What Is Web Design? (Hardcover)

~ Nico Macdonald (Author) "Design for the Web is the most significant new area of design practice of the last 20 years..." (more)
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Editorial Reviews

Product Description

To understand Web design it is critical to understand design first and technology second.

What is Web Design? develops design principles that will be as relevant to future technological developments as they are today. While Web design is the most celebrated area of design it draws on many other areas, and by putting it in context this book makes Web design easier to understand. Technical platforms are lucidly discussed and illustrated, and the component elements of Web design are explained and contextualised.

What is Web Design? Looks objectively at the relationship between the designer, the client and the other people whose skills and input are key to the design process, and stresses the need for designers to understand and collaborate with these partners in the pursuit of a common goal. A good idea is only as good as its final implementation and getting to this point requires mastering many processes. What is Web Design? establishes basic principles and a step-by-step approach that will increase the chances of a project being successful.

The book concludes by telling the stories of ten design projects from the perspectives of the people involved in their commissioning, designing and engineering. Among the material includes are idea maps, sketches, flow charts, wireframes, design treatments, design ideas in development (and those that were rejected. Work by Trilogy, MetaDeign, Cooper, Visual I|O, Xymbio, Contempt and Organic.

About the Author

Nico Macdonald has been writing about design for the Web since 1995, for renowned design publications including Eye, Blueprint, and AIGA Gain. His consultancy, Spy, focuses on design strategy and management for the Web. Having focused on print and editorial design, he became involved with Web design from its inception.

In the mid-90s he co-programmed the first significant European conference on Web design, and in 2000 he co-programmed, with Jakob Nielsen, the pioneering ‘Design for Usability’ conference, the largest Internet-focused design conference in Europe to date. He is on the steering committee of AIGA Experience Design, and programs its London events.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: RotoVision; illustrated edition edition (August 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 2880466865
• ISBN-13: 978-2880466862
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.9 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,488,584 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Simple title, sophisticated discussion, December 10, 2003

By A Customer

Macdonald has assembled the best compilation of how designers have approached web projects. In contrast to most books, it does not offer simple rules or critiques, but shows many facets of real projects to illustrate what needs to be considered and ways to approach good design. The book is richly illustrated, which in itself provides wonderful material to contemplate. This book looks at the web from a design perspective, not simply typography and layout, branding, or usability, but the whole spectrum of design. Even though I'm familar with all the topics the book covers, I have learned much from the discussions, which are always original.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars good practices to improve chances of success, October 28, 2005

By	W Boudville (Terra, Sol 3) - See all my reviews (TOP 10 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

A nice book that rises above the technical aspects of coding a website. It places design as the primary consideration. Accompanied by numerous screen shots and analyses of existing websites that are good pedagogic examples.

Macdonald recommends that designers and programmers work closely. So that designers have a good idea of what the technology can do. Also, web projects should still have frequent meetings of all concerned parties. He also mentions what types of shared physical or virtual workspaces might be helpful.

These and other practices mentioned in the text can greatly improve the odds of a successful website.