You might have seen the article in the January 13 issue of Nature, “Web users judge sites in the blink of an eye.� It says that “a study by researchers in Canada has shown that the snap decisions Internet users make about the quality of a Web page have a lasting impact on their opinions.� You can read the full article for the methodology, but it seems to me that even if people make instant decisions about liking or not liking the look of a Web site, that’s a marketing issue. It discounts the content and utility of the site.
When my friend Doug wants to read about his beloved Jets, he has to look at the Newsday or the NY Post sites – neither of which is going to win any prizes for look and feel. Slashdot, The Register, even Arts and Letters Daily aren’t valued for their design, they’re valued in spite of their design.
It's the variety of presentations and navigation schemes across even tech news sites that's driving people to RSS for their news. It’s faster, cleaner and in one familiar interface. All steak, no sizzle.
What's your preference for news? Radio or TV? Text or HTML? Browsing or e-mail or RSS? A picture or a thousand words?
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