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Introduction
This section introduces the basics of evaluating and creating websites. The information is designed to help you
- analyze the quality of web sites,
- plan and organize information for presentation on the web,
- use html tags to create basic web pages and links,
- understand usability and accessibility,
- design and construct basic sites.
I don't provide in-depth technical information on programming for the web, or on setting up search features or functions related to databases. Many sites, particularly e-commerce sites, rely heavily on these functions. However, the information here reflects general principles of good, usable page and site design that can be used for various types of projects.
Throughout this section, you'll find links to websites outside the course that provide additional information about a number of the topics presented. After all, if excellent, up-to-date information is only a click away, why not link to it?
Features of Websites
Website are nonlinear, changing, virtual forms of communication that must create their context visually. Because readers can arrive at any Web page from anywhere else on the Web, the context must be immediately obvious. Online documents have these elements:
- Site architecture is the framework that structures
content. The structure should meet the goals and expectations
of the user. The site structure can be sequential (each page
links to the next in a linear style), hierarchical (outline
format), or interlinked (less structured, liberally linked).
Navigation should answer these questions: Where am I? Where have I been? Where can I go? Consistent navigational elements (for example, toolbars, buttons, and site map) let the users know here they are in relation to the rest of the site. - Page Design—that is, the look and feel of the
page on the screen—is another mechanism to help users
understand location and context.
Color can help or hinder the readability of your text, the quality of your page design, and the effectiveness of your navigation.
Graphics, like color, can enhance or detract from both your site's appearance and your users' experience. To effectively use graphics, you need to know what types of graphics work best on the web and how the size of graphics can affect user's access to your site. - Content on the web is organized and written differently than traditional print documents. The style of content should match users' ways of finding and reading information on the web.
As you read about the specifics of each of these features in more detail, remember that the relationship among the features determines the degree to which your site will be usable to others. For example, you can create beautiful pages, but if the navigation is poor your audience will quickly go somewhere else.