SIMPLICITY
| BALANCE
Balance in a design can be ambiguous, easy to see but not so easy to
explain. I will now impress you with a definition: balance is the composition
of the forms used in a design, and their tension with each other. In
other words, how one object, whether it is a paragraph of text, headline,
logo, nav-bar (navigational bar) or image, relates on the page with
the other objects. It is easy to see, because when the balance is off,
it is usually unpleasant to the eye. When the balance is right, everything
looks great. Balance is crucial because anything that might distract
your customer from your message needs to be considered. To determine
between good and bad balance, ask yourself if the flow of the page is
pleasing. Think about where your eye wanders on the page and, most simply,
imagine if the design would 'topple over' from lack of balance.
SIMPLICITY
| CLEANLINESS
In my article a clean site refers to the lack of disorder or chaos that
is found from disorganized, bloated content. It brings to your customer's
screen a clean and organized look that encourages focus and direction
from your customer. Your customer is impressed with a professional
looking site and will have greater satisfaction in finding the information
they need. After all, isn't that why they are there? Be wise in
the objects that will be used on a page. Determine if they are necessary
and add to the message. They might be an integral part to your customer's
interaction. But if they just distract and annoy (ie. -most animation),
get rid of them.
SIMPLICITY
| NAVIGATION
I believe that having a simple and straightforward navigation scheme
leads to successful browsing and satisfied customers. Whether it is
a few words on the side or a nav-bar across the top, your customer will
benefit if your navigation scheme answers their "where's, what's
and how's."
Place
your navigation scheme in a way that it will be balanced and obvious
as a navigational tool. As far as nav-bars go, boring is better. Avoid
using 3-D or garish colors. Simplicity in the bar communicates the message
without distraction and wasted thought in trying to figure out a complex
scheme. Remember, just because you are familiar with the project and
it's navigation doesn't mean that everyone viewing it will be.
SIMPLICITY
| IMAGES
Images can say a lot, either good or bad depending on how they are used.
An image - whether it is a photo, an illustration, or both - with good
size and placement can really complement the message or focus of your
site. However, if the image draws the attention away from your site's
message it will be defeating the purpose of your site's goal. There
are too many web sites that are also using the tiling background image
without success. This is due to the fact that again, it will distract
your customer and many times the content becomes lost because of poor
background effects. Another fault is the use of too many graphics. Use
images wisely, too many can give a cluttered look and feel as well as
take too long to download.>>
Intro
1) Simplicity is Felicitous
2) Clarity is Goooood
