Creating a Legal Web Site

Creating a Legal Web Site Jeremy Malcolm A presentation to WASCALon 21 May 1997

Introduction • At the beginning of 1995 there were no Australian law firms on the Web • A Web page is a cost-effective form of promotion that can also add value for existing clients • In this seminar you will learn: • What is involved in developing a Web site • How to create or prototype your own site

Agenda • Preliminaries • Should I try to do it myself? • What do you need to get started? • Web page design • Tools for Web creation • Web page coding • Spice up your Web site • PowerPoint, FrontPage and Hotdog demos

Should I do it myself? • Professional Web design/construction • Dedicated graphic designers, programmers, marketers and tech-heads • Will probably not be formally qualified • Do it yourself • Prototype page can be improved later • More control • More frequent updates • Save money!

What do I need? • Internet connectivity: • Dial-up Internet connection (eg. IAP Direct) • Web hosting • Next Publishing http://www.online.next.com.au • The Internet Lawyer http://www.internetlawyer.com • The Seamless Website http://seamless.com • Shark Net http://www.sharknet.com • Inherent.Com http://www.inherent.com • Your own permanent connection (Lotus Notes)

Design - planning • What do you want to communicate? • Get ideas from similar sites • “Rough-out” site with pen and paper • Flowcharting • Idea tree • Less is more • too many images, fonts, styles, too much text

Design - content • Distinctive content http://www.msj.com.au Children’s paintings http://www.pictonwarlow.com.au Humour http://www.minters.com.au 3D animated logo http://www.claytonutz.com.au and news bulletins • Refresh the content • updated links and info • a regular magazine section • tell people what's updated and when.

Design - promotion • Know your users • Gauge the site’s success • Hit counters • Log file analysers • Offer a mailing list, visitors' book or feedback page to enable people to express their interest. • Market the site (http://www.submit-it.com) • Don't spam - in 1994 Laurence Canter and Martha Siegel spammed 6000 newsgroups

Design - graphics • 216 colour palette • Graphics packages • Paint Shop Pro • Adobe Photoshop • Microsoft Image Composer • Reduce download times • JPEG for photos, GIF for artwork • “Text-only” alternative

Tools for Web creation • WYSIWYG • What You See Is What You Get • HTML editors • See the HTML code you are writing • Better fine-tuning, less redundancy • High-end products • Database integration • Interactivity

Tools: WYSIWYG • Dedicated Web publishing software • Microsoft Frontpage 97 • Adobe Pagemill 2.0 • Word processors • Microsoft Office 97 • Wordperfect 7 • Other • Netscape Navigator Gold 3.0 • Microsoft Publisher 97

Tools: Editors • HotDog Pro 3.0 • Market leader - and Australian! • HomeSite 2.0 • Simpler than HotDog • Shareware version available • Many free products • Notepad.exe

Tools: High-end • Lotus Notes 4.5 • Domino Web server converts Notes to HTML • Macromedia Internet Studio 2.0 • WYSIWYG authoring, ODBC connectivity • NetObjects Fusion 2.0 • ODBC, graphical authoring, site management • Microsoft Visual InterDev 1.0 • FrontPage, programming, IIS etc.

Web page coding - basics <HTML> <HEAD><TITLE>Title of page</TITLE></HEAD> <BODY> <H1>This is a heading</H1> <P>This is some paragraph text.</P> </BODY></HTML> • Tags for formatting, headings, paragraphs, lists, image placement, fill-in forms • Tags come in <B><I>pairs</B></I>

Web page coding - more tags • Simple image tag<IMG SRC="image.gif"> • Hyperlink<A HREF="index.html">Link text</A> • Table<TABLE><TR><TD>First column</TD><TD>Second column</TD></TR></TABLE>

Spice up your Web site • Java • Java applets (navigation windows, visual FX) • Javascript (browser-detection, totalling figures) • Also Jscript, VBscript • Can be annoying, like the <blink>tag </blink> when used over-indulgently. • ActiveX • Installed on system or downloaded as needed • Generally only for Windows users

Spice up… - sight and sound • Frames • Will tables do the trick? • Style sheets • Image maps • RealAudio • ISP needs to have Realaudio server. Encoder and player software available free from http://www.realaudio.com. • Background music

Spice up… - movement • Animation • GIF, Java, CGI (SSI), Shockwave • Can be annoying, especially if borrowed. • Video, Quicktime VR • VRML • Software • Links to freeware/shareware • Developed in-house

Spice up… - interactivity • Live content • CGI scripting • Feedback form, message board, visitors book • FrontPage Server extensions • Dynamic HTML • Advantage: client-side • Disadvantage: Internet Explorer 4.0 only

Summary • If you want control, develop your own site • Keep the content fresh and interesting • High or low end sites - from $200 per year to $200+ per week • High or low end tools - from WYSIWYG editing to database integration • Web coding is just marking up text • Spice it up - but accomodate older browsers

Where to get more information • Microsoft Site Builder Networkhttp://www.microsoft.com/sitebuilder • Home Page Construction Kithttp://gnn.com/gnn/netizens/construction.html • Beginner’s Guide to HTMLhttp://www.ncsa.uiuc.edu/General/Internet/WWW/HTMLPrimer.html • HTML Workshop and Survival Guidehttp://www.mcp.com/general/workshop/

Creating a Legal Web Site