OPTIMIZE YOUR SITE FOR MULTIPLE BROWSERS
Building pages and include content that all visitors can view

KISS - Keep It Simple Stupid

That's not an insult, but rather the first rule of building a web site that's optimized for viewing in all browsers. Look at some of the most popular sites online and you will see that they all adhere to the KISS principle (www.yahoo.com, www.google.com, www.priceline.com, etc.) Despite all of the plethora of multimedia goodies available to designers, you will see that these websites are text-heavy with tasteful colors, minimal graphics and strict organization. You don't have to wait for annoying Java applets, mongo graphics or juvenile animations to load before you get the information you want. These websites look the same every time you log on, greeting you with comfortable familiarity that makes it easy to find just what you want.

So how do you keep a site simple without being boring? For one thing, you can maintain a design plan for your site. The design plan should be simple, it should state a brief yet specific goal such as "to create a soothing atmosphere of mellow colors, light imaes and minimal text. Using a predefined plan will prevent you from getting wild urges to make spur-of-the-moment changes such as adding a dancing baby or some other cyber hilarity to your site.

Uniform colors

If you want your website to look good when viewed through any browser, think about a rainbow. Rainbows are frequently depicted as some of the most colorful objects in nature and yet a rainbow contains only 7 colors. Yep. A mere seven. The point is, you don't need to have a vast array of many colors at your website to make it look vibrant. A few well coordinated colors which compliment each other will do.

Big graphics mean big trouble

Graphics are important to any website. A well placed photo or illustration has the power to draw viewers into your site. It also can serve as a way of conveying information that would have been difficult to present as text content. However, you must be selective when choosing graphics for your site. Graphics that are too large, both in terms of physical dimensions and byte capacity, can create all sorts of viewing problems for computer users who have slow connections or small monitors.

Animations, Applets and other Amazing Artifices.

The most important information on the Web is information, primarily in the form of text and still images. As tempting as it might be to indulge your site with a little techno-fun by adding cute animations and whiz-bang applets, you may want to abstain in the interest of creating a site that can be viewed by all. The first question you should ask about adding animation and other features is "why should I add such features?" If the reason you are adding an animation or applet is because it is "neat", don't do it. The best way to ensure that your content is seen by all visitors is to stick with basic text and graphics, leaving the wild stuff alone.