Website Preferences

For interests and hobbies, or for websites related to my interests and hobbies, I like websites that have good style and texture.  Good style and texture adds some flair to a website, especially when it provides a nice optical center for the user. Emphasizing style and texture in the background is especially helpful in capturing a user’s eye. One website I like (and related to one of my interests) is my favorite band Soundgardens site. The style and texture in the background is dark yet colorful and provides a nice optical center for the user. Here is the link:

soundgardenworld.com

For professional website I like good spacing, mainly because it helps me navigate the site more easily. If links are too close together and cluttered up it reduces the usability and can be confusing. There is nothing wrong with a decent amount of whitespace, just not too much, because it may lessen the professional appearance of the website. A professional website I believe does a good job of employing good spacing is Apple’s site. The website is easy to navigate and has high usability due to the effective spacing. Here is the  link:

apple.com

Editing Mistake

From an email I received at work this past week:

“I am not sure who's vehicle this is…”

I frowned when I read this, as it should be “whose” instead of “who’s”, but given the purpose of the email was to inform somebody their car window was down and was probably written in haste I guess I can cut them some slack.

Roger Corry on website design

I really enjoyed viewing all the different websites looking for answers to the questions. I found some really good websites that I felt captured the viewer. The first website I want to discuss is the Apple.com website. I felt the website really captured Apples desire to show compassion for AIDS victims. The big red apple set in the center of the page almost forced me as a viewer to look and read further. It is a simple website and is not cluttered. There is a nice contrast between the red apple in the center and the unusual glass building in the back ground. As I looked at the webpage I felt that my eyes were steered to the center of the page. The developers did a wonderful job putting the webpage together. I also believe the developer used a very common font so as to not take away from the prominent apple.

The second website I wanted to discuss is the Duracell PowerForward website. I loved this website! It is very powerful and definitely shows that Duracell is prepared for any tragedy. The picture used of the Duracell truck sends a message of strength. The words “READY>RELIEF>RESTORE>” also send a message that equals and balances with the picture of the Duracell truck. This website is done very well. There is also a nice contrast with the destruction shown on both sides of the webpage.

Both of these examples worked and the developers certainly accomplished the goal of the campaigns.

Web Design and Layout

I thought this week was very interesting! All the websites had a lot of great information about designing web pages. I was surprised at how much of the information related to things I’ve learned in my major (Theatre- with an emphasis in Acting/Directing). I’m currently directing a production and some of the concepts in this week’s reading are things that I’ve had to negotiate with designers and actors. One of the director’s most important jobs is to be an audience of one (that’s from one of my textbooks). Likewise, the web designer has to keep the user in mind.

One of the headings in the reading said, “Don’t make the user think”; everything in the article revolved around that idea. It’s the designer’s job to design something that is easy to navigate, where a user can easily decipher the most important things and divide the rest of the concepts in his or her mind. I especially liked the rule of thirds. This is also something we’ve discussed in my theatre classes. Lighting designers divide the stage into areas. During a production, the lights help the audience know where they’re supposed to look! I was glad they touched on the importance of white space. I cannot stand overly cluttered websites.

I wanted to find an editing error to relate to this week’s reading, so I bring you www.target.com.  Although it’s one of my go-to stores, I simply cannot shop on their website. It’s a cluttered mess and I don’t have time or patience to navigate it. Look how small the font is! And it's even worse when you hover over the categories on the left. 

Web Pages For Days!

Wow, there are so many different web pages to look at! I think the web design assignment was definitely one of my favorite assignments so far. I absolutely love design and found that locating the principles was quite easy. I want to show you a website that I used for the assignment that was, by far, my favorite site of all time. The principle that I was looking for when I found the website was contrast. Using contrast in your web page is extrememly important because this is what attracts attention to your site. The way colors complement each other draws attention to certain aspects on a site. Here is an example of a website that uses contrast to draw your attention to the page:

This homepage adds the perfect contrast of bright neon colors on a dark, black background. You are instantly attracted to the flaming car on the page, and it’s rather hard to leave the site. I love the design of this site.  I think the creator did a fantastic job at attracting the user’s attention and emphasizing the purpose of the site. 

One tip that I learned this week about web design is that attractiveness is one of the most important aspects of a webpage. If you are going to create a website, your main purpose should be to attract people to the site. I noticed that the sites that had bold contrasts like the one above, or colorful images were the most attractive to me. If we focus on this element, and make sure the site is easy to navigate through, then you have the perfect webpage! 

Editing mistake of the week:

 In this sign, prescription is misspelled. I can't decided if they misspelled it on purpose so that it would fit on the sign, or if they truly couldn't spell it right. Either way, this is pretty unacceptable for such a public display.