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Favicon Information
A favicon is NOT a simple
bitmap image, as some people mistakenly believe. A favicon
is actually a group of images, each with a different color
depth, packaged into one file in the ".ico" icon format.
Your computer can read this format and select the best image
from it that it can support, based on your monitor settings.
A favicon is a 16 by 16-pixel image that preferably
includes image variations in the following color depths:
- Windows® XP
colors with alpha channel transparency. This is a
32-bit-per-pixel image with 24-bit color that allows
16.8 million colors and 8 bits of smooth transparency to
create transparent areas in addition to smooth borders
and shades.
- 256 indexed colors (8
bits per pixel).
- 16 colors (4 bits per
pixel).
The FAQs page will present
more favicon technical information.
If you have an existing logo,
you may wish to create a favicon from that. Or you may
decide to design a favicon that reflects the look and feel
of your web site, or imparts one of your core marketing
messages. Another option is to choose something simple and
eye-catching. Let's examine a few favicons and see why
they were chosen.
Click to visit this
site
This favicon is a miniature
version of their logo. They make gorgeous hand-carved doors
for log homes, cabins, and cedar homes.
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site
They invented a clever new
way to safeguard homes from burglars that is inexpensive,
easy to use, and even more effective than elaborate security
systems. Since "stop" is a central element in their name and
logo, they wanted a favicon that immediately conveys this
concept.
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site
The GarageScapes system is an
innovative way to quickly and easily organize garages and
other storage areas. The heart of their system is slatwall,
so they chose to have a favicon representing that. The
favicon shown looks just like a miniature piece of gray
slatwall. If you look at the slatwall on their site, you
will appreciate how this favicon accurately depicts the
appearance of real slatwall.
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www.ERbook.net is an extensive
site by an ER doctor that covers everything from unusual
true ER stories to discussions about the specialty of
emergency medicine, including a wealth of information and
tips for students interested in medical careers (or just
enhancing their academic ability for other endeavors).
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www.ER-doctor.com is Dr. Pezzi's latest ER site, onto
which he will post all new topics in its question and answer
pages.
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this site
This site is by Dr. Pezzi, a
physician who graduated in the top 1% of his class in
medical school. After developing a problem that experts in
this field could not solve, he realized how little the
experts truly knew. He then spent years learning about this
subject by reading extensively and conducting research,
thereby acquiring an extensive knowledge of this specialty that
is evident in his web site and books. Dr. Pezzi wanted a
favicon that was bold and really drew attention.
Click to visit
this site Another
site by Dr. Pezzi. The focus of this one is his book, How
to Lose Weight Without Dieting, Drugs, Herbs, Exercise, or
Surgery. That may seem to be impossible and too good to
be true, but it works — and Dr. Pezzi guarantees it. The
favicon for this site shows a measuring tape, which people
often associate with weight loss and slimming.
Click to visit
this site Creating
a good personal profile essay and headline for online dating
can be difficult. MyProfileWriter allows you to create them
without typing, just by clicking. This is reflected in the
site's favicon, which represents a checkbox.
Click to visit
this site You
must see ContactMeFree if you participate in online
dating. If you don't think so, take this short quiz: TRUE OR
FALSE? Can you obtain the full potential of a personals site
by paying for a membership?
The answer is FALSE. Surprised?
Join the crowd. Just about everyone fails to appreciate the
limitations of a paid membership — and you're even more
restricted if you have a profile but don't pay for a
membership. Frankly, it's no wonder why so many people are
disappointed by the results they obtain. Can you do anything
to overcome these limitations? Yes. Find out how on
www.contactmefree.com
— and it won't cost you a penny.
Click to visit
this site The
beautiful woman syndrome will affect most men who pursue
gorgeous women. However, most men won't recognize the
symptoms of the beautiful woman syndrome, nor will they know
how to effectively deal with it. Do you? Find out on
www.bwsyndrome.com.
Click to visit
this site
MySpamSponge is a new way to communicate via the Internet
that's free, easy to use, protects your privacy, and blocks
all spam but never any legitimate message.
Click to visit
this site This site
shows a shed that is a replica of a lighthouse.
Click to visit
this site This free
site allows you to create, rearrange, and analyze meta tag
keyword lists by dragging and dropping to improve search
engine rankings for your web site or blog.
These examples should give you
an idea of how favicons are chosen.
You can make a favicon by
purchasing one of the favicon-generating programs available,
or I can make a favicon for you. Unless you don't mind
having an amateurish-looking favicon, I don't recommend that
you try to make a favicon using one of the free online
favicon generators. I spent a few hours searching for them
on the Internet because I never want to spend money unless
it is absolutely necessary. I found a few that were
"temporarily disabled" (and, months later, they're still
disabled), then finally found one that worked — well, sort
of. I had to wait a few weeks to receive the favicon by
e-mail (I suppose they give expeditious service only to
paying customers), and the favicon had only 4-bit color
depth and looked crude and obviously nonprofessional. I
immediately thought of the saying, "You get what you pay
for." I then realized
that I would need to buy a program to generate favicons, so
I spent what initially seemed to be an exorbitant amount of
money for a program that did nothing but make favicons and
other icons. I spent a day learning to use the program, and
then increased in proficiency as I subsequently worked on a
variety of favicons. If
you hire someone to make a favicon for you:
- First ascertain that
they have artistic ability and are technologically
proficient. I found some supposed experts espousing
favicon generation using a format that would make their
favicons NOT visible on computers with certain Windows
operating systems. Not very expert . . . .
- Second, see if their
prices are reasonable. My fees are less than what my
competitors charge, and I don't charge extra for speedy
service. For example, one of my competitors charges $75
for a favicon delivered in three to four business days,
and he charges $125 to deliver it the next business day
(which could be three days if you order it on a Friday).
I work 365 days per year, and can almost always deliver
your favicon within 24 hours of when I receive your
order, including weekends and holidays.
- Third, ask yourself if
the pricing schedule is fair. Every competitor that I
know of has one price (except for possibly tacking on
more for "next business day" favicon delivery). I don't
think that is fair because they might create a favicon
from scratch, or they could just convert an image or
logo that you supply to them. Converting an existing
image/logo is much easier than developing a favicon from
scratch, so they should charge less for that service —
but they don't.
The following table
compares my prices and services to those of my two primary
competitors:
|
|
www.make-a-favicon.com |
Competitor A |
Competitor B |
|
Price to make a
favicon from your existing image |
$25 |
$75 |
$45 |
|
Price to make a
favicon from scratch |
$40 |
$75 |
$45 |
|
Additional charge
for delivery within 48 hours (not including
weekends) |
0 |
Not available |
$55 ($100 total) |
|
Additional charge
for next-business-day delivery |
0 |
$50 ($125 total) |
Not available |
|
Additional charge
for next-day delivery (ANY day) |
0 |
Not available |
Not available |
|
Additional charge
for generating a 32 by 32-pixel favicon in
addition to a 16 by 16-pixel favicon |
0 |
0 |
? (not specified) |
|
Additional charge
for one set of revisions, if needed |
0 |
0 |
? (not specified) |
|
Additional charge
for generating a transparent background
(see "STOP sign"
comparison on next page) |
0 |
Not available |
? (not specified) |
|
Favicon color depths supplied |
www.make-a-favicon.com |
Competitor A |
Competitor B |
|
Windows® XP colors
with alpha channel transparency (32 bits per
pixel; 16.8 million colors) |
Yes |
No |
? (not specified) |
|
256 indexed colors
(8 bits per pixel). |
Yes |
Yes |
? (not specified) |
|
16 colors (4 bits
per pixel). |
Yes |
No |
? (not specified) |
|
