Couple of questions about my new site

[Boxwell]

Hi there,

I have started to a site for my main project for college. I have the top section and the buttons (Flash) finished. I have a section in the middle where I want the text to change with each click of the button. Will I have to use frames? Or would it be acceptable to download a new page each time?

It's a bit tricky as I've put two border lines down the sides.
You'll see what I mean at:

Test Site

Also any design tips at this early stage would be really helpful.

Thanks for your help

Graeme

[Boxwell]

Sorry, that link does not work

Test Page

That should work!

[Saz]

It's perfectly acceptable to have a new page load each time rather than use frames. In fact, I should think the majority of people would advise you NOT to use frames.

Personally I don't have a problem with them if they're set up properly, but there are issues to deal with such as bookmarking pages, the way some search engines list your pages and general accessibility - they can cause major navigation problems for the blind. There have been many discussions on the use of frames within these forums which you can find easily using the search feature.

As far as design tips go, if you want feedback on your design here you will have to post in the Reviews and Critiques section.

There are 2 forums here:-
Website Reviews - for feedback on functional websites.
Site Elements - for feedback on items such as logos and templates. (Please note: site templates must be posted as an image and not a working page).

Both forums have their own set of guidelines which you should be familiar with before posting your own request. One of the main requirements is that you must complete 3 reviews yourself within the forum that your own request will go in before your own request will be accepted.

These are moderated forums and all new requests are placed in a queue and will not appear in the appropriate forum until they have been authorised by an advisor.

[Boxwell]

Will the browser have to load the Flash buttons everytime? Or will they be quicker to load once the user has visited the first page?

[Saz]

I've no real experience with Flash, but if it works the same way as images, once it's in the users cache it should load quicker. I'm only guessing though, so don't take my word for it.

[limmystar]

Hi,

Images are images, whether in jpg. gif. bmp. swi. swf. & etc. "Once it's in the users cache it should load quicker."