|
|
|||
|
Webring Welcome Pages This page explains the concept of the WebRing Welcome page. It also explains how I developed them and how I now use them. Finally, it links to a few other sites that also use this concept, some of which adapted the concept from me. What is a webring welcome page? A webring welcome page is a special page created for a webring. It is the page the webring points to for my site. All webring visitors to my site, enter through a webring welcome page.
Why does this site use webring welcome pages? When I began joining webrings, I put the Webring Controls on the main (root) page of my site. I also put graphics for all the organizations I belong to and the causes I advocate. The result was a main (root) page that was cluttered to the point of distraction, that took an hour and a half to load and wasn't useful. So . . . I moved the membership and advocacy information to it's own dedicated page and moved the webrings to their own dedicated page. For each webring, I included the controls and links to my site specific to that particular webring. This worked very well while I was a member of just a few webrings. But eventually the webrings page grew too large and too complex. It took forever to load. After it loaded, it was massive, cumbersome and frequently misunderstood. Clearly, this was not an appropriate way to welcome webring visitors. In fact, several visitors commented on the bulk and complexity and suggested an alternative. The latest technique is to take each webring's information (both the controls and the webring specific site links) and places them on a page unique to the webring. The result is that each webring visitor sees information specific for and targeted to that webring. And, they see it quickly. Doesn't this technique isolate the Webring Controls? Doesn't it make it easy to get into the site and difficult to get out? One of the purposes of a webring is to permit site visitors to find similar sites. One of the concerns of webring ringmasters is placement of the webring controls. A site that makes it easy to get in but difficult to find the controls again to get out defeats the purpose of a webring. And a site that makes it difficult to find the Webring Controls in the first place, also defeats the purpose of a webring. This site respects all of these concerns and the use of dedicated webring welcome pages actually helps this process. First, the Webring Controls appear on more than one page:
Second, the webring is listed (without graphics or controls) on my Webrings Page. This Webrings Page:
Did the Yahoo! WebRing assimilation change anything? Absolutely. Before the Yahoo! assimilation of the webring system, each webring would have its own custom HTML navigation code. The new Yahoo! WebRing system provides a standard navbar, assembled into navbar stacks. I have a strong opposition to these changes (see my Wazillion Navbars Project). While I do not attempt the effort at creating a unique webring welcome page for webrings using a navbar, I still create a webring welcome page for all non-navbar webrings. Non-navbar webrings include all the webrings hosted at systems other than the WebRing.com system. This includes systems like RingSurf, Ringlink and Bravenet. Are there any other features used to improve navigation? Yes. All of the special dedicated links off of a webring welcome page are set to launch new windows. For the visitor to my site that has entered through a webring, this keeps the webring welcome page available without the need to use the "Back" button. It makes it easy to see my site and also easy to return to the webring. How do I get to the webring welcome page for a specific webring? First, click on the "Webrings" navigation button on the upper left of every page or click on the "Webrings" navigation text at the bottom of every page. This will take you to the Webrings Page. Second, find the webring you are interested in. Third, click on the individual webring you are interested in. This will take you to the welcome page for that webring. (Webrings in the WebRing.com system use the JavaScript delivered navbar and do not have individual webring welcome pages. Instead they have welcome pages for groups of webrings. They are not in this list but are listed separately.) How do I find the other webrings for this site? Click on the "Webrings" navigation button on the upper left of every page or click on the "Webrings" navigation text at the bottom of every page. This will take you to the Webrings Page. This page shows every webring welcome page for every webring for this site. It also shows all the Yahoo! WebRing navbar stacks for my site. Doesn't this mean that Webring Controls are on more than one page? Absolutely! This site believes that navigation should be "natural". Sometimes this means that navigation aids must appear in more than one place. The Webring Controls appear on the welcome page and on the All Webrings Page. They sometimes also appear on dedicated pages within the site. For example, my MIA pages (e.g., MIA1) contain the Webring Controls for the MIA Webring. Does the site do anything else to help a visitor find the webrings? Yes, again. For example, see the Memberships Page. The entries for Mensa and for the SOS Candles Across America Campaign both link to their related webring information. Are any other sites using webring welcome pages? Yes. I know of at least two.
If you have a site and would like to use this technique, we would be happy to assist you. Just ask. We would appreciate acknowledgement for the concept. The Webring Controls on this site seem to have more options than the controls on other sites. Why is that? Most ringmasters do not implement all available controls in their standard Webring Control Panel. However, most ringmasters permit members to make adaptations in the controls. For those webrings whose ringmasters permit adaptations, I use my version of controls for the webring welcome page and also for the other pages on my site containing the controls. For those webrings whose ringmasters do not permit adaptations, I use their version of controls for the webring welcome page and use my version of controls for the other pages on my site containing the controls. For more information on this, see my Standard Controls page.
Webrings: General Information
Webring Sections and Subsections The Webring Section is a large section of my website. I have divided it into four major "subsections".
Each "subsection" has it's own special "logo". As you travel in the various subsections you will find, near the bottom of each page, links to pages within that subsection and also links to the other subsections. To go to any subsection, just click on the "logo" or on the text link for that subsection.
The WebRing.com System This subsection includes specific information about the WebRing.com system. While not the only webring system on the net, it is the best known and the most used. I own many webrings in this system and belong to many webrings in this system. (I also own and belong to many webrings in other systems as well.) Click here or on the graphic.
The Wazillion Navbars Project This subsection is a historical section about the Yahoo! WebRing system. It was begun during the early days of problems with the Yahoo! WebRing system in September 2000. It ended when the Yahoo! WebRing system spun off into the independent WebRing.com system in October 2001. I maintain it for the historical record. Click here or on the graphic.
Webrings I Own and Belong To This subsection shows all the webrings I own and links to all the webrings to which I belong. This includes webrings in Ringlink, RingSurf, Bravenet and the WebRing.com system as well. If you are looking to join one of my webrings, this is a good place to start. If you wonder about the webrings I belong to, this is the place to go. Click here or on the graphic.
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Rachellenet
19.Jan
|
This page created: before Wed, 16.Aug.2000
Last updated: |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
||
|
|
|
|
|
|