Think of hyperlinks as the supporting structure of your Web site. Hyperlinks should enable readers to navigate through your site the way they want to, without getting lost or confused.

Avoid nasty surprises with hyperlinks   Navigation should always be predictable. Whether you choose to use phrases, graphics (see Creating Thumbnail Graphics on Your Publisher 2000 Web Site ), or icons as your hyperlinks:

• Be consistent. The word "Home" or a picture of a house, for example, should always lead the reader to your home page.
• Use precise wording or images so readers know what destination to expect before they click the link. It makes their job of moving around your Web site much easier, and increases your ability to hold their attention.
• Use consistent wording or images so readers can learn what destination to expect before they click the link.

Keep the hyperlink wording brief   This is the Web, so links should be even more scannable than the rest of your content:

• Make "price list" the hyperlink, for example, rather than "Review our updated price list here."
• Make all hyperlink text in a Web site roughly the same length.

Make hyperlinks easily recognizable   Your hyperlinks should be immediately recognizable as hyperlinks.

• Make the size, color, and placement of each type of link consistent for elements repeated on multiple pages, such as buttons or navigation bars.
  
  Hyperlinks are hard to find on the left Web page because they are scattered throughout the text. Hyperlinks on the right Web page are easier to find because they are placed together.
• Avoid underlining for emphasis in your writing. Text hyperlinks are frequently marked by underlining on a Web page.
• Keep the number of hyperlinks to a minimum. Just as a wall of text chases away even the most avid Web surfer, so do too many hyperlinks.
• Leave enough space between hyperlinks so that readers don't mistake two or more hyperlinks for one hyperlink.
• Use different colors for unvisited and visited hyperlinks that contrast with your Web site's background color. If the hyperlinks blend in with the background, they will either not be visible or they will seem to disappear when clicked.

To change the color of text hyperlinks

1. Click Color and Background Scheme on the Format menu.
2. Click the Custom tab.
3. Under Scheme colors, click the down arrow next to the Hyperlink box or Followed Hyperlink box.
4. Choose the color you want on the color palette.
5. Click OK.

For More Information

To view more information about using color on your Publisher Web site, click Microsoft Publisher Help on the Help menu in Publisher, and then type hyperlinks in the Office Assistant or on the Answer Wizard tab.