Save for web and Devices!

This is probably one of the most useful functions built into Adobe Photoshop for web developers. One of the biggest issues we will run into when creating content for our websites or mobile devices, is that the assets we create or cultivate are just to big! with this handy function found in the file tab you can keep the quality of the image high but the load times low by dropping the size dramatically. Remember don't just save, save for web and devices.

CSS Button Generator

Building a website can be a time consuming and stressful task. one of the hardest aspects of design for many people is assets. Something as simple as a button can be a hassle when you don't know where to get the assets to design and eventually code your own. This being the internet some industrious individual has come along and given us a simple CSS Button Generator.

CSS Button Generator will create beautiful  simple CSS buttons for you to use on your web pages without the need for any images. These time saving tricks and tools can turn what was once an arduous task into a painless procedure. remember; work hard, but work smart.

Happy coding.

Do's and Dont's of HTML Email Blasts.

Hey everyone, after a week off we are back with more helpful hints.

With the proliferation of email-blast software and websites all over the internet, its becoming increasingly popular for people to turn to these avenues in order to drive sign ups, direct to seasonal events, and really reach out and impress where a regular email would fall short.

One of the best aspects of these sites is their ability to let you craft a beautiful email-blast whether you have skills in HTML or not. Many people though can sometimes be a little to ambitious when diving into the HTML editors as they tend to carry their skill sets in designing websites into crafting their email blasts and they can be frustrated when the results do not match their efforts

Email clients such as Hotmail, Yahoo, Outlook, Gmail, etc., can render your emails in different ways. What looks one way in Yahoo or Outlook 2003 may appear very different in Gmail or Entourage.
The root of this problem is the variance among email clients in the level of support for CSS (Cascading Style Sheets).

There is no real standard for what an email client should support and how it should go about supporting it. Every email client takes its own approach to rendering HTML and CSS – which is why an email that looks fine in one email client can look different in another.

So how can you or your designer ensure an email design remains consistent and looks great across all these different email clients? Here's a helpful list of "Do's and Dont's" on email blasts and HTML.

Make the Most of Registration Email Campaigns

Email campaigns are a great way to get information out to your membership. As as webmaster, these duties may cross over onto your task list. We have some tools available to help make it easier to send out registration emails.

Favicons are Fun!

Have you ever noticed the cool little icon in the browser bar when you visit a website? Those are called favicons and they show up when browsing a website or adding the site as a bookmark in your browser. They give a website a more legitimate and secure feeling, as well as adding a small branding element to the website.

Any website can have a favicon and they're pretty simple to create. You don't even need editing software to create one! There are bunches of websites out there that will generate the file for you. All you need to do is upload an image.

Favicons are images that are created with an .ico file extension. You place this file in the root of your website, add some small code and it will show up in the browser.

The Best Free Software for Webmasters

Designing and maintaining websites can be expensive with all of the software required – photo editing software, graphics software and HTML editors. Below are a few programs you can download for free that will help you get your website up and running. (If it isn’t already!)

CoffeeCup HTML Editor (PC)
This is a nice HTML editor that color codes your code for you, making it easier to see what you’re doing. It also includes a “design” editor, making it easier for non-programmers to edit a webpage.

Smultron HTML Editor (Mac)
The software has syntax highlighting features which include over 90 different languages. You can also create new documents stored in your iCloud account to retrieve from any computer. This is easy to grab right off the Mac App Store and it’s great for developers.

Planning Social Media Promotions for 2014

As you know, AYSO turns 50 next year, and the National Office is busily getting ready for the celebration and all its festivities. 

Have you started thinking of ways to modify your Region's website and social media presence on our Golden Anniversary? Here a couple easy ideas:

Make Your Site Say AYSO!

Branding is important in AYSO so that parents know it’s a large, nationwide organization. We have a great selection of branding items available in the Region Toolkit on AYSO.org. Anything you can add to your site that will help it look professional and maintain AYSO branding, will make parents feel that they have chosen a quality soccer organization for their children.

Logo Usage
It’s a good idea to use the National AYSO logo as much as you can in conjunction with your Region logo. We have a logo frame that has been created to help with this venture. It is simple to download and add your Region logo. It helps parents and families see that your local Region is part of a larger national organization that is committed to youth soccer across the country. The logo frame can be found in the Region Toolkit under the AYSO Logo section.

AYSO Colors
It’s also important that the colors used on your website are the correct AYSO colors, and not an offshoot of those colors. You want to make sure that the red and the blue match the colors in the AYSO traditional logo to maintain consistency throughout your website. Below are the color codes that can be used for the AYSO red and AYSO blue:

	AYSO RED	AYSO BLUE
HEX CODE	#EF3E33	#034EA2
RGB CODE	rgb(239, 62, 51)	rgb(3, 78, 162)

Steal Our Graphics…it’s Okay!

A lot of Regions like the graphics we have on AYSO.org and have asked or requested to use them on their Region websites. Yes, it’s okay for you to use our graphics on your Region website, social media pages, etc. However, we don’t need to re-create them for you. Here’s an easy way to take a graphic/image off AYSO.org and place it on your website.

1. Find the graphic you like and right click on it.
   
2. You now have two options – you can save the image, or link to it.
   1. To save the image, select the “Save Image As” option (or an option similar to it. I’m using Firefox for this demo and all browsers have different but similar options)
   2. To link to it, select the
      1. “View Image Info” option. A window will pop-up with the complete URL for the image. Copy this url.
      2. “View Image” option. It will open the image in either the same window or a new window. Copy the URL out of the address bar in the browser.
      3. “Copy Image Location” option. This does all of the work for you and will copy the URL.