Figure 5-9: The list of named colors lets you choose by just clicking one in Java

Generate PDF417 in Java Figure 5-9: The list of named colors lets you choose by just clicking one

7 When you re satisfied with the glow color, click the color picker s Done button to return to the logo design page 8 Repeat Steps 5 through 7 for the background color box 9 Click the Edit button for the Background Texture category, and then click one of the textures on the resulting Web page (see Figure 5-10) You re returned to Cooltextcom with that texture selected If you need more textures, click the links at the top of the textures page to view more pages 10 If you want to specify a file format, click the Edit button for the File Format category and then click one of the file formats in the resulting list 11 After you set all the options for your logo, click the Render Logo button Now, all you have to do is sit back and wait until your logo shows up If you like it, download it right away because it only exists on Cooltextcom s server for about an hour If you don t like it, back up and monkey with the settings until you get what you want While you re at Cooltextcom, check out the button generator, too You access it by clicking the Buttons link on the main page

Getting images is one thing Knowing the right images to get (or to make) is another, and knowing what to do with them is perhaps most important of all Misusing graphics either too much or too little can make an otherwise outstanding Web site into an unpleasant mess This section explores the proper use of images in Web page design

It s easy to overdo any element on a Web page It s not uncommon to run across sites that are all or almost all text, which is fine for some technical material, but pretty dicey if you re trying to appeal to the general public At the opposite extreme, you ll find pages that are nothing but one image after another, with perhaps a small bit of text that often leaves you more confused than when you started Balancing visual elements with text is key to good Web site design The FOX Newscom front page illustrates this point well It s functional, eye catching, and well balanced Figure 5-11 shows the top portion of the Web page Note that it is strongly graphical Even the text and links are all tied in to their attendant graphical background, their colors nicely suiting the overall look of the page The major image at the top, a photo and its surrounding frame, is the largest single graphical element on the page, reflecting its importance as showing the latest top story Farther down (see Figure 5-12), there are smaller photos illustrating other stories, the whole being well balanced by the set of text links leading to various news reports This site is particularly interesting in that, except for the news story text links, virtually all the text is either embedded in or otherwise associated with a graphic And very little of the graphic material is in the form of photos, drawings, or other commonly used image types You find heavy use of graphical dividers to help structure the visual appeal of the page; however, they are small and do not overpower the other elements nearby The entire page contains only a few large advertisements, one being a standard banner ad across the top In no case do the ads intrude upon or clash with the overall design of the page, but the most skillfully blended in are the sponsored by ads, such as the one immediately to the right of the Latest Headlines divider Several of these are in various places around the page, but they are tastefully handled and unobtrusive