YES! Good things to do
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Keep design
layout consistent throughout the site.
(justification, fonts, font size, colors, layout, table width)
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Design for readability. Use dark text
on a light background.
The primary purpose of any web page is to be read. The one best thing
you can do to make your page easier to read is to use black text on a
white/light background. Another plus for such a background is that it
gives the best contrast for color graphics, logos, and photos. This is
such a critical issue that a related view is mentioned in the "NO!"
section below.
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Organize your page in logical
sections from the public's view.
Why did they come there? What do they want? Structure your information
from the user's viewpoint -- in categories they'll understand, in terms
they'll understand. No techie terms or professional jargon, please.
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Make your text clear, concise, and
easy to read.
Time is a precious commodity for web folks. There's a "Don't see it?
Don't need it!" mentality because the web has so much to see elsewhere.
So help your viewers: tell them simply what you have, and why it can
help them. Then edit and re-edit your pages. Check grammar, spelling,
syntax, and names. (It's not fair, but a single misspelled word or
grammar error lowers credibility and implies lack of attention to
detail.)
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Explain your links.
Tell viewers what they'll see before they click. Warn them if a
large graphic or a PDF is coming. Save
them from wandering through your pages, or they'll wander elsewhere.
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Put a date and source on your web
pages.
Information is of no use if you don't know who created it or whether
it's current. Date and author stamps have been traditionally put at the
bottom of web pages, but could just as easily be at the top (as done in
most paper documents and reports). If the information is time-critical
or essential to your viewers, put it at the top.
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Keep your information and web links
updated.
One piece of outdated information cheapens the whole package. So make
sure your information is current -- including addresses, phone numbers,
and facts. Web pages and sites change frequently, so check your web
links often to ensure they're still usable. And don't make links
to pages not yet ready. It's better to have text saying "item X is
coming soon" than to have a web link to a page saying the same thing.
And worst of all is a "Document not found" message.
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Provide ways for viewers to contact
you.
Give viewers an e-mail address, phone number, fax number, or postal
address. Official entities should provide at least a phone number and
postal address, but e-mail addresses are fast becoming the norm as well.
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Respond to ALL comments about your
page.
When you receive comments or inquiries about your pages, it's good
etiquette and essential public relations to follow up on all input. At
the very least, a simple "Thank you for your comments" is needed -- even
for rude or obnoxious comments. (Ironically, a polite reply can be quite
irritating to a rude sender.)
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Make your web-page <TITLE>
self-sufficient.
This is the text line that appears between the <TITLE> and </TITLE> code
at the top of an HTML page. This text will be saved and displayed when
others bookmark your page, so keep it as informative and short as
possible. It may also show up in tiny print at the top left paper corner
when viewers print your page.
- Design your web pages for a common
view from the Internet.
Realize that a web page developed on one computer for a particular
browser will look different on other computers and with other
browsers. As far as possible, test your final web pages by viewing them
from different computers (PC, Macintosh, and Unix) and with different
browsers (Lynx text browser; and Netscape, Internet Explorer, Safari and Mosaic
graphics browsers).
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Don't use text/background color
combinations that make reading difficult.
Specifically, avoid white/light text on a dark background -- this
"reverse text" is much harder to read, as shown by numerous studies.
Dark backgrounds are OK for artistic effect and for photos, but overall
they give a darker, more somber impression. Moreover, white text may not
show up on printouts, because some browser versions don't realize that
paper is a white background and thus won't change the white text to
black when printing. (Viewers can overcome this by changing their
browser setups, but might not know how.)
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Do not have
inconsistent navigation.
Keep navigation bars in the same location throughout your site.
Consistent navigation is important on every website.
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Do not leave
broken links on your web site.
Check links often to make sure they still lead to a working target. If
a link is broken, either delete it or fix it.
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Do not use
pop-up windows.
Please avoid opening up a new window when a user selects a link.
This will often lead to the user closing the entire browser
accidentally.
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Avoid using
frames.
People often use frames incorrectly and some browsers do not display
them accurately.
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Avoid
placing 'under construction' graphics on your site.
Most websites are constantly being modified with new information being
added regularly. If you have an incomplete site, please do not launch
it until it is in its final state.
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Avoid using
animated gifs.
An animated .gif does add motion to a page but many people are bothered
by the quick motion and they are not viewable to everyone.
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Don't use blink mode on text or any
link.
Blinking attracts attention. It's good for street lights and movie
theaters. Things that blink constantly soon become annoying. Ask
yourself if you're using blink mode for a purpose or just because you
can.
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Don't use big graphics that cause
slow load time.
Viewers want information, and text still contains a lot more than
graphics. A few small graphics are better than one big one. Cropped
thumbnail photos are great to let viewers get an idea before they go to
the trouble of downloading full-size photos or graphics.
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Don't use special fonts on big chunks
of text.
Text that's all capitalized, all bold, or all underlined is just plain
hard to read. Special fonts or formats are meant to accent text,
not overpower it. Do use special fonts on headlines, subheadings, and
category titles for emphasis.
PUTTING A LOT OF WORDS IN ALL CAPS OR ALL BOLD SLOWS DOWN READING,
COMPREHENSION, AND INTEREST. WHAT'S THE IMPORTANT PART IF EVERYTHING IS
EMPHASIZED? AND IS ANYONE STILL READING THIS?
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Don't use copyrighted photos, logos,
graphics, or text.
What many people don't know is that copyright exists as soon as pen is
lifted from paper, finger from keyboard, paintbrush from canvas, or
pencil from sketchpad. What about registration with the U.S. Copyright
Office? That's just an optional second step. You must obtain permission
from the author/artist/source before you use someone else's work, or
you're vulnerable to copyright-infringement lawsuits.
- Don't forget to maintain your web
pages!
If it's worth creating, then it's worth maintaining. Outdated
information cheapens the rest of your pages...or at the least, makes
viewers wonder about the other pages.
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