Ordered and Unordered Lists
As a web designer it is important to understand the way visitors view your web page. First, think about how you view a web page. Do you read every word listed on the page or do you scan the page for useful information? Studies show that web page viewers view web pages differently than they would a book, a newspaper, or a magazine in that they scan the viewable screen for information. As they scan, they look for visual clues that will point them to important information. Web designers use lists (ordered lists and unordered lists) to provide users with said visual clues.
 Stop and Think
Imagine you recently purchased a video game. You have been playing the game for a couple of days now and you have come to a point you cannot pass – the achievement is too hard. To help you move past this point in the game you complete an Internet search for guidance. You find two search results that seem promising. You visit each site and find that the information is presented differently:
- Search Result #1: The information on the web page is presented in prose/paragraph format with over a full page of text to scroll through. The information does provide you with knowledge of how to defeat the monster, earn the achievement, and move on with the game.
- Search Result #2: The information on the web page is presented in bullet format. The bullets are ordered, specifying the steps needed to defeat the monster, earn the achievement, and move on with the game.
If both pages provide the same helpful information, which would you use to defeat the monster, earn the achievement, and move on to the next stage of the game: the web page with the page-long prose (text) or the web page with the lists?
Most people, when placed in the scenario above, would choose the page with the lists as they are easy to read and discerning important information is quick and easy. In HTML, you have two types of lists at your disposal: ordered lists and unordered lists.
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