title= [ The Psychology Behind Design ]

There are many differing opinions on various facets of web design and development. With the amount of browsers on the market now, should we be designing to cater for all of them. Mobile technology brings another player into the game, should all web sites be built to cater to mobile technology also? Colour can kill or make a site, are you using your colours effectively? Security precautions are now causing business to kill Javascript on their computer networks. With Javascript killed, so too are many of the navigation systems on sites, including extra features present on the page.

{ attribute: colour }

There are many ways to add vitality to your website. You can add colour in a variety of ways to visually enhance it, such as with backgrounds, graphics, borders and text. Different sites also require different colour performances to be effective. Neutral coloured sites will require a dynamic contrast to bring them to life. Whereas, a colourful site will need neutral contrasts so the reader doesnt become overwhelmed. Some colours are offensive to certain cultures, and some colours follow the doctrines of feng shui and are meant to attract prosperity.

{ link: navigation }

Navigation are links in the form text or images that users can select to display other pages on your site and on the web. The links you add to your web pages should allow users to maneuver easily through information of interest. Nagivation should be arranged categorically, and be arranged in logical order to adhere to accessibility standards. Divide your information into sections. Each section will be a separate web page, which will discuss a different concept, idea, product or service.

{ container: layout }

Pages more than 4 screen lengths long can turn visitors off by scrolling too far down the screen. Also, a page that is too long loads more slowly, and each added graphic adds to download time. Also, in some instances, using too many graphics or animation on any one page can visually clutter and distract from your message. Be careful when deciding what elements you are going to include in a single web page, because as it grows, so too will the file size of the web page - and the larger the file size, the longer the page takes to transfer to a user's computer (download time).

  • Linear ::
    organizes pages in a straight line. Ideal for pages that should be read in specific order, or step-by-step instructions. Linear pages usually have back & forward buttons to navigate page by page.
  • Hierarchical ::
    pages branch off homepage. Homepage contains general summary of information within the site, and pages linking off contain the more specific information.
  • Web ::
    no overall structure. Each page in a 'web' layout contains multiple links to others in the site. Ideal for pages that need to follow no order or categorisation.
  • Combination ::
    combining provides flexibility in design. It lets you create a website that has overall structure while allowing random browsing for information.

All too often site owners use the 'web' layout for large sites. These types of sites can be difficult to navigate due to their lack of structure.