As the Web, and intranets, become more important to how companies do business, this site and newsletter are meant to act as guideposts for business development.

Here's a sample from a recent edition, featuring an article by George Hernandez, a Web Developer/Graphic Designer/Special Correspondent for Updates.com:

"The CEO says he wants a web site. It must look fabulous and entice visitors to stay. The Project Manager says it should be clean and professional. 'The look should reflect our standards of excellence and maintain functionality throughout so we're not perceived as incompetent.' So now you, as the Designer, have everything you need spelled out for you (to a degree) as to how to proceed in making the 'Web site of all Web sites.' You are part of the team and have been for some time, and the department heads also know what's best as far as how to put the company's best face forward.

"But there is a random element that must be acknowledged. The age of global marketing through telecommunication has let businesses stride forth and be given unprecedented visibility. The only thing that seems to have been left by the wayside is direct communication between 'Company' and 'Customer'. That's where the Internet really starts to shine . . . or does it?

"Your web site is the most functional and the most elegant anyone has yet to create. Your company's services on that site have been emulated to a degree that when someone visits your site, he can do almost anything he would have done if he physically walked through your front door . . . If he can only figure out what to do next.

"Getting someone to know you exist in the first place is difficult enough. Keeping his attention is an even greater feat. Think about that: you go through the task of making your presence and services available worldwide, but if the people you are trying to reach don't know what to do once they see you, what's the point? Form vs. Function has been a major paradox in this industry, one that seldom gives way to the 'Now What?' factor...."

Check it out.