The mix of functionality and aesthetics is difficult, but possible. Although achieving this balance requires a lot of effort and compromise, it will surely result in the satisfaction of Internet users.

Designing and creating websites require thorough knowledge of Web specificity as well as an ability to adapt to existing solutions of Internet reality. It is not sufficient to hand in WWW materials, which have functioned in paper form until now, to website designers. Very often, the way designers and graphics think differs from the way users think and act. It is not enough to know a lot about programming, graphic design or to have good taste. First of all, you should set objectives of a realized project and acquaint yourself with the needs and habits of addressees of the website as well as with the way they move around Internet resources. Familiarizing yourself with the research and observations concerning users' behaviour and preferences, as well as their proper application, is a giant step towards the creation of functional web pages.

Functionality and cohesion

First of all, in order to design a web page, you should take into account not only its aesthetic qualities, but its functionality (ergonomics). Internet users insist mainly on quick access to information gathered on a website. Jakob Nielsen, a mentor of functionality, describes a usable website in the following way: "Simplicity with the smallest number of supplements, a clear layout of information and adjusted navigation tools." Sub-websites need to be coherent. Particular elements should be chosen in such a manner that a user has no doubts as to whether they are still on the same page or if they have moved to another website. In a perfectly designed website, the main part of the page occupies about 80% of the screen, the remaining part is destined for navigation elements. In practice, it is difficult to achieve "a happy medium", especially with additional elements, e.g. advertisements. That is why, it would not be wrong if we managed to squeeze the main part into 2/3 of the screen. Except for main pages, which play a key role in enhancing navigation on the website.

Good navigation

The system of navigation should be simple and intuitive - users do not like acquainting themselves with non-standard ways of moving around a website. Tips and instructions concerning navigation will not solve problems of a website containing non-standard mechanisms. Easiness with which Internet users move around Web resources makes them exceptionally impatient, and if they do not know how to use a given website in several seconds, they type in another address or close the browser window. The aim of navigation is to provide necessary information to the user, which will let them answer the following questions: Where am I? Where was I? Where could I go? Some elements such as a company's logo or other signs identifying the website, being at the same time a link to the main page, may help the user determine their current position. So-called information paths play a vital role as well, what place a given sub-website occupies on a website structure.

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