Javascript sliders are a very common way of making the most out of screen real estate. By cycling through multiple images or text much more can be crammed onto a site. The problem comes when users have Javascript turned off - how do you ensure that slider degrades gracefully?
As with most things there are various methods, all with their pros and cons. Here’s some of the most common solutions to the problem:
In an ideal world, the content for your website should be written by a professional copy writer with intimate knowledge of what works on the web. I always suggest to my clients that they should push the boat out with their content, but in reality this is rarely a possibility on small websites with a tight budget. Individuals within the business commissioning the website are left with the task of writing website copy. They may have extensive knowledge of their business, but how do they channel this into web content that works?
When the use of @font-face started gaining traction, it was hard to find suitable fonts with the correct liscencing to use on websites. Not only have font foundries got wise to this new method, but many free fonts have also been released for embedding with @font-face. Below are ten of my favourite fonts that allow embedding through CSS. (Make sure you check the current license)
Search engine optimisation is one of the most important parts of setting up a website. Whatever line of business you’re in, search engines will bring potential customers to your site. The amount and quality of these visitors depends on how well optimised your site is for search engines.
This tutorial will show you how extend the basic functionality of the jQuery Cycle Plug-in using the pagerAnchorBuilder function. This will allow us to automatically create a new menu item for each slide – especially useful if you add more slides with a content management system (look out for a tutorial implementing this in Drupal!). You can check out a demo of this tutorial here.
Here is a list of the modules that I think are essential to most Drupal projects. I’ve tried to keep the list as succinct as possible, for a more extensive list try Nick Lewis’s post. This post is aimed at people with some knowledge of what modules are out there for Drupal. If you’re a seasoned pro you may find I’m covering old ground.
There is a vast amount of information and tutorials on the internet about web design. However to get a good understanding of whole subjects, such as CSS and usability, I will always go to a book. Books give you one place to go and learn the fundementals of a topic, without having to search endlessly on the internet. My principle is that books should be used together with the internet.
Ensuring your website is usable is one of the biggest challenges you will face, however, due to its massive return on investment it is something that is very worthwhile doing. Usability can always be improved and, like many things related to your website, it is an ongoing process. Having a good understanding of usability will provide you with a loyal online customer base that keeps coming back and recommending you.
Do you think targeting the most searched for keywords is the best strategy? That increased traffic and increased conversions go hand in hand? For small companies with small budgets, long tail phrases are a brilliant opportunity that can’t be missed. They are easier to target and bring users with an increased chance of conversion to your website. Read on to find out how you can use your long tail to increase profits.
Choosing which web designer out of the crowd is the best to work on your website can be daunting. One way to narrow this down is to find out their approach to accessibility. Making sure your website is accessible makes business sense. There are many arguments for making your site accessible but here are a few of the most important and relevant to someone commissioning a website.