Setting up Expression Web Ebook
Free Setting up Expression Web Ebook By Tina Clarke Microsoft MVP -
FrontPage
Previously only readers of the Any Expression Web Tips Ezine could see first hand the tutorials that go to make up this ebook. They are all available here on the site in the Expression Web Tutorials. However it is handy to have your own ebook ready to hand which you can follow along to in Setting up your Expression Web application.
Note: Click thumbnails to enlarge
Why is it important to set up your Expression Web application?
By Setting up Expression Web you set the parameters by which you design your web sites, taking the time now, saves you grief in the future. Expression Web setup the right way can enhance your design experience and not only help guide you in the use of CSS but warn you of html errors as you create your template design and content.
Beyond the Basics of Setting up Expression Web
Though the tutorials and Ebook outline the basics of setting up Expression Web, as you become more experienced in using Expression Web you might find yourself tweaking the guidelines I have outlined for you. Not only that but beyond these basic setup guidelines there is more you can do which are even more personal ways of working with Expression Web.
Tools - Application Options - Reports View Tab
Personally I prefer to set my 'Slow pages' to 30 seconds to download. If like me you can't think in Kbs, instead of looking at the status bar for the Download Statistics which is in kbs.
Look
at the Slow pages Site Report which will list any pages over 30
seconds. The page represented here on the left has a page load of 29
seconds. For a connection speed of 56 Kbps, which I worked out by
looking at the Slow Pages Site Report.
Site - Site Settings - Advanced Tab
By Selecting the 'Show Hidden Files and Folders' radio button, you will find maintaining your web easier from the get go. Expression Web will hide any files or folders marked with a underscore at the beginning of the file name. So by enabling this to begin with you will forgo wondering just where you folders and files got to.
Tools - Page Editor Options - AutoThumbnail
To avoid all your thumbnails that might be hyperlinked showing a hyperlink border one can preset thumbnails in the Page Editor Options to zero. However this is redundant when we use the body img style of border: 0px; in the external cascading style sheet giving a universal effect to all images within the web. We also don't want border="0" appearing within the html code as it is deprecated according to the latest standards.
It is in no way 'cool' to show hyperlink borders on one's images and gives a decidingly unfinished look. Remark at the top of the page that one's thumbnails should be clicked to open up a larger graphic. We use thumbnails when we want to include more graphics on a page, but the page load would be too heavy, by using thumbnails this allows us leeway to show all the information on one page in a visual manner, exactly as I have done on this page.
Furthermore the old bevel is still available for selection in AutoThumbnail, a holdover from FrontPage, I think it goes without saying (but I will say it) that bevelling a graphic is liable to see your site appearing in web pages that suck.com Bevelling is for buttons, and even then it should be done in a graphic editor. So whatever you do DO NOT tick that selection. The third option is for the size of the thumbnail, I find 100x100 pixels to suit me tweak to the size you prefer.
These are all more personal settings and why I've not included them in the Ebook, but if your a newbie to web design they are little tips and tricks you need to know about.