Wednesday, October 29, 2008

Print versus online designs

It’s easy to think that designing for print and online is similar; they both use grids and tables and can display both written and visual elements to the space. However, there are key aspects to each medium that must be considered in order to create effective and aesthetically pleasing designs.

One of the main and most important differences is that online you have virtually unlimited space, you can use hyperlinks and different levels to lead readers to more information on the topic or other topics/sites of interest. When considering print designs you have a very limited space, it is important to be informative but effectively use white space as to not crowd the page and scare the reader off with large blocks of text.

Another element of online design is backend functionality coding such as HTML. It is essential for all web designs to be functional so therefore you must have at least basic knowledge to ensure your page will actually work when people try to access it. Functionality of the web design can also be affected by the file size of pictures. It is important to get the smallest sized file with the highest resolution available. This means that the page will download quickly, however can sometimes affect the quality of images online unlike print where you are able to use the highest quality photos to achieve the best looking design.

Print designs are final, after press there is no going back this, unlike online means that there can be no further contribution by readers or the designer after production.Online design also encompasses audio and video elements which create an interactive and engaging environment for the reader rather than simply relying on text and pictures as seen in print
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