Once Sony, Nintendo and Sega made a solid presence online, thousands of gamers began to dedicate their lives to creating the ultimate fan site in support of their favorite console. Additionally, some enthusiasts even created a personal websites dedicated to their favorite game titles including Tekken, Super Mario Bros. and (believe it or not) Mortal Kombat, recognized as being the most popular games of that time.

Desperately wanting to follow in the footsteps of my friends (and their friends, and so forth), I set out on a journey to create the ultimate fan site. I loaded up AOL's ill-fated Personal Publisher, expecting to be able to achieve my goals and make a page that rivaled GameSpot in a matter of minutes. After logging in and perusing the interface provided with the site, I quickly realized how naive and foolish I was to think I could create anything "in a matter of minutes" using HTML.

HTML" I said to myself. "What's that?"

Learning the nuances of HTML

HTML is the web programming code that started it all. Although a lot simpler than programming a video game, knowing absolutely nothing about HTML made me feel as if I was trying to develop the next Legend of Zelda game. I had so many ideas kicking around in my head, just waiting to get out, but no way to properly execute them.

So I decided to give HTML a try. After all, if ChuckLuvsPSX can do it, why can't I? He was only 12. But he also had months, if not years of experience with HTML that I didn't have, as well as a stack of books telling him exactly what to do incase he forgot. Still, I never gave up. I fought long and hard, working my butt off just to master the simple "Open In a New Browser" link code. Again, at the time, this was all very new to me; I had no prior experience with programming of any kind.

Finally, after more than a year of hard work (and a lot of trial-and-error), I opened my own fan site. It had links, clickable images (with an ugly blue line around them), maybe one or two animated .gif files and...that's about it. See, the thing is, I had spent so much time trying to perfect my layout and make sure that everything looked great, that I never had time to create any actual content. My site, although bright and colorful, was a total failure, not to mention a total waste of time.

Discovering a new solution

If only I had had Boomerang Software's Web Page Construction Kit 7.0 Deluxe. What is the Web Page Construction Kit, you ask? A PC software utility that allows you to create awesome, professional-looking Web sites with frames, tables, navigation bars and more graphics than you can count, without the use of programming!

The construction kit's main utility is the Internet Design Shop, essentially the bread and butter of this program. Most people like America Online because of its point-and-click interface, which makes it easy for anyone to jump in and start surfing the Web. With the the Internet Design Shop, the procees is just as easy; you point, click, and drag the whole time (without that annoying lag). Everything moves very smoothly and is so simplistic, that it's likely your Grandmother could make a fan site for The Rat Pack with a little effort.

Ease and convenience...

To give you an idea of just how easy it is, the very first thing I did when I opened the IDS was click the Vertical Frames button. The page instantly split into two vertical frames. I clicked on the left vertical frame and pressed the Horizontal Frame button and that frame split into two, making three frames. This may not sound like that big of a deal to anyone who isn't familiar with HTML, but the complex programming needed to complete these frames would take you several minutes at best, assuming you know what you're doing. With the Internet Design Shop, it only took me less than a second to add each frame!

Perhaps, you'd like to have a few nice, flashy images placed at the top or on the side of your page that link your visitors to each section. With the Navigation Bar Generator, that's not a problem. The utility is very easy to use and extremely convenient. All it takes is a few clicks and it's done; ready and waiting for you to complete the rest your page so that users can start navigating.

Features

The Web Page Construction Kit includes a variety of graphics, buttons and animations that can easily be integrated into your site within a matter of seconds. Everything from arrows, "Under Construction" signs, question marks, spiders, dragons; even Visa and MasterCard images, among many, many others (ten thousand in all!) To add graphics to your site, click the Image button in the Internet Design Shop, select the picture you wish to display on your page and confirm by clicking "OK". If the Contruction Kit's plethora of images aren't enough, you can select the Import command and add a picture stored on your hard drive, floppy disk or any other storage device you may have. On another note, text can be added using the same mehthod, while RTF, WRI, TXT and DOC standard formats are also supported, ensuring compatibility with your files.

Suppose after you added a picture to one page, decided that you wanted it to be placed on a different area of the site instead? Or perhaps you wanted to create a copy of that animated Nintendo .gif file your friend sent you to feature on multiple areas on your site? The process is simple. You can make a quick and easy copy of any image by holding down the left mouse button and highlighting the picture just as you would do with a set of text. Once the image is highlighted, hit Control-C to copy and Control-V to paste it in the designated area. This copy method can also be used when working with tables, text, links, an so forth; try doing that with just HTML!

If you want to edit one of the existing images or create your own, the WPCK 7.0 Deluxe also comes packed with MGI PhotoSuite SE - a photo editing program. You can change the brightness of your photo, making it lighter or darker; change the picture's style by adding oil paint, cartoon, emboss, splatter and other cool effects; flip the image upside down, turn it sidewise or mirror it; zoom in or out; etc., all of the standard photo editing features are in PhotoSuite. However, PhotoSuite does include a few unique features that set it apart from Paint Shop Pro -- the ability to create sports cards, magazine covers, calendars, posters and greeting cards with your picture on them! Now you can make yourself look like a baseball star and beg the developers of MLB 2003 to put you in the game. Or, even create a magazine with Kirby on the cover for the "I Love Marshmallows" section of your page. The possibilities are endless, the choice is up to you.

Being able to publish your work is a necessity, and if your site isn't promoted, then it won't get any visitors. With the construction kit, all your needs are covered. When you're finished creating the site of your dreams, install Boomerang Software's BoomFTP and import your site to the server you're using and you're good to go. As an additional tool to help promote your site, use the Site Promoter in order to get your website listed on several search engines.

In addition, the WPCK includes SST - an encryption, secure communication program. With it, you can talk to your colleagues, discuss business plans and begin your quest for world domination, without having to worry about HackerBoy62 breathing down your neck. Or you can chat with your best bud about the possibilities of a site that covers video games, pizza and Britney Spears, and know that no one is secretly watching and planning to beat you to the punch.

One major gripe I have about using the Web Page Construction Kit is the user manual, it's very disappointing. Grammar mistakes can be overlooked, however, the overall quality of the guide cannot. While detailed, colored images are used on the back of the box, blurry, black/white images are featured in the user guide. They're extremely hard to see and barely legible. I honestly couldn't tell the difference between most of the buttons in the guide without staring at them for a while. If you're a person who has bought this product with absolutely no prior experience with developing a Web page, you'd be better off experimenting than making attempts to read the manual, as it will likely confuse you more than anything else.

Other than that, the Web Page Construction Kit 7.0 Deluxe is excellent. It's fast, efficient and more effective than pure HTML ever was. You'll be amazed at how fast and easy it is to create a website. if your friends start begging you to design their sites for them, tell 'em to go out and buy their own Web Page Construction Kit!

Rating: A
Functionality: 9/10
Performance: 9/10

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··· CasaDeJoey

Past Columns:
 
· 07-26-01 · Game Wars: The Return of the Xbox