New site – opinions please

@aeroAug 20.2003

Hi all,

I’m fairly new to the web biz (was in IT 16 yrs before), so I have a lot to learn about design, useability, back-end stuff, etc.

My home web site has been up for a few weeks, and Google has picked it up (don’t think any others have, yet).

Anyway, I would appreciate it if you would take a look and let me know what’s good and what isn’t.

~~[URL=http://www.aero-dynamic-web.com]~~http://www.aero-dynamic-web.com[/URL]

Thanks,

Ted

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Full-stack Developer

8 Comments(s) _↴

@spufiAug 20.2003 — #Your top frame scrolls, but it has no scroll bar. I would make it is big enough that it wouldn't scroll if I were to use frames, which I avoid at all cost. ?

There is a gap between the top frame and the bottom two.

I don't see why you really need to use frames as of this point, but if you want to use them because it makes it easier to update certain parts of a page, then I would suggest using server side code, SSI, ASP, PHP, etc. to do that instead of using frames.

Your colors and placement of them could use some work. Maybe add some borders on some sections as a way to seperate content.

I would use a form for your contact page versus a mailto link. A form is much more professional.

Try to have the color of your links be more consistant. You have links with different shades of blue. Pick one shade, and go with it. I would also add in using a hover effect for your links to help people see that they are over a link, or not.

@aeroauthorAug 20.2003 — #spufi (is that from DB2?),

Thanks for the great feedback.

I learned web design using frames but I'm getting the feeling it's not the best way to go. Why are frames such a bone of contention with many? Do browsers have a hard time with them? But, I get your point re the scrollbars.

As far as using a form, I agree, and am working on updating that part.

Thanks for the links info, I wasn't catching that here. Same goes for overall color. I'm developing on a Mac and most folks see it on PCs, so I guess there's a difference in color rendition.

Appreciate it.

Ted

@spufiAug 21.2003 — #Haha. At first I was thinking, "I didn't mention any DB2. Where did they get that idea?" You meant the name I post under here. Yes, it is from DB2. It's just one of those funny names that stuck in my head and since my name is so plain, I tend to use it sometimes when posting on boards. Anyway...

Frames done correctly can be nice, but logically, they offer pretty much no real advantage over doing it some other way. Speeding up load times is about the one thing I can think of, and I figure a well done site won't have that issue as much. Plus I know it's more of a personal pet peeve, but I think a web site should only have one scroll bar, and it's that big one on the far right. This of course being that you are doing the standard vertical design. I have seen a site down where it's completely horizontal.

@aeroauthorAug 21.2003 — #spufi,

I'm an old mainframe dinosaur who coded in COBOL and DB2, so I picked up on that name right off. Takes me back, though I'd rather not go back!

Anyway, I really appreciate the feedback. Almost all of the responses I've gotten here and on another site say: Lose the frames! And that's the first thing I'll do.

I've also heard that the site is too static and bland, so that's the next thing I'll change. Design issues can be subjective, so I'll have to take all this information and decide how best to apply it.

I'm really glad I decided to ask for feedback as it's served to give me a fresh perspective, not to mention some great professional help!

Thanks again. If there's anything else anyone can think of, I'd love to hear it.

Ted

@pyroAug 21.2003 — #I can think of something.

You need to be using valid code. Run your pages through the validator at http://validator.w3.org and be sure you specify a valid [URL=http://www.webdevfaqs.com]doctype[/URL] on each of your pages. You will also need to specify a charset which would probably look like this:

<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=iso-8859-1">

I must also recommend using [URL=http://www.w3.org/TR/CSS2/]CSS[/URL] for layout, as it keeps your page more accessable. If a pure CSS layout approach is not feasable, use a hybrid layout -- a table for the basics (don't nest tables... ugh!) layout, and CSS for the rest.

@aeroauthorAug 21.2003 — #Pyro,

Good points, thanks!

Funny, I started using CSS after creating my first web site, then found that not all browsers support it - so I went back to straight HTML. What do most people do to get around this prob?

I did most of the work in Dreamweaver, which I know isn't always W3C compliant. Do most web developers code by hand, or is there a compliant wysiwyg app, or should I use Dreamweaver and then run the code thru a cleaner (such as BBTidy) or will the W3C validator pick up all the non-compliant code?

Ted

@pyroAug 21.2003 — #You are correct, not all browsers are created equal. Mozilla is probably the best (and Netscape uses Mozilla) at handling CSS. IE is decent, though it has some very frusterating problems. If your site receives a large number of 4.x browsers, using a pure CSS approach may not be the best way (though perhaps it's time to say [URL=http://www.alistapart.com/stories/tohell/]"To Hell with Bad Browsers!"[/URL])...

Also, Dreamweaver is capable of creating standards compliant code, though you should always run it though the [URL=http://validator.w3.org]validator[/URL] to be sure.

@aeroauthorAug 21.2003 — #I liked the "To Hell with Bad Browsers" link - maybe that's the way to go. I could detect the user's browser and serve up a plain page with links to download compliant browsers - after that, it's up to them. I've read articles saying that designers should develop pages for all browsers, but it seems to me that there must be a law of diminishing returns. After all, can people with version 2.x and 3.x browsers access much of anything anymore?

I do test on NN7.x and IE5.x as well as NN4.x and iCab2.x and Opera6.x - all on a Mac. I guess I should have a Windows PC to test on too, but don't have the $$ right now.

Well, food for thought. That's why when someone says "aw, I can knock out a web site in an hour," I think "yeah, but does it work?" :-/

Ted