Web Design Glossary S-V

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S

Script

A script style font is one that looks like “fancy” or decorative handwriting. They are difficult to read, especially on the web and often not installed as standard. This means they are rarely used as a web font and more often embedded in images for the odd title.
A section of code that executes a specific function. This is usually embedded functionality (such as a form) or special effects.

Search Engine Optimisation (SEO)

SEO is a marketing process that has the end goal of raising your rankings on search engines such as Google and Yahoo so that your site appears in response to targeted keywords entered by the user.

SEO can take time but results can be worth much more than investing in short term PPC traffic.

Specification

A specification is essentially a detailed plan of what you want your website or project to be. A detailed specification is essential for a successful project even if it takes time to produce.!

Style

A style is a set of attributes applies to a block of text or a picture to make it look a specific way in the browser. Styles can make text bold, apply borders to pictures or position something to the left or right of a page. They are extremely versatile and are used on almost every website.

Search Engine

A search engine is a website that organises and indexes content on the internet and then presents results when prompted by a user. To find a specific site you enter a subject into the search box, this is known as a keyword. The search engine then returns a selection of pages that it feels is most relevant to your search.

To appear higher in these searches SEO is almost essential.

Common search engines include Google, Yahoo and MSN.

Sitemap

A sitemap is similar to the contents page of a book providing an overview of the pages in a website.

Spam

Unwanted emails sent to many recipients. Spam is seen as the equivalent of junk email.

T

Thumbnail

Thumbnails are smaller versions of graphics. For example you may be looking at a collection of related product images in thumbnail images and then click on the desired thumbnail to be shown a larger image with more detail.

Traffic

The amount of visits a website gets, is called traffic.

Typeface

A designer will design a site with a typeface that suits its design this includes lowercase, uppercase, numbers, punctuation, sizes and styles.

U

Usability

How user friendly a site is, this includes an easy to use and find navigation.

User Generated Content (UGC)

UGC is exactly what it sounds like, content that your customers and services user provide. It often comes in the form of reviews, testimonials or comments and can be a great tool for SEO and marketing as long as it is moderated. It often comes as part of CMS or blog.