[IxDA Discuss] use of color in a web app

[Mark Bardsley]

Allison,

Salesforce.com doesn't have a bad design if you ask me:

http://www.salesforce.com/products/

I think they use the very colors you are concerned about (roll over right
hand navigation). The key to their design is the sparing use of red and its
use when appropriate.

Mark Bardsley
Senior Information Architect
Project Manager
The Lux Group, Inc.

-----Original Message-----
From: discuss-bounces at lists.interactiondesigners.com
[mailto:discuss-bounces at lists.interactiondesigners.com] On Behalf Of Ari
Feldman
Sent: Monday, February 05, 2007 11:21 AM
To: Allison Beckwith
Cc: discuss at ixda.org
Subject: Re: [IxDA Discuss] use of color in a web app

good questions.

there are two issues that should be considered:


   1. how the color choices affect the user's ability to recognize the
   options available to them
   2. how the color choices are interpreted by the user - as you
   correctly pointed out - red is a common danger color

regardless, the designers should come up with some consistent standards for
when and how they use colors and styles in links. it's bad practice to mix
underlines and non-underlined links as it is to change link colors since
both situations will confuse users.



On 2/5/07, Allison Beckwith <allison at planetargon.com> wrote:
>
> I work for a small development shop and we are currently working on a
> web app whose primary users will be homeowners and interior
> designers. Our client has hired a design company to develop the
> company branding and visual design for the site. Our team has handled
> everything else, including interaction design (though, none of us are
> trained in this). I have run into some trouble regarding colors.
>
> The primary colors on the design comps are red, grey, and black. The
> designers have used red for a number of things:
> * links (though some links are grey) - some underlined, some not -
> also used to indicate an active tab
> * highlighted text - You are logged in as allison (for example)
> * background color for the mini-dashboard section in the persistent
> navigation
> * icons - sometimes next to links, sometimes not
> * buttons
>
> My concern is that red is often associated with active or visited
> links, and error messages. It is this last one that concerns me the
> most. I am worried that warnings and error messages (hopefully there
> will be very few) will blend into the page unless we choose a
> different color.
>
> The examples that I have been sent to (to show me that people do, in
> fact, use red links) are for content heavy sites, not highly
> interactive sites. The general response I get from both the client
> and the designers is (a) red is part of the brand, (2) the red links
> don't bother *them*, and (3) they don't want to introduce additional
> colors into the scheme.
>
> Anyhow, I am just wondering if anyone has any thoughts on this. Can
> red work in this situation? Am I being too picky? And the bigger
> question seems to be, what are the best practices for choosing color
> for a web app?
>
> Thank you,
>
> Allison
>
>
> --
> Allison Beckwith
> Co-Founder & Creative Director
>
> PLANET ARGON, LLC
> Ruby on Rails Development, Consulting & Hosting
>
> www.planetargon.com
>
> +1 503 445 2457
> +1 877 55 ARGON [toll free]
> +1 815 642 4968 [fax]
>
>
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