The idea of trying to create things that last-forever knowledge-has guided my work for a long time now.

Confusion and clutter are failures of design, not attributes of information. And so the point is to find design strategies that reveal detail and complexity - rather than to fault the data for an excess of complication. Or, worse, to fault viewers for a lack of understanding.

If there is a well thought-out design standard, it should be followed. In practice, great design comes from great designers. That is empirically the case. If a great designer did a first-rate standard, that model should be followed. Great design is not democratic; it comes from great designers. If the standard is lousy, then develop another standard.

The point of the essay is to change things.

It is not how much empty space there is, but rather how it is used. It is not how much information there is, but rather how effectively it is arranged.

Good design is a lot like clear thinking made visual.

The most common user action on a Web site is to flee.