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Graphics are used for
various purposes. They are handy when it comes to conveying
meaning/information, illustrating a point and providing a
branding for your website. Graphics are not necessary in every
type of
web site development, but it is
important when it comes to visual presentations. A website
without graphics may look dull. Most of the web pages need and
use images relating to the theme of the website.
The two main types of image formats that are used for
web
site development are – JPG and GIF. By optimizing
graphics we mean reducing the physical size of the image by
compressing it. There may be a deterioration of quality, but
pretty often images can be compressed quite a bit before it
becomes obvious. Good graphic programs will let you compare
different qualities of compression and let you choose which one
you want before you save it. Programs and websites are also
created solely for the purpose of optimizing existing graphics.
Graphics such as logos, menu bars, and buttons are better saved
as GIF files, whereas, JPG IS better for photo images. The main
reason for this is the way they are compressed. A GIF file has
the flexibility to have parts of it transparent, which is
helpful while creating logos. GIF format can also be used for
photos, if you want to cut out the image and need transparency.
Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator are high-end graphic programs,
which can get complicated and expensive. However, they are the
best and have set industry standards. But if you just have to
resize and optimize the image then they are probably
unnecessary. Graphics are an important part for any
web
site development, but you should keep certain things
in mind.
Many websites use cloned, common or copied images. Such graphics
can be found on ‘free’ picture websites. If you use these common
images, then your website will look like any other old website.
Your website will not make an impression on the mind of the
user, and hence the purpose of creating it will be defeated. To
make an impression you will need new and original images, the
source of which is your mind. You will have to create the new
images yourself.
A lot of low prices, royalty free pictures are available on the
net. Unfortunately, these are usually in a format for print
(usually EPS or TIFF). Which means, they need to be opened in a
graphic program like Adobe Photoshop and converted to the right
height/width and dots per inch? Web graphics are 72 dots per
inch. GIF graphics need to be set to 256 or indexed color and
the JPEG graphics has to be fixed to true color. All this seems
to be like complex work, but there is no need to panic, as there
are programs available that automatically convert EPS and TIFF
graphics into GIF and JPG graphics.
If you cannot afford or don’t have the resources to make high
quality graphics for
web site development, then
there is another way, the Text Graphic Maker. Even though they
are text graphics, they can match the professional quality of
mainstream graphics. With this program you can choose from a
variety of colors, sizes and shapes. You can easily make a
professional site title and text navigation buttons.
Creating your own images is always a healthier option because
they will be different than any of the generic ones available
from the free picture sites. By combining colors and various
images, you can create unique and innovative images.
Using graphics on your web site can definitely increase your
download time. Here are some tips to keep the download time in
check while using graphics on your site:
The graphics you use for
web site development should be
kept small. A safe size would be anything from 5k to 15k. Even
then try to use as few graphics as possible. A user will avoid
sites, in which, the first item to download is a graphic with a
size over 50k-100k. A surfer will not have the patience to wait
and will close your site and go to another one.
Use a good optimizing program. If any of your images a re more
than 50k, you need to optimize them. If you run a file that is
50k through the optimizer, it might reduce the size by 80
percent and make the file only 10k. However, even if you can
reduce the file size by 25%, it will cut seconds of f the
download time and then you will save valuable time of the
visitor.
Repeat the visuals on other pages of your website, so they
cache. This will increase the download speed, as the viewers
will only be downloading all new ones on every page.
Sometimes, in a website the page appears blank and then all of a
sudden the content pops up. This does not look good in the eyes
of the users. This happens because web development India was not
done with a good HTML design. Always use HEIGHT and WIDTH
parameter in your HTML code for all your graphics. By providing
this information to the browser, it knows how much space should
be left for images, so it can go ahead and the text content.
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