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Graphics & Multimedia Guidelines
Skyways information providers who incorporate multimedia features
including graphics, video, and sound into their documents should be familiar
with the following guidelines:
Graphics
Images should be saved and uploaded to the Skyways server in either the
GIF or JPEG (JPG) file format. Unsure about which file format is
appropriate for a particular image? Here are some general guidelines:
- The JPEG (JPG) format is best for photographs and detailed graphics
with multiple color fields and gradations.
- The GIF format is best for icons, logos, and images with simple color
schemes and flat areas of color.
Both GIF and JPEG (JPG) images should be saved with a resolution of
72 dpi. Saving an image at a higher resolution will not enhance
its appearance on current monitors.
The combined size of all image files per page should not exceed 30K.
The entire page size (text and images) should be under 50K.
The basic HTML code for inserting an image into a web document is:
<IMG SRC="yourfile.gif" width=xxx height=yyy
alt="textdescription">
Width and Height values specify the size of the graphic
in pixels and will make the page appear to load faster by giving the browser
the information it needs to allocate exact space for the image.
Alt allows you to include an alternative text description
for a graphic. The ALT text describes the picture for people using
a browser for the visually impaired and for those users who set their
browser to not display images.
If you need to resize an image, use graphics editing software to adjust the size and then insert the new Height and Width dimensions
in the HTML code. Sizing an image by adjusting only the HTML Height
and Width values usually distorts the image.
For more information about working with graphics, go to Webmonkey's Graphics Tutorials.
Animation
Animations tend to be large files that may considerably slow down the
loading time of a web page. Avoid using more than one animation
per page to prevent distracting from your main content. Be especially
careful about adding animated cartoons to your site as this could be an
infringement of copyright law.
Audio and Video
Developers interested in adding audio or video elements to their site should discuss the project with Joshua Motsinger prior to uploading such files to the Blue Skyways server. Please resist the temptation to add cutesy MIDI music to your site. MIDI files tend to be quite large and provide poor sound quality.
Return to the Blue Skyways publishing guidelines
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