website critique, please

[redsand198]

hey all...

i'm working on this website, this is about my 5th total redesign of the page, and i'm struggling to get much feedback from my co-workers about it. i was wondering if you have a few minutes you could link to it real quick and maybe give me some feedback.

here is the URL:

http://antachmotorsports.com/avi/home.html

where those 5 images are across the home page, i want to do a flash movie (if i ever learn it). i also have been told on another forum that i need to use CSS. i understand CSS and it's purpose but just haven't gotten to doing that either.

i appreciate any feedback, thank you!

[pyro]

You need to start your pages with a valid doctype (http://www.webdevfaqs.com/html.php#doctype) and charset (probably <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=iso-8859-1"> ). Then, validate your pages with the W3C Validator (http://validator.w3.org). As you were apparently told on the other forums, you should be using CSS for layout, as tables are not recommended to be used purly as a form of layout. You also are using depreciated tags such as the <font> tag... Cleaning your page up, and programming according to standards helps ensure forward compatability and keeps your page accessable for those without traditional web browsing software (PDA, screen reader, etc).

[WebBean]

You also are using depreciated tags such as the font tag

since I had to look this up I thought I would post the link I found to help me...


http://www.internet-tips.net/HTML/depreciated.htm

http://wind.uwyo.edu/webdesign/document/issues/code.htm

[PeOfEo]

the font tag has been replace by a css font family, it has something to do with working better for people with audio braille browsers. I agree with pyro's post.

[nkaisare]

Originally posted by WebBean
The information provided in those links is incorrect.

<strong> and <em> are very much valid HTML 4.01 tags. type is a required attribute, language is a deprecated attribute etc. Having said that, DO NOT use <strong> or <em> for making text bold/italic. Use them to convey semantic meaning.

For example, I should have enclosed "DO NOT" within <strong></strong> as I was stating those strongly. I could then use CSS to format it the way I desire. Reference:
http://www.w3.org/TR/html4/struct/text.html#h-9.2.1

What will happen if you use depreciated tags?
...
Thus, it's fairly safe to use a <b> or <blockquote> here and there.
Incorrect. I don't think <b> or <blockquote> will be phased out any time soon either. However, you should not use them. If you are making text bold to indicate strong emphasis, use <strong> instead. If you are using it just for stylistic reasons, prefer <span class="bold"> and CSS: .bold {font-weight: bold}. The extra 15 bytes this adds is usually not much (if you have too much bold text, caution! its distracting)... the pages will be semantically correct in addition to being visually attractive.

[nkaisare]

Originally posted by PeOfEo
the font tag has been replace by a css font family, it has something to do with working better for people with audio braille browsers. I agree with pyro's post.
No. Its gotten to do with separation of style from content. One of the main reasons to do that is accessibility. I believe you have misunderstood when Charles says "what about braille users". There are several other reasons. Read the relevant articles on www.alistapart.com and www.zeldman.com for more information.

Your last comment was correct. I agree with Pyro too :)

[redsand198]

i think i'm starting to get this CSS thing... it sure was a little frustrating though

how does the code look now?

http://antachmotorsports.com/avi/home.html


by the way, i very much appreciate all the help from everyone!

[PeOfEo]

Your menu's need some attention if i move my mouse away from them they dont dissappear like they should.

[redsand198]

i know, i asked for help on that in the javascript forum, but the code i got from that thread still didnt help...

any suggestions?

[redsand198]

this is that thread:

http://forums.webdeveloper.com/showthread.php?s=&postid=78073

[caracer]

Minor thing, but, people complain about no "home" button or link.

[redsand198]

Originally posted by caracer
Minor thing, but, people complain about no "home" button or link.



i used the alt tag and put down that it links home in place of this

most of our competitors' pages also use their corporate logo as a link home

[nkaisare]

Alt attribute (its not a tag:)) provides alternate text when images are disabled. Its not supposed to act as a tooltip. That it does in IE is a bug. The correct way is:

<img src="home.gif" width="200" height="100" alt="Web Developer Forums" title="Click on the Logo to go to the home page" />

You should really not include "Click on..." as an alt text.

[redsand198]

thanks- i'm fixing that right now :thumbup: