“Why should we look to the past in order to prepare for the future? Because there is nowhere else to look. The real question is whether the past contains clues to the future. Either history is a series of individual and unrepeated acts which bear no relation to anything other than their immediate and unique temporal environment, or it is a series of events triggered by recurring factors which manifest themselves as a product of human behaviour at all times. If the latter is the case, it may be that the past illustrates a number of cause and effect sequences which may take place again, given similar circumstances. If it is not, then, as Henry Ford put it, ‘history is bunk’, and there is no profit to be had from its study, or from anything not immediately and only concerned with the unchanging laws of nature.”

“Even the most ornate palaces have to start with a solid foundation. On the Web, that foundation is called information design. As a site grows, visitors can become overwhelmed with options and leave almost as soon as they arrive. But with thorough site planning and testing, Web builders can present content in ways that is both engaging and informative, without sacrificing visual appeal. In other words, good information design will keep your visitors coming back time and time again.”

Manifestation about information design. “A well-designed graph tells us more about a specific phenomenon or situation, than any text can. The design that conveys the information (interface) makes is easier for our brain to absorb the facts. In the past charts, graphs and tables were already used to make information more clear. Today, information design is a (graphic) speciality, which incorporates aspects of marketing strategies, public relations and technical manipulation. In the old days the encyclopaedia structured the path form A to Z. Now we have to find our own way using modern search and navigation systems.”

“Why should we look to the past in order to prepare for the future? Because there is nowhere else to look. The real question is whether the past contains clues to the future. Either history is a series of individual and unrepeated acts which bear no relation to anything other than their immediate and unique temporal environment, or it is a series of events triggered by recurring factors which manifest themselves as a product of human behaviour at all times. If the latter is the case, it may be that the past illustrates a number of cause and effect sequences which may take place again, given similar circumstances. If it is not, then, as Henry Ford put it, ‘history is bunk’, and there is no profit to be had from its study, or from anything not immediately and only concerned with the unchanging laws of nature.”

“We are the alphabet makers.” ROTORtype has some nice, small screen fonts for those of us who like to squeeze big words into small spaces.

Manifestation about information design. “A well-designed graph tells us more about a specific phenomenon or situation, than any text can. The design that conveys the information (interface) makes is easier for our brain to absorb the facts. In the past charts, graphs and tables were already used to make information more clear. Today, information design is a (graphic) speciality, which incorporates aspects of marketing strategies, public relations and technical manipulation. In the old days the encyclopaedia structured the path form A to Z. Now we have to find our own way using modern search and navigation systems.”

“When discussing a new Web site people often get obsessed with the home page character and graphic design. Your site’s home page is very important, but the design of the home page is inherently a singular problem. I prefer to start site design discussions by establishing the basic page grid for all pages within the site, and then make the home page the first iteration of that basic page grid. This page grid or ’site blueprint’ is absolutely essential to the creation of a graphically consistent, well-organized, and easy-to-use Web site.”