I learned web design is a school in Potsdam Germany. One thing I remember (this was in 1999) was the main teacher we had for basic design and HTML passing out 1 Pfennig pieces (German penny of the time, pre-Euro). She had us slip them into the slot between the screen of the back body of the Monitors (pre-flat screen, pre-Firefox and pre-broadband as well). She then told us that that penny is hers and every decision we make effects that penny, her penny. If we stroke our egos doing everything we think is cool, it will cost her money. We spent the next 14 months with that penny looking at us.
The school is gone, I left Germany and they got stuck with the Euro, we now have flat screens and broadband is common and computers run Vista or XP. Firefox, Safari Windows, CSS is supported etc. etc. etc.
But that simple lesson remains. You may be paid by “your” customer… but the web site you build is for “their” customers/users. Every decision you make effects the cost those people generally pay as well as how well they can use the site.
I can’t give you a penny… but I will give you two questions to ask yourself. Two questions that should form the basis of every project you start, every decision you make.
- 1. Does what I want to do assist the user?
- 2. Does what I want to do cause problems for the user?
The first should always be Yes, the second always No.
Will a sound effect when the page opens assist the user? Not likely?
Will a sound effect hinder the user? Likely yea, likely causing issues for screen readers and be annoying to most users.
Will a Flash thing-a-ma-jig assist the user?
(Maybe, some argue it makes the site more interesting and pleasant)
Will the Flash thing-a-ma-jig hinder the user?
(it may be an issue for those with cognitive disabilities or epilepsy)
These questions should always be staring at you. Every decision should start with them… the answers may vary between target groups or subjects so I will not say any more than you are creating a web site as a service, so nothing on it should block the user and everything on it should be designed to help them do what they came for.
There is a third question: “Does the site need this?” Sometimes the first two are not clear. Do weather or stock reports assist the user? Maybe, and if the site is based on that fine. But does a web accessibility blog need to show Juneau weather? or stocks none of you may be interested in? No, so though it may be of use to some visitors, it may be too much content and distracting to others… or they may feel the site is unprofessional and does not even know what it is about.
So ask your self those two questions, and if you are still not sure, ask the third and be honest. Think of a penny watching you and remind yourself that web sites are about the user and not the developer or owners ego. We build for the little guys regardless of who pays us.