A splash page is a handy thing to have. If used accordingly, it lets potential visitors know what kind of browser(s) the site works best in, what resolution(s) to possibly use for optimal viewing, what kind of HTML coding was used, or even if the site's done up in Flash. If the site has a splash page, then chances are that it's there for a reason - like the possible chance that there's more than one variation of the site (ie: Flash, normal HTML, WebTV, web phone et al). Sometimes a splash page can be completely pointless, and some websites don't even have one.

It's come to my attention that some people believe that having a splash page is a complete waste of time, and so if they link to a site that does have a splash page, they'd link to the main page that the splash page generally would have linked to anyway, if at all. Granted that not all websites need a splash page, but to bypass linking a splash page (and linking to some other page instead) simply because one believes that a splash page is a waste of viewers' time is rude.

Okay, so they think a splash page isn't necessary. That's them. But not everybody thinks so. The rest of us who do believe in splash page's usefulness or even those of us who don't care either way should make that decision for ourselves. The bulk of visitors can and should be given the chance to decide for themselves whether or not to click past the splash or not even visit the site of their own accord.

Saying that 'splash pages' are so 'last decade' and that they should be left back there/is a waste of visitors time is like saying visitors don't have the brainpower to decide on their own upon whether or not how to spend their time taking all of what... two seconds... to see what the site owner has on their splash page and either 1) continue onto the site because they already meet minimum requirements, 2) change their settings to view the site correctly or 3) leave because only then can they make an INFORMED decision that the site truly isn't worth their time.

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