posted 06-22-99 03:16 PM ET        

BAAAAAAAD!!!!!

posted 06-22-99 04:11 PM ET            

"SNES" refers to the Super Nintendo Entertainment System or Super Nintendo, the system that came oot in 1991 between the Neolithic Nintendo and the N64.

posted 06-22-99 04:41 PM ET            

Any text-based browser. Well, lynx handles them, but not gracefully.

Some of us prefer them... and text-> voice users, naturally, are using them.

Some of us also would prefer to never, ever, ever see a site with frames even when using, say, Netscape.

Frames are almost never actually particularly useful and unless you've got a horrifically complex site to navigate are really unnecessary, IMO. They just take up space. A better option is to make your pages so you rarely have to scroll up/down more than 2 pagedowns and put the menu either at the top or at the bottom, or do a side menu using tables (handled /much/ more gracefully in text browsers) with fixed width columns.

Other things I hate to see on pages: people who use background images but don't set the bgcolor (really, trust me, there's a reason) or all the various text-type colors; hy00ge graphics on the front page of a site, particularly if that's the only thing on the front page; people who don't put in alt tags; people who present the majority of their content via Java or Shockwave (I have Java turned off, and am just as likely to be using a text browser anyhow).

I'm rather opinionated on the topic of web page design. I had/will have again (my pages are currently down) a hall of shame of pages I used to link to until they were redesigned, or pages I was going to link to until I saw the design. As I've designed (and been paid to design) a lot of web pages and actually know what goes into it, I know how long it takes to make sure one's pages are accessible and easily readable, so I'm extremely picky, particularly about certain things. I am fine with, for instance, pages that use animation and Java applets, provided that a) the initial page is low-bandwidth and b) nothing vital to the information a typical web user would be visiting that site for is contained in a graphic or Shockwave or Java or something else in that vein. But as soon as that latter qualification isn't conformed with, I will no longer use that page.

I didn't buy EA games for 3 years because I was so ticked at them about their web pages and their absolute lack of response when I emailed them about them.

None of this is directed to you, Picker; I haven't looked at your pages. But this soap box is stuck to my feet...

posted 06-22-99 06:26 PM ET            

Actualy (OH REALY??) i have a site(page) of my own. It's on Homestead and you can see it in the info (cheers newbies). I made it a month ago, and it had 1200+ hits since. No, i'm not sure why. Maybe it was the good promoting strategy or something? I have a special group called Site in my ICQ. They are 50 or so specialy chosen fellas that always pass on the incoming URL to the ones on their list. Also i added my site to every possible search engine four+ times. And, i update it every day, for which i receive many mails of recognition from the users.

I ought to get myself employed in some web promotion agency or somethin

posted 06-22-99 09:15 PM ET            

The fact of the matter is, many of us spend hours on the web every day. We could surf a bland world, with little creativity. I worry about the effects of experiencing such a bland world for hours on end, year after year. Think American suburban hell and you get my point.

Am I emphasizing form over function too much? I don't know. But if you look at this bulletin board, for instance, you can't help but be pleased at the aesthetics. That's why UBB is so successful, even though it isn't the best as far as features go (it's getting better).

In any event, I have found that good creative really goes a long way. Make it as pretty and sexy as your pocketbook and creative skills allow. Your users will appreciate it and will reward you with return visits.

posted 06-22-99 11:22 PM ET            

I must dissagree about the design of the UBB..it's designed as if my grandma has done the job in the moments of her more exressionistic psychodelic trance
Only the colors used here are sharing that easy to swallow feeling we're feeling here...the design sux!

Cheers

posted 06-22-99 11:45 PM ET            

Can ya dig this up?

posted 06-23-99 06:36 AM ET            

Saying they are never useful isn't particularly accurate. The number of clients we have who want to be able to see navigation wherever they are on the page is quite high, especially when you are dealing with dynamically generated views and things.

Here (navigate to any of the area links) is an example where the customer wanted frames and I think they work well.

posted 06-23-99 03:06 PM ET            

Picker Please let me know as soon as you get that emulator...and since most of the C64 emulators have 1000games inside i'm sure i'll find all the games i am looking for there..

And i just got the Macromedia pack..including director and all that...anybody got experience with that?

Cheers

posted 06-24-99 09:17 AM ET            

You are quite incorrect. If a site is submitted more than x times in a certain period of time at Lycos, Infoseek, Excite, and possibly other places, it will be removed. There isn't any time involved on the part of the search engine maintainers; it's automated. Also, Infoseek used to (not sure since the takeover by Diz-knee) and Excite still does reject site submissions with too many keywords.

Now, you could submit your site once a week on a routine basis and keep yourself 'up' in significance ratings that way, but if you just do it 4 times in a row, you may be hosing yourself. I'm not sure where the trip level is.

The automated measures are, btw, an effort to keep p0rn0 sites from showing up in every single search someone does; unfortunately, the webmasters of p0rn0 sites are prone to keyword and submission abuse.

Your best bet for getting hits, if that's your goal, is to submit once to each of the major search engines and use a well-selected set of keywords, specific and general both, not exceeding a dozen keywords. If your site is multi-purpose, use keywords on each subject-related index page. I also suggest using NOINDEX on all but those index pages and NOFOLLOW on all pages; it keeps people going to your main pages.
A booster submission to Lycos, Infoseek, and Excite every month or so isn't unwarranted.

posted 06-24-99 09:24 AM ET            

I tend to design for a width near 600, although as a general rule, my pages will fill out to a larger size gracefully. Left-hand columns are fixed-width, right-hand
columns free-flow when I use tables; horizontal graphics usually top out around 600 and are then centered so they still look natural later. I may occasionally design to 700... but you gotta understand, I still know people who run at 640x480.

posted 06-24-99 01:35 PM ET            

quote:

---

JohnIII: think again John. Even Yahoo doesn't remove them...the big search engines don't have time to look over every one of the requests...they receive more then 500 requests per day. And btw, i alway submit my site under a different name and parameters.

---

You just missed the end of the sentence where i say that i always put different parametars and names...it's possible to use different URL's, all linking to the same page. And the bots they use on the search engins are pretty easy to trick into submitting your page more times, it's harder with those who use hand work to check every page.

Picker: Did you put it on your site? I can't seem to find it there.

I always browse and work at 1024x768 since i think it's a pure shame working on a lower resolution, since you get a 35% smaller desktop.

posted 06-24-99 04:02 PM ET            

Picker, maybe you ought to get youself one of these. Go to http://come.to and get one. They also give a mail redirection, so you can get a mail like: [email protected]

Cheers

posted 06-26-99 09:07 PM ET            

hey picker, did you get one of those come.to redirects? If so, what's your URL now? and if possible, what's ur ICQ #? Mine is 36540535.

posted 06-27-99 05:59 PM ET            

Jig: Nice notepad image... LOL

posted 06-30-99 10:31 PM ET            

hint: clicking on a link will open a new window, or it should.

1st: I suggest using Tripod. You have one pop-up banner when you first visit someones site, and that's it.

2nd: please, check out my website, and tell me what you think. I know there isn't a lot of content, but please tell me how you like the layout.

3rd: I use 1024 x 768 x 16bit, but rarely maximized. I highly suggest making your site friendly to the people that are stuck with 640 x 480. Yes it's laughable these days, but some people still have a 486 handy.