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Web Design on a Shoestring
Bickner defines the audience for this book with four brief portraits of hypothetical individuals, all of whom need Web sites in a fairly low-key, resource-poor way. That is, something from the Web equivalent of an entrepreneur's business card to a non-profit organization's Web site. Although Bickner is apt to invoke "we Web professionals," this book is not really appropriate to Web creatives-for-hire (who would be better advised to seek out clients with the wherewithal to ask for something original, cool, and spendy). This book's broad scope is better suited to those with a more casual interest in Web sites, or those who have added Webmastering to other job responsibilities.
But the more I read, the more I was convinced Bickner's shoestring design theory went beyond financially embarrassed budgets. In a spirit of inquiry, I looked at two Web sites where skimpy budgets should not apply. Namely, the world's two richest persons and their employers. Microsoft's Web page is a well-wrought, complex assemblage of linked pages (though the splash page's security download du jour fairly shouts subtext). In contrast, Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway's Web site is possibly more shoestring than even Bickner would advocate. The point being, even when the financial resources are bountiful, one can always, as Bickner says, "dare to do less."
One first impression of Web Design on a Shoestring is its excellent organization, an attribute librarians assume with famous pride (working in a library -- though not as a degreed librarian -- I've observed the species up close). Each chapter begins with a checklist preview. The text has ample sidebars covering budget gotchas ("Budget Threat"), saving opportunities ("Spinning Straw into Gold"), and special definitions. Plenty of screen shots (mostly from Mac OS X) and code listings visually support topics under discussion.
After the intro and first chapter set out the book's scope, Chapter Two, "The Pound Wise Project Plan," tackles how one might spec out a Web site project. This is the analytical, well-organized approach: a goal list, plus written documents for functional requirements and technical requirements. "Brainstorming," inspiration, playing with what a Web site might look like -- that's probably for another book, another author. In a book titled Web Design on a Shoestring, though, I did expect some definition, in real dollar ranges, of what constitutes a "shoestring budget."
Chapter Three, "Usability on the Cheap," is a once-over-lightly of several arguments made earlier in Steve Krug's Don't Make Me Think! One of the themes in this book, accessibility, comes naturally to librarians, who work in the public arena. Bickner offers brief, informed comments about how page navigation can work sans mouse and sans Java.
Chapters Four and Five are key to any Web site creation: copy and graphics, respectively. For the supposed target audience, I wanted to see a tutorial approach, but the book's ambitious scope appears to preclude anything other than summary discussion. "Why Good Copy Counts" covers writing style, appropriate voice, plus the need to chunk and headline text. Bickner correctly claims words are a powerful tool for elevating the status of a low-budget site. On words alone, the playing field among Web site creators is level. Moreover, words -- in digital format -- need minimal computing resources compared to other tasks like image processing.
The next chapter, "The Design: Looking Good With Less," continues with the basics of font selection and usage, the advisability of using Cascading Style Sheets for fonts and colors, and some tips on keeping graphics and artwork affordable. When it came to image editors, I thought Bickner's command to buy Adobe Photoshop (or the alternative Macromedia Fireworks) arguable: "... in the case of image editors, I am not going to suggest an inexpensive alternative; spend the money. If you skimp on image editors, your site will suffer."
Even a year before Web Design on a Shoestring's publication date, Adobe Photoshop Elements was available. I run Elements on a Windows partition--reputedly eighty-percent of the functionality of the professional version at a fraction of the price. Unfortunately, no mention is given to the open-source and cross-platform GIMP (which should not be ignored, given the shoestring premise). A major flaw of this book, for this reviewer, was the relative lack of dollar-based data to bring alive the shoestring strategy -- I need more than pictures of shoelaces to get in the spirit.
But Bickner warms up to open-source software in Chapter 7, the second longest chapter in the book. "Content Management on a Tight Budget," left me wondering, though, whether the book's audience had morphed. Yes, Content-Management Systems (CMS) have benefits, especially for concurrent authoring and version control, but I don't see individuals putting together Web sites on a shoestring budget worrying such issues. I'd speculate discussions of such CMS as Zope (Bickner uses Zope for one of her sites) had more to do with her work at keeping Web sites functional at NYPL than identifiable needs of the target audience proposed in the book's intro.
Chapter 8, the longest chapter, "Save Money and Time with Web Standards," is a fairly predictable plea for contemporary coding conventions to separate structure and presentation with XHTML and CSS. Evidently, Ms. Bickner has a personal interest in this advocacy. As she notes in the last paragraph of the chapter, "Jeffrey Zeldman is my personal favorite web standards evangelist ... his book Designing with Web Standards fills in where this chapter leaves off. I know that because as I write this book, he is sitting behind me writing his book. We don't get out much."
The last chapter, "Bang-for-Your-Buck Hosting and Domains," is a caveat emptor about finding a satisfactory host to serve up the newly created shoestring Web site. Predictably, low-ball rates do not guarantee long-term happiness.
At book's end, I concluded Web Design on a Shoestring's intriguing premise and ambitious scope made for good intentions. But the execution (spotty and thin discussions, with a paucity of dollar-based illustrative data) did not add up to a $24.99 recommended buy. (A library loan, maybe.)
If one really wants to design a Web site on a shoestring, go for the rifle, not the shotgun. Pick up Steve Krug's Don't Make Me Think! for usability and any book, new or used, by Robin Williams for Web design. I vouch for Krug and Williams because any page of their books shows the understanding and passion of a person in their gift. Reading these books generates enthusiasm the DIYer on a shoestring must have.
In contrast, rewards of reading Bickner often turn out to be, I hope, unintentional. The "easter egg" of reading Ms. Bickner's home address and home phone number in a screenshot figure showing Zope metadata. A "Definition: UNIX and Linux" I'm tempted to e-mail Richard Stallman. But it was the final paragraph that gave Web Design on a Shoestring a sweet finish:
"Shoestring design is not for the rich and famous, although shoestring designers have occasionally spun straw into gold and low-budget sites into fame and fortune. It is also not for the unmotivated or the easily discouraged. But if you keep at it, you will grow creatively and professionally in ways you never imagined. And that is something no amount of money can buy. See you in the discount rack!"
I trust Warren Buffett will never read these words.
Before joining Multnomah County Library, reviewer Charlie Dickinson was a technical writer for a publications group at Intel and elsewhere. His Web sites are "stories & more", first hatched in 1998; and "An American in Yaris" , a fledgling work-in-progress. You can purchase Web Design on a Shoestring from bn.com. Slashdot welcomes readers' book reviews -- to see your own review here, read the book review guidelines, then visit the submission page.
The most important thing you need to realize about a website is the color scheme. Website layouts are easy to make (use CSS to help save your life in the future)...but coming out with eye appealing colors is so key. We want it to be original so we avoid colors like white, but we don't want it to hurt/offend the eyes.
I mod down so you can mod up. Your welcome.
Step one to creating a cheap web site is to to not buy useless web books. All you need to know is on the web. Start with A List Apart.
I think it could mean more people will begin to use Mambo and other free CMSs to put up a website.
Well that is neither legal nor moral. I'd recomend that they learn HTML and CSS online instead.
Cost: none.
that Carrie Bickner happens to be the wife of Jeffery Zeldman. It's also funny that NYPL happens to be his biggest client. For more examples of her writing, check out her articles on A List Apart
Is it being prepared to do the right thing, whatever the cost. Isn't that what makes a man? That and a pair of testicles
A big monitor helps.
You basically see two views of your website:
The HTML code and a "real world" view.
You can make changes in both views and the other view will be updated accordingly.
400 bucks sounds like a lot, but think of it in terms of time saved, not of money spent.
Highly recommended.
No, I'm not affiliated with Macromedia in any way - I just have a small web-based business and created the website myself.
Dedicated Linux servers (root access) $45 p.M.
I'm a technology generalist who pays my bills by providing services on a contractual basis to small bizs. Occasionaly this entails web design.
Talk about a coincidence... I clicked over to /. while I was waiting for my order at templatemonster.com to process. I was vaugly aware of the sites like this, but never really looked at the templates until yesterday. They offer full, very professional website templates for download for only around $60(!). I'll never design a website for a client from scratch again.
(Disclaimer: The URL above includes my affliate ID, but isn't my reason for posting.)
Entrepreneur : (noun), French for "unemployed"
I can have the book out next to me (and if it's perfect-bound like O'Reilly's books, they'll generally flat when opened) and I don't have to devote screen space to a website. I often find that even when referring to ALA or other sites, I'll print out the article and keep the hard copy next to my keyboard, so that my screen doesn't get too cluttered.
For some people, keeping a bunch of windows open and cycling through them is easy, but I find that a bit overwhelming and certainly distracting. Also, reading dense information on screen for a protracted period of time is simply more difficult.
Books provide easily accessed information that I can read anywhere (on the bus, in the waiting room at the dentist's office, and so on), whether I'm online or not. I find this particularly important because there are times when I want to *not* be jacked in, but I still want to absorb information having to do with development.
The great thing about the profusion of websites and books is that they offer choice. Get what you need for this project from a website, and get what you need for the next project from a book. Whatever works is good.
Read the EFF's Fair Use FAQ
You basically see two views of your website: The HTML code and a "real world" view. You can make changes in both views and the other view will be updated accordingly.
Why not go the even cheaper route?
Saves you $400...
We have 8 million people, and since we all live in close proximity to each other, we understand the need for good public services. Some quick facts about the NYPL:
p df
- over 49 million items in 4 research libraries and 85 branch libraries
- 74% of funding is from government; they get the other 26% from contributions, endowment, etc.
- 15 million visitors/year
http://www.nypl.org/pr/objects/pdf/2003nyplfacts.
They need an assistant director for digital stuff, among their 3000+ employees, because their website gets 10M hits/year, and they're working hard on digital collections -- an eBook program, cardholder access to hundreds of databases, and digitizing their own collection.
For example, they have done a great job with a digital version of this new exhibit at one of the research libraries:
http://www.inmotionaame.org/
Besides, if we want a government 1/7th the size of the federal govt, why shouldn't we have one?
All most ask is if you use their design, let 'em know.
I pulled a jack move to cop this sig
There's a similiar site like this called Open Source Web Design which gives away basic HTML and CSS template. They have a strict rule of no images (which I'm fine with) and even require all designs be W3C X/HTML/CSS validated.
With these requirements they're usually pretty light and basic, you can find some good designs to start you off with
- Use the GIMP for image processing. Cost $0.00
- Go over to the CSS discuss Wiki to get lots of great example CSS, freely reusuable. Cost still $0.00
- Make sure your site looks acceptable with Internet Explorer's awful CSS. Cost: $0.00 if you have a friend with Windows, or go to the local library to look at the site. Otherwise $Bill_gates_tax
- Viola. You have a great looking site.
CSS has made it possible to quickly and easily make a great-looking web site. Compare this to the old days when it would take days to figure out what table hacks looked right in Netscape, and hope that not too many blind people or Lynx users try to look at your site.(Actually, I still use tables for basic layout because IE doesn't support max-width and min-width for CSS elements sizes; this can be somewhat hacked around with <td width=whatever>.)
I like this javascript color mixer ColorMixers
You can browse some of the presets or make your own set of colors, quite useful.
Sample this!