Margaret Turner, Electronic Media, Computer Based Art and Design, Arts Faculty, University of the Sunshine Coast, Locked Bag No 4, Mooloolaba, Qld 4558, Australia. mturner@usc.edu.au
Interface Design, Information modelling, Navigation Design
In an information rich world, the typical Web visitor has a severely rationed attention span. The Web interface is a doorway to a complexity of information which can not be all equally relevant to every visitor. Except in certain circumstances, the visitor does not have the leisure for adventure learning or trial and error clicking. Current interface design fails adequately to represent the scope of the content of the site to the average visitor. It is necessary to provide a Web site visitor with a sense of being in control of their use of a site and this can start to be achieved through thoughtful and integrated interface and navigation design. Rather than relying on novelties, designers must find new visual ways to map the information on the screen, ways which will add value to content and to the visitor's experience. There are other key components to successful communication, but the purpose of this paper is to discuss the issues that relate particularly to the visual design.
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