visiblesoul auction template tutorial #5
images
< previous tutorial | tutorials home | next tutorial >
The <img> tag
Images are important. Good, clear images are probably the most important part of an eBay auction description. You don't have to know any html in order to use eBay's "ipix" image hosting but, just to be safe, it's a good idea to also host your own images in case ipix goes down during an auction. You will also find that using your own hosting service will save you a considerable amount of money if you use multiple images for your auctions. I use the one free ipix image as a backup for my own hosted images.
File size: Keep in mind that many potential customers are using a dial-up modem to view your auction. Try to keep your images under 50K each and don't go crazy with unnecessary images such as multiple background images and animated gifs. If your page doesn't load in a few seconds most web surfers will hit the back button and surf on to your competitor's auction.
Image resolution: It is also important to keep in mind that everyone isn't using the same computer screen resolution as you use. Depending on how you combine your images and text you can inadvertently create a horizontal scrollbar which makes your auctions difficult to view. A good rule of thumb is to create pages that will display properly at 600x800 resolution. I usually make my auction images no larger than 500 pixels wide.
Image hosting: Before you can post images on the web you will need a place to host your images. There are numerous free image hosting services but you can purchase full website hosting packages very inexpensively. Your ISP may even include web space with your account. Make sure that the image host you choose allows "hotlinking" (using images hosted on one site to display on another site) or "remote linking" or you will not be able to use them for eBay auctions. Check out my image hosts links on my html & photo links page.
Now for the easy part. To post an image anywhere on the web simply use this html syntax. Put the URL for your image in place of "your_image_URL_goes_here". Note that the img tag is one of the few html tags that does not have a closing tag.
Use this html synax:
<img src="your_image_URL_goes_here">
Example - I typed this:
<img src="http://www.visiblesoul.net/ebay/tutorials/images/logo.jpg">
And it looks like this:
Attributes for the <img> tag
- src: The "src" attribute specifies the source of your image which is the URL (web address) of the image. Without this attribute no image will be displayed.
- height: The "height" attribute specifies the height of your image in pixels.
- width: The "width" attribute specifies the width of your image in pixels.
Specifying the height and width of your images tells the browser how large the images are even before they load and reserves the spaces for them. It isn't really necessary to specify height and width for images but doing so keeps the page from shifting around allowing people to read your text while the images are downloading.
- align: The "align" attribute determines how text will align in relation to your image. Images may be aligned left, right, top, or bottom.
align="left"
This image is aligned left. The image is aligned to the left of the text.
align="right"
align="top"
align="bottom"
- alt: The "alt" attribute specifies a text description of your image which is displayed when an image does not download properly. Alt text is also important to people using text-only browsers. If you are using Internet Explorer you can see the alt text of images (if there is any) by hovering the mouse cursor over the image. A little alt text box will pop up.
Example Auction Template:
This is an example of an auction template using the <h3>, <h4>, <p>, <font> and the <ol> <ul>, <li> and <img> tags.
My Widget
Item Description:
You ARE bidding on my very lame widget. We both know that you don't need this widget but, if there is anything to this power of suggestion I keep hearing so much about then you will really want this widget anyway. Widget is in mint condition with a few cracks in the case. Mint widget is in non-working order. This widget is from my personal collection which, although it doesn't actually mean anything, will probably give you the impression that I actually took care of the dang thing. I'm glad to get rid of this piece of junk. Please email me if you want me to end this auction early and sell it to you "off-eBay". After I get your money I can re-list it and sell it again knowing that eBay will just tell you that you screwed up and they can't help you. I will include, as a free gift, another mint condition broken widget. This widget is a already a rip-off at my starting price but it is possibly a federal crime to sell it at my "Buy It Now" Price. Happy Bidding!
Payment Options:
- Wire Transfers to my Caribbean bank account.
- Cash in small unmarked US bills.
Shipping:
- Shipping cost: $32.00
- Shipping weight: 12oz.
- Carrier: USPS Lowest-Class Parcel Post
Widgets are securely packaged in recycled pizza boxes and padded with newspapers that I get out of the neighbors' recycle bins. Please do not ask me to combine shipping on multiple widgets. My time is very valuable and I resent wasting it packing and shipping your widget in the first place so you're lucky that I am willing to ship it to you at all. Also masking tape is not free and I should be reimbursed for all the days I have to wake up early to dip into the neighbors' recycling bins before they wake up. Please allow 3 weeks for me to actually ship and 6 weeks for transit.
Feedback:
I love leaving negative feedback. Push me and see what happens chump. I buy and sell newbies like you every day. I didn't get to be a powerseller by making nicey-nice with losers like you. Shoot, I'll probably neg you even if you leave me a positive so let's see what you've got!
Here is how I made the above example:
My Widget
Item Description:
You ARE bidding on my very lame widget. We both know that you don't need this widget but, if there is anything to this power of suggestion I keep hearing so much about then you will really want this widget anyway. Widget is in mint condition with a few cracks in the case. Mint widget is in non-working order. This widget is from my personal collection which, although it doesn't actually mean anything, will probably give you the impression that I actually took care of the dang thing. I'm glad to get rid of this piece of junk. Please email me if you want me to end this auction early and sell it to you "off-eBay". After I get your money I can re-list it and sell it again knowing that eBay will just tell you that you screwed up and they can't help you. I will include, as a free gift, another mint condition broken widget. This widget is a already a rip-off at my starting price but it is possibly a federal crime to sell it at my "Buy It Now" Price. Happy Bidding!
Payment Options:
Wire Transfers to my Caribbean bank account.Cash in small unmarked US bills.
Shipping:
Shipping cost: $32.00Shipping weight: 12oz.Carrier: USPS Lowest-Class Parcel Post
Widgets are securely packaged in recycled pizza boxes and padded with newspapers that I get out of the neighbors' recycle bins. Please do not ask me to combine shipping on multiple widgets. My time is very valuable and I resent wasting it packing and shipping your widget in the first place so you're lucky that I am willing to ship it to you at all. Also masking tape is not free and I should be reimbursed for all the days I have to wake up early to dip into the neighbors' recycling bins before they wake up. Please allow 3 weeks for me to actually ship and 6 weeks for transit.
Feedback:
I love leaving negative feedback. Push me and see what happens chump. I buy and sell newbies like you every day. I didn't get to be a powerseller by making nicey-nice with losers like you. Shoot, I'll probably neg you even if you leave me a positive so let's see what you've got!
Have a question? Post it on my forum!
Next tutorial: links.
