It is important that the buttons be highly visible in a web site's interface design. Users must be able to recognize buttons, and to recognize that the buttons are clickable, for the interface to be successful--or else users will be uncertain how to navigate the site. (5.13)

A good conceptual model. The designer provides a good conceptual model for the user, with consistency in the presentation of operations and results, and coherent system image. (Fleming, Web 72)

A good conceptual model helps to orient users. For instance, by using a consistent navigational system with graphical headers, users know where they are, and can therefore accurately predict the location of navigational devices for other sections of the site.

Good mappings. It is possible to deter-mine the relationships between actions and results, between the controls and their effects, and between the system state and what is visible. (Fleming, Web 72)

Design should make users aware of cause-and- effect relationships. For example, users comprehend that because they clicked on a button labeled "site index," they were taken to a page containing the site's index. Effective design instigates actions which determine desired effects.

Feedback. The user receives full and continuous feedback about the results of actions (Fleming, Web 73).

Web browsers, such as Netscape Navigator and Internet Explorer, provide feedback for users. For instance, after clicking on a link, users know that a page is downloading because the cursor changes into an hourglass, while the status bar indicates when the download is complete.