Gail Phillips on sun 2 nov 03
Hi, Norman -
I know that people have good reasons to set up their equipment the way =
that
they do, and I understand about not 'showing off' to an extent - =
however,
how many people want their site to be bland, black and white, text only, =
one
font? I think, as the internet becomes more mainstream to all, content =
has
to become more sophisticated to make an impression on the viewer. I have
been researching the method to embed fonts directly into the page this
evening, as well as finding a work-around to allow people who have =
ActiveX
controls disabled the ability to 'see' the navigation buttons. I am all =
for
quick loading and easy navigation, and I will either furnish a =
work-around
on these Flash buttons or supply redundant text navigation on Lisa's =
site,
or both.
Sometimes, to promote a business, a website has to be visually =
stimulating.
It is that aspect that makes it memorable to users, and prompts their
return. If you change your content often, it will give people something =
to
return for - the latest and greatest, as it were. The trick is to find =
the
happy medium between quick, adequate communication, and interesting =
design.
I am appreciating all of the input I am getting here - this is a luxury =
I am
not used to!
This whole website design undertaking is beginning to get rather =
unwieldy,
what with .NET technology, ASP, XHTML, HTML, XML, PHP, CGI, Flash,
ActionScripting, Java, JavaBeans, JavaScript, VBScript, etc., etc., but =
it
is pretty cool when it all comes together and actually works!
Thanks for the feedback. By the way, do you have any examples of your =
work
that I can look at?
- Gail
Believe it or not there could be good reasons for using a small browser,
blocking cookies, etc. Keep in mind that the purpose of the website is
not to show off technical tricks or do a task the latest way, it is to
communicate. It is important not to shoot yourself in the foot by
limiting your audience with technical tricks.
The things that really impress internet users are quick loading and easy
navigation. These are qualities that a good site will possess
regardless
of the configuration of the user's machine. When I was doing websites
professionally, I tested them on several browsers and platforms - two
versions of Netscape, two versions of MSIE, AND Opera. My customers
wanted to promote their businesses, not show off my technical prowess.
Of course it is possible to do both. Yes indeed, include those
redundant text navigation links. Nothing works faster. My old standby
composing program was notepad, by the way. That and a browser are the
most reliable aids to web design. They don't think they know better
than you!
Giving the user alternatives is always a good idea. It is always
possible to have a flash(y) version and a plain vanilla one and satisfy
all comers.
| |
|
