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Top 10 Web Site Annoyances
By Meryl K. Evans, Dec 11, 2006 09:38 AM- 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.
- Accessibility overlooked.
- 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.
- 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 are yours that I don't have?
- Internet forms
- My pet peeve is a drop downlist of states. Rather than click the button and ten scroll to your state it would be so much easier just to type NJ or NY
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- Gray-colored text: STOP!!!
- I have a cornea disorder which makes it hard for me to read even black on white...forget reading a lighter color even on white. Function over form should take presedence.here.
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- Colors
- What color combos works best for you? I assume you use your browser to change the colors for easier readability?
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- Contrasting colors
- Any good color ocntrast works fine (light gray on dark gray would be a bad contrast).
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- Totally agree with most of these.
- My biggest annoyance is your #2. I cannot STAND it when forms are badly designed and then it take an act of a higher being to actually get it turned it. I hate it when it says you're missing information but it doesn't point out where. I then have to fill it out dozens of times trying to guess what isn't right or missing. Or what about when it says your phone number is formatted incorrectly, when there is no suggestion on how to do so correctly? Or when after you've spent time writing out a detailed message of some tech support problem only to get an error message when you click send?! ARGH! I hate forms!
Oops, didn't mean to rant so. Another thing I find more than just a bit annoying are web pages that auto-play music. Maybe I don't like their music. Maybe I want peace and quiet.
Finally I have to fully agree with the pop up choice navigation things. I sit there arguing with those for sometimes EVER. I finally give up and go elsewhere.
*sigh* If only they'd ask for our opinions, but then we'd probably get a badly designed form and just start all over again. - Reply to this Comment
- Music
- magnoliasoutherly, thank you for confirming I'm not the only one annoyed by automatic music. As a person with severe hearing loss -- I didn't know if maybe music annoyed me more since I don't hear it like the average person does.
Agree with your rant. Rant on! - Reply to this Comment
- Tables used for formatting. Still done
- This is not an annoyance. Tables are still fine for simple content.
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- Tables
- Tables are fine for some things, but whole pages for layout purposes? Nope. That's annoying to me too.
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