Design Psychology

I found this article very interesting. There are a couple quotes I'd like to pull out because I found them very important or especially good:

"Possibility is far more enticing than limitation."

I just liked this one for its universal correctness. I think it is fitting in many situations outside of web development too.

"By contrast, on those occasions that I was allowed to get rid of the clutter and make a display featuring one or two seasonally relevant items (and lots of open space surrounding the area) we sold out of the featured items. Every time."

The writer's story about working in retail really made a lot of sense to me.

Having said that I think one thing that relates to our project possibly is the idea that the client is not always necessarily right. The author says that sometimes you have to go against what your client tells you to do because good web design principles should usually come first. Now, I don't know specifically how this might play into our Habitat project, but I guess you never know.

I think the idea of using white space frequently to space things evenly will be something to use in our project. This goes along with that second quote up there. If you leave breathing room around important content the user will be more enticed to read it, examine it, or whatever the case may be.

The portion of the article about logo size is something we can consider for our project. If we just make sure we don't overdo it with the habitat logo, that will be something to monitor. Overall this article made some seemingly common-sense points, but it was good to read so that I can keep this design principles in mind for the future.

Site Reviews

1. www.newegg.com

Audience: I believe the audience is either tech savvy or semi-tech savvy individuals looking for computer parts and electronics. Ages probably between 18-40 are probably most likely to visit this site.

The most important content:
The daily deals.
Located:
Center of the page.

Layout:
I think it uses fluid.

Navigation areas:
Main navigation bar across the very top with 12 items in it.





2. www.lineage2.com

Audience: The audience is people who enjoy MMORPGs and current Lineage 2 players.

The most important content:
The most recent game news.
Located:
Center of the page.

Layout:
I think it uses fixed.

Navigation areas:
Main navigation bar on the left side with 9 items.


3.www.youtube.com

Audience: The audience is very broad. Because of the wide variety of content and its cultural popularity, it is hard to pin point the audience. I think most people who have the Internet have been exposed to Youtube at some point.

The most important content:
The search bar!
Located:
Center of the page, up at the top.

Layout:
I think it uses fluid.

Navigation areas:
Main navigation bar on the top with just 4 items.