Web design articles

Like everyone else who has ever put together a web site, I made mistakes when I was starting out. Stupid mistakes, too — such us underlining non-link text. I listened to the feedback I got, invested in a good HTML text and hit the Web and Usenet too; from these resources I learned the basic principles of how the Web works. Over the years since then, I’ve built on that foundation. My approach to web site design can be summed up like this:

The content is what matters: nothing should get in the way of it.
As far as is possible, content should be accessible by anyone accessing the Web using any user agent (by “as far as is possible”, I simply mean to note that certain types of content can never be made fully available to every user — e.g. a gallery of art).
While ensuring that both the previous points are met, the site should look good in graphical browsers. It should be attractive, and stylish in a way which suits the content.
When trying to produce an attractive site, I bear in mind that not everyone has a fast Internet connection — and I’m not paying the user’s bills. Loading time matters!

The articles here reflect — or at least should reflect — this approach. Remember, though, that the Web changes rapidly and there may be one or two views expressed which I no longer hold, or techniques described which I no longer think appropriate. These articles don’t pretend to be any sort of tutorial, and in some matters I don’t pretend to be impartial; they should, though, be helpful to anyone getting to grips with designing for the Web.

CSS and old browsers – using CSS to the full in browsers which can handle that and giving simpler CSS to browsers which can’t without using JavaScript.
Everything in its place… – using CSS, pages can be laid out for graphical browsers without making them inaccessible for other user agents.
Make it go away – manipulating the display property.
…Half a dozen of the other – MSIE 6: good, bad or just disappointing?
Six of one… – Netscape 6.1 is a huge improvement on 6.0, but MSIE 6 is here already…
Frames: just say NO! – web authors seem to love frames, users loathe them. Here’s why they should be avoided almost every time.
ALTernatively – the ALT text is an important part of making a site accessible, so here are some things to think about when you write it.
Should we check the browser? – maybe the need for scripts to check which browser is in use will soon be a thing of the past…
Netscape 4 – the problems Netscape 4 gives a web designer.
How to get it wrong – if you do a course in web design, is the certificate worth the paper it is printed on?
A first look at XHTML – The current W3C recommendation is XHTML 1.0; there’s nothing to be nervous about…
Little extras – Are all — or any — of these little bits and bobs which decorate web sites worthwhile?
Netscape 6 revisited – How does Netscape 6 hold up in use? Will it have Microsoft shaking in their boots?
Mailing lists – Mailing lists can be a good way to publicise your web site, if you do it properly…
Background images – Using background images can make pages unreadable if you are not careful. Here are some things to watch out for.
More about links – Yet more techniques to avoid if you don’t want to confuse and irritate your users.
External script files – Rather than repeat the same JavaScript functions in every document in your site, why not have an external library file with you functions? Here’s how to do it.
Netscape 6 – At last, Netscape 6 has been released. Here are my first impressions of it…
Get back – What does a link saying ‘go back’ mean? Here are some thoughts on issues relating to links within your site.
A short look at CSS – CSS is already used on many web sites, and it’s going to be the way to control the presentation of documents on the Web. Here’s a quick overview of the way CSS works.
Out of focus – Get rid of IE’s unsightly boxes around links using a simple JavaScript technique.
Address unknown – Some mistakes are so basic they should never happen, and getting the URL syntax wrong falls in that category…
What browser is that? – The realities of authoring for the Web are that techniques which work on one browser may well not work in another. Here’s how to detect the browser in use.
DHTML & Netscape 6 – Some DHTML techniques which worked in Internet Explorer and Netscape 4 won’t in Netscape 6. Here’s how to change the visibility of a <div> in IE, Netscape 4 and Netscape 6.
The link – The hyperlink is the backbone of the Web. It’s important that users can tell what is a link and what isn’t. Here are some pointers to making sure your links work.
A thousand words? – The use of icons is now very familiar, but that doesn’t make using obscure graphics for your web site’s navigation a good idea. Here’s a look at why.
The moving image – Animations are irresistible, but usually are bad news on a web site. Here’s why.
Does it work? – Your site looks great, but can someone who has never seen it before figure out how to use it?
The word – Sometimes simply putting text on a web page can run into problems. Here’s a look at some of the problems, particulary the question of how to set the size of text.
Not the big picture – Keeping the size of images down matters. Here’s why — and how to do it.
Splash pages – a lot of people really don’t like them, but if you must have a splash page, here are some thoughts on the way to do it.
Don’t lock me out! – don’t leave users staring at a blank page, unable to enter your site.