How To Build Free Site Templates

Anyone who is interested in the field of information technology most likely has, at one time or another, had an interest in learning how to build free site templates. With a few pieces of equipment, these templates can be built by almost anyone. Though having some artistic ability is helpful in creating free site templates, it is not required. Experiment and practice with the templates in order to get the best final result! As with any new activity, you may need to practice in creating templates in order to get the image you are looking for.

Equipment:

• Photoshop
• Dreamweaver

1. Open Photoshop on your computer. Create a new image that contains a 1024 x 768 resolution. For best results, make sure that the image's background is transparent. Though it will still work even if the background is not transparent, results will not be ideal.
2. Create the background color of the page using the filler tool. In the "Filters" section of the menu, click on the button labeled "Texturizer." At this point, you will be able to apply a texture to the background color.
3. Create a new layer. Use the rounded or regular rectangle tools to create a navigation bar, content and logo boxes. Right click on this layer and select "Blending Options." You will be able to add shadows and other effects on the boxes of your page. Before closing, save the file as a .jpg.
4. Open Dreamweaver and create an .html file. Create a new layer and place the image that you just created into the layer. Select "Page Properties" and match the two backgrounds.
5. Finally, save the file. For best results, title it "template.html."