Web Design Archives - Atomic Computers

April 11, 2014

The Beginner’s Guide to HTML – How I Learned to Make Web Sites

Want to learn HTML, and have no idea where to start? What programs to use? Where do I get them? Will I break the Internet with my horrible code? After I got over my initial fears, I set about trying to learn how to build a web site.

The first thing to know about learning HTML is to be committed. The second is to pick a small project, then set goals for yourself. I became interested in learning HTML after seeing other gaming sites. I wanted to have a website that I could share my PC gaming opinions and experiences on and receive feedback from the gaming community. What drove me to learn was my love of technology, from computer games to building and fixing computers. As a result, I decided to learn HTML.

HTML (Hypertext Markup Language) is a standardized system for tagging text files to achieve font, color, graphic, and hyperlink effects on World Wide Web pages (source: www.google.com).

Whether you are looking to create your own website or just experiment and see if it’s something you are interested in, a great resource is W3 Schools. This site is my go-to place to learn HTML. W3 Schools walks you through different aspects of HTML and CSS step-by-step, allowing you a virtual workshop with which to test their code and instructions. This alone makes it an invaluable resource. You can then apply the lessons (and copy and paste some of the code) when you begin working on your own site.

It seems confusing and intimidating at first, but after a while, you will be able to read the code as easily as reading this article. W3 Schools is a great place to learn JavaScript along with other useful computer programming languages.

Learning HTML can be fun and it is easy if you have the right inspiration. I have found that the best way to learn something is to experiment and “play” with it. W3 Schools implements what you are reading in real time, which is so much easier than reading and trying to remember what you just read. Two more programs that will help you in your learning experience are a program called Komodo Edit, and FileZilla.

Komodo Edit allows you to create and edit HTML in an easy to use and simple format. It even completes lines of code for you as you type. It is ideal for creating or troubleshooting HTML. Other WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get) editing programs, such as Adobe Dreamweaver, will insert unnecessary lines of code, clogging up the document and making it difficult to troubleshoot. To view your changes in komodo edit, you need to have a web browser open to view your results.

FileZilla is a FTP, File Transfer Protocol. This program allows you to upload files you have created with Komodo Edit to your live web server. It includes options to save a group of sites and passwords for easy usage as well as a user-friendly interface that makes seeing what you’re transferring (and to where) simple. FileZilla is only necessary if you want to upload your site to the web.

If you are working locally on your personal computer, you will not need Filezilla, until you are ready to publish your site to the web. I will write more on this in the future.

With these tools, I have been able to start programming in the HTML, which was previously a mystery to me. I am excited to learn more in the future, and now that I have the proper tools and understanding at my disposal, I plan on expanding my knowledge and making my simple gaming site into a spectacular one. My next step is to learn CSS, and I will write about my experiences with that in the next article.

January 31, 2014

Naming your mobile app: hard decisions

Atomic Development, Web Design mobile

Being a programmer, I find myself out of touch with the more artistic capabilities the designer here at Atomic has. To be honest, I don’t have a creative bone in my body. One could argue that programming is just as creative, but I am talking about expressive creativity.

Forget about me designing a web layout or coming up with a great logo. It’s just not happening. I know my limitations and do not tend to deceive myself. I rely on our designer here for any artistic work. So when it comes to coming up with something as simple as a name for a new app, I find myself lost in thinking up a short descriptive word to define the app and it’s functionality.

If you have the same problem, or even if you don’t, I’ve found a nice and short article that is definitely worth the read. Top 10 tips for naming your app makes some great points without being too preachy. Everyone is different and gives different levels of importance to everything there is to consider when coming up with the perfect name, but these 10 tips Dan Rose mentions gave me great insight into what I should consider the next time I am stuck thinking up a name for my next app.

September 6, 2013

Marginally Great – Quick Design Tips: Margins

Atomic Development, Web Design spotlight 0 Comments

Keeping consistent margins in your layout, copy and basic design is one of the easiest things you can do to produce a cleaner site.

This comes as no surprise to someone who has been designing sites or using a grid based layout system for years but a lot of times someone new to the profession may overlook this basic design strategy.

Using consistent margins can help your site design in simple yet effective ways.

It typically creates a design that is visually clean.
Consistent margins add a layer of unification to your entire layout.
The readability of copy is improved when the content is divided into well-spaced columns.
Clean margins can help the visual flow of your website from top-left to bottom-right.
Once defined, you can cause visual impact by breaking your own margin rules to highlight important ideas or imagery.

Cramped designs can benefit greatly by using margins to “air” the site out, adding negative space to the overall layout and relieving the visual tension cause by elements sitting to close to one another or having uneven borders.

By doing this you can created order from chaos and have a much better looking final product.

August 16, 2013

Sometimes More is Less – Web Design Trends

Atomic Web Design trends, web design 0 Comments

We’re always keeping up with the latest trends in web design, and thought it would be appropriate to highlight a few of the biggest things we’re seeing as we peruse our clients’ sites as well as those in the rest of the interweb.

Clean and Simple
This is a trend that we particularly enjoy. Clean, simple sites like Chef’s Choice Catering illustrate a concept of not being too “busy” but still having plenty of room for information and photos, drawing the user’s eye to the important parts of the site. Spacing and colors are important as always, which leads us into our next point.

Bold Colors
We use a variety of colors in different web sites, of course depending on what the client wants. When possible, it is a great idea (and also a trend among web designers) to use bold colors to bring attention to a specific section of the site, adding to a clean look and feel. Even just a few years ago, not every company had a web site. Now, it’s quite common, but clients want their sites to stand out. As bolder colors have made their way into the marketplace more often, so too has the desire for a bolder look to client web sites. Standing out from the pack can definitely help your image, and it’s still a challenge to come up with something that isn’t loud, but does have a unique look and feel. We’re up for it!

Web Fonts
Another way to help sites stand out is the use of Web Fonts. This enables your site to use more than just the few standard fonts like Times New Roman and Arial that appear on tons of other sites, and really express the personality of the site and its message to your viewers. Giving your site personality can definitely come through in the style of text you are reading, whether you’re going for a fun, exciting, engaging look or a professional, on-point message.

Whatever your goals are, and however you want to get there, Atomic can help. We stay on top of trends like these so that you aren’t merely a follower, but a leader in whatever interest you choose to pursue through us. We hope you’ve enjoyed our spotlight on the latest trends in web design!