Useful Web Site Development Sources
Many useful pages about creating web sites and web pages exist and are available for access by the general public. Here are some of them:
Guides to HTML on the Web
- NCSA--A Beginner's Guide to HTML - a good starting point for learning HTML.
- Introduction to HTML - addresses the most common elements of a web page.
- Intermediate HTML - goes into building a web form in HTML.
- Page Tutor - a great beginner level site on the basics of page design and structure.
- HyperText Markup Language - the Official site on the code standards for HTML.
- W3C HTML Validation Service - the ultimate checker for meeting the code standards. Test your design templates here before implementing them into your web site.
- W3C CSS Validator - checks your style sheet for compatibility, conflicts, and completeness. Ensure your design is presented well in multiple environments. (Web Service, Free JAVA Class Utility)
- HTML Tidy - this utility will not only clean up your code to make it more readable, but it will also correct any errors that it encounters in the page. There are now versions for every operating system and multiple languages. (Free Utility)
- SitePoint: Fast Tips for Fast Downloads - provides a variety of tips on designing a site to provide quicker responses and smaller downloads.
- A-Prompt - a web page accessibility code checker and corrector. (Free PC Utility)
Designing for the Web
- W3 discussion of design and selection - for those web professionals seeking the perfect approach to site design.
- Icon Sushi - an icon editor program for the PC. Builds multi-resolution icons with transparencies and even alpha shading. Perfect for building your 'favicon.ico' file for your web site. (Free PC Utility)
- Internet Content Rating Association (for webmasters) - an important additional step in defining your site. If your site is not 'child safe' is it truly accessible by all? Is your educational material being filtered out by client screening as 'Unknown Content'?
- Visicheck - a great service and utility for checking the effect color blindness has on your design. Color blindness affects 10% of the male population, a quite large portion of your audience. (Web Service, Free PC Utility)
Image Help Sites
- IconBazaar - provides free icons and tips for creating them.
- Transparent GIFs with Paint Shop Pro - geared toward those older versions of the software (3.0 or 4.1).
- PhotoShop GIF Transparencies - getting the best result possible with older versions of PhotoShop.
- OptiView (formally GIF Wizard) provides some tools and tips in optimizing your images.
- Animated GIF Artists Guild helps you produce images with some life.
- Gif Animation Tips (from the Web Diner) offers tips and tricks for producing animations.
- Eye Dropper: A tiny desktop color picking utility. It allows you to discover the color of any pixel on your computer screen. Great for checking for color safe solids. (Free PC Utility)
Miscellaneous Lists
- An Annotated List (Library of Congress) provides links to a variety of resources, guides, and tools available on the Internet.
- Tools for Web Spinners has another list of helpful locations for site development.
Tools to Assist in Writing Your Web Pages
These are shareware tools available to you via the WWW. Remember that "shareware" implies that you are required register the software with the author/owner of the product, and pay any applicable fees if you wish to continue to use the product beyond the evaluation period.
HTML editors:
- HomeSite, Dreamweaver, and ColdFusion Studio for the PC and Mac, our current editors of choice. Excellent editing aids and built in code checking.
- HTML Assistant Pro for the PC, a decent code editor, one we used regularly before HomeSite and Studio were available.
- BB Edit for the Mac, the Mac users program of choice after Dreamweaver.
Image mapping programs:
Image mapping tools are built into most HTML editors, but should you need one you might try these sources.
- VisiMapperPro (formerly MapEdit and MapMaker) for the PC, a freeware image mapper that will create the HTML source for your linked image.
- Search C-Net's Download.Com for Image Mapping Programs for the Mac. Since we do not have any recommended programs for the Mac why don't you try some and suggest the best?
Other Helpful Resources
- Language: Advanced Web Reference
- PHP: PHP.Net | PHP Resource Index
- JS: The JavaScript Source
- CSS: CSS Layout Techniques
- Security: Site Security Practices
- XML: TopXML
- Accessibility: WebAIM - Web Accessibility in Mind | Site Point - How to Sell Accessibility
- Server: Apache Core Features
- Design: Color, Creativity, Code: Worqx
- Code: Page Tutor formerly Professional Web Design
- Utility: Bookmarklets | Favelets
[Updated: Sunday, November 18, 2007]
