RE: New UFTWWWP ideas <long reply>

On Thursday, November 27, 1997 3:23 AM, Mark A. Siefert 
[SMTP:cthulhu@csd.uwm.edu] wrote:
> Hello All:
> would you want the new page to have?	Please post your ideas to the
> mailing list so we can all talk about them.
>

Design
======

Don't make any of the - Top Ten Mistakes in Web Design
this is from a very good site on what to do and what
not to do at http://www.useit.com/alertbox/

1. Using Frames

Splitting a page into frames is very confusing for users since frames
break the fundamental user model of the web page. All of a sudden, you
cannot bookmark the current page and return to it (the bookmark points
to another version of the frameset), URLs stop working, and printouts
become difficult. Even worse, the predictability of user actions goes
out the door: who knows what information will appear where when you
click on a link?

2. Gratuitous Use of Bleeding-Edge Technology

Don't try to attract users to your site by bragging about use of the
latest web technology. You may attract a few nerds, but mainstream users
will care more about useful content and your ability to offer good
customer service. Using the latest and greatest before it is even out of
beta is a sure way to discourage users: if their system crashes while
visiting your site, you can bet that many of them will not be
back. Unless you are in the business of selling Internet products or
services, it is better to wait until some experience has been gained
with respect to the appropriate ways of using new techniques. When
desktop publishing was young, people put twenty fonts in their
documents: let's avoid similar design bloat on the Web.

As an example: Use VRML if you actually have information that maps
naturally onto a three-dimensional space (e.g., architectural design,
shoot-them-up games, surgery planning). Don't use VRML if your data is
N-dimensional since it is usually better to produce 2-dimensional
overviews that fit with the actual display and input hardware available
to the user.

3. Scrolling Text, Marquees, and Constantly Running Animations

Never include page elements that move incessantly. Moving images have an
overpowering effect on the human peripheral vision. A web page should
not emulate Times Square in New York City in its constant attack on the
human senses: give your user some peace and quiet to actually read the
text!

Of course, <BLINK> is simply evil. Enough said.

4. Complex URLs

Even though machine-level addressing like the URL should never have been
exposed in the user interface, it is there and we have found that users
actually try to decode the URLs of pages to infer the structure of web
sites. Users do this because of the horrifying lack of support for
navigation and sense of location in current web browsers. Thus, a URL
should contain human-readable directory and file names that reflect the
nature of the information space.

Also, users sometimes need to type in a URL, so try to minimize the risk
of typos by using short names with all lower-case characters and no
special characters (many people don't know how to type a ~).

5. Orphan Pages

Make sure that all pages include a clear indication of what web site
they belong to since users may access pages directly without coming in
through your home page.  For the same reason, every page should have a
link up to your home page as well as some indication of where they fit
within the structure of your information space.

6. Long Scrolling Pages

Only 10% of users scroll beyond the information that is visible on the
screen when a page comes up. All critical content and navigation options
should be on the top part of the page. (So why is this page long:
because it is a leaf node that is only read by people with special
interests - but I should have been more brief!)

7. Lack of Navigation Support

Don't assume that users know as much about your site as you do. They
always have difficulty finding information, so they need support in the
form of a strong sense of structure and place. Start your design with a
good understanding of the structure of the information space and
communicate this structure explicitly to the user.  Provide a site map
and let users know where they are and where they can go. Also, you will
need a good search feature since even the best navigation support will
never be enough.

8. Non-Standard Link Colors

Links to pages that have not been seen by the user are blue; links to
previously seen pages are purple or red. Don't mess with these colors
since the ability to understand what links have been followed is one of
the few navigational aides that is standard in most web
browsers. Consistency is key to teaching users what the link colors
mean.

9. Outdated Information

Budget to hire a web gardener as part of your team. You need somebody to
root out the weeds and replant the flowers as the website changes but
most people would rather spend their time creating new content than on
maintenance. In practice, maintenance is a cheap way of enhancing the
content on your website since many old pages keep their relevance and
should be linked into the new pages. Of course, some pages are better
off being removed completely from the server after their expiration
date.

10. Overly Long Download Times

I am placing this issue last because most people already know about it;
not because it is the least important. Traditional human factors
guidelines indicate 10 seconds as the maximum response time before users
lose interest. On the web, users have been trained to endure so much
suffering that it may be acceptable to increase this limit to 15 seconds
for a few pages.

Even websites with high-end users need to consider download times: we
have found that many of our customers access Sun's website from home
computers in the evening because they are too busy to surf the web
during working hours. Bandwidth is getting worse, not better, as the
Internet adds users faster than the infrastructure can keep up.

--

I'd also add that background images nearly *always* make the text harder
to read

Content
=======

I'd basically use these sections, I've given them simple
descriptive names, basically from the 'book', I'm not
sure names such as 'Engine Room' are as useful.

Introduction

Rules

Systems

Ship Designs

Backgrounds
    GZG
    Star Trek
    LOTGHH
    B5
    etc

Miniatures
   Painting
   Suppliers
   Pictures

Play Aids
   Counters
   Computer programs

Contacts
   Links
   Player Locations

Campaigns

Scenarios

Conventions
   When
   Pictures

Tournaments
   Where

PBEM

sincerely
tim jones
--
Reality is for those who can't cope with Science Fiction.