RE: Screen Resolution

Well I just *have* to wade in here :) ....how unusual ... LOL 

Dennis...you're spot on! 

<BIG snip>

 Unfortunately,  many apparently do not have the base skills to see the
differences so it will
>take so much longer to separate the wheat from the chaff. 

I agree that it may take a while but at the moment the chaff is more like
Salvation Jane :)

For those of you in Texas, Salvation Jane covers the hillsides here much
like the Bluebonnet in color, but that's about where the resemblence
ends....it's a prickly, nasty pest and a noxious weed. If you're not in
Texas...just trust me...it's a nasty invasive weed LOL.

>(A recent web article by a well-known web columnist illustrates this quite
>well.  He described an industry new to the web and provided a link to a news
>interview article by another prominent news site featuring a "stand out"
>website.  Going to that website and one literally chokes.  While the
coding may
>be fine, the overall design, IMHO, is atrocious and misses the mark - whatever
>the mark may be - by a wide margin.  Now if this is a featured site in an
>industry new the web, and the site is doted upon by a web columnist
>"heavyweight," it is going to be just that more difficult to impress quality
>coding and web design upon others when a "feature" site is such a poor
example.
>Am I saying the Emperor is wearing no clothes here?)  

</BIGsnip>

I don't know to which site you are referring, but I have had similar
experiences and one in particular only in the last few days. The website
that I visited was touted as featuring something that had never been done
before, a first...a *real* big deal... When I visited the recommended site,
I was greeted with a background image so overwhelming that I could barely
read the text, a frame that scrolled down to nothing and a site that
horrified me to say the least.

I took the liberty of sending an email to the company concerned, *very*
politely pointing out that I was forced to leave because I couldn't read
the text. The truth of the matter is that, after about two seconds, I was
almost crosseyed and had a headache. sheesh!!!...I (again, *very*
politely*) made some suggestions as to how they could make some alterations
that would solve the problem and make the page not only more user friendly,
but hold the attention of their visitors.

The reply that I received was, um..? arrogant, ?a little hostile......not
surprising I guess, despite the fact that I said several times that my
intention was to help. Damn! this man is offering a service that he claims
to be a world first, he has it mentioned in a newsletter that is probably
subscribed to by millions of people around the world, and his site almost
made me barf!!!!  Now I'm *definitely* not going to post the URL hahaha.
But seriously, it doesn't just reflect badly against the owner, it also
reflects on the sender of the newsletter which I considered to be "up
there" in terms of what's hot and trust me...this one was *hot*...I don't
think my eyeballs will ever be the same LOL.

What did the reply say? ...

<quote>
"I personally authored, designed and published everything you saw on the
site. I have had only one complaint about it out of thousands of e-mails.
That was yours. 9678 to one..... thank you.... I'll take your words into
advisement....... but will continue on my own. Thank you for taking time to
critique the site."
</quote>

Words of encouragement from 9678 people would lead any site owner to think
that he was the genius of the century. What this man failed to see, IMHO,
is that the *subject* was interesting, different and since it dealt with
funerals and death, perhaps even slightly macabre. Sure, it's attracted a
heap of attention because of it's mention in the newsletter, and it's
NEW....who's going to remember him in six days, nevermind about six weeks
or six months....but what's going to happen when he gets a visitor that is
actually wanting to use his service ? ...they're going to go somewhere else
because who wants to get a headache over a webpage ?

My point is this ....
<insert bee in bonnet>

Here we have someone who came up with a great (in his mind anyway) idea :)
...He thinks to himself...brilliant idea!!! we'll make a website. The
closest he has ever come to anything artistic (he's a funeral director for
heavens sake...no pun intended LOL) is looking at the pretty patterns on
his toilet roll but it can't be that difficult...every free website on the
web has told him he can have a "magic" site in ten minutes and he'll have
'em rolling in the aisles and reaching for their credit cards :) 

He has a scanner, and hey! he puts in the picture..and bingo! he has a
graphic...put that on the website.  He then decides that he needs some text
and he chooses a font that he likes the look of. Does he want a shadow on
that text...well hell yes!!! the more the better and how big should it
be...well heck!! lets make it BIG. 

But wait!!! what's all this cool stuff going to sit on...we need a
background!...hmm..graphics program makes those and I have this *really*
cool logo with my initials on it...what could be better ? ...what's this
gigdet do ? ...oh! wow!!! a tiled
background!!!..yesssssssssssssssss!!..I'll take it...

Have I made you nauseous yet...? lol 

I think, in light of this thread that Dennis's post is not only timely but
relevant. 

I'm no genius by any stretch of the imagination but I do come from an
advertising/media/print background and I think it's of enormous benefit and
I am grateful for it.

I think that this list plays a terrific role in helping to point those who
don't come from those backgrounds in the right direction but when you boil
it down, there are some people in this world that no matter how much they
are guided, will always screw up.

Yes, we're dealing with a new medium but the basics are the same and if you
don't have a background in the basics the learning curve is even steeper. 

Advice ? 

If you don't have an advertising/media/grahics/artistic background
whatsoever and feel totally lost... watch the links that are attached to
signatures on this list. You don't have to offer solutions to
problems...just look at the sites mentioned.  Look in your local Yellow
Pages or newspaper and *really* look at the layout of the display
advertisments....pick what you like and what you don't...pick out the advts
that attract your attention..who would YOU buy from...become a
critic...watch the television commercials and pick them to pieces. Never
forget that the most important thing is to convey the "message" up front
and that doesn't necessarily mean in 100pt type. It means *good* design...a
warm atmosphere....a catchy slogan...a distinctive logo NOT yards of bright
pink font on a black background LOL ....something that is *easy* to
read.... something that not only welcomes people but encourages them to
return. If you're selling rap music..that's a whole 'nother story...*grin*
I'm talking about your "average" business here.

Don't ever think that just because you are creating a site "just for family
and friends" that the rest of the world is not going to see it...there
might come a time when you want to create a site for others and you will be
judged on your past performance, so if you're going to do it...do it properly.

You've done all that ? ....great! 

Do you see things that you would like to do and don't know how ? ....
ask!....there's no such thing as a stupid question when you don't know the
answer. 

Whatever your background, you can always learn and this is a great place to
start. 

I really think that Darrell summed it up to perfection when he quoted "html
is easy, design is complicated"

Boy..did I waffle or what ? lol....

Kym 
Pass the duct tape...













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