Web MouseTrax.com

Related Information...

• Read Dian's free HTML tutorial articles.
  
  
  
• If you'd like Dian to help you create devise a professional or small business web process, see her Consulting site for details.
  
  
  
• Learn more about Dian's skills and experience by checking out her bio and resume.

Web Samples

Dian Chapman has developed numerous web and intranet solutions.

As an HTML instructor and experienced ASP/ADO web developer, Dian can design a browser solution to increase your Internet presence or enhance your business documentation workflow by utilizing your intranet. Don't have an intranet yet? Have Dian build you one! (Pssst...you can even simulate one without a web server...use Microsoft Word!)

Below are samples showing just some of the solutions that Dian can implement for your business to track data, add security and/or provide dynamic (ever changing) content to your clients and/or employees.

Note! Some of the images below have been blurred to provide privacy to the site's owner.

Opening page for Applewood Farm Stables. Many web sites contain a central opening page to the site. This page should not contain much information, but rather be more of a portal into the main home page.

Opening page for MouseTrax.com. This page contains a Java water applet. When visitors move their mouse over the logo, it appears to have water moving under the mouse movements.

Although it's best not to use too much fluff and glitter on your site with fancy applets, the occasional one can add some fun effects without getting in the way of the site itself.

A simple family web site is a great way to keep family members, from around the world, closer together.

An added dynamic web process can allow family members to add updated information right from within the site. No need for them to understand web creation or bother with page uploading.

There are many ways to create photo sites. Here is a framed web site with photos of a new, growing family. Smaller images along the side serve as an index.

When you see a photo that you'd like to see in a larger view, click the smaller image to bring the larger photo into the main window. Links along the top allow you to move to new panels of photos indices.

By having a dynamic ASP process added, you can have lots of fun with your photos by allowing friends and family to submit their custom captions. No need to deal with page updating on your site. The server code does all the work for you. Similar to a web site guestbook, captions are instantly displayed after submission.

Sites requiring up to the minute data displays, such as appearance schedules or funding statistics can be displayed through the use of scripts and regular database entries by staffers, such as for this election site.

All sites should have a main, opening page—or Home Page, that welcomes the visitor and explains what the site can offer.

Use a consistent navigation theme. Whether it has navigation buttons along the side or a main menu above, you should always use ALT tags to advise the user where each link will take them, even if it's obvious. Blind users have screen reader programs that read these tags, too.

This Ezine (TechTrax online magazine) site contains dual navigation.
The top menu controls navigation through the main site, whereas sidebar navigation links allow the user to jump to articles within the current issue .

Photos can greatly enhance a web site. But they also take time to load. So use them wisely. In the case of a site like this recipe site, photos can make all the difference for success! Higher photo compression is used to minimize the weight of the pages and helps loading time.

This original site design for MouseTrax, prior to August 2003, used custom, rollover navigation buttons to help the user see which button is currently activated.

Another way to show motion and current navigation is to use a design the gives the effect of the button being pressed, as shown above.

The new design for MouseTrax moved from rollover buttons to a dynamic dropdown menu theme.

Breadcrumbs also help the user remember their location within the site, by displaying the path used to get to the current page.

Another, more simple dropdown menu.

Again, breadcrumb navigation provides feedback to the user so they remember how they got to the current page within the site.

Educational sites should use a central navigation that allows the user to easily find their way to the lesson they need to use. The student has enough to worry about!

This type of site should remain simple with less emphasis on the site design and more on the training content! Simple consistency keeps the site looking professional.

Within each lesson, continued, full navigation allows the user to easily back-track to previous lessons, should they need a refresher.

Flipping pages gives the feel of a real book.

Note! Although the image above was taken from an eBook application, this same effect can work nicely on a web site. Coded pages allow for dynamic navigation through the pages. Meaning, if new content is added, page links don't need to be reset, as the code will find the proper next page.

ASP (Active Server Pages) allow you to retain Session Variables.
This provides you with a way to gather information, such as the user's current selection on each page in this testing site. Data are temporarily stored, without the use of a database, for the current user session.

At the end of these TechTrax Assessment Test pages, the Session Variables now contain all the user's answers. Additional code deciphers the users score. Dynamic feedback shows the user which questions they correctly answered and which ones they missed, as well as presents a total score.

By providing the correct answer, users can learn from their incorrect answers.

Again, through the use of scripts, security can be provided to private member's only sites.

Training sites require security to ensure that access is only allowed to paid students. An administrator page allows the entry of new user names and passwords. A back end database maintains the access data.

Feedback needs to be provided to users if their access information should fail.

Having a guestbook on your site allows you to not only gather fun information from visitors, but provides feedback to others who view your site.

Forms on your site allow you to gather information from visitors, such as for guestbook entries, information requests or order forms.

ASP code accesses a database on the server to provide a current view of all guest entries.

This information can be emailed at the time of submission to specific people at your company so they can act on any requests. The data are stored in a server database for dynamic retrieval or can be used for reporting purposes.

Taking advantage of database connectivity and dynamic ASP content, this project list site helps me keep up with client projects. As an extranet, the client can access my current project list 24x7. The client can add new project and I can update current tasks, providing a up-to-the-minute display.

A hyperlink on each project takes the viewer to a detailed project page, which even includes a dynamic graphic that changes the display as the progress percentages change.

A company intranet solution can house all staff data in a database on an internal server. Designed ASP pages grab requested data and displays current information on all team members.

Again, forms and scripts are implemented to allow individuals to update their records as needed. This eliminates the need for administration to spend time update hardcopy employee lists. Individual profiles can be printed as needed. Or a differently designed page with department queries available assemble phone or emails lists that can be printed on demand.

Code can be added to your site to allow you to sell items and accept credit card or eCheck payment through a secure payment process.

This type of more advanced service is easily made available to small business sites through the use of PayPal.

If any of these solutions sound like something you'd like to add to your company web or intranet site, contact Dian Chapman through her Consulting page and she can provide you with a project quote. Or click Consulting > Request A Quote and she'll be happy to provide you with more ideas.

Think of the time and money you'll save in man hours when you let automation do the job for you!