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No.18 Make Pages Light and Text-Centered (January 14, 2003)
From January through March of 2003, we will be discussing some points we need to pay attention to this year.
This first column is about the need to make pages even lighter for use with broadband - a topic that at first glance may seem somewhat strange.
 User requirements
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We can expect the use of broadband to continue increasing in 2003, but to assume that this means an increased tolerance of the use of video and flash content is unwise. Right now everyone is focusing on rich media such as video delivery and full-screen Flash pages in the name of "content for the broadband era". However, now that users have speedier Internet connections, they will naturally want to browse even more pages on the Internet even faster. Unfortunately, few who are involved in website creation have paid attention to this fact. An overwhelming number of users have switched over to broadband not because they want to view heavier content, but rather because they want to be able to view pages faster.
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Examples from i-mode and auctions
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Let's consider mobile phones, a familiar example. With DoCoMo's i-mode, from model 504 packet communication is speeded up to nearly three times faster than with earlier models. If you were to switch over to the 504, what would you expect when using i-mode? First, you'd probably want to check out just how fast it is. You'd no doubt be thrilled if the pages you normally look loaded up even faster. But how would you feel if pages with videos suddenly started showing up simply because someone imagined that since you are a 504 user you must want to enjoy rich content?
In fact, surveys have shown that the sites most viewed by users who have switched to broadband are auction sites. This is because users can now view much more information than before, in the same amount of time. Of course broadband is very convenient when users want to watch video content, but the fact is that users don't start wanting to view video content simply because they are using broadband.
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Benefits of text-centeredness
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In this respect, it is unwise to make web pages needlessly heavy. There is no doubt that the key to making your users happy is to consider their needs and make your pages light and text-centered, with a few exceptions for video and detailed graphics. If you do deliver video content, making it easy for users to get to the video content will keep user satisfaction levels high. Making your pages text-centered will also result in more hits from search engines.
The next topic for our focus is how to increase traffic to your website from search engines.
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