Welcome to Michael's Article Collection

Image Formats-GIF, JPEG, BMP

When browsing the internet you are likely to come across many different image formats. However, the most common formats are: CompuServe GIF, JPEG, and Bitmaps.CompuServe GIFGIF stands for Graphic Interchange Format and was standardized by CompuServe in 1987. The very first GIF format was GIF87a and saves images at 8 pits-per-pixel with a colour level of 256. Then in 1989 CompuServe updated the . . .

What Can Lots Of Content Do For Your Site?

Today there are so many web sites on the web, but so few of them have good content and there are even fewer web sites that have large amounts of content. Why is the web like this? For one most webmasters are trying to make a quick buck and others don't know where to begin or are too lazy to do the work.Content really is king! Why? because visitors will stay longer or will come back more often a. . .

Are You Driving Away Potential Customers?

When a prospect lands on your website will he or she understand what you are presenting? Do your ordering/sign up instructions make sense? Can prospects easily find the information they are searching for? If you don’t know the answers to these questions you may be driving away potential customers.As a writer I put a lot of effort into making ideas clear. Therefore, I sometimes find it annoying . . .

Simple Steps to a Great Banner Ad

Everyone is using them now and if you’re planning on creating your own banner ad then there are some things that you should know.Standard SizeI’ll admit I made this mistake. I was too caught up in creating a really nice looking design that I made something that was not the standard size. Now it wasn’t much off the norm but when I found out I promptly changed the size. Keep to standards. I know . . .

Optimize your Photos for the Web

It doesn’t matter if your emailing photos of your grandson or putting images of your latest product on your online store. Too many people don’t consider optimizing their photos for the web. We’ve all been on too many web pages where it seemed that the photos would never load, and sometimes they didn’t. So here are some steps to make sure that your photos show up on your site.1. Always have a ba. . .

Microsoft and Webmasters

Does Microsoft care for WebmastersIt’s always been a problem with websites appearing exactly the same on different platforms. As a web developer / webmaster it is extremely difficult to make user experiences rich by having the site look the same in any OS / Browser. The biggest problems they have with there famous Internet Explorer browser is security issues and W3C Standards compliance issues.. . .

How To Get Repeat Visitors To Your Site

When you have a website online it is important for you to try and get new visitors to your site, but it’s also important to take care of the visitors that you actually already have. This is because you will want your existing visitors to keep returning to your site again and again.There are many ways that you can do this. Some of these include the following:Updating your Website content continu. . .

The Top 15 Essential Ingredients of Every WINDOWS HOSTING...

First things First. Why would you like to have Windows Based Hosting when there are Linux packages for cheaper rates ? The answer is – it depends on what application you are looking to use for your hosting. Consider the tools and scripting languages you plan to use – if you use PHP, Perl or MySQL, Linux is the way forward. If apps are Microsoft-specific, then Windows is what you need. Clear…?. . .

5 Essential Traits Of A Home Business Website

So you’ve decided to start an online work at home business and are just beginning to build your website. You probably have a million different ideas for what you want the site to look like. You will want to take into consideration that your idea of a great website may differ drastically from what a website designed to make sales should be like. In this article I have offered 5 very impor. . .

Content is king

IntroductionA pencil. Yes, a pencil. In my opinion, every great idea has started with a pencil. Sure, lots stay in someone’s head, but to me a great idea doesn’t have any value until it’s written down. Until it’s written down it’s just dust I the wind: here today and quickly forgotten tomorrow.But, every great idea needs a little something extra. Maybe you’re great at design, but you simply can. . .

Manchester United: Top of the web accessibility league?

A while ago Manchester United launched a separate accessible version of their website, manutd.com/access. There's been lots of publicity surrounding this accessible website and it even picked up an award. This accessible version doesn't offer as much content as the main website but it has all the accessibility features you could dream of: resizable text, ALT tags, screen reader optimisation etc. . .

Web Accessibility: The Basics

What is web accessibility & why is it important?Web accessibility is about making your website accessible to all Internet users (both disabled and non-disabled), regardless of what browsing technology they're using. In addition to complying with the law, an accessible website can reap huge benefits on to your website and your business.Your website must be able to function with all different bro. . .

Tried and Tested Tips to Improve your Website - Part 1

1. DO NOT use excessive graphics or banner images on a single web page. They tend to slow the loading of your Web page. Impatient surfers might close their browser and move on. If you have many images on a single page, consider deleting few of them or moving them to a new page. 2. You should include these elements on your website: About Us [Brief description of your company and its products. . . .

7 Key Points to Consider When Choosing a Web Host

With literally thousands of web hosting companies in the industry all vieing for your business, carefully consider these key points to ensure you make the most well informed decision possible.1. Server SpaceFirst, think about how much space your site will take up on a server. Unless you are planning on running a software repository or an image gallery, the files that make up your website will p. . .

iKobo Review - Part 1

The Initial DiscoveryIn April of 2004, I became aware of a company called iKobo as the result of a posting on Web Design Forums (http://www.webdesignforums.net), a website design discussion board. An individual who was new to the discussion board posted a series of comments regarding iKobo and its presence as a possible serious competitor to PayPal. Upon further research on the company, a serie. . .

iKobo Review - Part 2

Attempt 1 ConclusionOn July 13, 2004, the transaction was cancelled. My MasterCard was never charged.However, I did notice that my limits as a sender and receiver had been unilaterally raised to $500 USD. I had not contacted iKobo by telephone or email with regard to raising my limits, nor had I sent any of the "required" documentation.It also appeared that Penny Wang was correct. MasterCard do. . .

Writing Benefit-Driven Web Copy – 4 Steps to More Sales

You've identified the benefits you offer your customers, but how do you turn a list of benefits into engaging web copy which converts visitors into customers?Recently I wrote an article explaining how to identify the benefits you offer your customers (http://www.divinewrite.com/benefits.htm). That article challenged business owners and marketing managers to think in terms of benefits rather tha. . .

Working with Royalty Free Music

When creating Multi-Media Content, Flash or Video Clips for a client's web site or CD Rom Project, the last thing you want is to get him in trouble with the law. If there's a need for music in a project, using royalty free music is essential.Here are some general music tips that you may find useful:1) Finding the right kind of musicThere are hundreds of choices when it comes to royalty free mus. . .

Web usability: The basics

What is web usability & why is it important?Web usability is about making your website in such a way that your site users can find what they're looking for quickly and efficiently. A usable website can reap huge benefits on to your website and your business. Every £1 invested in improving your website's usability returns £10 to £100 (source: IBM) A web usability redesign can increase the sales. . .

Beyond Web usability: Web credibility

Web usability: It's old newsIf you've been developing websites on Mars for the past few years then you'll be forgiven for not knowing about web usability. You'll still be creating splash intro pages, having pages with massive download times and using more images than you can shake a stick at. Well, back in Earth these days have long gone and today web usability rules the web development world. . . .

Avoid Getting Ripped Off By A Hosting Company...

Chances are if you host multiple domains or websites you are spending too much money at your current hosting provider. Other hosting companies increase their profits by forcing you to create an additional hosting account every time you want to host a new domain or website. Let’s say you have five (5) websites and they each cost you $10.00 a month. It is obvious you are spending $50 a month to h. . .

The "Unethical SEO" Myth

"The use of black hat SEO techniques are completely unethical." Really? I completely disagree. Is it unethical because these techniques are attempts to give a webmaster an advantage over their competition? If this is the case, stop participating in SEO forums, stop using WordTracker, stop studying or engaging in SEO at all, because any of those things are ways to help get you a leg up on your c. . .

How to Create a Professional Website In Less Than a Week

Here's a really simple way... any novice can create a fully functional website in less than a week. Websites are the wave of the future. Although many companies are using an online presence to drive business to their brick and mortar stores, many hobbyists also tend to have a bit of interest in developing their own online presence as well. Developing a website from scratch can be rather expensi. . .

How To Create A Website In Less Than A Week

Here's a really simple way... any novice can create a fully functional website in less than a week. Websites are the wave of the future. Although many companies are using an online presence to drive business to their brick and mortar stores, many hobbyists also tend to have a bit of interest in developing their own online presence as well. Developing a website from scratch can be rather expensi. . .

Optimal Website Design

The idea behind good website design is to offer your viewer a logical flow while making it interesting and easy to navigate. Lead your viewers to the starting point and then direct them through your site without confusing them. Here are some excellent tips that can help you develop a user friendly site and please your visitors senses. Give yourself a chance before they get away.1. Use lots of w. . .

Unlimited Wealth Creation Through Reseller Hosting

Web hosting can be an exciting business start up for aspiring entrepreneurs. All you have to do to set up your business is become a hosting reseller, i.e., provide hosting facilities to website owners. Here as a business owner, you are buying space from a big hosting company, and redistributing the hosting space to other website owners.Resellers are nothing but entrepreneurs acting as middlemen. . .

Forums – Should you have them on your website?

Forums have become a common feature in many websites. With good free scripts available, and paid scripts being relatively cheap, it seems that every new website has its own forum(s). But is it wise to add forums to your website?In this article I'd like to take a look at the pros and cons of adding forums to your website. The largest of my websites, www.TheCatSite.com boasts one of the largest o. . .

Customers Don't Always Connect Where They Live

Pop Quiz: You have an international website and you want to do business in Canada. But you want to make sure your website delivers top performance to your Canadian customers: speed, accessibility, as well as proper functioning of digital certificates, forms, password protections, shopping carts and more. In which of the following cities would want a website monitoring station? Toronto, Canad. . .

The Technical Stuff

(including how to build a fantastic website, all the elements you need to consider and how to make it work with little or notechnical abilities).It can be done.I’m almost certain that many people reading this Ecourse have no technical skills at all? I’m not embarrassed to let you know that I don’t have great technical skills… I’ve learned how to build really basic websites, but nothing fancy (I. . .

Choosing a Hosting Service: A Checklist for Business Owners

For a website to appear on the Internet, you require a “server” that is usually provided by a web hosting company. Hosting companies are paid monthly, quarterly or yearly. Some companies come with guarantees, too. Recommendations from other business owners and web designers are excellent ways to find a good hosting service. One of the primary features I recommend is that the hosting companies c. . .

Up the Sandbox!

Go to any internet marketing forum you want these days and one of the topics is sure to be whether or not there is a "sandbox" at Google where new sites are forced to come and play for 3-6 months before joining the ranks of ranked and searched results. On the surface it would appear that this is so. New sites are typically taking a long time to get indexed and even longer to show up in the sear. . .

What The Muscle Power of Audio Can Do for Your Site.

How Audio can Influence SalesAudio can enhance your website by letting your visitor listen to your voice, which is the next closest form of marketing besides a face to face meeting.Who can use Audio? Anyone can use audio, it all depends how knowledgeable you are when it comes to designing your site. For those that need help there are plenty of tutorials on how to place audio on your site all o. . .

Mysterious Tel Aviv Lifestyle 2004

Israel. What do you think when your first hear this word? Right, like most people you imagine what you probably saw on CNN or NBC. Blown up buses, Suicide Bombers, Military Operations, Outright Violence – all over the place. The only thing that probably cannot be imagined unless experienced first hand is – Day to day living. Hmmm….what does that mean? People like us just living their lives? Do . . .

How to Sell your Website

There are hundreds and thousands of websites on the internet today being bought and sold and there are many places you can sell your website such as ebay and website brokers. Though this article we will explore each of these possibilities in greater details.Ebay - Selling a website on ebay can perfect for some and completely useless for others. As most people know ebay, it gets millions of hits. . .

The Topic Of Your Website

The first thing you will have to deal building your website has nothing to do with the web design itself, it's me related to content writing but it must be defined and will effect the rest of your actions. So first of all you need to decide what the topic of your future website is. Topic is very closely connected to another web design issue: keywords. The keywords you select will depend upon th. . .

How to Find Good Web Hosting

You have decided it is about time you jumped on the web hosting bandwagon. You have a website in mind you would like to create. You have a domain name ready to go. The one and only thing that you are missing is the actual web hosting space. Now there are hundreds of different web hosting companies that will promise you hundreds of different guarantees. How do you know which one is legit and whi. . .

Website Backgrounds: 5 Cool Tricks for a Professional Look

Most websites feature white backgrounds. Or they sit on a navy or gray background -- but most of the screen is still white, like a page of paper set against the darker background. Occasionally, you might run across more interesting colors - reds and purples and greens and rust – often looking more gaudy than professional.But every now and then, there is a website with a photo or a drawing or a . . .

Web Templates: Replacing Designers?

I’ve seen articles (and websites) that suggest you can buy a website template and skip the expense of hiring a professional website designer. Recently, I read several testimonials from the very satisfied customers of a website template vendor that mentioned how quickly they were able to get their sites done. The template vendor commented that he/she had known people to complete their websites i. . .

Culture and Website Localization

With the rise in ownership of computers and internet usage growing daily, the internet is fast becoming the primary port of call for information, shopping and services. In addition, those computer and internet users are increasingly from non-English speaking countries. At the end of 2002, it was estimated that 32% of internet users were non-native English speakers. This figure is constantly ris. . .

Linking out is good

Many websites I come across don't have a single link to another website. Ask the webmaster why not, and the answer you get is simple enough: "If I link to other websites people might leave my site." At this point I break the news that site visitors will leave your site. And there's nothing you can do about this.Site visitors won't leave your site because you provide links to external sites. The. . .

Advantages of a Simple Design

Easily maintainedIf a design flaw is found for a particular browser, it's far easier to find and fix the problem in the HTML source of a simple design, compared to a complex one. Browser compatibilityAll of the browsers out there, from Mozilla to Internet Explorer will display a layout differently. Distortion of an original design can be kept to a minimum by removing the amount of complex table. . .

What is Blogger.com?

In the late 1990’s three San Francisco based web developers came up with the idea of being able to share information about anything on the web. The terminology they used was called blog. It's use was considered a mix of web page / personal journal. It's original usages were vast and wide, but more and more people came to use them as a personal tool that is available anywhere the Internet is. Th. . .

How to Choose a Quality Webhost

If you are anything like me, you’d probably like to have a website on the Internet but you just have no idea how to go about it. All this talk of web hosting, bandwidth, disc space, and other jargon can cause one to say, “This is too complicated and technical, I just wanted to have a place to put all of my favorite skateboarding photos, cool information on ramp designs, and the best places to s. . .

Why a CSS Website Layout Will Make You Money

Although CSS layouts have been around for years, they haven't become so commonplace until recently. This was basically due to limited browser support (especially from Netscape 4) - nowadays though, CSS 2.0 (which introduced positioning) is compatible with over 99% of browsers out there (check out the browser stats over at http://www.thecounter.com/stats/2004/August/browser.php).So, why should y. . .

web page building for beginners 4

Page ranking by search engines such as Google are not only overrated but unusually explained by “experts” in the SEO field. SEO stands for search engine optimization and is needed to get your website placed at the top of a web search. I have no truck with someone wanting to get their pages placed in the number one or two spot from a search, but page ranking has nothing to do with that whatsoeve. . .

Web page buiding for beginners 1

Making a web page is a simple job that can be done in minutes by anyone with no previous experience, so I will refrain from going in that direction as much as possible. The first thing an inexperienced webmaster should learn is search engine optimization, before ever making a page. The reason for this is simply because if they learn it after the page is made, it will cause them too much extra w. . .

web page building for beginners 2

A search engine robot actually reads the wording on your web pages and places a certain amount of importance on what the content says, but not quite like a human does. A human will place the words together in their head and try to decipher the relevancy to them personally and decide within a few seconds whether they will continue reading or click to another site, whereas a robot counts words an. . .

web page building for beginners 3

An inexperienced website builder must understand that free web hosting is a great way to get more than one site up and running quickly, and that www.articlecity.com is the fastest and easiest way to fill those sites with relevant material. For instance, my site at www.saquoyah.com has one hundred and sixty pages that were written by various authors and posted at ArticleCity by the writers. This. . .

The DRC Blew It

The DRC (Disability Rights Commission) recently announced the results of their year-long investigation into the accessibility of 1000 websites. The DRC's report (http://www.drc-gb.org/publicationsandreports/2.pdf) concluded that most websites are highly inaccessible, with over 81% not even meeting basic standards of accessibility.There's been a wave of publicity surrounding the DRC announcement. . .

Why Have An Article Website?

Know the factPresumably, you already knew what internet is all about. Its all about content. With free quality content, you can easily attract the masses. Some may consider this as an investment while some may treat it as a hobby.If you are wondering, why some may treat it as an investment. What are there to invest in? Well basically, having your own article website can often be the most powerf. . .