In another article from DevArticles this morning, they tackle things from the other side of the coin - you know exactly what you want in a website, so you dive right in, creating large chunks of code at a time, with no real clear vision as to what the site should be. Web Design - First Things First suggests a different approach.

The first thing to do before you code any HTML, build any databases, create any graphics or write any content is find out or figure out what purpose you are trying to achieve. I usually start with a single paragraph which states exactly what I am trying to accomplish.

Really, I do think that more websites wouldn't be in the "less than ideal" condition they were in if they followed some of the suggestions in this article. It's another short one, but with the quotes and examples from the author's life, it makes it a bit more interesting than just a normal "design first, code later" piece.