Whose site are you reading?
Using default designs for publishing a personal Web site is a really, really bad idea. Take for example, Steven Johnson and Peter Merholz. They (probably) have a large overlap in audience and yet they both use the same default, out-of-the-box Movable Type “Georgia Blue” stylesheet.
Why is this such a problem? Well, beyond the fact that Peter Merholz is a better designer than that. I was reading Peter’s newly launched site and after I was halfway through a long entry, I had a brain lapse and thought I was reading Steven Johnson (who I read much more often). It was a very strange, and disorienting, moment.
This is a lack of attention to “brand” taken to a ridiculous extreme. Back in the day, I thought branding was a load of garbage, but I’m a believer today. Diffentiation is an important usability consideration.
