Ask.com has opened access to a new version of its search called Askx.com. Although all of the search results themselves appear to be the same as their existing offering, Askx.com offers a new three panel approach to searching web sites, images, news and videos:
The slick new interface, devoid of both unneccessary graphic elements and large blocks of advertisement, is easy to use and a breath of fresh air.
Did you know that you can quickly add a Yahoo Map link to your website, allowing your site’s visitors to easily locate you or your business? To add a Yahoo Map link to your website, just follow the simple steps below:
1. Open a web browser window and go to http://maps.yahoo.com/ .
2. If you see a link near the top right corner of the window labelled “Dial-up Map (Original)”, you will need to click that link before proceeding. Otherwise, proceed to step 3.
3. Enter the complete address (with city, state, and zip code) for your map location and click the ‘Get Map’ button. For example, to create a map to the White House in Washington, DC, the address would be entered as follows: 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20500
4. The browser window should then refresh, loading the map for your location. At the top of the map , you should see links titled “Printable Version”, “Email Map” and “Link to this Map”. Click the link titled “Link to this Map”.
5. The window will again refresh. Under step 2, click in the box labeled “Map” and select all of the text (HTML code) within the box (use Control-A on Windows computers or Command-A on Macs), then Copy that code (Control-C on Windows, or Command-C on Macs). The code you are copying will look something like the following:
<img xsrc=”http://us.i1.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/i/us/mp/gr/
mplogo.gif” mce_src=”http://us.i1.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/i/us
/mp/gr/mplogo.gif”><a xhref=”http://us.rd.yahoo.com/maps
/extmap;_ylt=At5V9rynDfNHEWaosCjEeHVkDLMF/*-http://ma
ps.yahoo.com/maps_result?addr=1600+Pennsylvania+Ave+Nw
&csz=Washington%2C+DC+20500-0003&state=DC&uzip=205
00&ds=n&name=&desc=&lat=38.898563&lon=-77.037223&ml
t=38.898563&mln=-77.037223&zoomin=yes&BFKey=&mag=2
” mce_href=”http://us.rd.yahoo.com/maps/extmap;_ylt=At5V
9rynDfNHEWaosCjEeHVkDLMF/*-http://maps.yahoo.com/maps
_result?addr=1600+Pennsylvania+Ave+Nw&csz=Washington%
2C+DC+20500-0003&state=DC&uzip=20500&ds=n&name=&d
esc=&lat=38.898563&lon=-77.037223&mlt=38.898563&mln=
-77.037223&zoomin=yes&BFKey=&mag=2″> Map of 1600 P
ennsylvania Ave Nw<br>Washington, DC 20500-0003</a>
6. Open a new browser window (keep the map window open in case you need to go back to it and Copy again) and log in to your WebSpawner webpage account at http://www.webspawner.com/login.html . Select your desired page and click the ‘Modify’ button. Scroll down to the ‘Body Text’ step and click in the box, then Paste the copied code (Control-V on Windows, or Command-V on Mac).
Be sure to complete the modification process by clicking ‘Continue’ at the bottom of the form, and then click ‘I Like It’ at the page preview to save and publish your changes. Your site will then contain a text link which your site’s visitors can click to see your Yahoo map!
So you’d like to build a web site, but it’s all a bit new to you? By keeping a few key tips in mind you can design a site with viewer-friendly pages that will not only help your viewers enjoy visiting your site but will also help present your message more effectively.
1. Use proper grammar
A site which uses proper grammar creates a more professional impression on the viewer; conversely, a site with grammar mistakes can make a very negative impression. Always use proper sentence structure and punctuation. Check for correct spelling of all words; use a spell-checker if your computer has one. Avoid using all capital letters, as this is the online equivalent of yelling at the viewer; rather, use upper- and lower-case letters as is appropriate. Have someone else with good grammar skills proofread your pages to catch mistakes.
2. Break it up!
A web page which contains too much text causes the viewer to have to repeatedly scroll down to continue reading. Even worse, it can cause a viewer to lose interest and skim instead of reading, or leave and move on to another site. Keep your text concise and to the point. Use multiple shorter pages linked together for easy navigation rather than one long page filled with pages worth of text.
3. Use images effectively
A site overloaded with images may appear gaudy, and can take a long time to load for viewers with slower internet connections. Slow-loading sites cause viewers to grow impatient and move on to another site instead. Keep your site loading efficiently and present your message best by using images sparingly and only when directly relevant to the site’s content. Resize images so that they appear at an appropriate size; large images like desktop wallpapers will load very slowly for dial-up users and should be sized down. Use a standard optimized image file format such as .gif or .jpeg for saving your images; these formats provide a smaller file size which loads more quickly for the viewer.
4. Keep it clean!
Provide a professional-looking site by keeping it well-organized and clear of distracting elements such as blinking or scrolling text. Select text and background colors that have enough contrast to make for easy reading… for a great article with further detail on color selection, see Color for Coders . Keep a check on all links you have included and remove any which become “dead” or outdated. Use a consistent design with the same background and text colors from page to page for a uniform-looking site.
For more tips on good web site design, see Good Web Design Features and Web Hints: Web Design . See Original Top Ten Mistakes in Web Design and Bad Design Features for common design mistakes.