Web Design Analysis Considerations

We have identified 3 broad areas for design consideration

1. Content

– what the site purports to be about.

2. Form

–n the layout and visual appearance of the site

3. Function

– how you use the site

Successful sites follow a user centric model

– i.e. they are focused on the experience of the site the user will have:

1. Why they are visiting or using the site ?

a. is it to find information?

b. to access a service

c. for entertainment.

d. Why else ?

2. Who and how will they be viewing the site?

a. high speed broadband from Glenorchy or dial up from Bangladesh?

b. large screen monitor or mobile phone?

c. old or new hardware / software – what standards should you comply to.

d. General public/specific demographic

3. Will this be a visit once site? or do you want them to regularly revisit.

4. How are you going to identify what sort of experience the user expects?

Some things to consider:

Content:

• How long should it take a page to load?

(answers vary depending on usage and content between

4 and 15 seconds – how big the media on the page can be will depend on bandwidth of the typical user).

• Is the site complete and fresh? (as opposed to half done, full of under construction signs and last updated 5 years ago)

• Is the content compelling? (high quality)

Form:

• Does the site adjust standards, is the viewing experience similar on a range of web browsers.

• Where is the most significant content on the page

(http://browsersize.googlelabs.com/)

• Will the user have to scroll to access important content

(http://blog.clicktale.com/2007/10/05/clicktale-­‐scrolling-­‐research-­‐report-­‐ v20-­‐part-­‐1-­‐visibility-­‐and-­‐scroll-­‐reach/) • Is

the design flexible or rigid, do parts of the design ‘float’ to allow for different window

sizes – is the optimal design size appropriate for your users.

• Does the site degrade gracefully (i.e. if css doesn’t work or images don’t is it still possible use site).

• Will blind or visually impaired people be using site ?

(http://wave.webaim.org/)

• Are font sizes legible, and contrast between foreground and background text sufficient.

Function:

• Do all the links work in the site? (http://validator.w3.org/checklink)

• Navigation should be intuitive and seamless, you shouldn’t really have to think about it.

• Where is navigation located, is it accessible from a variety of positions on the page?

• Are the categories clear in their description - icons only can be difficult to understand?

• How many choices are there (in general there should be no more than 6).

• How many clicks does it take to get somewhere (in

general it should be no more than 3)?

• Will your users get lost or go around in circles?

How do they know where they have been.

Finally a really good way to learn about best practice in web design is to look at what doesn’t work.

I highly recommend this site

http://www.webpagesthatsuck.com/ for an instructive and entertaining look at what not to do when designing a

site.