The Number 1, 2 & 3 Issues are:

• What is your visitor like and what are they using to view your web site?

• What is your visitor like and what are they using to view your web site?

• What is your visitor like and what are they using to view your web site?

Hardware

Remember that there are great variations in the computer platform, display setup, processor and disk speed, connection speed. Remember that as well as the ubiquitous PC there are still many users of Macintosh machines and there are people who run alternative operating systems to Windows - in particular there are those that run Linux.

And you had better prepare yourself for the invasion of the surfers who will reach your site through their mobile phones, TVs, cable, or plug-in for their game playing machine. These new widgets will have different capabilities which you will be wise to take into consideration.

Software

The particular browser software being used by each individual visitor to your web site.

There will be a great variation in how your site looks to different users if you rely on fancy HTML tricks and commands.

There will be a great variation in how your site looks to different users even if you don't use fancy HTML tricks and commands.

You have to decide whether the goal of your site is to impress the "in crowd" with your technical razzle-dazzle, or to make it a site for the enjoyment of everyone. (Note: the "in crowd" is usually very small.)

Don't create a site that only a small percentage of your visitors can view properly.

You are going to lose a lot of points if you mention Netscape (or Microsoft), in any way, on the first page that your visitors see. (Unless of course, you're a Netscape employee.) This includes describing your site as "Netscape-enhanced," telling your visitors that your site is only presentable if they have the latest version of Netscape, or pointing to a site where they can download the latest version of Netscape. Think of the message that it sends about you and your site.

The major online services have well over 10 million paying customers. They often have proprietary browsers or specific versions of Netscape or Internet Explorer to provide a comprehensive service with news feeds and other benefits. Your pages may look very strange to them.

Don't expect people to upgrade their browser just to look at your web pages. Even worse don't expect them to change allegiance from one Browser to another - this is a real turn off!

Visitor Profile

The visitors themselves will be different, in every conceivable way.

Don't assume that every visitor to your site has the latest hardware and software, a super-speed connection to the Internet, and the eyesight and reflexes of a fifteen year old.

International Visitors

If you are looking to generate traffic from abroad all the above considerations become magnified. Some visitors will visit your site either without graphics capable browsers or, maybe because of poor bandwidth, with the graphics turned off in their browsers.

What does your site look like without its graphics?

Do you need to think about translation into other languages?