For years it seems there has been an ongoing battle between form and function on the Web. For some reason it keeps coming up, with all sorts of folks jumping up to defend one side against the other.

We saw it last week when Khoi Vinh wrote about Slashdot's pending redesign contest. He lamented the fact that the underlying architecture and functionality of Slashdot was off-limits, which would allow for nothing more than a simple face-lift.

Of course, the response was quick and loud. The general take was something like, "If it's not broke, don't fix it." And, you know what? They may be totally right. Especially if the design we're talking about is merely cosmetic.

The Slashdot redesign contest at its essence is nothing more than an art contest. To truly redesign a Web site or application, the architecture must be looked at and analyzed.

If you're going to go there and want to apply the skills of a designer, you need to go all the way. Design is about solving problems. If Slashdot has any problems that need solving, a simple visual skin isn't going do the trick.

The Role of Design

The other day I published a quick piece defending visual design on the Web. I've also been a stout advocate for content and usability. To me there is no gap between these things. A great design is one that succeeds on many levels.

Designers start with goals, needs and problems, and from there they devise a solution. On the Web that solution is hardly ever as simple as "making it look better." No, a true designer will delve deeply into the problem and assess much more than the visual before putting pen to paper.

In the case of the Slashdot redesign art contest, they don't seem to have any goals or problems outlined, so a designer can't really design anything beyond a simple skin. In other words, a designer can't design.

Because of that, Slashdot's readership should be wondering what use a designer would be. However, if they've got real problems and/or need improvements they might benefit from someone going in and really looking into designing a solution. For a very interesting take on the role of design, read Most Designers Aren't Design Thinkers—Yet by Jess McMullin. It's an easy read that comes with a nice visual representation of the various levels of design maturity.

A mature designer won't design without thinking deeply about the problems being faced and the empowerment to make design decisions that may fundamentally change the way people perceive and use something.

There might be some real benefits if Slashdot were to open it up and hire a designer to look at it and do a real redesign. You'd think they might be able to take a page from Digg or tech.memeorandum.

A well-rounded Web designer would look at their comment threads, for example, to see if they're really done in the most usable way. They may take a stab at their categorization or explore the use of tagging or some other kind of folksonomic classification system. They'd look at the language used in the interface and their readers' perception of their post icons.

All of these could be challenged and changed by design. But it takes a deeper understanding of the site as a whole. From content to information architecture to the look and feel to the attitudes, beliefs and behaviors of their readership.

Would they look at typography and use of white space and color? Yes, and they'd be able to make some improvements there as well.

I'm going to go out on a limb and say that despite the popularity of Slashdot, it could probably benefit from some sort of redesign. Their readers might not like it at first, but if a designer has done his or her thinking and taken the time to understand any potential problems, he or she should be able to come up with a solution that proves to be an improvement over time.

This goes for many Web sites out there. What may be perceived as "ain't broke" may actually be "we're so used to it we don't know it's not working."

Making a design change can be a risk, make no bones about it, but not making a change can be just as risky, especially on the Web. Design can be a difference maker and something you can use to your competitive advantage. In a world where content is king and there are millions of kingdoms, sometimes design is all you've got to set yourself apart.

Raising the Bar

Web design—design in general, in fact—is much more than putting a happy face on something. Although that is part of it, it's really the act of solving problems. On the Web, where you've got the eternal battle between form and function, a truly great design is one that not only brings those things together, it raises them up.

Discuss Slashdot, Digg.com, and the True Meaning of Design   >>> Be the FIRST to comment on this article!

>>> More Web Design Articles          >>> More By D. Keith Robinson