Does your web site have a favicon? A favicon is the small graphic that is displayed near the browser address bar, tab or favorites link when your web site is displayed. Favicon, short for "favorites icon" is usually a 16 pixel by 16 pixel graphic with the file name of favicon.ico. Any website that is considered complete will have a Favicon.

• Create Online – The easiest way to create a favicon is to Google the keyword "favicon" and check out the numerous sites that help you to create your own favicon.
   
• Create using Photoshop or Illustrator – Telegraphics provides a free plugin for PhotoShop and Illustrator users.
   
• Normally the favicon is a small 16 pixels by 16 pixels square but can be 32×32 or 64×64 pixels. The smaller size is usually chosen since larger files add to the time to display a web page.
   
• It is sometimes easier to start with a working image that is 64×64 pixels and then reduce it to the final size of 16×16.
   
• Install – This file is placed either in the root directory of the web site or the content management system. A line of code is placed within the headers of the web site to let the browser know the file name and location of the icon. Example: <link rel="shortcut icon" href="http://example.com/myicon.ico" /> Some browsers like to see <link rel="icon" href="/favicon.ico" type="image/x-icon">. Using both will not hurt. Although you have the ability to name the file anything you want keep in mind Internet Explore requires the file name to be favicon.ico.
   
• Testing – Once the image is installed you typically will want to tweak the look of it. Since most browsers will cache the image be sure to remember to flush the browser cache to see your updates.
   

Need someone to create a favicon for you for less than $50?
Contact Michael at (206) 217-0500 or use the contact form.