Amit Roy XHTML Designer's Blog: css

Showing posts with label css. Show all posts

Friday, January 9, 2009

Get Good Ranks through Search Engines

There are a few points you need to focus on if you want to get good ranks in the search engine.
In order of importance, here are what you should focus:
1. Keyword research
The idea is to find low-competition keyword phrase with good demand. Many people, especially newbies, try to optimize for competitive keywords and wonder why they never get to the top 10 in the search engine.
A simple approach is to type in a keyword phrase into Google and check how many results it returns. If it returns less than 500,000 results, you will have a good chance to rank well for that keyword phrase.

2. Link building
Link building is almost the "everything" of SEO.
If you are not a newbie, you would have read everything about link building.
article marketing
social bookmarking
web 2.0 sites
website directories
blog comments
press release
RSS
LinkVana
The game of search engine optimization is a game of link building, and the game of link building is a game of time vs money.
If you have all the time in the world, it is possible to do everything yourself. Else, you will have to spend money to get the chore done.
That's why I said link building is a game of time vs money.

3. SEO friendly website
I just want to quickly give you a checklist of things you need to take note in onpage optimization.
Use keywords as your domain name.
For every article, make sure that the keywords are in the title, first sentence of the first paragraph and inside the last paragraph.
Keywords in the title and keyword meta tags.
You should use the filename of the article as the filename of your webpage.

4. Unique content
Is it a must to rewrite the articles? My answer is no. But contrary to my answer, 95% of my websites are created using rewritten articles. I don't want Google to wake up one day thinking that they want to penalize duplicated content and suddenly my income becomes $0 overnight!

5. 'Beauty' of the website
Many people don't focus on this. What happen is Google measures the duration a visitor stays on your website. If the duration is long, Google will think your website has good content and it will reward you with better rank.
To get good ranks in the search engines, you need to focus on all the 5 points. Search engine optimization is not a rocket science. It's purely hard work and leverage. Most of the work are tedious, but if you know how to outsource and buy tools that can simply the work, you will greatly cut down your time on search engine optimization.

Thursday, January 8, 2009

Good Web Design Tips

There are a few design elements that must be present if you want your website to encourage visitors to stick around and eventually make a purchase. These elements include using appropriate colors and designs, great graphics and pictures, a clean design, easy to read fonts, a contact form and good, informative text. Below, we will discuss good web design tips in more detail.

Graphics and pictures help to personalize your website and make people feel comfortable. They also aid in building trust. When people see pictures of people smiling, looking pleased or excited, this warms them to your website and product. They get the feeling that they are actually dealing with people and not a webpage.

Easy to read fonts are something that a lot of marketers and companies don’t give a lot of thought to. However, it is extremely important that the font that you use, the type and the size, is readable. If you use a font that is too small, readers will be forced to strain their eyes to read your text and may eventually give up. If your font is too big and decorative, this can also be a turn off. This is one of the many good web design tips that too often gets ignored.

You want to make sure that your website design is uncluttered. A messy design is annoying and confusing. People won’t spend much time at cluttered sites. This potentially means less sales for you. The longer that you can get someone to stay at your website, the more likely they will make a purchase.

Providing good information is also a vital element of good website design. A potential customer should be able to learn just about everything that they need to know about you, your product or service from your website. Your site should inform and give you a good opportunity to close the deal.

Providing contact information is also extremely important. One of the major reasons some people don’t’ make purchases at specific websites is that there is not contact information listed. Individuals want to know that if they spend money with you, they will be able to contact you if there is a problem with your product or service. You have to prove that you are not some cyberspace scammer. Therefore, it is very important to provide some type of email, phone or instant message contact information. Visitors may even want to ask you questions prior to making a purchase. Make sure that you respond very quickly or you risk turning away customers. Your website’s email should preferably be an email address that is connected with your domain name. Using a free email account might raise suspicion and hints at unprofessionally.

Use appropriate colors and design. Your colors and design should fit your niche. If you have a real artsy niche then it is fine to be a lot more creative in your graphics and colors. However, if you have a business website where your customers are more conservative, you will want to use graphics and colors that they would be most comfortable with.

Building a good website requires that include certain elements. The information given above are just a few of the many good web design tips that you can use to increase the conversion ratios of your visitor. Remember, to use appropriate colors and design, readable fonts, an uncluttered design and provide your visitors with a method to contact you.

Tuesday, January 6, 2009

CSS3

CSS-Only form

A great example of a table-less form created by Jeff Howden. A real time saver for web developers:

http://jeffhowden.com/code/css/forms/

Link Thumbnail with CSS

A great way of previewing what the link you are about to click is about. Why send your users to a website they dont wanna go? Let them preview it through a thumbnail:

http://lab.arc90.com/2006/07/link_thumbnail.php

CSS Submit Buttons

Almost every single website has a form of some sort. Here’s a good way of treating your beloved form submit button. Great article:

http://www.ukthoughts.co.uk/journal/css…

Star Ratings

You see theese more and more. Mostly on CSS Galleries, Netflix, etc. Here’s a looooooong but very interesting article on how to put stars on your already-rocking website:

http://www.komodomedia.com/blog/2005/08/…

Target WHO?

Let users decide if they want to open a link in a new window or not. A good article on the subject:

http://webdesign.maratz.com/lab/new…

Oh yeah, the link above opens a new window :)

You will never ask about round corners again!

A massive set of techniques to create rounded corners with CSS. Some use images for the corners, some dont. Try the different methods and see what matches your preference. I personally think: The less images the better, but it all depends on what you are trying to create. Enjoy:

http://www.smileycat.com/miaow/archives/…

Photoshop-Style Drop Shadows with CSS

I was recently working on a project that required each uploaded image to have a drop shadow blow it. After searching all over the place, I found a really simple and comprehensive solution to the problem. Check this out:

http://theshapeofdays.com/….

CSS Tab Menus!

A great set of CSS Menus created by exploding boy. Take a look at the source code and notice how each menu code is segmented so that it’s easy to follow.

http://exploding-boy.com/images/cssmenus/menus.html

About CSS3.com

WHAT IS CSS

Cascading Style Sheets (CSS) are the modern standard for website presentation. When combined with structural markup language like HTML, XHTML, or XML (though not limited to these), CSS provide Internet browsers with the information that enables them to present all the visual aspects and elements of a web document. CSS apply things like borders, spacing between paragraphs, margins, headings on images, control of font faces or colors, background colors and images, textual effects like underlined or strike-through text, layering, positioning, and a number of other presentational effects. CSS controls the presentational aspects of a web page’s design, whereas HTML, XHTML, or XML control the
structure of a webpage, which means more than determining that certain text is a heading, other text is a paragraph, other text os a list of hyperlinks, and so on.

By using modern standards like CSS and XHTML, you can dramatically reduce the cost of building and maintaining a website when compared to legacy HTML-only pages. You can also greatly reduce the amount of physical bandwidth and hard disk space required, resulting in immediate long-term benefits for any webmasters and web visitor

CSS TUTORIAL

Cascading Style Sheets, commonly referred to as CSS, is a simple design language intended to simplify the process of making web pages presentable. Put simply, CSS handles the look and feel part of a web page or a whole website. With CSS, you can control the color of the text, the style of fonts, the spacing between paragraphs, how columns are sized and laid out, what background images or colors are used, as well as a variery of other effects and styles explained here.

The term cascading in Cascading Style Sheets refers to a specific way in which browsers determine which styles to apply to a specific part of the page. This method is called “the cascade”, and it’s from the cascade that CSS takes its name.

CSS3.com’s new style.

What do you think? approve? disapprove? Love it? Hate it?

I like the way all properties were easy to reach before. I will add a list of each one of them to the side menu very soon.

Also, Ive noticed I should have made each one of the properties a “page” and not a “post”. Is there a way to easily change that on wp?

Sunday, December 28, 2008

Design Principles

Web Design Library is proud to bring you Weekly Report.

This week the following hot articles have been added:

Design Principles (1 material):

Ten Of The Most Common Mistakes Made In Web Design

Designers can keep more of their website visitors by avoiding common mistakes. The following list describes some of the most common design errors associated with websites.

Singh Ray Blue Gold Polarizer in Photoshop

We will discuss how to the singh ray blue gold polarizer to help accomplish very high contrast black and white digital photo image.

Remove Background using Pen Tool in Photoshop

In this video tutorial learn how to remove a background from a photo using the pen tool.

Photoshop Tip using the Quick Mask Tool

In this photoshop video tutorial learn how to use the quickmask took.

Remove Unwanted Objects in Photoshop CS3 Extended

In this Photoshop CS3 extended video tutorial learn how to remove unwanted objects from a photo using a very cool feature.

Retro TV

Editor's Pick of December, 2008
Television is gradually loosing the role of the most powerful mass media, so making TV-set themed web design would look really stylish and classic as well as a bit nostalgic.

Leather Notes

Draw nice looking leather notes in Photoshop.

Discoball

Make nice looking discoball.

3D Shining Text

Draw 3D lighting text in photoshop.

Fireworks CS4 Photoshop Integration

For CS4, Adobe has been working hard to integrate Fireworks with the other apps, especially Photoshop...

Making Photos Come Alive - Cutout

In this tutorial you will learn how to add a unique effect to your photos to make them come alive.

Create a Dream Design with 3D Typography

Editor's Pick of December, 2008
Emotion and idea expressing fonts can keep your web design one-topic focused thus make mood and thoughts of your visitors most appropriate for the content perception of your site.

Creating a Christmas Bauble Decoration

In this tutorial, you will learn how to create a Christmas Bauble for your festive graphic decorations.

Greeting E-card Drawing Tips (Exclusive Tutorial)

Editor's Pick of December, 2008
Creating a unique layout of a greeting card is a bit time consuming, but you can make it look and feel indeed the way you want it to be.

Reflection in Broken Mirror

How to make a broken glass in Photoshop.

Web 2.0 Text Logo with Gel Effect in Photoshop

This video tutorial will show you how to create a web 2.0 text logo gel effect using Adobe Photoshop.

Learn How to Create a Smoke Brush in Photoshop

This video tutorial will show you how to create a smoke brush in Adobe Photoshop.

3D Quick-Look in CS4 Extended

Get ready for an incredible 3D experience, as you view this quick-look at some of the new 3D features in Adobe Photoshop CS4 Extended.

3D Metal Text

Draw nice looking 3D metal text.

Photoshop Stamp

Draw perfect stamp with your own symbol.

Simple Glossy Navigation Bar Design in Photoshop

In this tutorial, I will show you how to design a modern glossy navigation bar in Photoshop. This is a beginner tutorial with a just few simple steps, aiming to help beginner web designer for making their first-ever web page.

Design an Awesome Starry Text Effect In Photoshop

In this tutorial, I am going to show you the steps I took to create this awesome starry text effect in Photoshop. The inspiration of this text effect comes from the EA game "Dead Space".

Background with Photoshop and Illustrator

This Photoshop video tutorial experiments with a current design trend of creating techno backgrounds.

Create Stunning Ruby Text Effect with Photoshop

Learn how to create this stunning ruby text effect with Photoshop.

How to Create Matte Reflection with Photoshop

Learn how to create a very professional looking product presentation including creating the background, matte reflection, perspective lighting, and more.

Create Space Scene Planet and Stars in Photoshop

We will walk you through creating everything in this space scene, stars, planets, lighting, coloring and more in this in-depth Photoshop video tutorial.

Learn How to Change Eye Color with Photoshop

Here is a way to change eye color.

Creating a Christmas Star

In this tutorial, we are going to show you how to create a Christmassy Star for your festive graphic decoration. We will be creating the star from the basic star Custom Shape in PhotoShop.

Colorful and Dreamy Scene

Learn how to turn an original picture into a colorful and dreamy picture.

Paper Curl

A detailed Photoshop tutorial that shows how to create a paper curl.

Design a Dark and Crimson Forest Scene in Photoshop

In this tutorial, I will show you the processes I used to transform an average forest Photo into a Dark and Crimson Forest Scene, inspired by the Japanese Survival Horror Playstation game "Fatal Frame II: Crimson Butterfly".

Business Layout #3

In this tutorial I'll show you how to make a really simple clean business layout.

Create a Matrix Poster

Learn how to create a matrix poster.

Blue Glow Portrait Effect

Make a blue glow portrait effect by using some color blending techniques.

Create a Website Layout in Photoshop

Learn to create this entire dealership website from start to finish.

Enhance Photography & Cool Border with Photoshop

Learn how to enhance many aspects of your photography such as saturation, contrast, sharpening techniques and finish of the final presentation with an extremely slick border.

Create a Cool Spark Beam

Learn how to create a product presentation with flare!

Create Fake Mist and Sun Rays Beam with Photoshop

In this Photoshop video tutorial learn how to create fake mist, god rays (sun beams), and creating rich black and white images.

Christmas Glass Balls Drawing Lesson (Exclusive Tutorial)

Editor's Pick of December, 2008
On-line Christmas Tree decorating may be somewhat as fun as a traditional one. Though Photoshop sets no limits on your creativity and you can go as far as your imagination lets you.

3D Euroleague Logo

Give 3D effect to the 2D logo.

Patterns and Shapes in Adobe Illustrator (Video Tutorial)

This tutorial is based on an advertisement that uses patterns and shapes to create a unique design effect.

Rotating Billboard

One easy to make rotating billboard on Time Square. It's very easy tutorial for everyone.

Flash CS4 Deco Tool (Video Tutorial)

Having fun experimenting with Flash CS4's Deco Tool.

How to Create Explosive Typographic Effects in Cinema 4D

Editor's Pick of December, 2008
Stunning tutorial on how to create an attention-attractive 3D logo and make it the most eye-catching element of your web design.

Redefined HTML Tags

This tool in Dreamweaver allows users to redefine an existing component of HTML.

What Kind of Domain Name Should you Choose?

Domain names are unique on the Internet, you can't have two the same, no matter how you try.

New Cascading Style Sheets Recommendation from W3C

The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) today issued a Recommendation for Web style sheets. The Recommendation - Cascading Style Sheets, level 1 (CSS1) - gives Web designers a robust set of tools to help them specify Web page presentation properties such as fonts, colors and margins. Through links, CSS1 allows a single style sheet to apply to all Web pages on a site and thereby dramatically simplifying Web site maintenance. Also, a style sheet can be put inside a Web document and in detail specify how the document is presented. W3C Members have reviewed the CSS1 specification and support its adoption by the industry.
Microsoft and other software vendors have products that support CSS1; Netscape, Adobe, SoftQuad and Grif are among the W3C Members who will be adding support for CSS1 in their upcoming software releases.
With Hypertext Markup Language (HTML) content providers do not have the control they have in print media over color, text indentation, positioning, and other aspects of style. Today CSS1 offers a powerful and manageable way for authors, artists and typographers to specify the visual presentation of an HTML document or collection of documents.
"The Web's main document format, Hypertext Markup Language (HTML), was intentionally designed as a simple language that valued document structure over document presentation. However, with the commercialization of the Web, presentation of Web documents is becoming increasingly critical," said Tim Berners-Lee, Director of the W3C and creator of the World Wide Web. "CSS1 brings HTML authoring to the next level by effectively combining the structure and content of Web pages with powerful presentation capabilities. We look forward to the industry's further adoption of CSS1."
"CSS1 is a powerful tool. It can alter the look and feel of an entire web site simply by changing a single style sheet," said Håkon Lie, co-architect of CSS1. "CSS1 makes it very much easier to maintain a consistent style throughout the entire Web site. At the same time, CSS1 enables rich individual expressions that Web designers will appreciate."
Creative web designers have tried to bypass HTML's limitations by using images of text, which look like good typography but result in documents that cannot be searched, fed to speech synthesizers for visually impaired users, and do not print well. They have also used non-portable proprietary HTML extensions to gain control of spacing, and tables to simulate margins and indents. CSS1 allows designers to directly express the appearance they seek while retaining device-indepedent document structure, reusability, searchability and accessibility for the disabled.
"By separating the structure from the visual presentation of documents, we ensure the documents created today can also be displayed on the presentation devices of tomorrow," said Bert Bos, co-architect of CSS1. "HTML has become a universal storage format that will outlast current computers. CSS1, when used correctly, assures that documents can be preserved without sacrificing aesthetics on the Web."
It is expected that other specifications will build on CSS1 to provide support for Web fonts, speech style sheets, extended layout and printing capabilities. Also, W3C is actively working with its members to ensure that script-based applications can take advantage of style sheets. For example, a script attached to a Web page may dynamically alter properties, such as color, set in a CSS1 style sheet.
Please see attached fact sheet and testimonials document for additional information on CSS1.