25 Years on From the First Website
1991 was a very important year for us all, it was the year that the first ever website launched. Consisting of mostly text, with a plain white background “design layout” was virtually non-existent. We have come a very long way in the world of web design in the last 25 years. Websites used to be extremely basic, typography, imagery and navigation were dreams of the not so distant future.
The purpose of earlier sites was primarily informative. The websites function was to inform its reader. Now websites are used for a lot more than informational purposes but there are still some tips and tricks to be picked up from early forms of websites.
- Lightweight Websites – websites had to be optimize the slow internet connection that we all had to deal with.
- User Experience – The websites understand the importance of the user’s experience, making the website easy to use and quick to load. There is nothing worse than staring at a loading screen for hours.
- Page Structure – websites went through a lot of experiments and troubleshooting before we have anything like we have today. All this experience allows us to create more accessible page structures.
As the years went on websites became obsessed with the latest design elements. Making their websites look the best but that didn’t necessarily mean that it was a good site to use. The 2000’s brought in a new era of web design. Focusing on the usability, finding the balance between usability and design. Today websites focus on minimalism, flat graphics, blended typography and large background images. We have progressed so much since the 90’s.
The use of smartphones today has given web designers have a new platform to consider. Creating fast and responsive sites for mobile phones has been the new challenge. A challenge we have overcome fairly quickly. The last 25 years has given birth to a fascinating array of web design and we cannot wait to see what the next 25 years will bring!