I would love to see this type of analysis applied to other non-Latin writing systems. Also interesting would be a Chinese/Japanese comparison given that Japanese is a hybrid system.
Why do Chinese websites look so busy?
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Re: Why do Chinese websites look so busy?
#12This article misses the point completely, that these Chinese sites are simply modeled after 90s and 2000s web sites. Go and look at way back machine and see the resemblance. This is coming from a UX/UI designer and developer who has lived in both countries and speaks both languages. To say that Chinese characters are inherently conducive to cluttering the page is straight up just a joke, it's actually the opposite. C…
Most chinese news sites looks like versions of Yahoo to me. My thought is that they replicate the western equivalent of their site (Yahoo, Google, Youtube) and then move on. Not willing to put more resources in redesigning later.
Re: Why do Chinese websites look so busy?
#13the vast difference between the chinese system of writing and alphabets i'm used to brings to mind a question: is there a notion of linear ordering of chinese characters? are all chinese characters enumerated (to the layperson, i understand that they'd have to be numbered to be encoded)?
Re: Why do Chinese websites look so busy?
#14Its the same i Japan print adverts/sites.
(In the case of japanese): they do use search, but less and less as so many of the sites are image based.
I haveno idea how my wife reads the adverts, but after a few years in Japan im finding it easier, my eyes just gravitate to the pictures.
As for rules for web design, pack as much in seems to be the rule. I have emailed a mate over here who does web work, ill edit when he gets back to me.
Re: Why do Chinese websites look so busy?
#15I would love to see this type of analysis applied to other non-Latin writing systems. Also interesting would be a Chinese/Japanese comparison given that Japanese is a hybrid system.
Japanese do have other "alphabets" they use along with Chinese characters, but overall the writing works basically the same way (no spaces, no capitals, etc.). Whether it's cultural or linguistic I don't know, but Japanese websites look very similar to the Chinese examples here.
Re: Why do Chinese websites look so busy?
#16Doesn't anyone know a Chinese/Japanese webdesigner? This question gets asked a lot and it is always answered by westerners who are second guessing. Where are the design theories from the east? What is the "3 click" rule for eastern websites? What are eastern design students told instead of "use plenty of white space" and "keep it simple and focused"?
My wife does some web design, much of it is just an overly Confucian culture where some idiot with seniority but no experience or taste gets to make the decisions and those who know better don't get to do input. It really is just a dysfunctional working environment.
Re: Why do Chinese websites look so busy?
#17Why are western websites so empty?
The same reasons the article lays out - that the underlying aspects of the written language drives the difference. Which I thought was really interesting as I'd never really considered them.
The article does a poor job differentiating between different types of "clutter". For example, while a single continuous block of chinese text will look more dense than latin script for the reasons outlined, it does not explain why chinese websites seem to lay out their blocks differently.
Anecdotally, chinese webpages seems to be laid out far more like newspapers than latin script equivalents.
Re: Why do Chinese websites look so busy?
#18Why is `Jeff Rajeck` an expert on this?
Re: Why do Chinese websites look so busy?
#19Why are western websites so empty?
Good point. The current trend in web site design is You Will Begin Our Onboarding Process Now Or Else. YC companies are notable for this, with sites with little info and a huge "Sign up" box. (Often, this is because the product/service isn't shipping yet, so they're just building a mailing list.)
Those aren't bad websites. Those are good websites for bad products.
Re: Why do Chinese websites look so busy?
#20Why are western websites so empty?
Good point. The current trend in web site design is You Will Begin Our Onboarding Process Now Or Else. YC companies are notable for this, with sites with little info and a huge "Sign up" box. (Often, this is because the product/service isn't shipping yet, so they're just building a mailing list.)
Even non-YC companies, those long-established and with actual product, are following this trend, and I find it quite unpleasant too. When I come across a sparse page with one or two huge images and almost no text, I think to myself "where's all the content?" The whole "mobile first" movement is somewhat responsible too, popularising HUGE buttons and text that would be OK on a small smartphone or tablet screen but ridiculously awkward to use on a larger display.