| WebTV users, your numbers are growing! Because I have received e-mail from so many WebTV users recently, I have learned that many -- though not all -- of you are new to the Web and may therefore be unaware of some long-standing customs and rules of Netiquette. This page is for the newcomers. (Those of you who already know the Web may find little here that you do not already know. Please bear in mind that this page is intended to help novices, and there is no intention to insult WebTV users who already know the ropes.) I have added this page to fill the newcomers in on some information that will help you better understand the ways of the Web. Near the bottom of the page, I have provided some links to sites that have more information and services specifically for WebTV users. |
| Setting up your first Web page |
| As a WebTV user, you may want to have your own Web page. This is certainly possible, even though your WebTV has no hard drive to which you could download and save graphics for your page. Many WebTV users get around the lack of a hard drive by simply linking to graphics on other people’s sites. Please don’t do this! Unless you are linking to graphics on a site specifically set up for WebTV users, or you have written to the site owner, asked for permission to link and received it, you will be breaking an unwritten rule observed by all responsible website builders. |
| You may be wondering why you should not link to graphics on someone else’s site, so I’ll explain. Many site owners pay for their web space. (For example, any site with its own domain name, such as graphics-by-celeste.com, is hosted on paid server space.) Along with paid server space comes a bandwidth allotment, which means a limit on how many hits the site can receive before the site owner will be assessed with extra charges for excess bandwidth use. Hits are counted for each HTML page and each graphic viewed — even if a graphic is viewed via a link from another site. Thus, linking to graphics on someone else’s site can result in that site owner having to pay extra charges. |
| Another reason not to link to graphics: a site owner can move or rename graphics at any time, leaving you with a broken graphic icon on your site. Instead of linking, please learn how to use one of the new transloading services that have been set up to help WebTV users. (See links below.) |
| Using graphics in your e-mail |
| One of the features WebTV users enjoy most is decorating their e-mail with graphics they find on the Web. Even more often than with Web pages, WebTV users typically do this by linking to a graphic they like on a site that belongs to someone else. For the same reasons explained above, you should never do this unless you are linking to a site specifically set up for WebTV users or have requested and received permission from the owner of the site to link to his or her graphics. Be prepared for the fact that site owners who are not specifically serving WebTV owners will seldom grant you permission to link. |
| If you find a graphic you want to use in your e-mail, and it’s not on a WebTV site, you should use one of the transloading services (see links) to copy the graphic to your own Web server space. As a courtesy, it is a good idea to write to the person whose graphics you will be using, whether on a Web page or in e-mail, to let them know you are using them. Another courtesy: always provide a credit to the graphic artist on your Web page or in your e-mail. |
| Note: if you have no Web server space because you do not have a Web page, it’s a good idea to limit yourself to choosing graphics for e-mail from the WebTV graphics sites. |
| Using images from Celeste’s Holiday Graphic Collection on your Web page or in e-mail |
| You may use images from Celeste’s Holiday Graphic Collection on your personal Web page or in e-mail only if you use a transloading service and store the images in your own Web server space. Sorry, but I cannot permit linking to any images from Celeste’s Holiday Graphic Collection on your Web page or in e-mail. There are no exceptions to this rule simply because it is unfair to ask someone to pay for excess bandwidth resulting from people who are visiting someone else’s site or reading another’s e-mail. |
| Helpful Links for WebTV Users |
| Karen's Corner...WebTV Support, web page design, tutorials and more! is an excellent source for help with your Web pages, e-mail special effects, and other WebTV issues. Karen also has a very good tutorial on using the transloading services. |
| Helpful Hints for WebTV Users is just what the title says! |
| Draac's Free Gifs 123 is one of many sites catering to WebTV users needing GIFs to link to, and you will also find links to others like it at this site. |
| Star Boulevard Transload Service allows you to transfer copies of files via the Internet to many of the popular Web space providers. |
| Developer Tools at webtv.net has many articles about designing Web sites that work well for WebTV users. |
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