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Basic Web Sites: Good Anymore? By Meryl K. Evans, Jan 4, 2007 11:03 AM

With Web 2.0-style design and RIA (rich Internet applications) becoming prevalent on web sites, is there any point in creating a web site if it doesn't have interactivity features or fancy back-end programming? Of course! There are loads of reasons to have a web site and they don't all require programming beyond basic JavaScript or even any JavaScript.

Small and single person businesses typically don't need the whizzy whirly stuff to succeed. Some sites go overboard with coolness and interactive factors thinking it is enough to impress visitors and keep them coming for more.

Web sites aren't the "play to show off your knowledge, programming skills, and the things you can do." It is like déjà vu all over again - We are where we were when Flash was gaining momentum. Developers started designing with Flash just because it was cool and they wanted to see what they could do with it. This without considering the needs of the visitors. The same is happening with Ajax, RIA and whatever other technology that makes it possible to do things in real-time, interact or animate.

Of course, I've seen sites where the cool stuff made all the difference. But they added these features based on users' needs not because it was cool. As designer's design their sites... they must question why they're doing something and whether or not it ties in with the users and company's goals.

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