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Why does my site look different on different computers?

Last month we discussed why fonts can look different depending how what computer the site is viewed it. Today, let's look at other ways your site can look different and how you can control the way your site appears. If you haven't already done so, take a look at your site in different browsers (Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox, AOL) and in different resolutions.  

Different browsers will interpret HTML differently - therefore the look and functionality of your website will vary. This is not as big of a deal as it once was but it is still something to be aware of.  The trick is to be sure that either everything works in all browsers or, should something not work that it just doesn't appear.  Therefore the visitor won't even miss it.

Monitor resolution is something that everyone needs to be concerned with.  Website can look very different depending on the size of the monitor and resolution it is set at.  Typically, 15 and 17 inch monitors are set for a resolution of 800 x 600 (pixels) while larger monitors are set for 1024 x 768 (pixels) or even 1280 x 768 (pixels).  1024 is the most popular as of March 2006. 

Why is this important?  If you create a website with a title graphic that is 900 pixels wide it will force the visitor to scroll right to left on a monitor set at a resolution of 800 x 600. 

The only way to ensure that your site will look the same in all browsers is to create it as a graphic. The problem with this is that search engines can not index graphics. When they go to a page that is all graphic, including images and text, the search engine only sees a blank page. It assumes there is nothing on the page and deletes it from the database. If you are not sure if the text on your site is a graphic or readable text, try this experiment. If you can highlight the text and copy and paste it into an other program then it is readable text. 
A good compromise between ensuing that your site looks good in different browser and that it is readable to search engines is to use both readable text and graphics.  
 

Why does Web site design pricing vary so much?

If you have been looking into having a website professionally designed, you probably have noticed that the cost to do so can vary tremendously. You ask "why is it that I was quoted $3000 to build an online store when my friend's business has a very nice website that he claims was designed for only $800?"

To understand the connection between pricing and functionality, I will attempt to give some of the "behind the scenes" factors that affect the cost of designing and hosting a website. As always, the old adage "you get what you pay for" holds true. However, it is also important to understand exactly what it is you are paying for.

HTML is the most popular way to create a website.  Though ASP and PHP are becoming more widely used. 
Websites are generally either "static", "dynamic", or a combination.  What are the differences? Let's look at both.

A static site is so named because of the manner in how it is written. To use an analogy, I am sure that all of you have some sort of word processing program that you use (a common one is Microsoft Word). Think about how you create a document. You open the program, type away, format your document for the appearance you want, and once you are happy with it you save your file and close the program. The next time you open it, it is exactly as it was the last time you saved it. It has not changed. In order for it to change, you must go in and manually edit it to reflect your changes and save it again. This is how a static site works. The pages are written in HTML and then saved. The only way to make changes to the content of the site is to manually make them and save the file again. Static sites can be identified by looking at the page addresses - they will have an address ending in the extension ".htm" or ".html" i.e. "http://www.nositeinparticular/contact.htm"

A dynamic site, by comparison, has the ability to "change on the fly". The most common example is a site which offers online shopping. You enter the site, browse through and select products, and check out. As you do this, the site keeps up by constantly updating the total price of the items you are purchasing.  These pages are written using a variety of methods which for the most part consist of retrieving information from a database and writing new information to that database The most common type of dynamic sites can be identified by looking at the page addresses - they will have an address ending in the extension ".asp" i.e. "http://www.nositeinparticular/contact.asp".

The words "static" and "dynamic", incidentally, have nothing to do with the appearance of the site. There are some absolutely gorgeous sites out there which are purely static in nature, while many dynamic sites look like they were designed by a 12 year old.

However, a dynamic site has a completely different set of hosting requirements. This type of site will require a hosting account that is configured to allow database connections, which tends to be more expensive than a standard hosting account. Also, more work goes into the "programming" of the site. Once built, dynamic sites can be less expensive to maintain, since the bulk of the updates can be accomplished by updating the database rather than manually rewriting the individual pages.

So static sites tend to be easier to set up and cost less initially, while dynamic sites tend to be more expensive initially but can save money in the long run. You need to determine what is important to you and plan accordingly. I

We will get results from your website!

Website Success Story
 

When Sean become the owner of Balloons Over Letchworth in 1993, they were flying about 300 passengers a year. In 2001 he flew 650 passengers. Since 1994 their Christmas gift certificate sales have increased by 227%!

"There are many reasons for the growth we have had, but I'd have to say that the website is a big one. I get people from all over the world for balloon rides now. Many have told me that they would have never visited or heard of Letchworth State Park if they hadn't found my website! One lady flew from Arkansas last year just to fly in the balloon. She checked out all the balloon ride websites and liked mine the best. She had never even been to New York State!" Sean Quigley   

I would like to personally thank Sean for trusting Virtualtech with his website.  See, Sean was Virtualtech's very first client when we started in 1997. He has remained an active advocate of Virtualtech and has sent several clients our way. Thank you, Sean!

"Link Popularity" is an important step in increasing your sites ranking on search engines. Basically, Link Popularity is a ranking criteria that some search engines use when listing sites. They look at both the number of sites that are linked to your site and the importance and relevance of those sites.  

Finding Your Site's Link Popularity
I like to use http://www.linkpopularity.com, because it gives me results for Yahoo, MSN and Google.

After checking your Link Popularity, check out your competitions.  How does your Link Popularity stack up with theirs? 

How do search engines use Link Popularity? There are three factors search engines use when determining a sites ranking.  
Number of Links - Search engines will just count the number of relevant links to your site and then list those with more links higher.
Relevancy of Links - Relevant links are links that are helpful and important to your visitors. For example, let's say your business is ABC Bridal. Links from florists, caterers, limo services, and travel agents are all relevant links. However, a link from a hardware store is not.  
Link Text - The text that is used in the link is a factor. That is one reason why a graphic links are not a good idea. Not only do you not have any text, but the search engine can not see the graphic and does not know the link is there. You should be providing the specific text you want used. Going back to ABC Bridal: a link using abcbridal.com would be ok seeing that bridal is used. However, a link that reads Wedding Dresses for Brides would be better as it contains three keywords. 

Ways to increase your link popularity. 

• Get listed on as many search engines and Internet Directories as you can.  Some will be free, others will charge a small fee. 
• Start a Pay-per-Click program on Yahoo and/or Google
• Submit your site to industry related sites and also professional organizations.
• Create an Affiliate Program. Not only will other people be selling your product, but having them all link back to your site will help with the total link count. 
• Contact other websites that cater to the same type of client that you do. Again, going back to ABC Bridal; a florist, photographer, or limo service cater to the same type of client but are not competition to each other.
• Write and submit articles to online newsletters and include a link to your site.

Ways not to increase your link popularity.

• Free-For-All pages are perfect if you want to fill your email box with junk mail or if you want to get banned from search engines. Search engines will see you have lots of links that have nothing to do with your content, and assume you are spamming them, which they do not like.  
• Joining link exchange programs is also not a good idea. These programs are created for the sole purpose of linking to other sites to try and fool search engines. Having links to other sites scattered all over your website will give your site a less professional look and less credibility. If you do join a link exchange program do the following:
  • Only join ones that allow you to control the links that are added to your site.  
  • Create a separate page on your site called "links". This will at least allow the look of your site to stay intact.
  • Be prepared to be removed or banned from the search engines. 

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