I certainly don’t consider myself an expert coder. However, you may be stuck in 1998 if you code your sites using:

Image Maps – Seriously? I’m trying to remember why I ever did that to begin with. Oh right, because I wanted to make my website ONE BIG IMAGE. Hello? Slice and optimize people.

  – Dude, try one of these instead, it’s like magic (margin, padding). How many sites do I have to open up and have to filter through lines of &nbsp!

Tables – I hate tables and try to avoid them at all costs. There are VERY FEW times when it’s alright to use a table. They were never meant for layout and with the flexibility that CSS offers they never should be. Remove the damn TR’s and TD’s guys.

Floating anything – Flash was sooooooo cool when people started getting on the internet. The problem was that nobody bothered to turn past “Flash 101: Chapter 1: Animation”. It’s those silly floating text graphics that give Flash a bad name. Now Apple’s giving Flash a bad name. Hey Jobs, I just called my Macbook pro, iPod and iPod touch a really bad name… what do you think of that?

Squished sites – Remember when everyone had 15″ monitors and thought that was darn cool? OK, at least remember when everyone had 15″ monitors? Yeah, just so you know the only 15″ monitors are used for TV remote controls now. I don’t even think you can buy a monitor that’s under 17″ so PLEASE stop making your website 3 inches wide and using 8 point text. I have glasses and STILL have to sit right up to the monitor. Yeah, yeah… your next argument is that people using iPhones won’t be able to see it. Well, if you can’t code your website to fit into a mobile device correctly I have a few choices words I’ll email you personally.

Home buttons – I have never understood the purpose of a “home” button. I have ranted and raved about this before but people are just being lazy now. A websites main page should be a place to START looking for the information you want. Guess what, you should STILL be able to find that information at every point through your browsing so there’s no need to START all over. OK, that’s not totally a coding related issue but I’ll take any opportunity to vent about it.

Empty Div’s – I have to yell at myself about this one. I’m so dumb that I can’t always avoid empty Div’s. How else do you get those pesky columns to go full height? My friend always yells at me about it and I can’t argue with him. Unfortunately, I haven’t figured out a way to get around that 100% of the time. Stupid I tell ya.

Clean up your act and stop coding the same way you did 12 years ago. Or at least be fair and NEVER charge anyone for that crap.

best practices · code · css · development · html · web dev

As websites began to explode into popularity most people HAD to have one. They didn’t know why or what they would do with it but for heaven-sakes they needed an Internet presence. As the creation process began everyone’s first instinct was to make it cool by adding lots of pages, interesting by adding animation and important by adding links to other websites that were… well, important.

Fast forward to 2010 and all those assumptions need to be questioned. Lots of my clients still feel that this is the appropriate way to start. Unfortunately, all these things typically miss the point of their website. This tool can be so many things and it’s important to mold it to your company, not the other way around.

Even large companies often make the mistake of adding too much information. This makes it difficult to navigate, confusing and often impossible to actually find what you are looking for. Keep things simple, only add the content that is necessary to meet visitor expectations.

Animations and *gulp* Flash splash pages are yesterdays-yesterday. I specialize in Flash intro’s so it’s very difficult to see my niche get left behind. Before you scrunch your nose consider this, the very way people will interact with the Internet is evolving. The iPhone and iPad will probably be remembered as significant markers in the evolution of Web. Web 2.0 will now be Web Mobile. Apple has taken a strict stance against Flash and specifically call it out in their Terms & Conditions to prohibit it on their products. As the market share grows for these mobile surfing devices companies are being forced to remove all Flash.

That’s not the point though, the animations aren’t cool any more. Any distraction for visitors that prevents them from getting what they want should be thrown out. Of course, if those distractions generate revenue they get a different set of standards.

A common misconception about links to other sites is that it makes you look important. It’s the exact opposite actually, making the destination sites seem more important. Anyone even sort of familiar with Search Engine Optimization practices can attest that INCOMING links from popular sites is what makes you look important. Makes sense right? I can link this article to the New York Times but that doesn’t make me a hot shot. Now, if they linked to my article I’d be walking around with a strut in my step.

Last week I launched a revolutionary 1-page website for my mother. That’s right, there are no other pages. I was lucky enough to have her give me the reins and do whatever I wanted. It contains a brief summary about the kind of business she runs (elder law), directions to the office and a contact form (or telephone number) to get in touch with the firm.

Websites can be as simple as one page, like this one for Nancy Wright.

Too easy? Shouldn’t it be? The cost of development and maintenance is considerably less than complex sites and doesn’t do a whole lot for her any ways. Plus, get this, it can still grow when needed. That’s right folks, you can start off small and add. For anyone who has started a successful business from the ground up this should already be a familiar mantra.

Update your thinking to 2010 and start your company’s website with one page.

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