Web design = UI + everything that supports it

OK, I've got to jump in here too.

I am NOT in the entertainment business, and   I am a "web designer." !!

Visual design should SUPPORT information and a great guidance system, or 
UI.  I don't know what all the fuss is about.

You can have terrible UI and pretty pages, which is what most of you are 
alluding to.

But, you can have great UI, and a good guidance system, and a visually 
pleasing page to boot.  BUT the "pleasing" part on a good site is not art 
for art's sake, but visuals that **help** the user and support where I want 
to go.  Visuals should be FUNCTIONAL.

The word "design" is the crux of the issue.  Web design is much more than 
visual design.  Visual design should always be there to support 
functionality and content, first and foremost.  That is, if you want to be 
successful.  And it can look great at the same time.

That's why I like to call myself A Web Architect, or User Interface 
Designer, even though I'm a graphic designer and writer, to avoid the 
confusion.  If you focus on user integration first, all the rest falls into 
place.   If you want a successful site, usability is important, and yes, we 
could learn a lot from Jakob nielsen.

That doesn't mean the site should be ugly or laid out poorly.

A more interesting topic of discussion might be: which websites have visual 
designs that work, that support the user!!

At 06:24 AM 7/6/01 -1000, Evelyn Hunter wrote:
>I usually stay out of this kind of conversation, but I just wanted to say
>that this person is a rebel with his own cause.  He sees the Internet and
>that one of yester-year -- for information, not for beauty and
>entertainment.  I understand where he is coming from, but he is missing the
>point.  Those of you that are graphics designers and web design
>entrepreneurs are... well, let's face it, you're in the entertainment
>business!  :)  The Net is entertainment for most of us, and most of us
>wouldn't have it any other way.  Is it for information?  Yes.  But, what
>this gentleman doesn't realize is that we will go to a site looking for
>information and if all it contains is words with no color and no life, most
>of us move on to one with the information AND color.
>
>It is difficult and even annoying to keep up with the changes in the
>industry, on that note he is correct.  However, it is also part of the fun
>of the Internet - learning something new and having it look like something,
>creating something by using your newly learned skills.  Isn't that why most
>of us are here?  We can create beauty and functionality by mastering the
>HTML language and the "Techniques" that go along with it.  Functional
>beauty.  It would be pretty boring if all we had to look at were a gray
>screen with black text.  Most of us would go back to falling asleep in front
>of the TV.  Mr. Raymond doesn't agree, oh well.
>
>Warm fuzzies to all you gifted designers and layout geniuses!  Have a great
>weekend!
>
>Evelyn in Honolulu
>
>-----Original Message-----
>  To: 'Michael Wilson'; 'rudy'; hwg-techniques(at)mail.hwg.org
>Subject: RE: annoying websites
>don't you think these jakob nielsens, eric steven raymonds just promote what
>they call useable
>sites (ie no graphics, backward compliant) because they can't actually
>design?


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