But you don't want to waste time making the same mistakes as everyone else when you could be working. You want to make a good web page now. And that's why you're reading web design articles. Good thinking. You see, there are a lot of us who have already made all the newbie mistakes and have lived to tell the tale. So, you get a head start, with a library full of tips, tricks, and rules of thumb to help to thrust you into the big leagues. So what are you waiting for? Let's design some graphics.

The best way to learn the graphic arts is by example. So take a bit of time to surf around at sites that you think look good. Take a long glance at their graphics, and see how the layout flows. Anyone can tell you what's good and what isn't, but it takes a bit more studying to make something else good. A site that I like the graphics on is Salon, so let's contrast that with something the uneducated artist would make.

Features Crisp, Clean Simple, no distracting qualities Anti-Aliased Nice typeface Elegant	Features Confusing Dark, smeary Blurred instead of anti-aliased Horrible gradient and font Almost Illegible

And there you have, in a simple chart, the dos and don'ts of graphics. Here are some more, a bit expanded upon:
Do use interesting typefaces. There are many available for free or a small fee on the web. Try the Chankstore or Adobe first.
Don't overuse features like drop shadows, blurring, and gradients. Although they may work for some graphics, you never want to abuse them to the point of ruining your picture.

So there you have it. You're already quite a few steps ahead of the competition. Now go out there and practice, practice, practice. The more you do, the more you discover, and the better your page looks.