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To use the www or not?

Bigdawg

Bigdawg

Just Me
We did some work for the Women's Exchange... a local non-profit. Their URL was originally WomensExchange.com...except someone finally typed it with all lower case and the lightbulb went off. They ended up dumping that web address for obvious reasons
 
Marlene

Marlene

New Member
I love the word "call" before a phone number and make sure to put in the 1- for those who are clueless as to how to dial a phone. The www seems it would be the same as that, just not needed, we should get it by now.
 
DerbyCitySignGuy

DerbyCitySignGuy

New Member
Marlene said:
I love the word "call" before a phone number and make sure to put in the 1- for those who are clueless as to how to dial a phone. The www seems it would be the same as that, just not needed, we should get it by now.
Click to expand...

In all fairness there are reasons why there are warnings like, "don't put your pet in the microwave" on everything. People are dumb. Real dumb.
 
Solventinkjet

Solventinkjet

DIY Printer Fixing Guide
I was always taught that a design should convey the message as quickly as possible without clutter. With a website all you need to know is if it is a website, which the ".com" tells you already so the www is redundant useless information that clutters the design.
 
S

Sandman

New Member
Sometimes I add it to web sites ending in the less popular like .org, .biz, .net, or .gov but I never put it on a dot com.
 
JasonCS

JasonCS

New Member
Just do what looks better to you for the given project, the client will ask for a change if it stands out like a sore thumb in your design.
 
signbrad

signbrad

New Member
jsmoritz2000 said:
ThisIsKindOfAFunnyPost.com

While I'd definitely say that I tend to lean towards leaving the www. off of web addresses, I can see why some people would lean towards using it. The www. is a visual cue that lets you know you're looking at a web address before you even consciously read the web address. Incorporating the www. to avoid visual discord on a layout, where symmetry is perhaps a matter of necessity, is a bit of a stretch. My suggestion, in that case, would be to either use all lower case letters, or if you prefer to capitalize the first letter of each word, use a capital C on the .Com. It's not like it matters anyway.
Click to expand...

Okay, this post took (almost all) the words out of my mouth. Dang it.
Yes, the www can serve as a visual cue. It makes the web address instantly recognizable as a web address. Is it necessary for comprehension? No. Is it required to reach the web address? No.

Similarly, capitalizing the words in the address name is not necessary but it has a benefit, aside from the obvious one of avoiding unintentional and embarrassing misreadings. Mixed upper and lower case in a web address reads easier and quicker than all lower case. The capital letters function to separate the words, a job normally accomplished by word spaces. I actually volunteer mixed case often even when not requested. If the client says, "It won't work unless it's all lower case," I say, "Really? Let's try it." It's always amusing to type it in and watch their jaw drop when it bangs right through to their website. Some have even said, "Well it doesn't work for ME!" or "Did they just change that rule?" So, sometimes I change it back to all lower case just to be safe—in case it doesn't work for them again.;)

Incidentally, I use what some call "Title Case." I capitalize the first and last words in the address name and important words in between. Like a book title.

Brad in Kansas City
 
papabud

papabud

Lone Wolf
i compare using www much like a phone number. look at all the silly ways people type out their phone number.
think of all the separators you see in phone numbers. there is no standard other than how the customer wants to display their address. and some are very picky about it.
some web addresses look better with it and some look just fine without it.
its not needed but is helpful at times. so its pretty much a case by case and customer by customer issue.
 
bob

bob

It's better to have two hands than one glove.
Since it can't be anything else but www [world wide web] it's unnecessary. Browsers don't need it. There might be a handful of people on the planet who don't know that .something is a web reference and @something is an email address, probably because they can't read. The www is gratuitous. Just like the http:// or https:// or whatever.

As far as capitalizing various letters in a web reference or an email address, that doesn't matter either and it makes it a hell of a lot easier to read and retain. Both web references and email addresses are case insensitive.
 
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eahicks

eahicks

Magna Cum Laude - School of Hard Knocks
I leave it off, then inevitably the bozo customer comes back with "please put www. on there so people know it's a website". As if the .COM wasn't a clue....
Kinda up there with people wanting CALL before the phone number.....like no one realizes that XXX-XXX-XXXX formatted number is a phone number.
 
Pixels Are Bad Mmmkay?

Pixels Are Bad Mmmkay?

New Member
eahicks said:
I leave it off, then inevitably the bozo customer comes back with "please put www. on there so people know it's a website". As if the .COM wasn't a clue....
Kinda up there with people wanting CALL before the phone number.....like no one realizes that XXX-XXX-XXXX formatted number is a phone number.
Click to expand...

I always figured adding "Call" to a phone number was more like saying "Give us a call", rather than indicating the presence of a phone number. But when it comes to using "Ph." or "Phone:" before a number, that's obviously unnecessary unless you're also listing a fax number or cell number along with the phone number.
 
afinn35

afinn35

New Member
I prefer to leave it off and encourage my clients to do just that (less is more) That said, I have a client who markers almost exclusively to the senior citizen crowd in FL and feels it’s important to include and In that case I kind of agree.
 
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