I’ve been wrong about web design for maybe 40% of my life.
Almost every time I visit a website, I judge it based on it’s appearance. The font, coloring, pictures, graphics, movement, etc., is what I cared about. I compare Elon’s web page to my friend’s colleges and laugh if they aren’t as pretty. Now I feel very vain and very judgmental. But I’m on the road to change!
Zeldman argues that websites should be created to allow other people to use and build on top of them. They should be like architecture. The focus shouldn’t be on making them purely visually appealing, but giving them great content and great potential to grow. Like architecture, it must be functional.
Although he makes some excellent points, I wish he continued. I felt he built up to his point, said it very shortly, and then it ended. Zeldman has some great ideas, but I didn’t really understand his argument until halfway through. I know it’s a blog post, hence shorter and more informal, but the beginning seemed to ramble and weaken his overarching point.
His use of comparisons is excellent to explain his point. I am a sucker for a great font, so using Rosewood and Helvetica as an analogy was perfect. Using architecture, buildings, Mona… They were all fantastic. Giving the reader something to relate to is the best way to make a point. And his point was certainly made, despite some flaws!
I titled my post “quiet but unmistakably engaging,” because I thought that was one of the best descriptions he used to explain the best type of web design. It shouldn’t be flashy and in your face, but subtle. It should work because the structure is there and it has ability to grow with it’s users, not because it’s solely pleasing to the eye.
And finally, a definition!
“Web design is the creation of digital environments that facilitate and encourage human activity; reflect or adapt to individual voices and content; and change gracefully over time while always retaining their identity.”
That’s just beautiful. I actually understand what he means and I completely agree. This, just like the ’20 Things’ book, is an excellent way to begin this class. Zeldman presents a way of life, not just an abstract idea, and that’s why it works.