Web Design That Sucks

1. How does this reading relate to the concept of user-focused design that we have discussed in class?

As the author points out in the beginning of his piece, the only reason for your web site's existence (and thus its design) is to solve a customer's problem. This is exactly the driving principle behind any product design. The product exists only to fill a niche in the market, to fulfill some customers' desire.
A good web designer recognizes that, like consumer products, a web site must include affordances, good mapping, and an easily-recognized purpose.

2. What points do you feel are most important?

Point 2, A Man from Mars can't figure out what your web site is about in less than four seconds.
A web site's purpose is to display a given quantity of information in a condensed, easy-to-read format. I am immediately intimidated by a web-site with no clear purpose and lacking a sense of direction.

Point 8, concerning Mystery Meat Navigation. Buttons and links without labels aggravate me. How am I supposed to find what I need? Are the buttons unimportant? What if the ONLY thing I'm looking for is simply unlabeled?

3. Create your own list of important design factors for a webpage.

1. Clarity: A good website is uncluttered. It has few, if any extraneous materials. Advertising is carefully placed and kept out of the way of important content. There is plenty of white or otherwise high-contrast space to keep the viewer's eyes focused on important information. Simple sites look better!

2. Accesibility: I feel that at a good website, you are between 1 and 3 clicks away from almost all vital information. If you intend some feature of your site to help a visitor, it should be very easily accessible. This precludes lengthy lists of information and unlabeled links.

3. Time: This relates closely to the last point; imagine that someone has only five minutes to get on your website, find what they need, then leave. Can do they do it (or at least come close)? This obviously does not apply to web pages like the Common Application's site, where the user must commit hours of work. However, even for sites like www.commonapp.org it is important that a user be able to access their work in expedited fashion.