How did they do that? How to deconstruct websites and Flash files
Thursday, August 16, 2007
I'm often asked to check out a stellar website or multimedia project and figure out how they did it. A lot of it is having a good eye, but there are some tools that will help you discern how the site was put together.
One of the quickest ways to see the inner workings of a site is to scan the source code. Be advised this requires some knowledge of HTML. In Firefox or Internet Explorer select "View" from the file menu and choose either "Source" or "View Source." A text document with the source code of the website you are viewing should pop up.
An easier alternative is to use the site BuiltWith. Simply enter the web address of the site you are interested in and BuiltWith will tell you what elements are used on the site. For example, here are the elements that make up the 10,000 words site (Hint: Google Custom Search, Blogger, Flash, Feedburner and RSS, plus other things.)
Deconstructing a Flash file is not as simple, but there are tools like Sothink's Flash Decompiler and Eltima's SWF Decompiler that convert SWF files to FLA files. Both are free to try. If this sounds like a doozy, ask a tech savvy colleague or friend to lend a hand.
One of the quickest ways to see the inner workings of a site is to scan the source code. Be advised this requires some knowledge of HTML. In Firefox or Internet Explorer select "View" from the file menu and choose either "Source" or "View Source." A text document with the source code of the website you are viewing should pop up.
An easier alternative is to use the site BuiltWith. Simply enter the web address of the site you are interested in and BuiltWith will tell you what elements are used on the site. For example, here are the elements that make up the 10,000 words site (Hint: Google Custom Search, Blogger, Flash, Feedburner and RSS, plus other things.)
Deconstructing a Flash file is not as simple, but there are tools like Sothink's Flash Decompiler and Eltima's SWF Decompiler that convert SWF files to FLA files. Both are free to try. If this sounds like a doozy, ask a tech savvy colleague or friend to lend a hand.
Labels: site management
