Web Letter Links: Creating Backgrounds and Colors

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Web Letter Links: Creating Backgrounds and Colors

With each issue we provide the links we've found most helpful for specific topics. This issue we provide links to creating backgrounds and colors. Consider these primarily a Netscape trick, although a few other browsers do support them.

Using backgrounds and colors allows you to replace the standard backdrop of the browser. Backgrounds are graphic files you create, which are tiled across the screen. They should be extremely small, since they will be the first thing that loads and take time. Use them with caution with this command in the standard <BODY> markup:

Background colors can also be changed. Using RGB codes (called Hexadecimal code), you pick the color you want out of the 256 available. The advantage is that these load much quicker than a graphic backdrop; the drawback is in finding the right combination of colors to show on the screen. When changing the background color, consider that you must also change the text (for body text), link (for non-visited links), and vlink (for visited links) colors. Experiment and test colors before using them. Be careful of a background graphic that has too much texture, making text tough to read. Most of all, use colors with caution. While they may create a special look, they will look different depending on the monitor showing them and the system's color palette. Here's some sample code, which can also be used with a background graphic instead of a background color:

Text is light-gray on a black background color, links are yellow at first, and flashing blue-green when activated (VLINK). Don't worry, visit these sites and you'll find easy ways to work the code.

Backgrounds and Colors Resources

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ColorEditor for HTML:

http://www.infocom.net/~bbs/cgi-bin/colorEditor.cgi

This site uses CGI to allow you to test colors online. Check out your background color, or put in your own background, and test it with different colors for your text, linked text, visited link text, and active link text, all in one spot! Gives you the code of your choices so you can put your own Web page up with the colors you have tested.

The Color Specifier for Netscape 1.1

http://www.interport.net/~giant/COLOR/hype_color.html

Another site which provides code and samples of what background colors will look like in Netscape.

RBG Hex Triplet Color Chart:

http://www.phoenix.net/~jacobson/rgb.html

Excellent resource; shows colors and code to create those colors on one page.

Netscaped Backgrounds, Colored Text, Etc.:

http://www.vms.utexas.edu/~mhutch/aboutpg.html

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