Then I found the solution, and now, I find the number for the perfect color in a record time of one minute. How? I use two simple programs, which if you have Windows, then it's likely you have them. They are:

• Paint
• Calculator

Note: If the following instructions don't lead you to your programs, go to the bottom of the page to find out how to download them off the internet and a list of alternative programs that will still do the trick.

They're not the most creatively named, but they are very useful. To find the calculator program, find and click the "Start" button on your desktop. A menu will slide up. Go under "Programs", then "Accessories", and you'll see the word "Calculator" with a little calculator picture next to it. Click it.

Now with the Calculator program open, it must be set up. Hit View, and make sure it's Scientific. It should now be much more bigger and have radios (little circle check things) across the top which include: Hex, Dec, Oct, and Bin.

To find the Paint program, on your desktop hit "My Computer." Then, once in, click "C:/" or whatever else is your hard drive. Next, hit File, then New, then hit "Bitmap Image." A new bitmap image should appear. Double-click on the icon to open the Paint Program.

Or, if you're having problems finding "My Computer", right-click on the "Start" button on your desktop, and follow the above directions.

Now opened, Paint is the first program we'll use. Go up to Colors, then hit Edit Colors... It will bring up a little thingamabobber called "Edit Colors". Hit Define Custom Colors > >. This brings up yet another thingamabobber. In the big box with a bunch of color, you'll find a little arrow cross, which when moved, changes the color in the box marked Color|Solid. Also on the far right, is a vertical column of boxes. The arrow to the right of the boxes can be moved up and down, changing the shade of the color selected in the big box with the arrow cross.

Fool around with it until you find the perfect color you want. Then, after selecting the color, look at the far right bottom corner. There are three boxes labeled: Red, Green, and Blue. These are the decimal numbers of your color. What we need is the hexadecimal.

Now you get to use your calculator. Make sure the "Dec" radio is checked, then enter the first number, which is the number inside the red box. Then, with the number in there, check the "Hex" radio, and it will convert the number. Write down that number. Then repeat the process with the other numbers.

For example, if the Red decimal number was 255, I'd put 255 in and convert it. It would come out as "FF". Then, if the Green decimal number was 30, it would come out 1E. If the Blue decimal number was 140, it would come out 8C.

Now take your three seperate Hexadecimal numbers, add a pound (#) sign to the front, smash the numbers together, and stick it to your page. Let's use the previous example. I'd take the three Hexadecimal numbers, which ended up FF, 1E, and 8C, and put them together. That would make FF1E8C. Then, add the pound sign to the front finishing it off: #FF1E8C. If you put that on your site you'd end up with a pink-purple color.

You now have the perfect color. Let's review the process:

• Open the programs: Paint, Calculator
• Select color in Paint
• Convert decimal numbers found in Paint to hexadecimal using Calculator
• Put hexadecimal number on homepage.
• Pat yourself on the back.

After one or two trial runs, this should only take you at the most three minutes.

What if you don't have the program Paint? There are other drawing programs that use the color bar needed for this technique. Search around until you find the color bar described above. If you don't have Calculator, then you better learn how to convert in your head.