Visual Cues

Visual Cues are intended to help the viewer in a number of ways. Mostly they are used to emphasize that something is there and what it does. They can also be attractive, making the site appeal more and become easier to use. Without visual cues people would get lost or bored of the site very quickly. It would also be hard to figure out where hyperlinks are, or certain important words.

The first ones that are probably the most used are the font-styles. Things like bold and italic are used regularly to emphasize key words or phrases. They can also represent links as they will be in a different style compared to the body text. Underline is also another style that is set to a hyperlink by default. This allows viewers to easily differentiate between body text and navigation links.

Another widely popular visual cue is the rollover feature. This is another method of letting the viewer know that the hovered over object is a hyperlink. These rollover effects can be quite complex or even something as simple as the font changing colour.

Underlining is the most common way to interpret that a link is actually a link, and not just some body text. Most sites keep to this method, and most users are aware that a hyperlink is underlined. There are sites that have other methods to show navigation. For new users this could be a bad thing because they will be used to the underline. It could disorient them and make them want to leave the site. However, more and more sites are moving away from underlining as it looks unprofessional and so much more could be done in its place.

I think that we are coming to a time where links are not just obvious by an underline, but by various font weights and rollover effects. They are becoming more popular and more people are getting used to these new methods. I feel that moving away from underlining is something that must be done, and one that is already taking place.

Because of this I will be using a simple method of navigation that should be clear to the viewers, but not by using the underline method.

Flash banners and advertisements are also a widely used visual cue that can be very frustrating for new users, especially if they are required to download a new plug-in to make it work. This is one of the most off putting things for new visitors, as they will be unaware of what they need or how to get it.

The good thing about banners is that they allow visitors to see top features or special offers without having to browse for them. It also shows some interactivity and entertainment especially if it requires users to interact with it. These banners can be a great way to keep visitors on your site and to keep them visiting to see something new.

For this reason I will be using some sort of flash banner, but it will be for a low plug-in version. This will keep my guests entertained and updated with the latest features and releases. It will also give me some knowledge in Flash, as I will need it for the final major project.

The layout and structure of the text is also important. It shows what information is significantly more important than other information. Things like titles and subheadings should always be noticeably larger or emphasized more than body text. Links should also have their own style. Things like the copyright statement should be the smallest size compared to the rest of the font sizes.

For this reason I will make sure that my text is structured properly. I will use clear headers and sub headers to show importance and separation of paragraphs. The copyright statement will be the smallest font compared to the rest. I will also use a font that is easy to read. This is most likely to be a sans-serif font.

The use of colour on a site is important. Sites that cause eye strain due to uneven or contrasting colour combinations will most likely make the viewer leave. Colour is probably the hardest one to get correct. The colours should be used in moderation and not too much colour in the same site should appear. The use of too many colours can also cause frustration or confusion. Sites should try to keep their colour combinations to a maximum of 5 colours.

I will look at the themes of the iTunes pages that I will be working on and choose appropriate colours for that scheme. The site will not be dark and will not cause eye strain.