It Ain't Much, But......

It sure is a start!!! I finally have a front page for my website. Check it out and let me know what you think (I know there isn't much, but I'm new to this whole thing)...

www.buckeyegecko.com

Thanks!

It looks good.. simple, straightforward, but nice looking.

I like it! Nice and clean and not too "busy".

Oh I like it, especially as a slow dial-up sufferer, it doesn't take ages to load up.

Nice, clean and simple. That way you can always add new things as you develop or even seasonally to give viewers something new to look at once in awhile.

Very nice start! Nice name too - Buckeye Gecko!


~~Jo~~

Thanks guys! I'm totally new at this stuff, not quite sure what I'm doing. I made this page using Frontpage, and it was basically me just pushing buttons to see what they did. Tonight, I'm going to see if I can figure out how to link to another page (THAT should be interesting ;) ) But, it's fun learning... and I have plenty of time before the little guys start producing :)


Kinda going for the simple look, too... though I may add something.......

I love it! call me boring but I'll take a simple clean website anyday! Your going places Lynn! :)

I like the flora. GO BUCKS!!

I should put a big Michigan M with a cross through it ;) LOL


Thanks all! Hey, Heath, I was wondering if that normal girl on your site is the one I sent you, or if you're gonna post her... I'm curious to see how big she's gotten!

Whatever you do, keep the simplicity! Pages that are too "busy" or too jumbled really detract away from the main reason you're designing it! If I have to navigate through page after page to find a certain type of animal or product, I'm just going to head somewhere else.

just remember that search engines read the first page of your site... so you want to make sure you have text (graphics don't count) that say the name of your site and it's purpose. even if it's in small print on the bottom of the page :)

looks GREAT!

Bump!

Been working on the site a bit... let me know what you think!

It's coming along quite nicely! Be sure to let us know when you've got some babies for sale :D I like the leaf "logo" you have there. Was that a stock image, or something you made yourself?

It was a stock image, created by MadLantern Arts... Buckeye leaf, symbol of the greatest university out there ;)

Oh it's looking great! I love the Caresheets link as well as the pics and such. Might I suggest an About Me or something like that as I think it's always nice to know how a person got involved in the hobby, breeding or whatever as well as how experienced they are (just from a buyers point of view).

Very nice site!


~~Jo~~

Thanks, Jo!

I was actually trying to think of a way that I could post some of my personal art and stories on the site... and an About Me page would be great! I could say how I became interested in the herping world, and maybe link into some of my own personal stuff, too.

Hmmm... something to about now :)

I'd like to suggest a smaller font-size, also. The larger text on some of the pages (e.g. "Breeders" and "Available" pages) seems a little overwhelming. Also, on the "My Babies" page, perhaps some larger photos to accompany the text? The way it is now, the text is drawing my attention the most, as opposed to simply accompanying the images.

Just my :twocents: :)

Wondered about that... all opinions welcomed! :) Thanks!!!!

try not to use a font above 4 (but 2 or 3 is usually sufficient) for headers and then allow the rest of the text to be a normal size. that way if someone has the font set larger on their computer (because of poor eyesight) the font doesn't become overwhelming for them.

as for you photos... you can set the size by adding width and height dimensions.

i made a couple of items for you. one is a header and the other is a banner for you to use when you get someone to put your link on their site. feel free to use them, or toss them, either way is fine with me.

oh and i made your leaf and nut image smaller for you as well... it'll look better (if you don't want to use the header i made for ya)

enjoy!

http://www.timelessspirit.com/aaa/leaf.jpg

http://www.timelessspirit.com/aaa/buckeyegecko.jpg

http://www.timelessspirit.com/aaa/buckeyegecko2.jpg

I think the original leaf looks fine, but if it were to the left of the menu, as opposed to above it, it would make things a little more compact and fluid. *shrugs* I just want you to know that if you use any of my suggestions, I get a free female Crestie :P

Oh, and Recycling Goddess, when you reduce image sizes (I assume you're using Photoshop) try to use Filters > Sharpen > Unshap Mask. Set the variable anywhere from 10 to 50, and see how well it cleans up your smaller image!

thanks!!! i used it on the first banner and not on the second...

Bump again!

Did some rearranging, readjusting. Opinions?

I feel like it's too simple. I think I'm going to put in more pictures of geckos, as soon as I get a digi-cam. But what do ya'll think?

You guys really are a whole lotta help... I appreciate it!

I like the new front page Lynn. A bit less white space but still loads fast for us poor dial up users. On the links page the www.baars.org link isn't clickable. Other than that my only suggestion is when describing your lovely gecko's to drop the word "just". I don't know why but for me it has the feeling of devaluing something to say it's "just" this or "just" that. Perhaps it's only me that gets that from the descriptive "just"? I'm sure you want to promote all your babies and eventual breeders so I thought I'd mention that. Lovely page though, nice and clean and not "fussy". Very nice links for caresheets, forums, etc.


~~Joanna~~

Looks good Lynn! I like the page transitions. Go Bucks is right!!

i'd add links to every page so you don't have to use the back button to view more pages... also, if someone sends a friend a link to your page and they aren't on the home page, they may not know how to change the address themselves to get to a page with links.

where you have your tables with your baby photos... can you get the photo to sit at the right and have the text come around the photo? i don't know what you are using to create the page but do they give you that option? that way the text won't be a thin vertical row... it'll be more horizontal and more pleasing to the eye. (leaving less white space)

and of course the background colour is up to you, but have you thought about making a watermark of the greenery and putting it as a fixed background? kinda like the one on this page http://www.magismagickspells.com - that way when people scroll the background doesn't move. it can be lighter like http://www.timelessspirit.com/copyeditor.html

links page: perhaps consider putting the link first within the name of the site, then on the next line, do a description of the page? it would give cleaner lines to your page.

hth, ignore me if you wish ;)
aleesha

...and I like all the branches you added to the index page... very nice!!!

Thanks for the ideas... I really do appreciate them!


Got all afternoon to mess with it, so guess what I'll be doing :w00t: