Links

Make it easier for users to interact with added content. Tooltips, drop-down menus, and popups are examples of added content.

Link text needs to clearly and accurately convey the link's purpose.

Consistency is one of the cornerstones of good usability.

In long lists of links, it's helpful to show users which links they've already followed so they can focus on unseen content. Browsers do not tend to let you style visited links with anything but the color property.

It's important to provide consistent navigation regions to navigate between a site's pages and—where there is a lot content on each page—between sections of pages.

Users can find their way around a web site more easily and confidently if they know where they are.

Interactive elements should not be difficult to select or activate when using a mouse or a touchscreen.

Generous sizing and spacing is important, and their implied visual “hit area” should correspond to the control’s active area.

Interactive elements should, under most circumstances, be focusable in the order that they appear in the source code. This helps people who are using the keyboard or alternative input devices to follow focus in a logical order.

All interactive elements should indicate when they’re focused so that users know which element they are currently interacting with. This is where focus styles come into play.

If an active element is intended to be unavailable in a particular state and it’s hidden from view, it should not be able to receive focus.