Many times, I'll go to a Web site and run into text that is nearly impossible to read. There are a several challenges to reading text on a Web site, even a well-designed site, mainly due to the technology of a computer monitor.

A computer monitor has a resolution that is much lower than printed materials (72 dots per inch or DPI vs. 600 DPI even with a cheap printer). Second, when you use a computer monitor, you look into "projected" light (like looking into car headlights) versus "reflected" light (like looking at a printed page). Both of these issues require that text on a Web site be considered differently than text on a printed page. Some tips are below:

• Put light text on a dark background or dark text on a light background. Often, I see just the opposite and am baffled by the number of times I see red text on a blue background (see below). 

• Make sure your text is large enough to read. Small text on a Web site will frustrate your users and cause them to leave. Have several people go to your site and ask them to read your text. If they have to squint, your text needs to be designed differently.

• Don't type several words in ALL CAPS. It's one thing to emphasize a particular word, but several words strung together, an entire sentence, or paragraph with ALL CAPS is obnoxious (the equivalent of shouting) and difficult to read.

• You can use different fonts to create a typographic hierarchy (text, sub-heading, heading, etc.) but be careful. Too many font types will create confusion. So limit the number of different fonts and be consistent throughout your site. 

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