Description: The Communication Arts Network is one of the major portals for artists interested in a variety of media. It includes sections such as Design Interact, the Creative Hotlist, and Communication Arts, as well as news updates, features, and a store.

Great site because:

• Work by artists in all fields is included in the site's various sections, so it is a great place to look when searching for inspiration on different styles of diverse media.
• The site offers elements of the Communication Arts magazine after they have been distributed; this feature provides a way to view the wonderful art that was originally only available in an expensive publication.

Cool HomePages.com

Description: Cool HomePages.com is a portal filled with the best and worst sites currently available. While the design of the site is not especially striking, it gathers thumbnails and links to notable resources that are arranged by topic and continually being updated.

Great site because:

• Cool HomePages.com allows visitors to rank each site on a scale of 1 to 10, and users can then view sites by the most voted for and most highly ranked. This is a great way to further distinguish information.
• Because new information is always being added to the site, visitors are encouraged to stop by frequently to see what is new or to submit their own suggestions for sites to be featured.

Design Interact Site of the Week

Description: Part of the Communication Arts Network, the Design Interact Site of the Week features an exemplary resource on any topic from around the world. The previous 10 sites are easily accessible, and all of the past featured resources are archived.

Great site because:

• In addition to a description and screenshots from each site, every entry includes a link to the featured site as well as its designer. This usually allows visitors to access at least two fantastic sites each week.
• The Site of the Week claims to present the best websites each week, and they truly are among the most extraordinary I have seen.

PBS Online

Description: PBS Online houses literally hundreds of unique sites, many of which are based on the television programs they offer. The homepage allows visitors to find out what is on PBS each night, and a link to PBS Kids makes the site valuable for a wide audience.

Great site because:

• Individual sites are arranged by category for easy locating: news, history, art, games, nature, and more.
• While many of the sites have a common design because they are part of a larger group (such as NOVA), many have unique layouts that help to express the environment or mood of the site. New sites are always added, so there is plenty of opportunity for new inspiration every month.

Usable Web

Description: Usable Web is a resource for web designers concerned with any aspect of the design process. The site currently boasts 1283 links to categorized information that is intended to help designers make the web easier for users.

Great site because:

• The links are highly categorized in order to make navigation extremely simple for any user.
• The site is visually simple, which can be a downfall in the case of users who crave visual stimulation; nonetheless, the site seems to follow its own usability guidelines.

Useit.com

Description: Similar to Usable Web, Jakob Nielsen's Useit.com is focused on ways of simplifying designs in order to make web use easier for users. In addition to regularly-updated news, a listing of permanent content is continually updated to offer visitors fresh perspectives each week.

Great site because:

• In sticking with the usability approach, new entries are easy to find among the many categorized links because they include a "new" graphic.
• Jakob Nielsen is widely known as one of the preeminent experts on web usability, so this site is a must-see when exploring usability.

Web Design Group's HTML Help

Description: The Web Design Group's HTML Help is a visually simple site that guides visitors to learn the basics of authoring and design. A feature article is regularly updated, and there are opportunities to communicate with other users.

Great site because:

• HTML Help houses the HTML Validator and Link Valet, which are musts for web developers who strive to create clean, accessible pages.
• While the site is extremely simple, it is designed in such a way that busy visitors can instantaneously locate the desired information.

Webmonkey

Description: Webmonkey, "the web developer's resource," is a great site that includes information on every imaginable aspect of design. In addition to frequently-updated features, extensive how-to guides are provided on six categorized topics.

Great site because:

• Webmonkey is a super resource for anyone interested in web design because information can be viewed by experience: beginners, builders, and masters.
• The site includes several hard-to-find reference guides on all areas of design, including HTML and stylesheets.

Yale Style Manual

Description: The Yale Style Manual is known to be one of the finest resources to help both beginners and experts create sites. Pages are intuitively categorized by topics such as site design, page design, web graphics, and animation.

Great site because:

• Visitors can browse any single topic or choose to view the resource linearly, depending on their needs.
• An extended textbook copy of the information is available for purchase, and a new edition is due to be available in January 2003.

Back to top