Creating better Web sites
Bejoy Alex Jaison
11 March 2001
Some sites are so good and catchy that we stare amazed at them
for a few seconds that we forget the very reason we came there.
And some other sites are so easy to use that we keep coming
back to them. What goes into the creation of a site that
will drive people to it? The first key is improving
user-experience. This article delves into some of the
factors that will help you create a better site.
The world is your audience
On the web you can never predict your visitors, although
only those who are interested in your site and what
it offers will surf in. Choose common words that are
in everybody's vocabulary while writing for
your site. This will help to make it readable for
more people. So the first tip is that it helps to write for
everyone.
Design for everyone
Not everyone uses the same browser. Some people might even
be using text only browsers like Lynx to view your site.
So be prepared to test your site with as many browsers
as possible.
When it comes to HTML, Internet Explorer
is the most tolerant of all browsers. Netscape is very
strict. So it is a good thing to test with Netscape first.
Make your own little Web
It is always a good idea to have link to similar pages in your
site. This would help your users see all related pages
on your site. And, of course, more hits for you.
Another tip is to ensure that no part of your site is
hidden from any of its pages. One good idea is to have
a path bar (like Home > Computers > Internet) on
the top of the every page, so that navigation within your site
becomes very easy. This technique can be seen applied
in all Web directories like Yahoo, Google and AltaVista.
Don't keep them waiting
Lighter sites load fast. Animated gifs, Flash animations and the like
add size to your site. They do give beauty, but a site that never loads
may turn people away. Taking into account effective bandwidths
that we get now, a total size (inclusive of all images) of less
than 40K is advisable. So design your site to load fast.
Pages with tables actually show slower, because most browsers
display the table only when all the contents inside the
table are available. This can be alleviated by rewriting
the code to make each row of the table into a separate table
itself.
Eliminate clutter
Anything that distracts the user is clutter to him. It may be
colorful animations, blinking text, fancy stuff that
move along with the mouse; the range is limitless. These
things are not so easy to the eye. So keep them away or
atleast minimal. Static (not animated) GIFs, if used properly,
are more than enough to make a very appealing Web site.
Readability
The same old rules of legibility that we were taught in school are still valid in
cyberspace. Leave proper margins on all sides. Ensure proper
spacing between paragraphs. Keep text at a readable size.
Stick to readable and standard fonts like Verdana, Arial, or Times New Roman.
One problem with
using fancy fonts is that if they are not available in the visitor's
computer, they are substituted with the default fonts.
Add life to your site
Colors set a tone for your site. It gives life to the pages.
Business sites would look better in formal colors. Choose
a color that renders the right feelings of your site.
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