Over 58% of the world uses Internet Explorer to access the internet. This is the first browser in which a site should be tested. Firefox users comprise 28%, Google Chrome almost 6% and growing. When a site works in these three browsers it will be available to over 92% of users. Additionally, all of these browsers are available free to anyyone. Your site should work in these sites before compatability is is tested in any others.

Ever been to a site that just has so much going on that you have to have a map to find what you are looking for? Animation and artwork is nice, so is information, but when either overwhelms the senses you will lose the interest of your users. Keep the "bells and whistles" to a minimum. This is a common mistake of web "artists" who focus only on making a "statement" and forget that without usability a site is practically worthless. It is also a true of informational sites that just try to cram way too much info into one page. Humans can actively process 7 (+ or- 2) items or chunks of information at one time. If there are more options than that on each page, attention wanes. Usability also considers physical ability; not just for those with major disabilities such as vision loss, but for users who may be cyber-novices, have motor dysfuntcions and a host of other issues that many of us never consider.

While simplicity makes a site easier to use and navigate, humans are also influenced by phsyical beauty. It increases attention and improves favorable perception of information. Even the most mundane information should be presented in an attractive package. Make sure that your color choices and style not only reach your target audience, but are also appealing to diversity across that audience. Making a site appealing and usable for the greatest number of potential viewers is just "good business!"

Websites can be both practical and beautiful. Your designer needs to be able to balance all the factors! I spend a lot of time assessing and reworking websites and other graphic materials for other designers. I see mostly sites that are either very useful and boring or very artistic and unusable.

I am consulting on a 501k site that has so many drop-down menus that it makes my head spin. To make matters worse, those menus are tiny and jumpy, there is no congruity in page-to page design, and the organization is so scattered that I can't figure out where I want to go. There are just way too many choices! There is empirical data supporting natural inclinations in human behavior, such as a proclivity to turn right on a path rather than left when given a choice. Understanding how people behave is necessary in desiging a product that is used rather than merely admired.

The farther a user has to scroll to read a page, the more you will lose their interest and frustrate them. Navigation tools and other important page elements are lost when a user scrolls downward. The exception to this is pages that list multiple items for comparision (like Ebay) and narratives that might require too many page changes to complete. Keeping your page "above the fold" is the best practice in many cases. Often, it requires editing information that helps to keep the page less crowded, as well. This, of course, is not always appropriate. It is often necessary to make pages longer if there is a lot of information that cannot be shortened. A good rule of thumb is to weigh the length of the information and compromise. Very long pages can be split, but moderate length pages are sometimes best kept intact. Congruitiy is also important, a page or two that is a bit longer is fine if design permits, but the best practice is to keep all pages the same length when possible.

You've seen them, those sites that use a different style, colors, arrangement and length on each page. The minute frame to frame changes in a film are easy for the brain to filter and compile, but glaringingly different changes are akin to prisoner interrogation techniques. Set up a basic style and maintain it on every page, change the content portion but don't change the orgnaization, navigation, colors and such so that a user has to re- orient attention as they move through the site.

If a page is all above the fold, navigation is accessible at all times. Adding extra navigation at the bottom of a longer page helps to keep the viewer from scrolling back up to navigate. However, if your content is such that a user may not always reach the bottom of the page, there are better methods to keep navigation accessible. Navigation that travels iwth scrolling or collapsible content can help to keep pages looking congruous and usable.

Except music and video sites, most people are annoyed by music that plays automatically. Audio on websites can keep users from continuing to use your site. Unless the bills are paid by audio advertising, open a page with audio stopped and provide controls and let the user make the choice.