Grid | Neufang

The Yahoo! homepage has always struck me as kind of a mess, but I suppose it is more because it is so full. They do stick to a grid in design, and the more I analyze it, the more I am surprised by the amount of information they can organize into such a small space. Perhaps my first opinion is just based on comparison with the Google home page.

I think Yahoo! has 5 columns and 7 rows. It uses the grids to break up the screenful of information they throw at their users. The first column is used for features. News features compose the second and third columns, effectively taking up a lot of the screen and drawing the users attention immediately. The last two columns are used for ads and other popular links. This breaks the layout into thirds, but not boring proportional thirds. The rows are also used to create a hierarchy, giving the top of the page to the search engine. The bottom row of the page stands alone in its promotion of Yahoo! affiliated websites.

Based on my own personal usage of Yahoo, this structure does aid me in finding what I'm looking for. Usually I'm just there to check the news or my mail. My mail is conveniently found in the first column or the top row and the news is smack dab in the middle with decent sized image grabbing my attention. When I do want to check on the stocks for a business class I can quickly slide down the first column and find what I'm looking for. I think Yahoo! is able to appeal to many people, although sometimes it can be overwhelming. The overwhelming feeling is based on the shear amount of information and not the lack organization.

There is certainly tension on the page, as the columns are varied in size, and some features use more rows than others. I think this tension is positive though; at least it is effectively communicating how much Yahoo! has to offer. There is a hierarchy that pulls you to some things and allows you to search for other things. Some users may interpret it as negative though, when they land on the page to try to find one things and get pulled in multiple directions, not sure whether they should check their mail, read the news, or go to the grocery store to get that new popcorn.