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What are search engines, and where can I find some?

Search engines are Web sites that create an index of various Web sites. They allow you to type in whatever interests you, and offers a list of sites on that topic. No search engine lists all of the sites available on the Internet, so if one does not give you what you are looking for, you may want to try another one. Here is a short list of available search engines, but many more are available:

How do I create my own web page?

There are many kinds of software to use for this (such as: Adobe GoLive, Macromedia Dreamweaver MX and Microsoft FrontPage). Additionally, any text creator can create HTML pages (such as Notepad, Simple Text, Microsoft Word). Many Web sites offer instructions on writing HTML pages (such as www.learnthenet.com or www.aaahtml.com).

Once you have created your site, you will need to upload it to your personal web space. To do this, you can use your web page creation software, or a separate FTP client to upload the files to web server, using your primary username and password.

After uploading your HTML pages, anyone in the world can surf to your Web site.

If you need one, You can download an FTP client program (many are available free of charge) from Download.com.

Web Design Tips

1. Be consistent.

This means, keep the same "look and feel" across ALL of your pages. If a user goes from one page that's white with a flowery background, to another page that's got a red brick wall for a background, they're likely to think they've either gone to another website, or that the site designer was insane.

2. Use consistent navigation site-wide.

Have links on every page of your site, that at the very least link back to your homepage. You might also want to include links for things like "search", "help", "feedback", etc. A good place for these links is in a line at the bottom of each page (this is how I do it). You could also have them at the top of the page, or on the side of the page (if your site uses tables or frames), but they must be there, and they must consistently be in the same place on every page.

3. Don't use frames, and don't add links that cause a new browser window to open.

Frames are still disliked; users can't bookmark a page within a framed site, nor can they print a page within frames. And I can't think of anything more annoying that the insta-browser-window.

4. Don't design pages with graphics or tables that are wider than 500 pixels.

I see this a lot from people who design on PC's. Perhaps they don't realize that the Mac browser window (as well as WebTV browsers, and anyone with a 14" or smaller screen size) does not open to "full screen" width - 500 pixels is as wide as it goes (or in the case of Macs, it's the default width, and many people will never change from the default). If you design wider, not only are you forcing users to scroll down, but now you're also forcing them to scroll from side to side to see your entire page.

5. Get On With It!

Make your point in the top of the page, the "front screen". While users are getting better about scrolling down, if you waste their first 15 seconds of viewing time on your site with Big Graphics Syndrome, or banner ads, or trivial fluff, you may have just lost a viewer. They'll move on to the next site without even reading the rest of your page.

6. Skip the huge graphics and animations.

I see this a lot, especially on corporate sites: Big Graphics Syndrome. You know the kind, the one with a huge 500x300 jpeg that takes 2 minutes to load over a modem. During that time many users have already clicked "stop" and gone away. Design your page to be small - a good rule of thumb is under 100K including text and graphics. This doesn't mean you have to use NO graphics, it just means you should choose carefully; use graphics that are attractive and enhance your site, without bludgeoning the user or forcing them to wait 5 minutes for your page to finish loading. The same goes for animations. Animated gifs were cute the first time, but now they're just plain annoying.

7. Enhance, don't replace.

Site redesigns are nice and all, but not when you do it every week. Users get annoyed when they bookmark a page, then return a month later to find you've removed the page. If you MUST move a page, replace it with a link to the new location. If you've removed it entirely, be sure your site's Error Document allows the user to click back to your homepage (or your search page).

8. Image Etiquette: use ALT tags, and HEIGHT and WIDTH tags.

Alt tags lets users see what you meant when they can't or don't load the image. And height/width tags allow the rest of the page (especially the TEXT, which is what people really want) to load first. Users will perceive that your page loads faster, because they can start reading while the images continue loading.

9. Don't use dark backgrounds, and don't change the colors of navigational links.

If you use dark backgrounds with white text, users won't be able to print your page. And changing the link colors is like changing the colors on a traffic light. What would you think if the city planners went around and swapped the green and red lights? Or changed red to blue, and green to magenta? You'd be a bit confused, right? Your web visitors will be similarly confused by such changes to the link colors.

10. Give every page a relevant (but not overly long) page title.

If someone bookmarks the page, the title is what shows up in their bookmark file. The title is also what people see in their history file. If you just call it "Home Page", this will be completely meaningless to people, since they won't know WHOSE home page it is.

Common Web Browsing Errors

The following is a list of errors you may receive when attempting to reach certain Web sites, and what those errors mean. Please note that all browsers react differently, and Web servers may have custom errors, so the wording of the error on the page you are trying to view may be slightly different. The World Wide Web Consortium handles guidelines for the interaction of Web browsers and web sites.

Error 401 Authorization Required, Access Denied, or Unavailable

This means that the owner of the site has decided to limit access to their Web page. Typically, a password is needed to access the site. Please verify your spelling and punctuation (such as capitalization and punctuation). If you believe you should be able to access this site, please contact the administrator for that site. Typically, this is webmaster@domainname.com, such as webmaster@dialmaine.com.

Error 403 Forbidden

This error is usually a configuration error on the Web site. It means that the file you are trying to access is not set to be readable for users. If you believe you should be able to access this file, please contact the administrator for that site. Typically, this is webmaster@domainname.com, such as webmaster@dialmaine.com.

Error 404 File Not Found

This error means that the page you are looking for no longer exists on the server. This can occur for several different reasons: the link you followed was out of date, the site has recently been updated and that page was removed or renamed, the URL was misspelled, or the account has been removed from the server. If you believe you should be able to access this site, please contact the administrator for that site. Typically, this is webmaster@domainname.com, such as webmaster@dialmaine.com.

Error 501 Not Implemented

This error is a direct result of an incorrectly written web site. Typically, it occurs on a page with a form, or where you are sending information to the server. This error can only be resolved by the web site administrator. You may wish to inform the administrator of the problem. Typically, their address is webmaster@domainname.com, such as webmaster@dialmaine.com.

Unable to Connect to "web site"

This error means that you are unable to reach the Web server hosting the web site you are looking for. This can occur for a variety of reasons, such as: network issues, Web server maintenance, a busy Web server, or the Web site has moved or no longer exists. If you believe you should be able to access this site, please contact the administrator for that site. Typically, this is webmaster@domainname.com, such as webmaster@dialmaine.com.

Exceeded Daily Transfer

This error means that the Web site you are trying to view has limitations imposed on it regarding the amount of traffic it can receive in a day or a month. This is normally a temporary condition, and you should be able to access the site at a later time.

Too Much Network Traffic

This error means that the site you are attempting to access is too busy to accept additional connections at this time. This is normally a temporary condition, and you should be able to access the site at a later time.

The Requested URL Was Not Found

Can't Parse HTTP

This error is usually caused by the URL being incorrect. URL mistakes may be caused by the Web page generating the URL, as opposed to mistyping. In either cause, the site administrator will need to correct this problem. Typically, this is webmaster@domainname.com, such as webmaster@dialmaine.com.

No Helper Application Defined

This error is caused because the web browser is attempting to access a program that is not available to it. Helper applications can do a variety of tasks, such as: decompress files, play sounds, show animations, or other activities. Typically these applications are referred to as plug-ins, due to the fact that they "plug-in" to your browser. Usually when this occurs, the browser will prompt you for which application you need, and where to download it. If you are unsure which helper application the browser is looking for, you may wish to contact the site administrator. Typically, this is webmaster@domainname.com, such as webmaster@dialmaine.com.

Permission Denied

This error means that the file you are attempting to access is not available to you due to its permissions settings. Only the site administrator can alter the permissions for the file. If you believe you should be able to access this site, please contact the administrator for that site. Typically, this is webmaster@domainname.com, such as webmaster@dialmaine.com.

Unable to Connect to <FTP site>

This error occurs when you are attempting to make an FTP connection to a server, but were unable to. You may be unable to do this due to a variety of issues, such as: the link you followed was out of date, FTP is no longer available on the server, the URL was misspelled, or the account has been removed from the server. If you believe you should be able to access this file, please contact the administrator for that site. Typically, this is webmaster@domainname.com, such as webmaster@dialmaine.com.