As the owner of a Country Mall and Top Site List, I have been asked several times about what to put in the sign up form when it asks for the URL or the HTML of a banner or other image. I have people that email me feeling totally lost and have no idea what they mean! Actually, it is very easy once you know WHAT they are talking about and HOW to do what they want you to do.
The URL (which stands for "Uniform Resource Locator") of your banner or any image on your site(or any image on the internet for that matter), is the "address" of the image itself. When someone views a page, each image on the page has its own unique URL or address. The URL of the image tells the page viewer's browser where to go to get the image and make it show up on the screen.
To find out the URL of an image, you can right-click it and choose "properties" from the drop down menu. You will get a pop up box that has all of the information about that image in it. You will see the URL of the banner there. It will start with http:// and end will end with .gif or .jpg depending on the image's file type(it might end in .bmp or .png). THAT is what the Top Sites list is asking for when they say "Banner URL".
When you use your banner's URL to make it show up on the Top Site List it is called "Hotlinking" or "Direct Linking". You might see a message on some sites where they ask you NOT to direct link to THEIR images; this is what that means. You can't right click and get the URL to someone else's images and use them that way. It uses up that site's Bandwidth, (which is information that is passed back and forth from your computer and that site). That is stealing. BUT you can do that for your own banners and images on your own site.
Some sites that you exchange links with will ask you to send your HTML code for your banner rather than the banner itself. The reason for this is because when you send them the HTML, it contains your banner's URL, and uses the Bandwidth on your own site, to make it show up. That keeps the site you are listing on from using up too much of their own space placing the banners for you and for others. So if someone wants to exchange banners with you and they ask for the HTML of your banner, you will give them the following code (be sure to change all () to brackets in order for the code to work correctly):
(a href="http://www.YOURSITE.com")("img src="http://www.YOURSITE.com/YOURIMAGENAME.gif")(/a) (**See note below.)
(You may have to change the .gif to .jpg or a different extension depending on the type of image file to which you are linking. This code with make your banner show up on their site and be linked back to you!
Beware though! There are a few pitfalls! If your site is hosted for free, then it may not allow direct linking. You will need to check your host's policies before attempting to direct link to your images.
You will also want to leave those images in your website's files at all times, because if you delete them, then your banner will not show up anywhere you have left your URL or HTML! It will result in broken images and that can get you removed from the Top Site or from the site with which you exchanged banners.
HTML and can an extremely useful tool. Learning the small "basics" can help you in many ways to improve and market your website more effectively!
Kandi Traxel is a WAHM and the owner of Homespun Village Crafter's Marketplace http://www.homespunvillage.com and Misty Valley Botanicals http://www.homespunvillage.com
Chicago limo Skokie ..Below you will find some useful information and comments about... Read More
Stimulus thru Caffiene or Visual Input?It appears that the Mobi... Read More
Tip #1. Do a Google search. Don't be to general... Read More
Time is money. And when you constantly have to divide... Read More
CCNAs and CCNA candidates hear it all the time: ???Get... Read More
There are plenty of articles out there about how to... Read More
Tip #1 -- Rebates: A rebate is not always a... Read More
Tech support tells me to type 'regedt32' as opposed to... Read More
In the 1950's and 1960's Polaroid's instant cameras were all... Read More
That desk in front of you and everything else around... Read More
It's hard enough as it is these days to get... Read More
With renting methods such as online DVD rental and pay-per-view,... Read More
The Internet is an awesome tool, but be careful and... Read More
With their solid-state technology, compact size, and abundant memory, portable... Read More
After another security hole recently surfaced in Microsoft's Windows operating... Read More
Your first step in removing dangerous infections from your computer... Read More
First things first, what is Firefox? Well, it's a browser.... Read More
Most people download and save so much information on their... Read More
IntroOne of the big advantages of PCs over earlier types... Read More
Freezing is also known as crashing or hanging. It's frustrating.... Read More
1. Empty the Temp directory regularly. To do this, make... Read More
Feeling overwhelmed in selecting a new TV? With all the... Read More
If you're a computer expert, you'll probably already know about... Read More
Do you know how many fonts are currently installed on... Read More
On 21 August 2003 Symantec Security Response upgraded the W32.SOBIG.F... Read More
limo O'Hare Bonfield ..Having two operating systems is not as difficult as many... Read More
Do you remember the old saw about how computers would... Read More
Tip #1. Do a Google search. Don't be to general... Read More
How long do you think DVDs have around? 20 years?... Read More
Feeling overwhelmed in selecting a new TV? With all the... Read More
So I'll start from the very beginning.One day I was... Read More
For those seeking to buy their first flat panel TV... Read More
Apache, MysQL and PHP for Windows could be a nice... Read More
You probably heard of the new Firefox browser version 1.0... Read More
Music lovers have been carrying around radios and other bulky... Read More
Are you frustrated with your PC?Is it feeling sluggish or... Read More
I recently got an e-mail asking about virtual memory. The... Read More
Millions have enjoyed recorded music since 1877 when Thomas Edison... Read More
Good Morning Mr. Sampson. Please type in you Personal Identification... Read More
With the bewildering number of digital cameras on the market,... Read More
Computer related terminology could sometimes be daunting to newcomers. These... Read More
As the Web grows more crowded and just plain "noisy"... Read More
Those small USB drives have so many names, pocket drives,... Read More
1. Let your PC boot up completely before opening any... Read More
In the years of the dot com boom and bust,... Read More
Each of the items in the checklist below is part... Read More
If you're like me, you occasionally find the ubiquitous mouse... Read More
Cameras: still known for taking pictures but assumed as digital... Read More
All over the world, people carry with them walkmans and... Read More
There have been some questions on anti-skip protection on mp3... Read More
Personal Technology |