Web Design | Graphics Several software packages are available for enhanced graphics. However, it takes a long time for these skills to be developed and the software is costly. We will cover the popular tools for the High, Middle and Low end. High End Tools The middle of the Pack Low End Tools Graphic Tools The High End We recommend certain packages for web creation and design. If you are serious about creating your own graphics; Adobe Photoshop is a must. You will also want a good vector illustration program such as Macromedia FreeHand, or Adobe Illustrator. Also consider purchasing Macromedia Fireworks or Adobe ImageReady to compress your graphics. Adobe Photoshop Resources Adobe Photoshop Web Reference National Association of Photoshop Proffesionals Planet Photoshop Ultimate Photoshop Photoshop In Depth Photoshop Books Adobe Photoshop 3rd Party Plug-ins Macromedia FreeHand Resources and reviews FreeHand Usenet Group DaveCentral - Macromedia FreeHand DaveCentral - Macromedia FreeHand - Review PC Magazine- First Looks - FreeHand 9.0 - Review FreeHand Tutorial Adobe Illustrator Adobe Illustrator Talk Adobe Illustrator Tips Macromedia Fireworks Macromedia Fireworks Tips Macromedia Fireworks Resouces Media Mall - Tools that rule - Fireworks The middle of the pack... There are several middle of the road applications available for general graphic use. Corel Draw and Deneba Canvas are recommended. Both of these programs, while not as sophisticated or powerful as the high end tools, contain both bitmap and vector illustration tools sparing you the cost of acquiring two separate tools (bitmaps are pixel based applications akin to MS paint, vector graphics allow you to manipulate lines and points; both are necessary for serious graphic creation). Both applications contain many different features and they are akin to the swiss army knife for graphic design. PC World.com CorelDraw 9.0 - Review ZDNET Deneba Canvas - Review Low End Tools There are several low end graphic tools available that should meet the needs of a casual graphic artist. Some of them include Microsoft's PictureIt! PhotoDraw 2000, and Adobe PhotoDeluxe. They all will allow you to do some basic graphics without much work. If you only want to do basic editing on a few files, one of these programs should suffice. A word of caution however, you will run into a ceiling sooner or later if you try to do to much. I recommend purchasing a more industrial strength application for your graphic needs. (Note: Microsoft's PhotoDraw 2000 is almost ready to compete with mid-level applications, but after test driving it, I found too many bugs to recommend it for anything other than basic editing). Your other option is to go to the Clip-Art section of this site. It has a lot of pre-created artwork for you to use.   Are there any standards for web page design? There are certain general web style guides that you might want to employ while designing your site. You might also want to consider reading up on the proper use of meta tags to increase your search capability.