Operation Manual

42 Web Site Design and Construction
Your Home page
On the Home page, you can break a few rules. For example, although
you’re generally trying to reduce the time it takes each page to load, it’s
OK to include larger or more numerous graphics on the Home page.
Most visitors’ attention span will stretch a bit in anticipation of seeing
what your site has to offer, and they’ll make allowances. In addition,
they’ll only have to wait the first time they visit the page, as the
graphics will be cached and instantly available next time.
On the other hand, all the guidelines mentioned above work to your
advantage. The Home page, and particularly its safe area, are your only
chance to make a first impression (unless someone enters through one
of the “side doors” we alluded to). Decide what kind of impression you
want to make—“cool,” “hot,” “intriguing,” “professional,” or all of the
above—and go for it.
Make the safe area interesting enough to hold the visitor’s attention
while the rest of the page loads. Text loads first, then graphics. A
composition of free text blocks will load quickly and, with the right
choice of text and background colors, can be stunningly effective. A
pithy quotation or unusual symbol will serve to engage the mind’s eye
and arrest the web-surfer’s impulse to “click and get on with it.”
The Home page can be a cross between a greeting card, a magazine
cover, an advertisement, and a main menu for the rest of your site.
There’s no question that well-rendered graphics add interest, but don’t
feel obligated to illustrate every single section link with its own GIF!
Finally, it’s a good idea to provide titles (tooltip text) and/or alternate
text (captions) for each graphic, using the Web Export Manager on
the Tools menu. You can use this function on individual graphics or as
a Wizard to review the entire site. (Format/Web Export Options...
also works for single pictures.) The text will hold attention as the
graphics load, and convey the essence of the image for the text-only
user. Blind users with special software can hear the text (via
synthesized speech), and so will not completely miss the pictorial
content.