Digital Design for Print and Web: An Introduction to Theory, Principles, and Techniques

CHAPTER 8

Web Site Design and Development

Chapter Objectives

Identify and define the differences between page layout for print and Web.

Introduce basic Web page layout techniques.

Introduce basic Web site development techniques.

Guide the reader toward creating a Web site or Web portfolio.

The Internet is a network of interconnected computers that serve up Web sites to people who have Internet access via dial-up (telephone-based) or broadband (DSL- and cable-based) connections. A Web site is a collection of Web pages that resides on a server connected to the Internet. To post a Web site you have created to the Internet, you need a Web address (a domain) and server space (a host). Regardless of the communication goals, specific tools, or technical specifications involved, there are two main stages to creating a Web site: design and development (authoring).

A Web page is a collection of media elements that resides in a programmable page framework such as .html or .php, which is recognized by http (hyper-text transfer protocol) in Web browser software such as Internet Explorer, Firefox, or Safari. As a unit of design, a Web page consists of a Web screen, a term used because Web pages are presented on screen, not on paper. Web screens hold the graphical components of Web pages and must be designed and built using digital tools.

Acting as Web designers—not programmers—we create screen ...