4 ms·

I'm not too sure what the solution is. You could make the links blue and/or underline them, but that could harm readability and aesthetics. I suppose some sort

by ldjb 10y ago

I'm not too sure what the solution is. You could make the links blue and/or underline them, but that could harm readability and aesthetics. I suppose some sort of icon (like an arrowhead) next to each link could help them to afford clicking.

userbinator 10y ago
You could make the links blue and/or underline them, but that could harm readability and aesthetics. I doubt it, blue and underlined is pretty much a standard. I think it looks perfectly fine and clear. There's a reason most browsers' default stylesheet will make links look like that.
- ldjb 10y ago
  It might be an improvement in this case, though it's common advice to limit the colour palette to a handful of colours. Blue text also doesn't always stand out against certain background colours. Underlining links (particularly where there are many of them) can harm readability, which is why many popular websites do not do it, including the major search engines, Wikipedia and even Hacker News.
pbhjpbhj 10y ago
A little chain-link icon [similar to the infinity symbol] used to be used on many sites (a while back) to emphasis the presence of a link.
runarberg 10y ago
A simple heading (`<h1>Table of content</h1>`, `<h1>Content</h1>`, `<h1>Articles</h1>`, `<h1>Links</h1>`) should get the message across. --- Edit: Added an example.
- ldjb 10y ago
  I suppose you could put a heading called 'Myths' above the list of myths. But I don't see how that would help the user realise they are links. Of course, you could call the heading 'Links', but that shouldn't be necessary -- the links themselves should afford clicking. It would be like putting a label called "push" above a door handle when the handle itself should afford pushing.
gilgongo 10y ago
The OP is referring to "visited links", not the style of the unfollowed links. Not having a followed link style in this context degrades the usability of the website because you have to rely on your memory of which links you have followed on the list and which you have yet to see. This is an important and little remembered point in the current interaction design "dark age", as Bruce Tognazzini puts it, and Norman et. al. <a href="https://www.fastcodesign.com/3053406/how-apple-is-giving-design-a-bad-name">have https://www.fastcodesign.com/3053406/how-apple-is-giving-des... recently written about</a>. (It is of course also true that the unfollowed link style is not very clear)
- ldjb 10y ago
  I'm aware of what the OP was referring to. I was replying to barrkel's comment about not realising the links were links. But I absolutely agree with you that visited links looking like unfollowed links is a usability issue.

by ldjb 10y ago

userbinator 10y ago

You could make the links blue and/or underline them, but that could harm readability and aesthetics. I doubt it, blue and underlined is pretty much a standard. I think it looks perfectly fine and clear. There's a reason most browsers' default stylesheet will make links look like that.

ldjb 10y ago
It might be an improvement in this case, though it's common advice to limit the colour palette to a handful of colours. Blue text also doesn't always stand out against certain background colours. Underlining links (particularly where there are many of them) can harm readability, which is why many popular websites do not do it, including the major search engines, Wikipedia and even Hacker News.

pbhjpbhj 10y ago

A little chain-link icon [similar to the infinity symbol] used to be used on many sites (a while back) to emphasis the presence of a link.

runarberg 10y ago

A simple heading (`<h1>Table of content</h1>`, `<h1>Content</h1>`, `<h1>Articles</h1>`, `<h1>Links</h1>`) should get the message across. --- Edit: Added an example.

ldjb 10y ago
I suppose you could put a heading called 'Myths' above the list of myths. But I don't see how that would help the user realise they are links. Of course, you could call the heading 'Links', but that shouldn't be necessary -- the links themselves should afford clicking. It would be like putting a label called "push" above a door handle when the handle itself should afford pushing.

gilgongo 10y ago

The OP is referring to "visited links", not the style of the unfollowed links. Not having a followed link style in this context degrades the usability of the website because you have to rely on your memory of which links you have followed on the list and which you have yet to see. This is an important and little remembered point in the current interaction design "dark age", as Bruce Tognazzini puts it, and Norman et. al. <a href="https://www.fastcodesign.com/3053406/how-apple-is-giving-design-a-bad-name">have https://www.fastcodesign.com/3053406/how-apple-is-giving-des... recently written about</a>. (It is of course also true that the unfollowed link style is not very clear)

ldjb 10y ago
I'm aware of what the OP was referring to. I was replying to barrkel's comment about not realising the links were links. But I absolutely agree with you that visited links looking like unfollowed links is a usability issue.