• The screen should contain a minimum of 60% (and ideally 85%) whitespace.
• The upper and the lower half of the screen should roughly contain the same amount of whitespace.
• The screen layout should be more or less vertically symmetric.
• Unnecessary colors and embellishments should be avoided.
• Emphasis should only be used if really necessary, and only with necessary prominence:
• low:       different font, underlining, upper case, spacing out
• medium: different size, color or density, inverse video, framing
• high:       blinking, acoustic signals
• Users focus attention at center and upper-leftish area of screen
       Place most important information in this area

• All information that is necessary to solve a coherent sub-task should be visible on the same screen
  (no flipping of pages, no copying/pasting of information)
• The screen should not contain information that is never relevant for any user.
• Users should always be able to find information on
• how to get to the previous screen
• optional: how to exit the subtask or the whole program
• how to obtain help

• Create clear visual structure (hierarchy)
  
• It should reflect the structure of the task or the task solution process, and not the structure of the underlying program.
• Each subtask should be grouped together in a clearly visually separated unit.
• Proximity/distance is mostly good enough for grouping;
• if not, use lines, differently colored backgrounds (similarity), or boxes.
• If the same subtask is represented on more than one screen, it should be presented at the same location on all screens.

• Users should be able to enter and correct data in arbitrary order.
• If connecting screens have to be used,
• the same headlines should be used
• information units needed in two or more screens should be presented on all screens, at the same location.
• Some sequence indicator should be used.

    Title line

• centered in the upper part of the screen
• separated by whitespace
• possibly marked out by larger font, bold face, inverse

    Lowermost screen part:

• Good place for status information
• explanation of available secondary menu options (help, exit, special function keys)
• dynamic explanation of items that are touched by the mouse symbol (tooltips in the vicinity of the items are more easily noticible though)
• warnings and error messages (possibly with an acoustic signal that can optionally be turned off)

    Logos: should go into the left or right upper corner
    Clocks: should not show seconds and should not tick

Example