1
The Environment
and the Tools
Web Design,
4th Edition
Chapter Objectives
 Describe the Internet and the World Wide Web
 Discuss ways to access the Internet and the Web
 Categorize types of Web sites
 Identify Web design tools
 Explain Web design roles
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The Internet and the World Wide Web
 A network is composed of several computers,
printers, and data file storage devices connected
together to share computing resources and data
 The Internet is a worldwide public network that
connects millions of private networks
 Internet 2 is a major cooperative initiative among
academia, industry, and the government to increase
the Internet’s possibilities and correct some of its
challenges
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The Internet and the World Wide Web
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The Internet and the World Wide Web
The World Wide Web (WWW or Web) consists
of Internet-connected computers called Web
servers on which Web pages are stored
A Web site is a group of related Web pages
– Starts with a home page
– Pages are linked together with a hyperlink, or link
Surfing the Web
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Influence on Society
Communication
Education
Entertainment and News
Business
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Communication
 Bookmarking / favorites
 Electronic mail (e-mail)
 Internet Relay Chat (IRC)
 Web-based chat
 IM chat
 Collaborative workspaces
 Virtual meeting spaces
 Weblog (blog)
– Video sharing (video blogging)
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Communication
Social networking
Social bookmarking
Massively multiplayer online games (MMOGs)
3D virtual worlds
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Education
 Formal and informal
teaching and learning
 Enhances traditional
teaching methods
– Instructors often use the
Web to publish podcasts
or videos of lectures,
Web page links for
research, syllabi and
grades, and more for
their students
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Entertainment and News
 Popular entertainment
sites include music,
videos, sports, games,
and more
 News Web sites allow
you to read news
stories, and some even
allow you to watch video
clips
– Some provide interactive
elements
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Business
 Electronic commerce (ecommerce) encompasses a
wide variety of online
business activities, including
consumer shopping and
investing and the exchange
of business data and
transactions within a
company or among multiple
companies
– Business-to-consumer (B2C)
– Business-to-business (B2B)
– Consumer-to-consumer (C2C)
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Cable Television Lines
Allows users to connect to the Internet through
their cable line
Rapid transfer rates using a cable modem
connected to a CATV line
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Cable Television Lines
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Fixed and Mobile Wireless
Access
Internet connectivity that uses satellite
technology instead of telephone lines
Radio signals provide high-speed connection
– Wireless fidelity (Wi-Fi)
Standards classified by generation
– 3G
– 4G
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Telephone Line Access
The Public Switched Telephone Network
(PSTN) used to be the main way all users
connected to the Internet
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Dial-Up Lines
 A dial-up line is a temporary connection that uses
one or more analog phone lines
 Least popular Internet access method
 Two versions of Internet access using dial-up lines
– Regular dial-up
– High-speed dial-up
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Digital Dedicated Lines
A dedicated line is a connection that always is
established between two communications
devices
Can be analog or digital
Quality, consistency, and speed of the
connection are better than a dial-up line
Businesses often use dedicated lines
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Dedicated Lines
Three popular types of digital dedicated lines
– Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN)
– Digital Subscriber Lines (DSL)
• Asymmetric digital subscriber line (ADSL)
– T-carrier Lines
• T-1 line
• Fractional T-1 line
• T-3 line
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ISDN Lines
Integrated Services Digital Network
ISDN allows a single telephone line to carry
three or more signals (multiplexing)
Faster than dial-up
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DSL
Digital Subscriber Line
– Transmits at fast speeds on existing standard
copper telephone wiring
– Some installations can provide a dial tone
Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line (ADSL)
– Faster to receive data than to send data
– Ideal for Internet users
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T-carrier Lines
 Any of several types of digital lines that carry multiple
signals over a single communications line
 Extremely fast data transfer rates
 T1 Line
– Most popular T-carrier line
– Fractional T1
 T3 Line
– Equivalent to 28 T1 lines
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Internet Service Providers
Internet Service Provider (ISP)
– Has permanent Internet connection
– Provides temporary connections
– Regional ISP
– National ISP
• EarthLink
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Web Browsers
A Web browser is a specific software program
that requests, downloads, and displays Web
pages stored on a Web server
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Web Browsers
Access Web pages by entering its Uniform
Resource Locator (URL) into the Web
browser’s Address bar
URL is comprised of the protocol, domain
name and top-level domain designation
– Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP)
– Domain name can be an IP address or a text
version of this address
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Web Browsers
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Alternative Web Page Viewing
Devices
 Handheld computers
 Personal Digital Assistant
(PDA)
 Smartphones
 Netbooks
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Types of Web Sites
Personal
Organizational
/ Topical
Commercial
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Personal
 Limited developmental resources
 Uses:
– Promote employment credentials
– Share news and photos with friends and family
– Share common interests or hobbies
 Do not post information that can be misused
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Organizational / Topical
 Organization Web sites
contain information on
particular organizations
 Topical Web sites contain
information on the
developer’s interests and
hobbies
 Not all information is
accurate
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Commercial
 Used to promote and sell a product or service
 More sophisticated commercial Web sites generally
produce greater revenue
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Search Tools
 Web-based search tools
– Search engines
• Keywords
– Metasearch engines
– Search directories
 Search engines might use a variety of methods to
create its index
– Spiders or robots
– Meta tags
 Search engine optimization (SEO)
 Subject directories
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Search Tools
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Portals
 A portal is a Web site that offers a starting point for accessing
information
–
–
–
–
–
General consumer portal
Personal portal
Vertical portal
Corporate portal
Hyperlocal portal
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Web Design Tools
 Does the new technology meet currently accepted standards
for Web development and design?
 What specifically can the new technology do to further the
purpose of my Web site?
 How will implementation of the new technology affect my Web
site’s visual appeal, accessibility, and usability?
 What impact will adding this technology have on security and
other Web site elements?
 What are the direct and indirect costs of implementing the new
technology?
 How soon will I see a return on investing in this new
technology?
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Markup Languages
Hypertext Markup Language (HTML)
Extensible Markup Language (XML)
Extensible HTML (XHTML)
Wireless Markup Language (WML)
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Hypertext Markup Language
Markup language used to create Web pages
Defines a Web page through tags or markups
World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) sets
standards for HTML
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Extensible Markup Language (XML),
Extensible HTML (XHTML), and
Wireless Markup Language (WML)
XML uses markups to define the content of a
Web page
XHTML is a markup language that is a
combination of the features of XML and HTML
WML is a subset of XML
– Used to design Web pages for microbrowsers on
handheld computers, PDAs, and smartphones
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Cascading Style Sheets
Standardize the presentation of the content by
applying styles to such elements
– Font
– Margins
– Positioning
– Background colors
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Scripting Languages
 Short programs that run on the server or the browser
 Browsers must support this technology
 Scripting languages
–
–
–
–
Javascript
Active Server Pages (ASP)
PHP: Hypertext Preprocessor (PHP)
MySql
 Active content
 Malware
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Text and HTML Editors
A text editor is software used to create plain
(ASCII) text files
An HTML editor is a text editor enhanced with
special features that are used to more easily
insert HTML tags and their attributes
– HTML-Kit
– CoffeeCup
– BBEdit
– NoteTab
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WYSIWYG
 Packages that automatically generate HTML code
 There are packages available for every level of
expertise
– Microsoft Expression Web
– Adobe Dreamweaver
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Web Templates and Other
Design Technologies
 A Web template is a predesigned model that can be
customized for fast Web site or Web page creation or
updating
 An intranet is a private network within a large
organization or commercial entity that uses Internet
and Web technologies to share information among
only its members, employees, or business partners
 A content management system (CMS) facilitates the
management of Web content development
– Content repository
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Web Design Roles
Web design can be done independently or with
a partner or group
Creative Role
– Content writer / editor
– Web page designer
– Web artist / graphic designer
– Multimedia producer
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Web Design Roles
Hi-Tech Role
– Web programmer
– Database developer
– Network / security administrator
Oversight Role
– Content managers
– Webmaster
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Chapter Summary
 Describe the Internet and the World Wide Web
 Discuss ways to access the Internet and the Web
 Categorize types of Web sites
 Identify Web design tools
 Explain Web design roles
Chapter 1: The Environment and the Tools
45
1
The Environment
and the Tools
Web Design,
4th Edition