Web Design Trends for 2012

The internet is a constantly changing universe. Something that could be popular one moment could be a passed fad the very next. However, two things that appear to be upcoming trends in 2012 are responsive interface designs, over sized icons, and modal pop up boxes. Unlike the fads of the past, it appears responsive interface designs, over sized icons, and modal pop up boxes will not be going anywhere anytime soon.

Responsiveness

What exactly is a responsive interface design? This type of web page design reacts instinctively to the move of the mouse, allowing seamless interaction with each menu and web page without having to do any more loading than has already been done.

In older types of web pages, menus would be a different part of the website, making the person viewing the web page to have to actually click on the menu in order for it to drop down and choose what they were looking for. Now, thanks to responsive interface design, there is a seamless transition from the web page itself to any of the menus listed on the website. All the person viewing the web page has to do is place their mouse over the portion of the page where the menu is and it will instantly appear in the form of a drop down menu. No more having to wait, the menu is immediately right there for you with no additional loading to be done.

Some examples of responsive interface design may include fly-out menus, drop-down boxes, and pop up windows. Responsive interface designs are the way of the future, allowing for seamless integration with menus into web pages and will only continue to be improved upon.

Icons

As odd as it may seem, over sized icons have been popping up more and more around the internet. Since Apple starting becoming more and more popular and growing to the Goliath size they are today, over sized icons have started becoming a trend around the internet.

Over sized icons have become associated with Apple smart phone applications, and are often used on websites to let visitors know that there are mobile options available to view the website or brand you are currently on. More recently, however, over sized icons haven’t been limited to just webpages associated with smart phone apps.

Instead, over sized icons have been branching out to pages about anything and everything. The only gripe that many have with this graphical style is that sometimes it can take up a great deal of space where other things could instead be placed.

Modal UI Elements

Another big trend happening in 2012 is modal pop up boxes. Pop up boxes are often associated with annoying, pesky ads, but these modal pop up boxes actually serve a purpose. The main purpose, usually, of modal pop ups are to have web page viewers log in or connect to a social network such as Facebook or Twitter. For example, if the person is trying to access the web page of their local newspaper that they happened to be subscribed to, a modal pop up box may appear to make them sign in.

The reason for this is that the newspaper service wouldn’t want people that aren’t subscribed to their paper viewing their articles for free. Additionally, a musical artist might have a modal pop up making the person viewing the web page “like” their Facebook page before they can hear any of their music. Other examples of modal pop up boxes have been seen on banking websites, social networks, and game websites to help access your accounts quicker and more easily.

More and more web pages are beginning to use the modal pop up box format, and it doesn’t seem as though this idea will be going away soon.

The internet is a constantly changing universe and while some fads have come and gone, it is clear that responsive interface designs, over sized icons, and modal pop up boxes will be sticking around for the foreseeable future. These implementations have helped change the world wide web for the better and will only continue to improve as time goes on. Who knows what great trends may be in store for the year 2013.

Article by Chris Pentago for NicheDesigns, Cairns Web Design agency.

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