Design constraints

During the design phase of a website you bump into a number of limitations affording it. Usually, most of the limitations have to do with the specific project you are involved. However there are certain constraints which apply to all Web projects. Having them at the back of your mind helps both the design and the production by limiting the relevant times and above all it keeps you focused.

Screen resolution

It is a known issue. Everybody knows that designing for a specific resolution is bad. Covering the commonest resolutions is better and covering all is impossible.  This assumption is followed by the layout issue.

Fixed, liquid or elastic?

The controversy among designers keeps on. To select a layout style depends on your skills (which shouldn’t) and each work’s requirements. Elastic layouts are hot. They are difficult to be build in the first place, but they are flexible and they give a visitor freedom to play with it. Take a look at Simplebits.

Nevertheless, it would have been almost impossible to apply an elastic design to the new Mezzoblue. So we do have a constraint here, since a design often imposes the relevant markup. On the other hand, if one designer is dedicated to a specific style e.g. elastic, he is imposed to turn many of his works down.

Browsers

Despite its latest improvements Internet Explorer is still a problem. The old versions of all browsers provoke difficulties. Even when you decide to leave one version out of the game, you still have to think of the rest. Writing code (like conditional comments) in order to protect your design from wrong rendering is a problem for the reason that it can be distracting. Preventing such obstacles cannot be achieved.

Fonts

Like it or not we don’t have many choices here. There are actually three to six at most font families available for all users.

Text is more than what is written. It is actually a part of the design and it should be treated so. Having to deal with so few types narrows your options and in the end your creativity as well.

Flash

Well, Flash is not a problem, but people who vote for it no matter what they are. A persisting client who doesn’t listen to you and imposes a jumping chimpanzee in Flash can leave you high and dry. Or you can leave him.

Design for all

The old itchy companion is always here. You can’t design for all people. Not everyone is going to like it. On the contrary, most of them have absolutely no idea of what this thing is about. The silliest thing you can do is to ask everyone’s opinion during or after the work. It will dissolve you. One or two people you trust, is an adequate number for me.

Web standards (are not a constraint)

Designing according to Web standards is not a constraint. Many people argue that if a designer is restricted to follow specific guidelines, he finally ends up with a bad result. This is not truth because Web Standards do prevent instabilities and open the borders of the possible audience.

Remember that websites should promote communication and use between a human and a machine. Web standards enhance users’ experience, clarify information and augment the logical structure of content. They don’t affect the design process before or during the markup in any way but when are used a designer can achieve the maximum quality of his work.