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With thanks for 'Think Aloud Protocol Analyses' to Gill, Nia & Fion
internet

MAKING A MESS IS EASY

when you're designing and writing a web page. There are some horrible examples of how to do it already out there, and they're talked about by everyone who sees them. Have a look at Web Sites That Suck for some examples. Not making a mess is quite easy too, if you follow at least some of these simple rules.
They are from Useit.com.

  • Using Frames
    This leads to lots of difficulties in 'bookmarking'and printing out.
  • Using Fancy Technology For The Sake Of It
    I don't suppose you would be likely to do this, but some sites seem to be nothing more than an opportunity to be jazzy. The same thing applies to colours - bright is nice, but not if you can't read anything. Useful content is better.
  • Constantly running animations
    They should stop to give the reader a chance to read without distraction. (Except on kids pages, that is!)
  • Complicated web addresses
    Try to have your file names and directories make sense so that anyone looking at your web address can understand a little of how your web site hangs together.
  • Orphan Pages
    If you have more than one page, make sure it's clear from all of them which web site they belong to and make sure there's a link back to the home page.
  • Lots of Scrolling
    People don't like scrolling and won't do too much of it.
  • Lack of Navigation Support
    People don't like 'getting lost in Hyperspace'. They need lots of help and explanations about how to move around from page to page and subject to subject.
  • Non-Standard Link Colours
    Users like to see the usual colours for hypertext links - blue for pages not yet seen and purple for those that have been visited. (Except for kids, who like lots of bright colours and like to explore!)
  • Outdated Information
    Keep checking your site and updating it. In particular check any links to other sites because they may not be there any more!
  • Very Long Download Times
    Keep picture sizes down and jpeg compression rates up to avoid your readers getting bored waiting for your pages to download. Re-use images whenever possible.

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Last Updated: May 19th, 1999