Avoid non-html files 
If offering certain information in a format other than html means an added value for your users, don't forget to offer an alternative in html. The very least you should do is offer a summary of the non-html file as a web page. After all, not all users have the required software to open certain file types. Less than half of the Belgian internet users have Acrobat Reader installed, the programme needed to view pdf files. Excel, Word and - to a lesser extent - PowerPoint are more widely known, but still, don't presume that all users have these programmes installed, least of all the latest version. Don't think users will download software especially to look at certain information on your site either. Downloading software means spending time and - for modem surfers - money and most users simply aren't willing to do that.

Always announce links to files other than html 
To avoid confronting users with files they can’t access or lengthy waiting times they didn't expect, it is best to always give an explicit warning when linking to files in any other format than html. Specify the type and size of the file and tell users which programme or plug-in they need to view the file.

Open a new browser window 
Users have a tendency to close windows that look different from a regular browser window. If you don’t open files other than html in a new browser window, chances are that when users are finished with the files, they will close the window and thus automatically leave your site. Another reason for opening files other than html in a new browser window is because Word files that are opened in the browser have a tendency to cause Internet Explorer to crash when visitors use the ‘Back’ button of the browser. You can avoid these problems by simply opening the file in a new browser window.

Els Aerts & Karl Gilis

A more in depth version of this article has appeared in Tips & Advies Online Ondernemen, year 5, number 22 (Belgium and the Netherlands).