The Weather at Fidalgo Island, Washington

Things to Do First

First, sign up for your own web site at Office Live Small Business.  For those in the UK, sign up here.  If you have difficulty signing up, check these items:

• Be sure the domain name is available (check at whois.net)
• The name and address entered should match those on your credit card
• Your address should be in a country where Office Live is available

Then there are a few housekeeping chores before you start building your site:

1.)   Set your pop-up blocker to allow pop-ups on your Office Live account site.  Be sure to  include all of the pages.  Certain functions (e.g. the Image Uploader) run with a pop-up dialog box.

2.)   Open the Security tab of your browser and move the slider to “Medium.”  This  setting will tune your ActiveX functions for Office Live.  If you are using Internet Explorer, go to Tools » Internet Options » Security Tab.  All ActiveX settings except unsigned ones should be set to “Allow” or “Prompt.”  While you are in the Security tab, it will be helpful to add your Office Live site, and the Office Live Home pages to your “Trusted Sites”  list.

3.)   Set your browser to “Check for newer versions of stored pages with every visit.”  In IE go to Tools » Internet Options » Browsing History » Settings and click the button.  With this setting, you will always be viewing the most recent changes to your site, not old versions stored in your browser cache.

4.)   Make a Test Page and keep it off navigation (uncheck the “Show...” box when creating the page or in Page Properties).  If you are just learning Office Live, use this page to poke around and explore the Page Editor and Site Designer icons and buttons.  Be bold and curious.  Try out all the tools and learn what they do.  Then, when you are ready to do something for real, do it here first, and test it.  This is especially true with HTML modules.  Many of us have learned the hard way that things like improper code can irreversibly destroy a good page.  If you mess up here, it won't matter.  Just delete the page and create a new one.

TIP:  When you create a new feature for your site such as a table or photo gallery, do it on the test page.  When it's finished, copy and paste the entire piece to its real location.  This way, your live page won't have that half-baked look while you are building the feature.

TIP:  Occassionally delete your old test pages and create new ones.  This prevents the Office Live gremlins from taking hold and also keeps the search engines guessing.

All-Purpose Remedies

Occassionally, you may experience mysterious problems.  Examples are no response to buttons or icons, pages failing to load, error messages and the like.  Try these steps:

• Delete your browsing history twice
• Delete your temporary internet files, also twice
• Delete stored passwords from the browser
• Set your browser to check for new page versions with every visit
• Clean your cookies with an Adaware™ scan.  Lacking that, delete your cookies

Now close your browser window and reopen a fresh one before logging in again.  These fix-its are not uniquely useful for Office Live.  You will find occassional uses for them all over the web.  Find these in your browser tools.  In Internet Explorer 7, go to Tools » Internet Options » Browsing History » Delete...

How to Publish Your Site

With Office Live Small Business, your site is published and live on the internet almost from the moment you sign up.  In both the Page Editor and the Site Designer, when you click on Save, your changes go live at that moment.  Note that there is no FTP server with OLSB.  Even if you are using a third-party designer, Office Live uses its own uploader. 

Tip:  If you wish to hide unfinished pages, open Page Properties for each page and uncheck the box for “Show this page in the Navigation bar.”  One exception:  do not do this for your Home page.  Instead, get something decent on it.  Insert a Weather module or anything.  Don't worry about visitors seeing your site at this stage anyway.  It is highly unlikely that anyone will find it right now.  We will talk about that further down (see Search Engines 101).

Rules For the Home Page

The home page has some unique rules that must be followed:

• It must have the file name default so don't try to change it.  It has to be that
     way to function on the Office Live servers.
• It may not and can not be deleted.
• If you destroy your home page, you must replace it with a new one.  Create a
     new page, give it the file name default, and check the box for “Overwrite
     existing page.”  Remember that test page I recommended to try new things?
• If you are using a third-party editor for your site, your home page must still be
     be named default, either /default.htm or /default.aspx.

This is intended to sound emphatic.  Don't take the home page rules lightly.

Search Engines 101

Page Title

This could be the most overlooked feature in OLSB.  The page title will appear in the top bar of the browser window.  It will also be the primary citation and link to your site in search engine listings. This is sometimes referred to as the title tag.  The default title for your home page is “Home.”  This is not very interesting and not likely to help much in searches.  Click on Page Properties in the page editor.  Enter a page title in the first text box that succinctly describes your page or site and its content.  It should contain some key words visitors will use, but don’t overdo it.  Which is better, Home or The Weather at Fidalgo Island, Washington? How about Bird Watching vs. Fidalgo Island Bird Watching? 

Site Description and Key Words

Click on the “Search Engine Optimization” tab in the Page Properties dialog.  Your key words should relate to the page content.  Again, think of words people will use to search for your site.  Don’t use too many and don’t repeat words already in your page content.  Rich content on your pages is probably more important than key words. 

Indexing

First, don’t confuse indexing with verifying.  To be found, a site needs to be indexed.  You do not need to have your site verified.  That is for other purposes.  If you do nothing at all, your site will be indexed eventually.  To speed it up, follow the instructions for submitting your site in this Microsoft Search Engine Article.  It will still take some time, possibly a couple of months.  The best approach is to be patient and use the time to fine-tune your site.  It is not necessary to use Adsense™, purchase ads or have pay-per-clicks to get indexed.  For goodness sakes, don’t pay anybody anything to get it done.  When you submit your site for indexing, DO NOT put the www. in front of your URL.

Page Rank

Few subjects have as much folklore, paranoia, old-wives’ tales and mysticism associate with them.  Here is my take on it:

Basic E-Mail Management

This can be confusing and a bit of a hassle to get set up properly, but once it's done, working with your E-Mail accounts will be greatly simplified.  Follow the instructions carefully and take your time.

1.)  Create E-Mail Accounts

From the Office Live account home page, follow this path from the left navigation pane: 

          Account Settings » E-Mail Accounts » Create a New E-Mail Account 

2.)  Set Passwords

Follow the same path from the Office Live home page: 

        Account Settings » E-Mail Accounts » Reset Password

3.)  Access Your E-Mail

Your E-Mail addresses and passwords are now Windows Live ID's.  Just as you log into Office Live with a WLID, use the specific E-Mail address and password to access your mail.  Note:  If you have just finished a session with your OLSB account, log out and close your browser window first.  Then open a fresh browser to access your E-Mail.  Depending on the log-in screen you see, either click on “Sign in with a different account,” or change the E-Mail address in the text box and enter the appropriate password.  Once you're in, you can simplify access by making the address of your inbox a Favorite in your browser.  Alternatively, visit mail.live.com and sign in with the E-Mail address and password. 

4.)  Link Windows Live ID's

If you have several E-Mail accounts, you can link the Windows Live ID's and access them all from a single log-in.  If you have any Live or Hotmail accounts, you can include these also.  First, open your primary WLID account in a fresh browser and follow the path:

        Settings » Linked ID's » Link an existing Windows Live ID 

Follow the steps to enter your E-Mail addresses and passwords where indicated.  Now, when you click on “Sign In” from any of the Office Live portal pages, all of your linked addresses should appear on the sign-in screen.  You may need to close your browser and re-open a fresh one to see them. 

Finally, save the address of the sign-in page in your Favorites and use this link to access all of your Office Live accounts.

When you want to access your mail, pick the Windows Live ID for one of your mail accounts when you sign in.  When you have opened the first mail account, you will see your current mail address and a drop-down in the upper-right corner of the mail frame.  Click on the address and you will get links to all of your E-Mail accounts.

5.)  Windows Live Mail

This is also a great solution if you have several E-mail accounts.  It is available from Microsoft as a free download.  You can add all of your accounts, including most non-Microsoft services and access them all at once from a desktop dialog box.  If you find yourself drowning in Outlook, you can designate the easy-to-use WLM as your default mail client.  Consider the Windows Live Writer add-in to easily create and edit postings to your Live Spaces blog.  It provides additional editing features including “alt” text for images and resizing of images without skewing them. 

6.)  Designate an E-mail Address for the Contact Us Form

Right-Click on the Contact Us module, then click on "Properties..." to open the dialog box.  Enter the address in the text box.

7.)  Spam Control

While I cannot guarantee these steps, I have been successful following these rules:

• Consider Private Registration.  The small annual fee is well worth it.
• Never put an E-mail address on any of your pages.  Instead, add a text string
     such as "Contact us."  Highlight it and insert a hyperlink using the E-mail
     option.
• Use the Contact Us module form or something similar.

Miscellany

Browser Home Page
You can set your own web site as your browser home page here:
     

          Tools  » Internet Options » Home Page

Credit Card Questions

Your credit card identifies you as a responsible adult.  Well hopefully, at least.  It also slows down domain name speculators.  Your account number is kept on file, so when renewal time comes along, that little chore is already done.  It's also there should you decide to purchase any other options.  This is S.O.P. among web hosting services.  If you have trouble signing up, be sure the name and address on the your CC account matches those on the OLSB signup form. 

Font Selection is Limited

There is a reason for that.  Not every font will render properly in all browsers.  I saw a site using a beautiful script for heading texts.  On another computer with the same browser, it rendered as Times New Roman and looked atrocious on the page.  Browser settings often control what fonts will show. 

Office Live Basics Account

There is no such thing anymore.  Everyone now has what used to be called a "Premium” account.  The whole magilla.  The full monte.  The whole ball of wax, kit and caboodle, shebang, shooting match and lock, stock and barrel.  Don't be alarmed when you visit your account and see "canceled" next to the Basics designation.  It's the old Basics account that is canceled.

Office Live FAQ's 

Get the whole scoop from the horse's mouth. 

Optional OLSB Services at Additional Cost

• Additional Domain Names, E-mail Accounts and Storage
• adManager
• Email Marketing
• Private Registration
• Store Manager
• Ad-Free E-Mail

Problem Solvers

Link Colors

In general, link colors are determined by browser settings.  If you are not ready to explore cascading style sheets, a simple way to recolor links is to use the 'A' icon color palette.  If the color won't take, try recoloring it in chunks, working from right to left.

Page Freezes Browser

You have probably put some toxic code into an HTML module or directly onto the page.  A common cause is pasting formatted Word text into the Page Editor.  Such text can choke a web page.  Remember that test page I recommended?  Start by deleting the last thing you added.  If you cannot open the page editor, you will need to delete the page and create a new one (see Home Page Rules, above).  You can use Word to compose text, but do not format it.  Use the OLSB editor to do the formatting.

Photos are Distorted

Even though it is possible, never resize a photo in the OLSB Page Editor.  Always size your images in a photo editor or the Windows Photo Viewer before uploading them to the Image Gallery.  Then place them on the page as is.

Powered by Logo/Search Box, Removing

Open the Site Designer, click on "Options" and uncheck the box.  Frankly, I wear my OLSB logo proudly.  It has been good to me and a good partner.

Spelling Checker

Copy your text to, or create your text in a word processer and check the spelling there.  My favorite solution is Inspyder Insite.  It will crawl your pages and check both spelling and link integrity.  With both US and UK spelling options, the free version will check up to 25 pages.  For more, just specify pages individually.

Table Cell Contents Won't Line Up

Every table begins life with spaces or text in each cell.  When you create a new table, the first chore is to clean it.  Remove all of the text and spaces before inserting any content.  If you leave a space, it can be a bugger to get rid of later.

A Few Guidelines

Overall Look

Think elegant, beautiful, balanced and symmetrical.  Avoid the temptation to fill every square inch with something.  This only leads to a lot of irrelevant content and sometimes, a messy layout.  Even a cold commerce site can be beautiful.  A beautiful site will attract and hold visitors.  For example, "Links" and "Contact Us" pages are commonly the dullest parts of a web site, but they don't have to be:

• A Links Page With an Image Background
• A Contact Us Page with an Image Background
• Another Contact Us Page Example
• A Unique Photo Presentation

These were easily done using images as table backgrounds.  To learn how, use the link in the next section.  Yes, the "Contact Us" modules cover up much of the photos, but when a message is sent, the module disappears revealing the full image to the visitor.

Font Choices and Formatting

Avoid the three B's:  too Big, too Bold and too Black.  A gray tone on a white or neutral background is easiest to read and won't send your visitors running for the Visine.  Reserve the large and colored fonts for headings, and sparingly for emphasis.  When all of the text is large, colored and bold, the site will look cheap and amateurish.  Emphasis on everything means emphasis on nothing.

Keep it Simple

As with emphasis, when there are too many things going on, nothing gets any focus.  If your page content seems to be going in several directions, find ways to group things, or organize it on different pages.  Start with a nice, clean, simple site, stick to the message, and carefully add appropriate bells and whistles later.  Remember, expressing is more important than impressing.  I have seen too many sites ending up confused and butchered because they didn't know when to stop.

Pay Attention to Edges

When things are grouped on a page, their edges should line up neatly.  A column of stacked images or text blocks should all be the same width.  Things that are arranged side-by-side should be the same height.  A grid of objects should all be the same size and shape.  Tables provide a convenient way to organize a layout and keep things lined up.  If you don't want to see borders, make them the same color as the background.

Size Matters

Large images can overwhelm a web page and destroy the look.  If an image fills a browser, it is too big.  As an alternative, check the Get Started link for one method to open a full sized image from a thumbnail. 

Similarly, text that is too wide can be impossible for human eyes to scan and read easily.  This is why newspaper text is organized into columns.  Wider screens and wider browser windows add to the problem.  One solution is to arrange text in columns using tables.  You can explicitly control the width of tables.

TIP:  Office Live Small Business is designed for the small business or home user.  Expertise in web site building is not required.  Nevertheless, some study, work, trial and error, curiosity, a willingness to explore, perserverence and lots of patience will be required to use the product successfully.

The Next Step

For an outstanding example of what can be accomplished with the Office Live tools, not a third party editor, check Office Live Design Tips.  This site also provides all instructions needed to create the effects and look you will see there.

Seattle, WA Updated Tuesday, December 02, 2008 6:16 AM Cloudy 50°F High: 52°F Low: 45°F Wind: 6 mph Humidity: 93% MSN Weather Data provided by Foreca

To add interest, you can place content over an image.

Learn how  » 

 Some Thoughts on Web Design

First, let's look outside of OL and check the home pages of these “pro” sites:

• J C Penney
• Museum of Modern Art
• Pacific Science Center
• Washington Native Plant Society

1.) They all fit into a 780px wide page. No lateral scrolling is necessary.  Each has a lot of material, but nothing is crowded.  All four sites are dial-up friendly.

2.) Notice their simplicity and how easy it is to quickly determine the purpose and focus of each site. There is no mystery to their content or navigation.

3.) Navigation mostly consists of one or two words, yet it is crystal clear where you are going.

4.) Everything is arranged in blocks and columns, neat and tidy. Edges of things line up. Text is arranged in blocks, easily viewed without scrolling. Blocks are all about the same size and evenly spaced. Similar things grouped together all look somewhat alike. The overall appearance is organized, balanced and elegant.

5.) Fonts are small, consistent and easy on the eyes. Most are in shades of gray.  Larger, black, colored or bold text is reserved for headings and emphasis.  Emphasis is used sparingly.

6.) Note the images on the MoMA site. This is an art museum, yet the images are small and each links to something more.  This is a big, complicated site, but the home page makes it easy to find your way around.  The four column organization could easily be created with OL Basics.

7.) On the Pacific Science Center site, the text blocks are less than half the page width. Long, screen-width lines of text are difficult for human eyes to scan.  Here again, the small blocks of text link to something more.  There is lots of stuff here, but it is organized in a way that you don't feel overwhelmed.  You can skim through it quickly to find something interesting.

8.)  The JCPenney site gives us one large image which is a special feature receiving emphasis.  The whole thing is a plain, old table.  Of the four, it is the easiest and most comfortable for the visitor to use.  This is probably a good idea for a site interested in selling things.

9.)  The Washington Native Plant Society site is starkly simple, but check its Google rank.  The title and tag line reveal the focus of the site.  Colors are subtle and pleasing.  Note how they have organized a complex navigation system.  You can make the same navigation bar in OLSB using a table and hyperlinks.

Some good advice may be found in this Office Live article.

A Special Need:  FTP Uploads in Office Live™