The Mac Is Not A Typewriter was one of the first books on my reading list going through design school. Actually, I went to two design schools and it was at the top of the list for both of them (that should tell you something). What’s the message behind this book? At a high level it’s about times changing, and the rules changing with them.

What sort of rules am I referring to? The rules of design of course. The web is a relatively new design medium and it brings with it a whole new set of rules. Let’s back up for a second. Did you get that? The web is a new design medium with new rules. It’s not print. Don’t try to act like it is and hope no one notices. I’m sure everyone, at one point or another, has heard a website referred to as an “online brochure.” Am I right? Well, those people are wrong and missing the point entirely.

What’s the big deal?

Designing for the web is not the same as designing for print. Maybe you’re saying to yourself, “What’s the big deal? My designs look good and the client’s happy. Why should I change?” To some extent, it’s not just about the design. It’s about how you want to represent yourself as a designer in the community. To true web designers (people who understand the web as a design medium), web designs by non-web designers stick out like a sore thumb. In the end, you just don’t look good among your peers.

So maybe you don’t care what your peers think. There’s also a certain level of professionalism associated with being knowledgeable about what you do. This is particularly true for those designers out there who either freelance or have their own business. How’s this for a madlib: “I do (something i don’t understand), and I expect people to pay me money for it.” Doesn’t sound very professional, does it?

When you don’t understand the web as a design medium, the effectiveness of your designs suffer as well. As with any design medium, the web has unique strengths as well as weaknesses. If you don’t know enough to be able embrace the strengths and avoid the weaknesses, your message breaks down and the impact of your design is diminished.

Okay, I repent! Now what?

As with most things, the first step to recovery is to admit you have a problem. Really what you need to do now is learn and understand. In my next article, we’ll investigate in further detail some unique characteristics of the web as a design medium, and how these characteristics should influence our designs.