My first real programming job (as opposed to several programs I'd implemented while managing a department that had nothing to do with programming) was creating an ISAPI extension as a web based data warehouse front end. It was all reporting; the data entry was restricted to narrowing down the dataset that was returned.

I learned a lot…not all, but a lot…of the things pointed out in this article. But I also learned that people look at a browser and still want to see all this webby stuff.

As the article implies, a successful web application is designed more like an application than a web page. But it's also cute. Make sure you lay out your pages such that you can add cuteness…after the functionality is nailed down.

Hat tip to Jay Allen