Embracing the Minimal Web

zenI’ve been a casual reader of Leo Babauta’s zenhabits for a little while. There’s some rather unique and interesting posts there.

Anyways, I’ve been inspired by the whole minimalist approach he has on his websites (find out more of what I mean at http://mnmlist.com/)

Leo outlines the basic principles behind a minimal website as:

  1. The text of an article, including headline
  2. A good-sized, readable font
  3. A column width optimal for reading
  4. Perhaps the name of the site for context, and minimal navigation in case the reader wants to find other articles

And recommends to avoid:

  • ads
  • cookies
  • tracking
  • popups
  • sharing buttons
  • comments
  • multiple pages/slides per article
  • Facebook or other social widgets
  • a widget showing recent comments or tweets
  • tags or related posts
  • syndicated content widgets taking them to other sites so you’ll get money
  • something screaming for the reader to sign up for your newsletter

Also recommends:

  • minimal images (none, or only the most necessary)
  • the logo of the site in CSS-styled text, not an image
  • small page weight
  • short urls (without .php, .asp, .aspx, .html, dates, categories or other items in the url)

I’ve got a long way to go, but I think I’m starting to take some positive steps. Time will tell.

“A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step”
Laozi, Tao Te Ching, Chapter 64

Update: Check on my progress at /mwp/

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