How to Grow as a Web Author

What can you do next? How will you advance to the next level? More important, how can you keep a keen edge on the skills you've already mastered? Here are a few important habits you can adopt to prosper and grow.

Observe

When on the Web, don't just browse. Think about the pages you visit. Study them carefully , not at a technical level but rather at an aesthetic one. If a page impresses you, ask yourself why. Is it the images, the layout, the writing, the colors, or some combination of these factors? Bookmark sites that impress you and visit them often. Make a mental catalog of what grabs (or loses) your interest as a browser. Odds are that many other people respond the same way.

Dissect

When a page really impresses you, save it on your PC (in Internet Explorer, choose File, Save As) and then study it offline. Consider such questions as:

• What types of image files were used, and what properties are applied to them?

• What is the flow of text elements and properties on the page?

• What special techniques show up in the HTML code if you view the source file?

• In a multipage Web site, how much information is on a page?

• How many pages are there, and in what ways are they interlinked?