Subtitle: walk the walk, talk the talk…
Web design and implementation
Two take-away points, and one that validates my skills, sentiments, anyway.
1. The “dark text/light background” is a must. Over years and years of websites, yes, dark text, light background.
- Oddly enough, with me making this comment, or agreeing and using this as validation, the biggest question, for the first dozen years, I was “white text/black background,” at the behest of the editor. We also broke the signs down to individual pieces for more mileage, inflated “hits” with web page graphics and such. Much more complicated, and, as it turned out, much less readable. So, like the now-dead newspapers, I’ll do black text on a white background.
2. Daring Fireball is the best example, except for the problem of light text on dark gray background, and it was a design that I blatantly copied, early one. Still a good layout, even if I don’t use it, exactly.
- Ironic, in that, the dark background and light type renders the aforementioned Daring Fireball, a legend among Mac Cognoscenti, completely unusable as a source, for me.
Currently, astrofish.net uses a left content column, and the content to the sidebar ratio — I’m happy with it.
The most recent web data I’ve seen suggests that the book titles instead of pictures sell better, hence the current design choices.
kramerwetzel.com is a good counterpoint, as it uses, currently, a right content column with advertising and associated filler on the left, in the visual hotspot.
In one week, maybe 2,000 people are seeing the top ad on the home page, with this web journal, and BexarCountyLine.com combined getting less than a quarter of that.
Ad views, last time I looked, best way to gauge real page views, number of ads that get served.
I’ve been toying with several new themes, trying to find a simpler, easier way to carry my material.
All about ease of use, from both the administration side — for me — and from the readers — for you.