Web Design
General tips and advice about web design
Consideration about the type of users that are going to be accessing your site should be a key factor in determining how to design your site. For example, since this site deals with mostly information geared towards educating new Internet users and knowing that most people are using a dial-up connection, it would be fairly overwhelming to implement large image files across the page which would take a long time to load. However, if your site was meant to be an artistic portfolio of your 3D animation work, then you would definitely want high quality images as your audience is most likely visiting to find such work.
User navigation is an important design element as not many people enjoy having to go on a scavenger hunt within a large site in order to find details about a particular subject or trying to backtrack to certain pages. Consider dividing your pages into categories with sub sections, if your site is large enough to warrant it that is, and be sure to implement a user friendly method for visitors to browse the site. For example, creating a site where placing your mouse over a link that brings up a menu on the bottom right of the screen and then going to that screen brings up a menu with even more choices on the top left portion of the screen may be a good display of your technical skills, but in terms of a navigation system it is not user friendly. Sometimes the old saying is true when it comes to designing a site where keeping it simple can actually produce a more productive result.
Finally, the general look and style choices of your site are also a large factor in web design. Some of the most common errors that people produce are due to the result of color choices which create an imbalance of the page's contrast. A good example is using a black background with the text being white. You may have seen these types of themes in some sites and generally most people find that phrases are hard to read as it appears to be very bright. If you reversed it and made the text black with the background being white, you may notice that it is generally easier on the eye.
Although these tips are very brief, the main advice is to always consider how user friendly your site is going to be in various aspects during your web design phase. For commercial companies seeking a web package solution, please visit AL6400 Solutions for more details.