An example of simpler web sites

In the future I think web sites will be simpler and more direct. We are seeing this trend already. Google is the prime example. The most popular website in the world, it moved ahead by reducing the clutter. For years everyone had been pushing for bigger, more elaborate web sites. However, the problem is these are exceedingly difficult to navigate. Google went the other way. Others analysed the world, and saw it was fast-paced, and so they decided websites needed to reflect chaos. Google decided what was needed was order, so that people could get information quickly efficiently and move on to the next task at hand. Thus they eliminated various graphics, tables, frames, and other complications others had and took a "just the facts ma'am" approach. It worked.

The trends of the future look likely to reinforce this model. In the past as websites moved towards absurdity there were requirements that users be using one particular browser, IE, or even have their display at certain resolutions or color depths. As more and more people access the web through mobile phones, PDAs and other non-traditional devices, such elaborate designs drive users away. A simple, efficient, to-the-point design like google welcomes everyone in, and meets the needs of people today.