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Simple, basic design is often better ... look at the huge popularity of CraigsList (ok, that one could use a little updating, but it just works), The Drudge Report (a near perfect design for what it's used for), and Wikipedia.
Sites choke-full of flash and javascript keep the web designers busy - yeah, I know they've got to make a living, but all the extra nonsense (and that often is what it is) comes at a cost to both website owners (more money and stuff to fix) and visitors...
Slowness and flakyness; often lack of functionality compared to an older design - Google's Picasa is a prime example of that - their most recent chages degraded image zoom for many people. Weather Underground's most recent updates - so bad with so many complaints they've kept the old design active on a separate sub-domain. And Slashdot, much the same thing - many users stick with the older "classic" site, since it at least still runs half-way decent.
And YouTube's design changes - wow, what a mess with many users with lots of videos furious about "Load More" button and all the clicking. And many viewers frustrated about playback resolution automatically changing (in the previous version, the user had total control) when they go from viewing in a window to full-screen.
Rambling on, but anyways, there's a lot to be said for the K.I.S.S. principle - solid, updated content will keep visitors coming back for more assuming they can get to it without getting blocked / frustrated by all the flashy web design nonsense.
Ron
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Domagon - Website Management and Domain Name Sales
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