Resources

• Background:

  • Introduction
  • History
  • Internet
  • Browsers
  • Language
  • Bugs
  • Future

• Tools:

  • Introduction
  • Colophon
  • Instructions
  • Homework
  • Software
  • Bibliography
  • Glossary
  • Contents
  • Site Map

• Links:

  • Introduction
  • Web Design
  • Genealogical
  • Reference

• Us:

  • Introduction
  • About Us
  • Policies
  • Contact Us

Process

• Development:

  • Introduction
  • Purpose
  • Definition
  • Research
  • Content
  • Legal
  • Names
  • Structure
  • Plan

• Design:

  • Introduction
  • Code
  • Standards
  • Interface
  • Page Layout
  • Color
  • Fonts
  • Graphics

• Implementation:

  • Introduction
  • Hosts
  • Domain
  • FTP

• Maintenance:

  • Introduction
  • Archive
  • Backup
  • Links
  • Update

The Web Design Tutorial

“Writing a book is an adventure.
To begin with, it is a toy and an amusement; then it becomes a mistress, and then it becomes a master, and then a tyrant. The last phase is that just as you are about to be reconciled to your servitude, you kill the monster, and fling him out to the public.”
  — attributed to Sir Winston Churchill  [1874-1965]

This course was originally developed for the the non-computer “Geek” and was conceived of as a way to encourage genealogists to make their research available to the world. However, all students will need to have access to a computer with an Internet connection, familiarity with the use of a Web browser, and some knowledge of Windows (or other GUI) including the ability to copy, cut, and paste between software applications.

There is no enrollment fee or materials fee. This is a free course. Please review our Creative Commons ccLicense and feel free to link to this website. If you chose to link to this website, please email us at grumpy@longdogstudio.com so we may do so in kind.

As stated above, we expect you to have access to a computer with an Internet connection. If you are a one-computer household and need to share the computer with others, we suggest checking with your local public library or as a genealogist check with your local chapter of either a genealogical society, historical society, or a Family History Center. Many of these facilities offer the genealogist not only printed reference materials but also have computer facilities.

During the implementation phase of developing your website, you will need to have access to a computer to upload (FTP) your files to a web server.

Course Supplies

The course has been designed so that you should not have to invest in any expensive software unless you choose to do so. At a later date, we will discuss software options that you might want to think about purchasing, but for now all that you need in the way of software includes at least one web browser and a text editor. Professional web designers will usually have the most current versions of at least two different browsers in which to test their page designs. We suggest you consider downloading FireFox® X.X as one of your browsers.

We suggest that you either have paper to take notes on or use some text-editing software. Even though this course is available online 24/7, you will find that collecting your notes, thoughts, sketches, clippings, etc., into a 3-ring binder with dividers or some other filing system will help you as you progress through the tutorial and will prove to be essential as you work on your website during development, design and implementation. It is easy to have a website grow beyond your original intent and beyond your ability to keep track of all the odds and ends — just like your genealogy materials. Remember, you or someone else will need to maintain your website. Good record keeping during the development process will help with any changes such as adding or removing pages, graphics or other elements in the future.

We suggest that you buy some type of colored pencils, markers, or crayons to draw with on newsprint or freezer paper. Yes, you will find that newsprint is cheap and is useful for you to draw out page designs and flow charts. The ability to use different colors is critical to show information flow and divisions. Many commercial websites started out as flow charts that covered entire walls with page layouts sketched on napkins taped to the wall.

You may proceed to any section in this website, but we strongly urge you to start with the Background section for basic background information useful to know before starting work and also read the information located in the Tools section for instructions on how this tutorial is setup and what other information you need. Both of these are located in the Resources Division. As you progress through the Resources Division, remember that many online and print resources are available to you.

Once you have familiarized yourself with how the tutorial has been designed to work and the resources available to you, then we suggest moving to the Development section in the Process Division.