Here is an great video on Web 2.0. that you will enjoy.

Top 7 Design Trends for Web Sites continued…

4. Buttons

Back when the web was new, the way to navigate a site was either by moving your mouse over text rollovers or by clicking square buttons. Today, though, many designers are using buttons that have rounded corners or are full circles. Why? Some people speculate that humans prefer organic shapes. Others suspect that we have deep-rooted fears of sharp corners. Whatever the reason, round is the way to go.

5. Big type

A lot of people don’t like reading off of web pages. Too often small type together with the eye-strain that goes with staring at a monitor turn people away from text heavy pages.

But now, many designers are making it easier on the reader by employing bigger, easier to read type. And not only is the type larger, but designers are flowing text onto multiple pages rather than trying to make everything fit onto one. This might make the size of your site a bit larger, but your readers will thank you for the lack of headaches.

6. White space

Many people, especially advertisers, fear white space. They feel that if the whole page isn’t filled then they’re not getting their money’s worth. But the opposite is true. Pages that contain a lot of white space, or empty space between elements, is easy on the eyes and helps people focus on what’s really important - your content.

A good rule of thumb is: if it doesn’t enhance your message, leave it out.

7. Centered Layout

More and more sites are aligning their content in the center of the page with plenty of white space on the sides. Why? Well for starters, this helps to ensure that visitors don’t have to scroll side to side in order to read all of your copy.

Another reason why this is popular is that it helps people to focus on your content, which is why they’re at your site in the first place.

These are just a few of the current trends in web design. If you’re thinking about creating a new site, or giving yours an overhaul, give some of these a shot and see if you don’t get better results.

The Web is constantly evolving as technology improves and web site design is evolving right along with it.

Online businesses are slowly realizing that the saying “If you build it, they will come” doesn’t always apply to their web sites.

A successful, high-traffic web site requires a lot of work in the areas of design, content and search engine optimization.

Web design has grown by leaps and bounds from the days of blue text on black backgrounds, type that goes all the way to the edge of your screen and beyond and sites that are packed with graphics.

Now, both web designers and online business owners are paying much more attention to how their web sites look and function. The following are 7 of the hottest trends currently in web design:

1. Design for Function

While the overall look of your web site is important, good looks will only go so far with visitors. Your design should be used to enhance your content as opposed to competing with it. The message you have for your visitors is what brings in sales, not how pretty your web pages are.

Most site owners and designers now recognize that the functionality of a web site is more important than how it looks because, if people can’t find their way around and purchases can’t be easily made, then the site has failed to do its job.

2. Colors

Back in the “old days” of the web it seemed as if the color palette people drew from consisted of eye-burning neons or black. Today the shift is more toward soft, neutral colors. Many designers are using gradients and reflections to make the site feel warmer and more inviting. Color palettes are leaning more towards earth tones, which don’t stand out or cause people to lose focus on your content.

3. Simplicity

While graphics and Flash animations continue to grow in complexity, the best web designs go for a simple approach. If you look at sites like Apple, Ebay and Amazon, you”ll see simple, easy to navigate designs that draw customers in and make their shopping experience as easy as possible.

Tomorrow, we’ll talk about the remaining 4 design trends for web sites.