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HTML
- The Bare Bones Guide to HTML - in English and many other languages
- BoogieJack.com - free graphics, HTML tutorials
- A Guide to HTML and CGI Scripts
- HTML Code Tutorial
- Crashcourse in HTML
- HTML Tutorials
- HTML White Space Bugs in Browsers
- Web Developer's Virtual Library
- W3 Schools - free online courses in HTML, XML, JavaScript, etc.
HTML EDITORS
- Dreamweaver (Adobe.com)
- FrontPage (Microsoft.com)
GRAPHICS & DESIGN
- GENERAL:
- BACKGROUNDS, CLIP ART, STOCK PHOTOS:
- COLOR:
- FONTS:
- FAVICONS:
- MySpace LAYOUTS:
SOUND
- ElectricEarl.com Music Links: Music On the Internet: DIY Tools - links for info on MP3, RealAudio, etc.
JAVA, JavaScript, CGI, DHTML, etc.
- AutoScripter.com - cut-and-paste scripts into your page free of charge
- Cascading Style Sheets - the official spec, also lots of useful links
- CSS Tutorial - Cascading Style Sheets made simple
- Dynamic HTML - explanation and examples
- Frame BreakOut JavaScript Wizard - useful if some somebody is putting your page in their frame!
- The Free Site: Javascript, Java, free Java applets
- Guide to HTML and CGI Scripts - also includes info on Perl code
- The Java Tutorials - online lessons from Sun
- JavaScript for the Total Non-Programmer
- JavaScript Kit - includes JavaScript Primer
- The JavaScript Source - a cut-and-paste JavaScript library
- JavaScript Tip of the Week Archive - webreference.com's archived collection of 30 tips
- Matt's Script Archive - free CGI scripts for guestbook, random link generator, etc.
- Sun Microsystems: Java - get Java info direct from the source
WEB HOSTING & DOMAIN NAMES
- Whois - domain name lookup - see if the domain name you want is already taken
- ICANN - List of Accredited and Accreditation-Qualified Registrars
- American Association of Domain Names: Domain Name Information
- ICANN [The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers]
- Network Solutions (InterNIC) (homepage)
- igoldrush.com - free domain name news and info
- igoldrush.com - check domain name availability - like Whois but database includes UK domain names
- Web Hosting Stuff - a hosting directory site that lists and reviews thousands of Web hosting plans
- Budget Web - big list of inexpensive Web host services, an excellent comparison chart
- Free Home Page Hosting & Web Space - links to free space providers
- GeoCities - free Web space
- Tripod - free Web space
GETTING YOUR WEB SITE LISTED ON SEARCH ENGINES
- The best way to drive traffic to your Website is to get listed on search engines. Some companies offer to do the job for you - for a fee - promising to submit your site to "hundreds" of search engines. But this is rather silly, considering that nearly everybody uses the same few search engines (Google, Yahoo, etc.). Better to save your money, and do the submitting yourself.
- Add your URL to Google
- Search Engines - each one on this list has a page on their site where your can submit your URL
- Nielsen NetRatings Search Engine Ratings (August 2006 article) - pie chart indicates which search engines are the most popular
SEO: SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION
- This refers to schemes to make your site appear higher in the search results. It helps to have appropriate keywords and META tags on your homepage. Also, Google and other search engines will rank your pages higher if a lot of other sites link to your site.
All of the above will happen naturally (over time) if your site has great CONTENT! That's how it's supposed to work. However, many so-called SEO companies cheat by filling up a site with popular keywords that have nothing to do with the actual content of the site. Also, they post links to their site on unrelated blogs and guestbook pages around the Internet, or they create a bunch of pages that do nothing but link to each other (a "link farm"). CAREFUL: This kind of stuff can get your site dropped by the search engines entirely!
- What People Search For - Most Popular Keywords
- Google: Webmaster Help Center - What's an SEO? Does Google recommend working with companies that offer to make my site Google-friendly?
- Spamdexing - Wikipedia article about search engine spamming
- Typosquatting - Wikipedia article about cybersquatters who register common misspellings of popular domain names
META TAGS
- How To Use HTML Meta Tags (December 2002 article)
- Death Of A Meta Tag (October 2002 article)
- Revisiting Meta Tags (December 2002 article)
- Google Recommends Using Meta Description Tag (November 2006 article)
- Yahoo! Fond Of Keywords Meta Tag, Google Ignores Them For Search Rankings (October 2006 article)
EXCLUDING SEARCH ENGINE ROBOTS
- If you have a Web page that you do not want search engines to index, such as a "private" page meant only for your inner circle or a "place-holder" page at an obsolete URL, you can put a special META tag in the header of the page. This method is simple, but reportedly not recognized by all search robots. The more accepted, but complicated, way is to install a robots.txt file which lists the pages to be ignored.
- Wikipedia: Robots Exclusion Standard
- Robotstxt.org - all about the Robots Exclusion Standard
TRAFFIC ANALYSIS: general
- Digits Web Counter - hit counters
- WebTrends - detailed traffic analysis for your entire site
- SuperStats - free traffic analysis for individual pages
TRAFFIC ANALYSIS: decoding IP addresses
There are programs (see above) that will analyze your server logs and compile a general report about your traffic. But if you just want to spot check certain entries (for example, to see who's looking at that new page you just added), you can use these databases to look up IP addresses manually. This will tell you where your traffic is coming from, or at least where their ISP is based.
- ARIN WHOIS Database Search (American Registry for Internet Numbers)
- RIPE NCC: Whois Queries - European IP address database
- APNIC Whois Search - Asian IP address database
- InterNIC: Whois - domain name lookup
LINKS (good & bad)
- Find out who's linking to your pages:
- AltaVista - Enter "link:http...[your URL]" in the search window.
- You should also check URL's for your graphics, because there are people who will plug your images into their page as if it's part of their own site, especially if you have a popular Webcam or comic strip.
- If there is a persistent problem, you may need to change your filenames on a regular basis (Dilbert changes filenames every day). You can also teach the thieves a lesson by leaving an embarrassing graphic at the old filename - use your imagination! (Here's my spoiler file.)
- Freeloaders will also drain your server by linking directly to your streaming audio and video files, making it look like they are hosting the clips, so check links to those URL's, too.
MISC.
- Alexa.com - find out how your site ranks in popularity (out of 108 million Websites, ElectricEarl.com is ranked in the top 800,000)
- Aquent Partners - temp jobs for Website designers (most assignments require high-tech programming credentials)
- Browser Statistics - month-by-month charts showing the popularity of various Web browsers, operating systems, screen resolution, color depth, and JavaScript support (design your pages accordingly!)
- FreeFind Search Engine - they claim you can "Add a search engine to your web site today, for free, in less than 10 minutes!"
- ISpy WebCam Software - a utility that automatically grabs images, connects to the Internet and FTPs them to a Web server
- Pirated Sites - blog discussions about sites using stolen Web designs
- Surveyor Corporation: Webcam32 - Webcam software
- 10 Big Myths about copyright explained - read this before you post somebody else's material!
- USNO Time On Your Page - how to put a clock on your Web page
- Webreference.com - formerly known as "the Webmaster Reference Library"
- WS_FTP LE - download free version of FTP utility for Windows
- WWW FAQs: How many web sites are there?
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