Art and the Zen of Web Sites

What is web publishing? Putting together a web site is a unique blend of publishing, user interface design, and technology. The three main activities of visiting a web site are reading text, viewing images, and interacting with its interface.

Karp, Tony. TLC Systems (2002). Design>Web Design

Art Direction and the Web

Introduces the principles and techniques of the art director, and shows how art directional concepts can shape memorable user experiences.

Hay, Stephen. List Apart, A (2004). Design>Web Design>Graphic Design

The Art of Being Human

Site visitors crave the sense that someone is there, within and behind your Web pages, your emails and newsletters.

Usborne, Nick. ClickZ (2001). Articles>Web Design>Writing

The Art of Being Human

Site visitors crave the sense that someone is there, within and behind your Web pages, your emails and newsletters. Dealing with the bare technology of online interactions is a cold experience for many, or even most of us. It makes us feel anxious. Technology isn't warm. It has no heart. It neither understands us, nor cares for us. For many Web sites, whether for businesses or organizations, we simply plug in and play the bare technology - the super-duper means of information delivery. All the site visitor sees and feels is the design, the interface, the links and the clicks. The experience is about as warm and human as banking with an ATM machine.

Spool, Jared M. User Interface Engineering (2002). Articles>Web Design>User Centered Design>Usability

The Art of Blogging, Part 1: Overview, Definitions, Uses, and Implications

Innovations build on existing perceptions and structures - at least until the new ideas are fully manifested. Then, the innovation discards the shackles of the old model and stands on its own merits and strengths. The development of video is often used to support this phenomenon. Video was initially used only to tape existing live stage performances - a new concept built on the perceptional structure of the existing. True innovation in this medium did not occur until someone recognized the uniqueness of video, and the limitations of live stage shows.

Siemens, George. elearnspace (2002). Articles>Web Design>Writing>Blogging

The Art of Blogging, Part 2: Getting Started, "How To", Tools, Resources

The best way to learn to blog is to blog. Fortunately, getting started is fairly simple. Three main options exist: hosted, remote server, and desktop.

Siemens, George. elearnspace (2002). Articles>Web Design>Writing>Blogging

The Art of Electronic Publishing

This book is a complete birdseye view of the World Wide Web, Internet, and the technologies involved in creating electronic publications from them. This book provides you with background information and practical guidance on how to surf, view, and publish material for the Web, as well as on paper. The explosion of activity surrounding the Internet and the World Wide Web requires a sane, non-hyped guide to help you navigate the sometimes treacherous waters.

Ressler, Sandy. Prentice-Hall (2000). Books>Web Design>Publishing>Online

The Art of Topless Dancing and Information Design

Creating a web site makes for all sorts of strange working relationships. What does an information designer have to do to get a little cooperation?

Warren, Denice. List Apart, A (2001). Design>Information Design>Web Design

As Simple As Possible

The virtues of simplicity are well-known among experienced systems designers. And many of the things that are 'right' with simpler software systems are also applicable to Web pages and site designs.

Sullivan, Terry. All Things Web (1996). Articles>Usability>Web Design

Ask Jeeves and Urinating Canines

First, there were butlers. Then, there were search engines. Today, there is Jeeves, a hybrid less expensive than the former and more user-friendly than the latter. Others have followed in Jeeves's footsteps, but his loafers are hard to fill. While he is no longer an original, he continues to be invaluable for net-novices and net-addicts alike.

Berkowitz, David. WebWord (2000). Articles>Web Design>Search

Ask Once And Remember

Have you ever tried to place an order with a salesperson or waiter and found yourself answering the same questions over and over again? There are many sites on the Web where this occurs, such as those with product locator searches, shopping carts, and other functions that are supposed to make Web sites more interactive.

Allen, Cliff. Allen.com (2003). Design>Web Design>Adaptive

Asking for Usernames and Passwords on the Web  

The Web has moved beyond purely open content available to all. We now want to use it to collect and provide information that we want to restrict in some way – to members, or to staff, or because it is sensitive or personal data. One common method of restricting access is to ask users to enter username and password. Even this simple combination can be a source of annoyance and frustration to users but it does not have to be. This paper compares options for setting up and maintaining usernames and passwords, and also shows how to design a screen so that users are guided easily to the correct choices.

Miller, Sarah and Caroline Jarrett. STC Proceedings (2002). Design>Web Design>Security

ASP.NET Breadcrumbs with C#

By utilizing breadcrumb navigation you allow your viewers to easily trace their path taken to the current location and back track if necessary.

Angeletti, Mark. Search-This (2005). Design>Web Design>Server Side Includes

ASP, PHP, Java, JavaScript, XML, ActiveX, SQL... Mais de Quoi Parle T-on Vraiment?  

Ces termes affreux sont très à la mode dans le milieu du développement de solutions/sites Internet ou Intranet. On ne peut pas discuter 2 minutes avec un développeur sans qu'il en prononce un ou deux (voire tous si il est dans la catégorie 'Développeur souffrant de gros problèmes de communication avec les non-développeurs' !). Pour dire la vérité, il est même parfois difficile de s'y retrouver quand on est de la partie... C'est pour cela que nous allons essayer ici de définir simplement ces termes et de les regrouper par grandes familles. Ces termes caractérisent les différents langages que l'on peut utiliser pour le développement d'applications web. Ils se séparent en deux grandes familles selon que les scripts (programmes) s'exécutent sur le serveur ou sur le client.

Redtech (2002). (French) Design>Web Design>Server Side Includes>PHP

ASP Tutorial

Unlike JavaScript the use of ASP doesn't depend on someone's browser supporting it) is very difficult to learn, and this has come from the early languages like Perl, which are difficult to write and even more difficult to debug. Over the past few years two new languages have emerged, PHP and ASP. These are easy enough for even the novice webmaser to learn.

Gowans, David. Free Webmaster Help (2001). Design>Web Design>Server Side Includes>ASP

Assemble a Cross-Platform Firefox Extension

XUL is a surprisingly easy way to build cross-platform browser extensions or even stand-alone applications. Discover how to build powerful, flexible Mozilla browser extensions that go beyond the capabilities of other tools like embedded scripting languages or CGI--because they're built right into the user's browser.

Ogbuji, Uche. IBM (2007). Articles>Information Design>XML>Web Browsers

Assessing Information Needs of Diverse Users to Guide Web Design and Content Development  

This paper presents a qualitative study of Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's diverse users and their mental models regarding injury-related content. The study employed an innovative modified contextual inquiry method utilizing tailored, in-depth interviews with five distinct user groups. Included in this paper is a detailed description of the background, framework, and method used for this study. Analysis of the full results was still in process at the due date of this paper. The results will be in the presentation's slide set and available from the STC website www.stc.org.

Pettit Jones, Colleen and Susan J. Robinson. STC Proceedings (2004). Articles>Web Design>Scientific Communication>Biomedical

Assessing Web Page Usability  

Assessing Web site usability can be complex, because the medium can be both a document and a 'software product.' Documentation usability testing asks how headings, page elements, and index entries help users find the content they need, and whether that content is useful. Software usability testing asks how well the user inteface supports users’ job-task activity, indicates functionality, provides navigation signposts and program status, and prevents errors. A Web site must meet a combination of these goals—links should lead to the content that users seek, through pathways that users can easily follow without reaching a dead-end or getting lost.

Hinderer, Deborah and Laurie Kantner. STC Proceedings (1998). Presentations>Usability>Web Design

Assessing Web Site Quality  

Lists several questions to pose when evaluating a Web site's form and content.

Smart, Karl L. Intercom (2000). Design>Web Design>Assessment

Assessing Web Site Usability from Server Log Files  

White paper on how to glean usability data from web server log files and how to use that data.

Tec-Ed, Inc. (1999). Articles>Web Design>Usability

ATAG (Authoring Tool Accessibility Guidelines) Assessment of WordPress

This document assesses WordPress 2.01 against the Authoring Tool Accessibility Guidelines 1.0.

Clark, Joe. JoeClark.org (2006). Articles>Web Design>Accessibility>Content Management

Attack of the Back Button

Getting stuck on a web page can be painful. The back button doesn't always work. While there are many ways to escape from web pages, many users don't know the tricks. A company can stop hurting users by doing more testing, using proper development methods, and being aware of the issue.

Rhodes, John S. WebWord (2001). Design>Web Design>Usability

Attack of the Blog

Although blogs are generally linked with business, personal, and entertainment sites, Eugene Volokh, a professor of law at the University of California at Los Angeles, thinks that blogs are evolving into a major academic tool for universities. Members of the academic community have discovered that blogs offer the classroom a cheap, sociable, and fast way for everyone in the class to actively participate in discussion.

Lisson, Kristin. Techniques (2003). Articles>Web Design>Writing>Blogging

Attack of the Zombie Copy

You can keep copy from turning zombie by starting with a clear idea of exactly what you want to say. It's tempting to just start writing, but this approach can leave your pages vulnerable to zombification, because it's easier to sound like you’re making sense than to actually make sense. Outlines can serve as an effective vaccine against living death.

Kissane, Erin. List Apart, A (2005). Articles>Web Design>Writing

The Attention Map

Attention mapping is a tool to help you start to plan a visual layout around realistic communication between user and site. It can also be a helpful analysis tool, helping you work out what's wrong about a layout.

Hunt, Ben. Web Design From Scratch (2006). Design>Web Design>Document Design>Usability