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7 Web Layout Myths You Should Bust Right Now

If you have seen the web evolve, then you might be familiar with what the web looked like when it was first launched. Take the trip down the memory lane and visualize what web pages looked like three decades ago. If you can not remember it, just Google what different websites looked like 20 years ago and you will be surprised by the results. Back in the day, there was nothing like web layout. Every web page has a single column of text filling the space from one side to another.

Fast forward to today, we now have all the bells and whistles attached to websites. The web has evolved significantly over the last couple of decades. One thing that stayed constant is myths. There are many web layout myths that are still prevalent in web design circles. If you want to know what these myths are then you are at the right place. In this article, we will bust those myths, so you don’t believe in them anymore.

1. Use Rectangles Only

If you break down a web page to its components, you will see that everything on the web page is a box. The tools web designers use to try to keep it that way. Thankfully, this is not true anymore as we now have tools that let you cut those rectangular boxes to any shape you want. Now, you can fit your content into a diamond shape or fit it into a triangle. You can draw a diagonal across a rectangle and cut it into two different triangles. Designers can even float a photo that has been cut into a circle and then make the text flow and fit into that circular shape. CSS Shapes adds a new dimension by letting designers play around with different shapes and content in a more creative way. The possibilities are endless.

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2. Everything Should Float

You might have seen web pages with lots and lots of different bars floating beside one another. From the navigation bar, sidebar, hero bar and a bar for the header, the list goes on and on. The problem with such a web layout is that the moment you try to resize the viewport and apply different media queries, all these bars start to rearrange themselves, giving your web page a cluttered look. If you want to create a minimalistic web layout with lots of white spaces, you should ditch this floating philosophy.

Moreover, these floating bars force you to create content of the same aspect ratio and length, which makes life very difficult. CSS Grid tries to resolve this issue by adding rows. By using rows, you can arrange different website elements both horizontally and vertically.

3. Use Simple Navigation

I have come across dozens of articles on web design that tells you to use simple navigation. There is no doubt that simple navigation works well in most cases but not every time. Let me explain it with an example. Let’s say you want to create an e-commerce website that could give some tough competition to the likes of Amazon and eBay. You might be selling millions of products in thousands of different categories. Can you choose simple navigation for such a large project? No, right. Yes, your website might not look great and might even look a bit cluttered but it will function and function well. That is why Miami web Design Company chooses navigation based on project needs.

Img source: themarketresearchnews.com

4. We Have No Control over The Fold

There is a common misconception amongst web designers that they don’t have any control over the bottom edge of the screen where it cuts itself from the layout. That is no longer true any more thanks to the viewport. Now, you can place different website elements in position to the viewport. Designers can also resize according to the need, which was not possible a few decades ago. Using Viewport and Flexbox side by side, you can enjoy more control over the fold and every other part of your web page.

5. Responsive Web Design Minimizes Room For Customization

If you have been working in the web design industry for the past two decades, you might be familiar with the ordeal you have to go through when the responsive web design first burst on to the scene. Every web designer has to learn what responsive web design is and master all the tools to launch their website quickly on the new standard. Despite all the efforts, there are many web designers who still believe that responsive web design limits their options, which is not the case. If that is what you believe, then you should change your tools, which is limiting what you can do with responsive web design instead of blaming responsive web design. By using CSS efficiently along with CSS grid, web designers can create anything they want.

6. Using a Layout Framework is a Must

With so many web design and website layout framework, web designers tend to think that using a framework makes their lives easier. Believe it or not, it is the other way around. The latest grid syntax of CSS makes it much easier to write code than using a framework. It is highly recommended that you write your CSS instead of trying to get your hands on the latest and greatest web framework out there.

Img source: thimpress.com

7. Minimalism Works Well Every Time

If you have been following the latest web design trends lately, you might have noticed this trend make its way on to every web design trends list. Many sites were quick to jump on this trend and others followed suit and suddenly the web starts to look cleaner and less cluttered. Similar to simple navigation, the minimalistic design might work in most cases, but it is not the ideal choice for every web design project.

For instance, if you are creating a website for a business who wants its users to pay attention to multiple website elements, a minimalistic design might not be a good option in such a scenario. Only take the minimalistic design approach when you are sure that it is the right fit for the project; otherwise, avoid it.

Which web design myth do you still believe in? Feel free to share it with us in the comments section below.

Peter is a freelance writer with more than eight years of experience covering topics in politics. He was one of the guys that were here when the foreignspolicyi.org started.