Persoanly I feel like a pirate from “Pirates of the Caribean” when it comes to web design rules. ie; “They’re more like guidelines, actually). Each web site is different, with a different message, goal and auideince. Therefore different approachs , techniques, technologies and guidelines should be used.

But If there were to be 10 commandments of Web Design, the ones written by 33rockers may be the perfect ones.

I don’t want to repreintthe whole article (that would just be rude!) so check out the links above and below. In the mean time here’s highlights to get you interested:

Thou Shalt Respect the Search Engines:

If you want search engine traffic use whole web pages that don’t incorporate frames or large amounts of code unrelated to your content. Also, if you want search traffic, actively cultivate linking relationships with related sites and operate a blog.

Love Thy Surfers and Visitors:

Design for “last year’s” technology so surfers using older computers and slower connections can download your content and use your site quickly and easily. Designing for the “bleeding edge” will only cut into your own profits.

Thou Shalt Not Annoy:

Use only stationary text and graphical layout elements. No Scrolling text, marquees, or large Flash animations of any kind, including those annoying, full-page Flash home pages that say “Skip Intro.” This “eye candy” rarely adds to a site’s main purpose and often causes your visitors to miss something or leave in frustration.

Thou Shalt Not Scroll Sideways:

Design your pages so they never force a visitor to scroll left or right no matter what the resolution settings on their monitor. Sites that read “best viewed at 1024 x 768? really say “look at it my way because I don’t care about your preferences or limitations.”


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