Annoying Website Things
This article was featured recently in the Lockergnome Web Developers Newsletter.
Top 10 Web Site Annoyances
Categorized by Design / Related Information
- Arriving at a Web site only to get it in a pop up window with Flash. Takes control away from user. I want to decide how many windows I have open.
- Forms that don’t make it easier for the user to fix when making an error especially those that erase the form when you return to it.
- Navigation guessing games. Some sites use dots or other symbols to represent an item you can click. I’d like to know what they are before I move my mouse.
- Headers that take up half of the “above the fold” screen. Headers are good - but not when they take up so much space that you can’t see the important content.
- Tables used for formatting. Still done. (Okay, I still use table some, both on this blog and on my work webdesign. I can't help it - I only enough about CSS to edit existing code - and to be dangerous.)
- Accessibility overlooked. (I agree - that's a big problem - website that do #1 usually do this one too. I haven't taken pains to ensure this blog meets accessibility standards because I don't think anyone visiting would need them.)
- Gray-colored text on white background. This is very hard to read even to those with perfect vision. Black is old and boring, but it’s best.
- Small text especially with Flash text, which is not only small but also blurry. Never heard anyone complain that the text is too big. (Flash in-general is annoying. I know - my Flickr script uses flash...)
- Navigation with too many choices, especially when they pop up with more choices and you can’t pick the top-level item. Some people have trouble controlling the mouse and can’t quite get to the sub-items. Simple works best.
- An information architecture that’s noticeable. That means it’s not well-structured.
Agree? Disagree? What Web site features annoy you?
Tags: web sites, design, meryl k. evans
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