After the stir and controversy not caused by my post yesterday I feel it’s completely unnecessary to clarify my position on whether form should follow function in web design or the other way around. I’m going to do it anyway just because I’ve got nothing better to do.

Whoever thinks there is a debate or a question about whether it’s necessary to choose between form or function in a website should stop labeling him or herself as a web professional and go back to web school. Function without form and beauty is a pain, while something that’s beautiful but gets nothing done is equally a failure. I’m sure we’ve all come across people like that: either too focused in results but no joy to be around, or complete airheads, fun for a moment but ultimately boring and annoying.

Same thing with web sites. The problem is that some people who can do beautiful things look down on people who can do good function as uncreative, insensitive, blind brutes; while some people who can do good function see those who can create beauty as empty, shallow bubbleheads.

The truth is somewhere in between. You may have noticed that I have not used “web designers” or “web developers,” simply because design involves making something that people will find a joy to use, while development involves being able to create such a thing in a practical and efficient manner. A “web designer” who doesn’t consider function in his or her designs cannot be a good designer; while a developer who doesn’t consider the ultimate user and the fulfillment of their goal cannot be considered a good developer.

A good web designer is that who, instead of obsessing about their site looking perfect in every environment focuses on creating designs (plural) that allow every kind of user to get through to the functionality of the site. A good designer is not one that says “oh, I want it to look exactly like when I drew it in Photoshop” but one that goes “oh, I had not seen it before in a screen like this, it works!”

Same with a developer. A good developer is one that even before applying any visual layers you know what the site is supposed to do and you know what to do with it. Not one who can explain his or her code, but one whose code can explain itself.

So, there, I hope that made it much clearer for all the unexisting crowds who were waiting for me to explain further.