HTML troubleshooting: bullet lists

Bullets are a great way to allow readers to scan a page and quickly find the information they need. This is important for websites, as it only takes a few seconds for visitors to search for what they want. If the information is not found quickly, readers will move to another website. Some web pages contain a lot of information that makes it difficult to find specific information. Using short bullets helps break up blocks of text and directs visitors to important details. Bullet lists are created for websites that use HTML encoding. This article explains the different types of lists that can be created with HTML encoding, and discusses the use of images and icons to separate items in the list.

There are two types of bulleted lists. A numbered list is called an “ordered list.” This would be used for a set of instructions that should be followed in a sequence of 1, 2, 3, etc. Letters of the alphabet can also be used for an ordered list. In this case, each element would start with a, b, c, and so on. Authors of formal documents can use Roman numerals I, II, II, IV, although this is less common on web pages.

An “unordered” list is a bulleted list of items separated by a dot, circle, square, or a small image known as an icon.

Most items in the bullet list are separated by a black dot. This makes the list easy to read:

• First element

• Second article

• Third article

The point can be converted to a square or a circle with a simple change in the HTML code. Using a colored dot, square, or image requires the use of a CSS style sheet. Using an image as a bullet helps the list items blend in with the color theme of the website and gives the web pages a professional look. Bullet list images are typically between 8 x 8 pixels and 12 x 12 pixels in size. Icons larger than 16×16 pixels are also used on web pages to draw attention to specific pieces of information.

Images and icons for the bullet list can be found on the internet, but care must be taken to ensure that there are no copyrights or usage restrictions before downloading and using an image on a website. You can also create icons from images by reducing the image to an appropriate size.