Website Review

[Paul Jr]

I nabbed this layout off a site I can't remember the name of, converted it from a tables based layout to CSS based layout, made a few other changes, graphics crap, and viola, here is this site I made for a friend.


Valid XHTML 1.0 strict, and CSS.
I tested it in Moz 1.4, and IE6.
I would appreciate it if some of you could check it out in some other browsers, and lemme know how it turns out.


Here's (http://tc-rpg.com.co.nr) the link.

Thanks a lot. :)

[Vladdy]

Make the width of navigation in em so it scales with the font.
If you insist on fixed width because of the top graphic center the body.
I would also change the hover effect - once you put real menu text this letter spacing change will be distracting.
The image on top is just decoration - put it in a background of some element.
From usablity standpoint it is conidered better to have content first, navigation second; a "jump to navigation" link with "display:none" adds nice functionality.
Keep default paragraph font at 100%, if it looks too big to you change YOUR browser setting. If you do not think that that your visitors are smart enough to adjust their browser setting, consider my "customization wiget" (http://www.klproductions.com) .
Other than that looks pretty good.

[pyro]

Originally posted by Paul Jr
I nabbed this layout off a siteYou'd better make sure it wasn't/isn't copyright, then...

Also, in your code, you might want to move the right side content above the links, so users with disabilities don't have to tab through them every time they visit the site.

[Paul Jr]

Originally posted by Vladdy
A "jump to navigation" link with "display:none" adds nice functionality.
I'm not sure I get what you mean...

Originally posted by Pyro
You'd better make sure it wasn't/isn't copyright, then...


It's a free layout, I just can't remember from what site.



Thanks for your input, I'll see what I can do about makin' those changes.

[Paul Jr]

Aight, here's how it is. The little strip on the left side of the page, where the navigation is placed, is a part of the background image, thus, it cannot expand and contract with the text-size, resolution, and window size. So I'm going to slice that part out of the background image, and fill the background of the left <div> with a color that's as close to the color of that section of the image as I can get it. But I have one problem, I want that strip to *always* touch the bottom of the page. And I'm not exactly sure how I can have that happen doing what I'm doing.

[Pittimann]

Hi Paul Jr!

The attachment is a screenshot (res: 1024 with NS4.7 - taken in fullscreen mode).

The image is 65% of its' original size (in order to make the file smaller)

Cheers - Pit

[Paul Jr]

Whoa! Now that doesn't look right...

[Pittimann]

Hi!

Don't forget - it is a dinosaurs' Netscape 4.7.

I deliberately use this outdated stuff for tests because I know quite a number of people still using it. I often get mad when testing sites in NS 4.7 - whatever stuff is concerned.

Sites written absolutely correct (if you take nowadays standards) often fail to work. You can only do your best, that functionality will not be restricted; design and layout = forget about it. BTW your site's functionality was not at all affected. Everything works - it's just the design that suffered a lot :(

It is because of this that I will remain a dinosaur until either I get extinct or browsers like that...

Cheers - Pit

[Paul Jr]

Ah, I see, makes logical sense.

A question that has been bugging me... if you test with an older version of a browser and get the site to work there without much trouble, will the site also work in every higher level browser without forcing you to use any hacks?

[Pittimann]

From my own (very limited) practical experience I would say yes - haven't made experiences myself yet that a newer browser version produced **** when a site worked properly in an older version.

Theoretically I wouldn't wonder about whatever - it is up to the browsers' developers to keep them downward compatible.

And in that I do not have 100% confidence :p

Cheers - Pit

[Paul Jr]

Since I have not yet gotten around to pestering my brother to the point of making him install IE5 for me, I was wondering if someone could check out the site with IE5, and 5.5. That is most important to me, because I am sure the majority of the people visiting this site will be using IE5, through IE6.

Also, since I have never tested with anything but IE6, and Moz 1.4, I was wondering if anyone had any suggestions for any problems they might have found with any other browser, or any other version of IE or Mozilla.

[pyro]

Take a look at http://www.ryanbrill.com/archives/00002.php for instructions how to set up multiple versions of IE.