Browsers

The top browswers include Internet Explorer, Firefox, Opera, and Chrome.There is conflicting data about which browser is most widely used. Explorer has always been number one but Firefox use has graduated to a near tie in popularity. The changing useage makes it important that proper testing is done before a site is launched. Internet Explorer renders certain CSS and HTML differently than Firefox. If you test your pages in Chrome and Firefox, then it should be ok with Opera,without many differences, but certain versions of Explorer may be different. One way to work with the differnt style rendering is to publish different CSS files for each browser. Specify in the head tag which CSS to load in relation to the broweser accessing the page. The code that tells the page to load a specific CSS is a conditional comment.

Templates vs Originality

There are two basic foundations in the structure of websites, style and functionality. The developer who can logically flow through lines of code without stopping very often to see what it looks like could be classified stronger in the area of funcionality. Those who take into consideration the color scheme and layout without regard of how it will fit programmically into the implementation are stronger in aesthetics. For a balance, logical thinker will benefit greatly from templates. Any search engine will bring up a multitude of choices to consider. Usually the person purchasing the template can choose between a one time use fee and to purchase the template outright. The aesthetically talented will know what they want the site to look like, and can breeze through css layout and color coordination but may face a hiccup when it comes to elements like data access and javascript. There are a multitude of programming discussion sites with everything from asp to Ruby on Rails. The choices are endless, just Google what your looking for whether templates or code snippets to get impressive balanced results.

Business Cards

As an individual selling services, which is what someone designing and publishing websites for small businesses does, there will be a fair amount of marketing to keep the job inquirys coming in. A business card can go a long way for a small cash outlay. There are several online vendors that allow designing remotely over the internet. A few thing to take into consideration include color, graphics, and what informnation to include. Always have a website, phone number, and email along with the name of yourself as well as the company represented. A basic statement such as "We sell for less" or "Quality is our focus" is fine. Color and graphics play a role as well. By Googling "how to choose a business card", a list of business card printers as well as tips and tricks will be available. For as little as $5.99 for 250 cards vistaprint.com can get the process started.
By purchasing a few holders and setting them in a business you frequent it is a good way to get your name out,and leads will slowly trickle in.

Abbreviations

There are times when trying to carry on an intelligent conversation that the eyes loose focus and the head tilts. A common time for this to happen is when the person engaging in a conversation does not know what the heck the other person is going on about.
When it comes to IT acronyms and abbreviations,these may help.
BLOG - Web Log
CGI - Common Gateway Interface - Scripts are processed serverside, can be used with a few different languages. Used with HTML forms.
CIO - Chief Information Officer - Head of IT for a company.
COBOL-Common Business-oriented Language
CONFIG - Configuration
CPU - Central Processing Unit
CSS - Cascading Style Sheet
GIF - Graphics Interchange Format (image file name extension)
HDD - Hard Disk Drive
SaaS - Software as a Service
ICANN - International Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers
HTTP - HyperText Transfer Protocol
RoR - Ruby on Rails
SEO - Search Engine Optimization
SQL - Structured Query Language
AVI - Audio Video Interleave

Small Business Statistics

It's always a good idea to stay on top companies and individuals who work with web development.Velvet Blues,a web development company, posted in their blog that "According to a joint study conducted by Nielsen and WebVisible, 44% of small businesses do not have websites". That is and incredible statistic. They go on to name 4 of the biggest myths that are primarily to blame. I agree with Velvet Blues that these are myths and would like to consider Myth#4, Traditional ads are more effective. Traditional ads are considered newspapers and phone books. Consider phone books for a moment. They sit in the closet, get dusty, and sometimes may be utilized as a boost to an office chair facilitating use of a computer to search for a business.Consider the ads themselves, not just the container the ads are distributed in. Advertisements contain websites. A good reason to have a website address in your ad is content. To publish half of the information most websites deliver in a newspaper or phone book would involve full page ads with astronomical rates. Thank you for posting these myths and proving them bogus, Velvet Blues. Hopefully it will help business owners to stop advertisement budget bleeding. Maybe a few trees will be saved in the process as well.

.doc ? .txt ? wysiwyg?

The only tools needed to publish a simple web page is a browser and Word Pad, the default text editor that comes with Windows. It is possible, but not as easy as a wysiwyg,What You See is What You Get, program. Considered by many as a top program on the market is Adobe Dreamweaver. The most current available is CS4 version but every rose has a thorn and this software retails around $400. Amazon.com did have CS4 for $359 with free shipping,and CS3, which is a great program as well, for only $99.For a highly rated open source wysiwyg editor, try xstandard. X Standard Lite is freeware, which means there is no cost. There is Xstandard Pro whick does have a fee and the specific differences are listed on the website. Do not try to publish an html page with Microsoft Word, It fills the html with program specific code that enabled Word to create the page.

Plan it Out

Organizing and planning a website thoroughly is essential. By keeping a dedicated flash memory, it reduces the risk of loosing files. A theme tablet is useful for recordings ideas, hours spent on the job and resources.For a small business website, even a one gigabyte flash storage will usually suffice, and Amazon has two gigabyte USB flash drives for under eight dollars with shipping included. Keep the flash drive in a clasp type folder with a notebook. By keeping good notes in a centralized location it makes updating the website much easier in the future.Commenting notes in the actual code is good too but all the text loads when a page is requested and it may not be wise to let the comments get too large. When it is time to invoice for the job, the hours will already recorded and can serve useful for compiling estimates on similar projects. Organizing and planning properly will ensure that one project will be a foundation for another.