything on your page has a good reason for being included.

• Choose your images carefully.
• Keep contents brief, while still getting across the message.
• Use clear and simple language with consistent terminology.
• Check for correct spelling and grammar
• Use hypertext links to connect to useful, current information/sites.

Question yourself!

• What is the purpose of the site?
• What are you trying to tell your visitors?
• How is your audience going to view your page? T1, slow modem? Do visitors lose patience waiting for downloads, and leave too soon.
• How will your attract and keep visitors? Placement is key. Not all users have huge monitors; place the most iimportant elements at the top of the page. Most people usuallly look in the upper lef-hand corner first.
• What colors should you use? Just because you have access to 216 colors, doesn't mean you should use them all! Take readability into consideration. Go for the maximum contrast, and then back off.
• Do you have enough whitespace? Whitespace helps the raders' eyes rest on what is important. Keep the design uncluttered and the concept focused.

Organization

• The home page should organize the entire Web site.
• All pages should be ocnsistent as far as icorns, banners and layout. The logo should appear in the same location on each page.
• The 'feel' of the page should match the type of content displayed in order to convey information.
• K.I.S.S.-too many frames, animation, blinking text, fonts, graphics, sizes and colors will frustrate the user.
• Use lines or format text with lists to make the informtion easy to read.

Navigational Rules

• Vieweres should know where they are and how to get back to where they were.
• Link pages in a logical orders.
• On each page, include a link that takes the user back to the home page and an achnor to take them back to the top of the page.
• If the site is large, include a site map – a diagram of how all of your pages work together.
• Avoid useless clicking and page loads.
• Only include current and useful links.
• Include dates to show updated information.