ART VS. SPEED The home page represents the first impression of a web site. This clearly adds to the desire to create a powerful image - which often includes the use of photos and graphics. The newest web-development tools provide the ability to include dynamic updating - i.e. animation - on a home page. Sun Microsystems' Hot Java product enables the delivery of sound and animation. Home pages are also frequently being designed by individuals who do their Internet surfing via high-speed connections (56 Kbps or higher) as well as on relatively high-end workstations, or PCs, where beautiful graphics have become expected. What is easy to forget is that most people are still using 486 PCs, connecting to the Internet via online services like Prodigy, America Online or CompuServe, and using a relatively slow 9600 baud or 14.4 Kbps modem. While many government home pages are still under development, early experience has taught many that "more" does not necessarily mean "better." Like any design effort, there are trade-offs. The key is to balance the overall image you are attempting to create with the home page, and the need to keep it nimble enough for most users to tolerate. For example, Kentucky's home page (http://www.state.ky.us) includes a beautiful photo of fireworks over the capitol (76kb), but can be slow to download (2 minutes 20 seconds using 14.4 connection on Prodigy). Illinois (http://www.state.il.us) includes two photographs and some graphics (76kb), and takes slightly less time (1 minute 50 seconds) to download. Both are effective, though still somewhat slow. California's home page includes smaller graphics and photos and is quicker to download (1 minute 10 seconds). HOME PAGE TIPS A few suggestions to consider while creating home pages full of impact yet quick to access: 1) Limit the number of photographs and complex color graphics. When designing, save color images with the least number of colors. The same image can often be seen with little or no degradation saved in 16 colors rather than the 256 in which it probably was created. That translates to an image approximately 50 percent the size of the original. 2) Use icons to communicate navigation instructions. Icons can provide intuitive directions to users without using full-color photographs or graphics. 3) Use solid color backgrounds. Complexity adds memory requirements and time. 4) Test any design effort on the web using a 14.4 Kbps modem connection. You'll know what most users must endure to access your page. 5) Offer users an option to access the home page without graphical images or provide image-alternate text. Michael Nevins is a co-founder and director of State Technologies Inc., a nonprofit research group. State Technologies sponsors public policy and technology forums and publishes the web service Government On Line: http://www.gol.org E-mail address: mnevins@gol.org
Narrow Bandwidth Ahead - Cautions for Home Page Developers
Narrow Bandwidth Ahead - Cautions for Home Page Developers
OCT 95 By Michael Nevins One of the most attractive features of the World Wide Web is the ability to use color graphics and photographs to create an online "brochure" look. Unfortunately, the same images that give a home page its pleasing appearance can also be the very reason users only visit a site once. Bandwidth can be a killer. Simply put, bandwidth is the amount of data that can flow through an electronic connection at a given time. Complex images can take forever to download unless wide bandwidth is available, just as a garden hose takes longer than a fire hose to squirt a gallon of water. The temptation, of course, is to create a complex, image-filled home page. After all, a picture is worth a thousand words. But, nothing is more frustrating to early users of the web than having to wait for images to appear. Depending on the complexity of a picture image, a relatively small 2 inch x 3 inch color photograph may represent up to 40 kilobytes of storage. That translates to roughly 27 pages of 'text only' storage.
ART VS. SPEED The home page represents the first impression of a web site. This clearly adds to the desire to create a powerful image - which often includes the use of photos and graphics. The newest web-development tools provide the ability to include dynamic updating - i.e. animation - on a home page. Sun Microsystems' Hot Java product enables the delivery of sound and animation. Home pages are also frequently being designed by individuals who do their Internet surfing via high-speed connections (56 Kbps or higher) as well as on relatively high-end workstations, or PCs, where beautiful graphics have become expected. What is easy to forget is that most people are still using 486 PCs, connecting to the Internet via online services like Prodigy, America Online or CompuServe, and using a relatively slow 9600 baud or 14.4 Kbps modem. While many government home pages are still under development, early experience has taught many that "more" does not necessarily mean "better." Like any design effort, there are trade-offs. The key is to balance the overall image you are attempting to create with the home page, and the need to keep it nimble enough for most users to tolerate. For example, Kentucky's home page (http://www.state.ky.us) includes a beautiful photo of fireworks over the capitol (76kb), but can be slow to download (2 minutes 20 seconds using 14.4 connection on Prodigy). Illinois (http://www.state.il.us) includes two photographs and some graphics (76kb), and takes slightly less time (1 minute 50 seconds) to download. Both are effective, though still somewhat slow. California's home page includes smaller graphics and photos and is quicker to download (1 minute 10 seconds). HOME PAGE TIPS A few suggestions to consider while creating home pages full of impact yet quick to access: 1) Limit the number of photographs and complex color graphics. When designing, save color images with the least number of colors. The same image can often be seen with little or no degradation saved in 16 colors rather than the 256 in which it probably was created. That translates to an image approximately 50 percent the size of the original. 2) Use icons to communicate navigation instructions. Icons can provide intuitive directions to users without using full-color photographs or graphics. 3) Use solid color backgrounds. Complexity adds memory requirements and time. 4) Test any design effort on the web using a 14.4 Kbps modem connection. You'll know what most users must endure to access your page. 5) Offer users an option to access the home page without graphical images or provide image-alternate text. Michael Nevins is a co-founder and director of State Technologies Inc., a nonprofit research group. State Technologies sponsors public policy and technology forums and publishes the web service Government On Line: http://www.gol.org E-mail address: mnevins@gol.org
ART VS. SPEED The home page represents the first impression of a web site. This clearly adds to the desire to create a powerful image - which often includes the use of photos and graphics. The newest web-development tools provide the ability to include dynamic updating - i.e. animation - on a home page. Sun Microsystems' Hot Java product enables the delivery of sound and animation. Home pages are also frequently being designed by individuals who do their Internet surfing via high-speed connections (56 Kbps or higher) as well as on relatively high-end workstations, or PCs, where beautiful graphics have become expected. What is easy to forget is that most people are still using 486 PCs, connecting to the Internet via online services like Prodigy, America Online or CompuServe, and using a relatively slow 9600 baud or 14.4 Kbps modem. While many government home pages are still under development, early experience has taught many that "more" does not necessarily mean "better." Like any design effort, there are trade-offs. The key is to balance the overall image you are attempting to create with the home page, and the need to keep it nimble enough for most users to tolerate. For example, Kentucky's home page (http://www.state.ky.us) includes a beautiful photo of fireworks over the capitol (76kb), but can be slow to download (2 minutes 20 seconds using 14.4 connection on Prodigy). Illinois (http://www.state.il.us) includes two photographs and some graphics (76kb), and takes slightly less time (1 minute 50 seconds) to download. Both are effective, though still somewhat slow. California's home page includes smaller graphics and photos and is quicker to download (1 minute 10 seconds). HOME PAGE TIPS A few suggestions to consider while creating home pages full of impact yet quick to access: 1) Limit the number of photographs and complex color graphics. When designing, save color images with the least number of colors. The same image can often be seen with little or no degradation saved in 16 colors rather than the 256 in which it probably was created. That translates to an image approximately 50 percent the size of the original. 2) Use icons to communicate navigation instructions. Icons can provide intuitive directions to users without using full-color photographs or graphics. 3) Use solid color backgrounds. Complexity adds memory requirements and time. 4) Test any design effort on the web using a 14.4 Kbps modem connection. You'll know what most users must endure to access your page. 5) Offer users an option to access the home page without graphical images or provide image-alternate text. Michael Nevins is a co-founder and director of State Technologies Inc., a nonprofit research group. State Technologies sponsors public policy and technology forums and publishes the web service Government On Line: http://www.gol.org E-mail address: mnevins@gol.org
