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These are some of our most "frequently asked questions." They are provided to assist our clients with the technical aspects of creating and maintaining their websites. The FAQ also contains important information that you will need to know before you begin creating and sending us your files.
© mandala net design
How much does a website cost? This is probably everyone's first question when deciding whether or not to create a website. And rightly so. So please don't feel shy about asking. The simple answer is: It all depends on the details. It's a bit like asking, "how much does it cost to build a house?" Obviously, the answer is somewhere in the thousands of details that make up a house. The size? The style? The complexity? The materials? Clearly no one can estimate the cost of building a house without first seeing the plans. That said, our typical projects range anywhere from $500 to $25,000. Most of our clients start out spending between $2,000 and $5,000 for an initial site; then add to it slowly over time, as the project warrants and the budget is available. This approach allows our clients to control costs while still making good progress toward their long term goals. And once your website is built, there are NO monthly fees for our services. You only pay for our services when you need them. So the monthly expense of a website is quite low. If you want to know how much your project will cost, you will need to be clear on your needs and develop a good outline of content with as many details provided as possible. Then gives us a call to talk it over. 831 471-0603
Where should I begin? It is important to first familiarize yourself with the web if it is new to you. You should take the time to browse across a wide spectrum of websites. You will need to have a reasonable idea of what is possible and what isn't, what works and what fails and how others have approached their Internet projects. Find sites that you like even if they are not similar to your purpose. It is good to let your designer know and see examples of your favorite sites. It is also very important to have a clear set of goals defined before setting out to build your website. It is not necessary to know what the final end product will look like but you should have a clear sense of where you are headed and what you want to accomplish. Perhaps your site will be a source of valued information. Perhaps it will be for fun and entertainment. Is it a method of attracting new customers or servicing your current ones? Whatever your goals are, list them out and order them according to priorities. Are there short term goals and long term goals? What will be the measure of your website's success? Next, you must know who your audience is and what they will want from your site. Perhaps you should talk to your clients, customers or colleagues and ask them what they would be interested in most. Look to your competitors for comparisons. Will you need to match their presence, exceed it or go your own way? What can you do that would be unique among your peers? What can you offer that has real world value? Finally, it is critical to analyze and determine your budget. As with every other part of life, your website must face the reality of available finances. Do not attempt to build a castle with a cabin's budget. Instead, set about building the greatest cabin possible. Let your web designer know what your budget range is and what you expect in exchange. Then your designer can help you determine your best course of action. To make the wisest financial decisions it is important to understand all of your options and remember that your web designer is there to help you succeed. We are, after all, on the same team in this endeavor. It has been said that, "The website you seek - indeed, the right solution to any problem - is a natural by-product of the right relationship with the right people." We wish you great success in this adventure.
How should I organize my content? It is essential to the development process to carefully select, prepare and organize the elements which will make up the content of your site. The better organized your material, the more cost effective your web designer can be. This part of the process has the power to greatly help or hinder the outcome of your entire project. This does not mean that you can't add, modify or reinvent your content whenever you choose. The web, being a dynamic medium, readily and easily accepts all change. Our primary point is that you should organize your efforts. This will keep cost down and production streamlined. Take the time before preparing your files to read the other FAQs in this document and familiarize yourself with what file types we can accept and what your options are. Read about file name rules and file size limits so that you can map out your strategy for getting us your content files in an orderly manner. Remember to proof read all of your material carefully before sending it. And when you do send us your material, always be clear with your instructions so that we have every opportunity to do the best job possible for you. It is our preference to have our clients gather, prepare and organize all of their content before sending any of it to us. If instead we receive your files in scattered bits and pieces, it will be difficult if not impossible for us to make any significant headway in the design, development and production of your project. Once the majority of your content is ready - then send it to us. When we have it all in hand, we can begin our work in earnest.
Which browser should you use? We beta test all of the sites we build on both Window's PC and Apple OS X platforms, using these major browsers: Microsoft Internet Explorer, Netscape Navigator, Firefox and Safari. It is important to note that each platform and browser may have slight differences in how they display web pages. Some are subtle and others more obvious. Primarily what you may observe are changes in how things are spaced on the page or font size changes in the text. Sometimes a special Roll Over effect will not work on all browsers. Though these differences should never ruin a page, they may not always display the page in its very best form. However all of our work should look and perform well in all modern browsers.
How can I send my files to Mandala? You may send files to Mandala in several different ways.
Please Note: Whenever you send materials to Mandala, whether you have uploaded them to our server or put them in the mail, please send us an email message to let us know about it.
Can I send email attachments? Yes. You may send Microsoft Word, Simple Text and WordPad documents plus plain text ASCII files to us as email attachments. Do not send graphics files as attachments unless given prior permission. Ideally your email program should be MIME compliant. Since most email programs today are MIME compliant this should typically not be a problem. It is also a good idea to configure your email program (if the option is available) to use "quoted-printable" encoding. This will insure that any special characters which you may have included in the body of your email text or an attached ASCII text file will be properly sent through the email. Without it such special characters may be stripped away. This is a limitation of SMPT which is the protocol used for moving mail about the Internet. It is recommended that quoted-printable always be on. Remember to always put the appropriate suffix on the end of every file name prior to attaching the document to your email. Otherwise the attached file may not go through safely.
What file types are acceptable? Because there are hundreds of different application programs it is necessary for us to limit what we can accept. We have made every effort to support the primary cross platform programs, industry standards and file types. For graphics applications we can accept:
For files from other graphics programs, we can accept:
For page layout programs, we can accept:
For word processing, we can accept files from these applications or any other text editing program that can save a file as TEXT ONLY:
Are there special file name rules? Yes. It is VERY IMPORTANT to name your files correctly when uploading to our server or sending email attachments. Here are a few simple rules that will help assure the integrity of your files in transit.
Should all file names have a suffix? Yes. Each file name should have a suffix appended to the end of its name that identifies its file type. A suffix usually has only 2, 3 or 4 letters in it and every suffix begins with a period (.) to separate it from the first part of the name. Such as myfile.txt .
What suffix should I use? Use the chart below to determine which suffix should be used on what file type. If you are uncertain or do not see a suffix for your file type, please contact us for instructions. Be sure to pay close attention to the proper use of these suffixes. Correct use will make your file uploading attempts a predictable success.
What does the browser upload page do? We have created a browser upload page (see our SUPPORT > UPLOAD pages) as a convenience for our clients to use when sending us their files. It automatically uploads your files onto our server. It is not necessary to understand FTP protocols or procedures. You simply locate the files you wish to send with the provided "browse" button and click "Upload File(s)." There are some important file name rules which must be followed and file size limitations. Remember to always put the appropriate suffix onto the end of every file name. (e.g. filename.doc) You must have a user name and password to use our file upload script. Please contact us for this info.
Can I upload a file of any size file? No. It is better for all of us if the files are no larger than absolutely necessary. Moving large files across the Internet takes a lot of time, yours and ours. The larger the file the longer the wait. We have put a limit on our browser upload page. You may upload from 1 to 3 files at a time with a total byte limit of 3 MB. If you have a 3 MB file then you must upload it by itself. If you have a file over 3 MB that cannot be resaved at a smaller file size then we recommend that you try to compress it. If you must send us files larger than 3 MB you should burn them to a CD and send them by postal mail.
Should I compress files first? For large files we recommend compressing them to reduce their file size or if you have a group of smaller files you can compress them into a single archive and upload it as one file. Compression is not necessary unless the file is over 3 MB and it can be compressed to less than 3 MB. Macintosh files can be compressed with DropStuff (a part of StuffIt Standard Edition) from Aladdin Systems. It will create a compressed file or a compressed archive with a suffix of ".sit" or ".sea". PC users can use the shareware application WinZip by Target Four or StuffIt Standard Edition from Aladdin Systems. Both will create compressed files with a suffix of ".zip". Be sure that all compressed files contain the appropriate suffix at the end of their file name.
Can I use an FTP client? You may use an FTP client for transferring your files to your own server if you prefer, rather than using our browser upload script. It may be a faster method for transferring many files at one time. Also, if you need to transfer files larger than 3 MB you must use an FTP client and upload to your own server since we have placed an upload limit of 3 MB on our upload script. Once you have uploaded files to your own server, send us an email to tell us and we can retrieve them.
What can I use for source material? You can use many forms of printed imagery as the source material for your website graphics. You can use photographs, slides or transparencies. If you have original line art that was produced for printed purposes it can also be used as can any original drawings or paintings. There are limitations to the quality of an image if it is taken from a print medium, such as a brochure, a book or a magazine. The original photograph or art work is always the best choice for your source material.
Can I scan my own images? Yes. You are welcome to scan your own images and send us the digital files. It is important for you to understand that it is during the scanning process that the quality of the image is ultimately determined. If the scan is less than ideal it will be difficult for us to produce the ideal web graphic. If you choose to scan your own images here is the preferred method. Photographs should be scanned in RGB at 150 dpi* to keep the file size down. If you have an image file that was previously scanned at a higher resolution, you should reduce it in Photoshop to 150 ppi*. You can save your file as a Photoshop document or a HIGHEST quality JPEG. Original black and white line art should be scanned in grayscale at 300 dpi, then reduced in Photoshop to 150 ppi and saved as a Photoshop document or a HIGHEST quality JPEG. All black and white files can be saved as grayscale to reduce their size. In Photoshop, this is done under Image>Mode>Grayscale. All color files should be in RGB. You will find this option in the same place, under Image>Mode>RGB. *NOTE: dpi means dots per inch ; ppi means pixels per inch. These terms are interchangeable. Photoshop uses "ppi" and scanners usually use "dpi".
What resolution should I choose? You may have image files that have been saved at higher than necessary resolutions. Perhaps they were originally meant for print which would require a resolution of 300 to 600 dpi or more. We recommend that you resave these files at the 150 ppi resolution. When creating graphic files for print it is very important to save them at high resolutions for a high quality print job but the resolution of images on the web are limited by the resolution of all computer monitors. Computer monitors are capable of only 72-96 dpi. By sending us your graphics files at 150 ppi it successfully decreases the file size and upload time. It also provides us with a resolution that is high enough for us to manipulate, resize and optimize the images before creating the final web file with a resolution of 72 dpi.
What file type should I save as? If you are using an image editing program such as Photoshop, Painter or Canvas, save your file as either PHOTOSHOP, BMP, PCX, PICT or JPEG (always saved at highest quality setting). If your artwork was created in a vector drawing program such as Illustrator, Freehand or Corel Draw, save your file as either ILLUSTRATOR or EPS.
Can Mandala scan my images? Yes. We can scan all of your images, make any necessary corrections to them and produce high quality, fast loading web graphics for your project. We can create collages from your material or take elements from one and add them to another. We can use your scanned imagery to produce a custom illustration or even an animation. Our custom graphics service is one of the best. Our rate for scanning and producing web graphics is $60 per hour. If you prefer a quote just tell us the details and we will provide you with a price.
What (PC) text programs can I use? For those using Windows, we can accept text files from any of the following text editors and applications.
If you are using a word processing program other than one of the ones from above, it is still okay. You have a couple of choices. One option is simply to open the file in the text program that you are using. Copy the selection that you want to send to us or "Select All - Copy". Next open the application program Notepad (which is available on every Windows PC) and paste the contents into the Notepad document. Save the Notepad file, adding the suffix (.txt) to the end of the file name. (e.g. "mytextfile.txt") Or you may do the same thing using WordPad instead of Notepad. Save the file as a "Text document" in WordPad. It will save the file automatically with the suffix (.doc) which is fine. Another option may be to open and save the file in the word processing program of your choice as a "text only" file. This will strip out any special formatting features which you have laid out for your document but they are not necessary for our purposes. Add the suffix (.txt) to the end of the file name. (e.g. "mytextfile.txt") In general for all text files (other than Microsoft Word documents or WordPad documents) add the suffix (.txt) to the end of the file name before sending it to us. For Microsoft Word and WordPad documents add the suffix (.doc) to the end of the file name.
What (Mac) text programs can I use? For those using Macs, we can accept text files from any of the following text editors and applications.
If you are using a word processing program other than one of the ones from above it is still okay. You have a couple of choices. One option is simply to open the file in the text program that you are using. Copy the selection that you want to send to us or "Select All - Copy"; open the application program Simple Text (which is available on every Mac) and paste the contents into the Simple Text document. Save the file, adding the suffix (.txt) to the end of the file name. (e.g. "mytextfile.txt") Another option may be to open and save the file in the word processing program of your choice as a "text only" file. This will strip out any special formatting features which you have laid out for your document but they are not necessary for our purposes. Add the suffix (.txt) to the end of the file name. (e.g. "mytextfile.txt") In general for all text files (other than Microsoft Word documents) add the suffix (.txt) to the end of the file name before sending it to us. For Microsoft Word documents add the suffix (.doc) to the end of the file name.
Can I put my text into an email? One of the simplest methods for sending us the text content for your web pages is to simply paste it into the body of an email message. Remember to include sufficient instructions so that we are clear on your intentions. It is a good idea to configure your email program (if the option is available) to use "quoted-printable" encoding. This will insure that any special characters which you may have included in your text will be properly sent through email. Without it such special characters will be stripped away. This is a limitation of SMPT which is the protocol used for moving mail about the Internet. It is recommended that quoted-printable always be on. |
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