Frequently asked questions
How much does a website cost?
Please see this
page for details.
What is the difference between Web Design and Web
Development?
These terms are loose but usually "web design" means user
interface design and graphic design of the website, whereas "web
development" refers to the programming (markup, coding and database
work) involved in making the design and the associated application
work.
What is CSS?
It's the W3C recommended way to code the layout and graphical
look and feel of a website, to enable maximum accessiblity to the
widest possible range of users. In other words, HTML should be used
only for content, and CSS should be placed in a separate (optional)
file and specify the presentation and layout of the HTML. There are
three good reasons for separating presentation from content.
- It enables all users, (including blind users employing
screen readers to digest your web page), to fully understand the
content of your website.
- It greatly enhances your website's readability by search
engines, meaning you appear more often in search results by
your potential customers. This is because the search engines index
HTML not CSS.
- Without CSS, changes to the layout, style or presentation of a
website become inconvenient, difficult or downright impossible
without complete reworking. With CSS you can change all that on a
whim, and even have more than one layout available for your site
for visitors to choose from! Conversely, changes to content also
become much easier because content isn't mixed up with a whole lot
of presentation code.
What is Javascript?
Javascript can be embedded into web pages to achieve functions
on the client side (the user's computer) that can't be
done with html alone. For example pop up windows, form validation
and special effects.
It's nice because it's client side which means its instant and
your visitors don't have to wait for a trip to the server.
On the downside, a small proportion of web users have javascript
turned off on their browsers, so it should never be used for
essential content or functions.
Does Zeta comply with Web Standards?
Zeta Tech is committed to producing websites that comply with
the recommendations of the World Wide
Web Consortium. See also What is
CSS? At all times, we endeavour to produce valid code (code
which would pass an automated test). Sometimes, in order to
achieve certain design requirements across all browsers, it's
necessary to employ work arounds that are not strictly
"valid". However we take a pragmatic approach here and try to
strike a balance between accessibility, usability, design and code
validity.
Can Zeta Tech organise domain registration?
Yes, if required. See more information here.
Can Zeta Tech organise hosting?
Yes. We use trusted
Australian hosting providers who provide quality and reliable
service at very competitive prices. However if you have a preferred
hosting provider in mind please let us know.
What about Search Engine
Optimisation?
"SEO" refers to the methods used for improving the ranking of
websites in the major search engines. Zeta Tech is in favour of
"White Hat", or legitimate techniques, as recommended by the major
search engines and by the World Wide Web Consortium.
These techniques are incorporated into all of our websites by
design. This means that all you have to do is make sure that your
site is full of relevant content, and contains instances of the
search terms you want to be found by. As far as keywords and
key phrases go, all content is relevant, but page titles &
headings are especially important. In addition, site owners
can help improve their own ranking by building a community of
incoming links to their website from other quality relevant
sites. The use of social media (facebook and twitter among
others) is also very powerful.
Zeta Tech advises against paying large amounts of money to
consultants making search engine guarantees, especially if these
consultants have cold called you.
If you are considering paying an Adwords consultant, then know
this: Adwords can be done without an agency, but you need
time. You should atleast take the time to find out what it's
about before paying a lot of money: Here is a good resource
http://google.com.au/adwords/classroom
Get to know how the system works, what is possible & what's
not. Then if you decide to go with an agency, do your
research first - google "reputable adwords agency australia" or
similar and spend a few hours looking up reviews etc.
What about testing and after sales service?
Formal deployment occurs after user acceptance testing. This
just means that you the customer will spend some time ensuring that
the website meets your expectations before you accept it. Any
remaining support issues will be dealt with at no cost.
Does Zeta provide maintenance contracts?
We encourage you to contract us to implement some degree of
content management which will enable you to update your own website
and keep it looking fresh. In our opinion this is the preferred way
to "maintain" a website. However you will probably still want to
make changes to the content or design of your website that will
fall outside your capability and we can quote you on such
changes.
We can also provide maintenance contracts if that is
appropriate.