Artifact Analysis
Description: Pick one online artifact/object (graphic, website, film short, pop up
advertisement, etc.) that composed by someone else that you use on the web and talk
about its design. In 3-5 sentence paragraphs, respond to (at least) the following questions:
a. Describe the design: What does it look like? What colors and boundaries (lines,
shapes, etc.) are used? Where are your eyes drawn (colors, shapes, etc.)?
b. Purpose: What is this object for? How is it used and how was it intended to be
used?
c. Audience: Who was the design meant for? Do you think that the audience is
meant for will be reached? Do you think the design will achieve what it is for?
d. Context: Where is this object located? What are the connections between the
object and where it is located?
e. Use: What is easy and difficult to use/understand about the object?
f. Perspective: Why is this interesting you to?
Goal: To describe for the audience why you find a particular object intriguing.
Purpose: The purpose of this assignment is to being seeing like designers.
Audience and Context: Your instructor and peers at Michigan Tech in your Graphic and
Information Design course.
Due Date: Mid week 2
09/09/2008 at 11:44 pm
Facebook – J.R. Crowe http://www.new.facebook.com
a. Describe the design:
The overall design looks clean, but it is also somewhat boring. The colors are all simple, white, gray and blue. I actually find these boring colors helpful because it allows the information that I’m interested in to stand out from the background. It reduces the clutter. The page is broken into many columns and rows that define the page regions simply and effectively. The first thing I see when looking at the home page is the numerous comments posted by other users. I find this most useful because as a networking website, the first thing the audience is interested in is other people. There are plenty of navigation bars that are clearly visible when glancing at the home page. These navigation shortcuts are most useful when browsing the site.
b. Purpose:
The purpose of Facebook is that of a social networking utility. It allows users to interact with others via internet. The original use of Facebook was for college students, but it has now expanded to included businesses, high schools, and regional networks. It can also be seen as a huge advertising website because numerous companies use Facebook to sell ideas and products.
c. Audience:
The use of Facebook was probably designed for the younger generation of the population because these generations were the most familiar with using a computer and internet to the greatest potential. Not many older people will take up the art of typing to each other through comments and blogs. The older generations still prefer to make a phone call, or at most an email. The impact of Facebook’s design and its simplicity of use will help increase its popularity as more computer savvy children learn the trade of the internet and social networking.
d. Context:
Facebook is one of the most popular social networking utilities on the internet and this allows numerous responses on search engines when looking for the site. The only hitch with Facebook, more a security feature, is the fact that an account must be made to view Facebook and users can only view pages belonging to friends. This cuts down on the issue of “stalking” which is common inn the social networking society.
e. Use:
The overall use of Facebook is quite easy if all you do is post messages on other users’ walls. The difficulty of Facebook can occur when adding additional applications and “junk” to the homepage. This can cause errors and cluttering of your homepage to the point where others can have trouble navigating your webpage to post or comment.
f. Perspective:
It is interesting to me because it is a very valuable tool. Facebook can help organize my priorities and keep myself in contact with numerous friends without having to see them. I can know what they are doing downstate and they can see what I’ve been up to here in the U.P. Overall I find Facebook to be a very basic tool that can progress into a leviathan of digital information.
09/10/2008 at 1:26 am
Pandora (www.pandora.com) – Trevor Kuehl
A. Describe the Design
Pandora is a simple but elegant web-based music player. The site uses a simple silver, grey, and white coloring scheme. The page has its functions divided into various rounded windows that are easy to differentiate between and pleasing to the eye. Your eyes are immediately drawn to the central music controller when you are using Pandora. This is done on purpose because the music you play through Pandora is controlled almost exclusively through this particular area. The other functions of the site are above or below this main controller but are still easy to access and navigate through.
B. Purpose
The purpose of Pandora is to give users the chance to explore new music within a range that he or she defines. When you initially log in to Pandora you are asked to search for a song that you enjoy listening to or would like to base a “station” off of. When you find a song in the Pandora database through this search the player immediately plays the song and sets to work finding songs that are similar to the one you chose. It will further change future music preferences based on whether a user rates the songs it chooses “thumbs up” or “thumbs down.” Essentially, Pandora is a digital DJ that adapts to your preferences over time.
C. Audience
Pandora is intended for music enthusiasts or web surfers that are looking to hear something fresh for their music collection. I think that Pandora works excellent for its intended audience. Anyone who is familiar with a computer based music player and has used a web browser will be comfortable with Pandora. Even with no experience with music players I don’t think Pandora would be hard to use because it does give popup advice to new users (thought I didn’t pay much attention to it when I signed up, I already had seen a friend use it).
D. Context
Pandora is a web based music player. It’s on the web because it’s the only place such a project would be possible. There is no other way to let people listen to random music that will interest them easily and Pandora is almost entirely unique in this respect (though there are plenty of new websites doing similar things now). Pandora also gives links for legally downloading the tracks that it plays, so it also functions as an advertising and marketing tool for both seasoned and emerging bands.
E. Use
Pandora’s main user interface is easy to use. You should have a song playing within a few minutes of accessing the site and signing up. The only thing on the site that some may find confusing would be the station controller, which can offer an overwhelming amount of information in its popup windows. Though this part of the interface seems daunting at first, the features are spelled out in text and can be easily understood if a little time is spent reading over them.
F. Perspective
Pandora is interesting to me because I like to have variety in the music that I listen to. However, I am usually in the mood for a specific genre of music. Pandora allows me to fulfill both of these criteria at once by allowing me to tailor a station to a specific genre of music, but also introducing me to songs I’ve never heard from that genre. I highly recommend Pandora if your music collection is getting stale and your looking to find some new bands to listen to.
09/10/2008 at 3:41 am
Runner’s World (www.runnersworld.com)
A. Describe the Design
The color combination for the website is mostly blue and white with splashes of color to catch the eye. My eye is immediately drawn to a green and black advertisement for Reebok shoes at the top and side, and then to a cartoon of two runners at the starting line of a road race with running related phrases in the background. Information on the website is divided into three columns with headings before each section. Although it does not incorporate dividing lines, the designers included enough whitespace to create clear dividing lines. Headings to help the reader navigate are at the top.
B. Purpose
The main goal of http://www.runnersworld.com is to provide runners of all ages information about running from training to gear to nutrition to injury prevention. The website incorporates many tools to help runners develop training programs for races, find the right shoes, and calculate pace, among other tools. It also has many advertisements related to running and feature articles about running-related issues, including training, motivation, nutrition, and races. Runner’s World began as a magazine distributed to “recreational” runners.
C. Audience
The primary audience for this website is the recreational runner. I think Runner’s World meets the audience’s needs and expectations because they cover a variety of topics, the color scheme is not overwhelming, and the graphics are appropriate for the audience. Many runners learn about the website from the Runner’s World magazine and since the magazine covers topics similar to those online it sets up expectations of what will be covered on the website.
D. Context
Runner’s World Magazine has been around for many years and is regarded as one of the best sources for runners. The magazine provides interesting interviews and information about the best runners in the world. The credibility already set up for Runner’s World assists in attracting an audience to the website. Since the website also incorporates advertisements it is a good resource for runners when shopping for new gear. The one downfall of the website is the amount of content available.
E. Use
It feels like an explosion of information until the viewer begins to scan through what is available. The website is fairly easy to navigate with the headings at the top and left side so the reader can easily find what they are looking for. The website also incorporates ways for the runner to interact with the website through the use of a daily poll, contests, and tools to help runners shop and calculate key components in racing.
F. Perspective
This website intrigues me because I was a competitive runner for many years and had a subscription to “High School Runner” which is a version of Runner’s World magazine tailored to high school runners. I have visited the website many times and used the tools provided. It’s a great website because it can meet the needs of a range of runners. I like this site a lot because it doesn’t continuously change like other websites so it is always easy for me to navigate.
09/10/2008 at 2:47 pm
For my analysis, I chose the webpage for Tech Today, Michigan Tech’s online faculty/staff newsletter: http://www.admin.mtu.edu/urel/ttoday/.
Design Description
The webpage looks as though it follows University design standards—it incorporates school colors and the Michigan Tech logo that links to the Michigan Tech homepage in the banner, which is also composed of a shape that looks like something you’d find in the game Tetris and employs the largest font size for the phrases “Create the Future,” “News and Information Services” and “Tech Today.” The background is white. After the primary banner, my eyes are drawn to the rectangular banner photo of campus directly below. As a result, instead of shifting my view to the side navigation bar, my eyes continue downward to two links: “TODAY’S ISSUE” and “Click here to check out our new faculty members,” the latter surprisingly in a larger font and more prominent than the former. Two paragraphs follow the links—the first defines Tech Today and gives another link to the current issue, and the second provides a link to submission information. Next, my eyes return full-circle to the rectangular navigation bar on the left that depicts a past editor—it seems rectangles are the shape of choice—with links to the University Marketing and Communications and News Services websites and more links to Tech Today, including another to the current issue of Tech Today. At the top are links to other Michigan Tech webpages, such as “prospective students.”
Purpose
There is some Tech Today context that I should explain. The Tech Today website is only one component of the newsletter—most readers subscribe to the Tech Today email listserv. Monday through Friday, an email is sent to the email list with a link to the follow day’s issue, plus headlines and boiler-plate information about the newsletter. So, really, the website is somewhat secondary. The following text appears within the newsletter email: “For more information, including how to subscribe and unsubscribe, visit Tech Today on the Web at http://www.admin.mtu.edu/urel/ttoday/.” It would seem that most subscribers who visit the website would be interested in utilizing the links in the left nav bar–including unsubscribing, submitting an article or searching archives–or gaining information on Tech Today, University Marketing and Communications, or Michigan Tech. Others would visit the site to subscribe to the Tech Today email.
Audience
There could be multiple audiences for this website. The primary, however, is probably those interested in either subscribing to or unsubscribing from Tech Today or submitting an article to the newsletter. I think the website achieves this purpose; although it took me a while to find the navigation bar on the left the first time I used it—perhaps there isn’t enough color contrast between the links and the background because they appear as if they’ve been visited sometimes when they haven’t even been clicked—it’s instinct for most users to look to the left for a nav bar. Another audience may visit the site to view the current issue of Tech Today. If audiences outside the Michigan Tech community visit the site, there are links to the main University website and other webpages to help them navigate and achieve their purposes.
Context
As I’ve previously stated, the webpage is part of the Michigan Tech website, within University Marketing and Communications. Accordingly, it contains links to other Michigan Tech webpages.
Usability
It might be difficult for those who have not subscribed to the Tech Today email to find the current issue on the webpage. Although there are three links to the current issue, none of them are very prominent on the page. The size and boldness of the link to the current issue below the primary banner should be increased. Since my eyes seem to gravitate downward on the page, I’ve accidentally clicked the “Click here to check out our new faculty members” link many times instead of the “TODAY’S ISSUE” link. Also, the use of all caps is more difficult to read because the height of the letters is equivalent all the way across the word; it’s more effective to use size, font or other forms of contrast, such as boldness. It also seems that the links in the left nav bar are constrained in a small space compared to the rest of the page; also, they’re in a font size smaller than the link to the new faculty, which shouldn’t stand out the most on the page. Thus, the “Click here to check out our new faculty members” links should be decreased in size, and the nav bar links and rectangular should be increased in size, since most users probably use the nav bar. Also, the “visited” color for the links in the nav bar should be changed to a color that would contrast more with the background color.
Perspective
This is interesting to me because I’m the student editor for Tech Today. I think usability is the most important aspect of a webpage, followed by design. It was a good exercise for me to analyze why I had trouble using this webpage at first and how it could be remedied.
09/10/2008 at 6:30 pm
Website: http://languagelog.ldc.upenn.edu/nll/ (Language log)
Design:
The design of this website is very simple, with a fixed width content area. The content is bordered by light blue-gray background on the left and right sides, while the top has a black title bar with white text. Above the title bar, there is a smaller light blue and blue bar. The bottom of the content box simply points to previous entries. 75% of the main content box is devoted to the meat of the website, while the side column is shaded gray and devoted to other topics, such as old posts, related links and the authors.
Purpose:
This object is devoted to the use of language in our lives, in every aspect they feel they can safely cover. It is used as a blog, with user feedback from other language experts of spectators. It was intended to be used in this manner by the website designers.
Audience:
The design of the site is meant to welcome people who are interested in language usage in the media, everyday life or just in general. Yes, I think the target audience has been reached, as I found out about this site via word of mouth, and it seems there are many people who read it. The design also seems to have achieved it’s goal, as many people read the site, and enjoy it.
Context:
The object is located on the internet. The internet is the ideal location for this object, as it deals with language in general, such as usage of language on the internet, in vocal media and in comics. It is hard to get audio samples in a print media, at least for me.
Use:
The website is quite easy to use via an optical interface, and responds quickly to feedback via a human-computer interaction device.
The most difficult part of this website is the white background with black text, as this combination can be painful to read.
Perspective:
This site is interesting to me because I am interested in the usage of language in many media forms, such as comics, morphology, syntax and advertising.
Reading this website is entertaining and informative for me, as I would like to increase my mastery of the English language from people who know more than I do.
09/10/2008 at 7:06 pm
YouTube (http://www.youtube.com) – Eric Thomas
A. Describe the Design
YouTube is a very simple but extremely useful website that allows users to post and view videos on the internet. The design is easy enough to follow with the search window easily visible. The Home, Videos, Channels and Community sections are very understandable. The videos on the homepage are the most popular and once you log in and start viewing videos the website starts suggesting other videos you may enjoy. Again, the search bar stands out immediately and is easy enough to find. The colors are simple, with white being the main color. It’s easy on the eyes and does not become stressful to look at for a long time.
B. Purpose
YouTube is the website that everyone uses online now. Posting videos and viewing videos online has never been so easy. Hosting videos is free, something that wasn’t very common before the site came into existence. It’s easy to view videos and with a little time it’s also easy to upload your own if you have them. I use the website extensively.
C. Audience
The audience of YouTube is anybody who wishes to view videos of varying content as well as power users who wish to distribute their videos online for free. It’s used by many to waste time and watch funny videos and a lot of promotional material is put onto the site as well. It gives people without the money for hosting to put their own content online as well, a feature utilized by many.
D. Context
YouTube came about because there was a demand for such a site that offered free hosting to its users. It’s one of the biggest sites on the internet now and it’s obvious once you discover how much content there really is on the site.
E. Use
The site is very simple to use. Searching for videos in a particular topic is easy and if you don’t have anything in mind there are many categories to browse and find something that a user may find amusing. There are no complicated steps to follow to find content, it’s all over the website and easy to view. Uploading videos is a little bit more difficult, but most users that will utilize that feature are going to be a little more savvy with their internet skills than the average web surfer.
F. Perspective
YouTube was quick to catch my eye because I use it so frequently. I can pull up music videos, funny videos and anything that I can think about with a few keywords and a click of the mouse. The convenience is staggering when you think about how few sites like this there were just recently. If you are interested in watching videos or distributing your own online then YouTube is something certainly useful to you.
09/10/2008 at 7:34 pm
Google (www.google.com) – Stephen Anderson
a. Describe the Design
Google’s homepage could be described with one word: simple. Because Google is a search engine first and foremost, the search bar is centered right in the middle of the page for easy, clear access. Everything is centered on this, and the Google logo is prominently displayed, and it changes daily with an interesting design. Even though the search is the obvious focal point, other features are extremely easy to find using their simple toolbars. Color, font choices, layout, dominance; everything is centered on simplicity.
b. Purpose
Google does so many things that no one paragraph could describe it. It is the most comprehensive search engine on the Internet, it offers an incredible map feature, and it features an innovate email and calendar client. It links to YouTube, it offers a special scholarly search, and it provides easy access to News and Shopping. Its functions are nearly unlimited, yet they maintain a simple, intuitive layout, unlike some other multi-faceted websites.
c. Audience
One really intriguing fact about Google is that their audience is basically everyone. Their focus on simplicity is what makes the site so effective. They can accomplish all the aforementioned purposes because they make it easy for everyone to get what they want out of their experience on the site.
d. Context
This website is found at an easy-to found self-titled URL: Google.com. Because Google has done such a terrific job of branding, finding it is never the hard part. Sometimes what you are looking for can be difficult to find, but the interesting thing is that it is very rarely Google’s fault. Google makes everything accessible to everyone.
e. Use
As I have been stressing all along, Google is centered on simplicity. Having used it for much of my life, I cannot imagine Google being difficult to use, but even their Help section is easy to find. I personally do not know what I would do without Google and their easy-to-use interface.
f. Perspective
This is interesting to me because Google is so widely popular and successful, yet their design is so simple. Complex artwork and fancy designs have their place, but in terms of simple, innovative, easy-to-use designs, I cannot think of a better example than Google. I think sometimes people over-design things in an attempt to draw attention, but I think what is important about Google is that their helps the users, instead of forcing users to fight through an over-design to get at the practical use.
09/11/2008 at 2:51 am
Artifact Analysis
deviantArt
http://www.deviantart.com/
A. Describe the Design
The design is meant to be smooth and sleek, and it succeeds to a point. There are no rough edges and the site has an aesthetically pleasing design. No bright colors, just soft greens of various hues. Eyes are drawn at first to the images at center, and then outward to the other details of the screen, from advertisements, tabs, and information.
B. Purpose
The function of the site is to display art in and online gallery format. The basic function was to have a place where artists could present their art for others to see and get comments on how to improve their skills. People use it for this, but with the addition of interacting with those of like interest and collecting art that they like and watching artists who they think are satisfactory.
C. Audience
The design was meant for artists and art appreciators, so there is nothing too ambitious or in the face of the viewer. The audience will be reached but the sheer size of the current site also gives great chance that the audience will be lost in the shuffle. It will serve its purpose because it attempts to retain a user friendly interface and does what its meant to do: display the artistic talents of others.
D. Context
This is located on the Internet. This location is meant to give the content and inactivity a world wide connection. This also gives some artist the opportunity to gain some exposure from a wide audience.
E. Use
It is easy to look at pictures on the site. There are thumbnails on the main page that can be easily explored. The difficult parts come when exploring other parts of the site, from trying to figure out the category system to finding the forum. There is a learning curve with exploring the site. Through the versions that try to make a more simple interface with more function, some parts of deviantArt have become complicated to figure out.
F. Perspective
This is an interesting site because I like to draw myself, though I fancy myself to more an art appreciator than a good artist. deviantArt is a nice mainstream art community, which is a little convoluted in parts, but with some digging, some new and cool talent can be found between the cracks. The design is never too in my face and never seems too crazy, like Facebook and MySpace tend to be sometimes.
09/11/2008 at 3:46 am
Artifact Analysis:
Steam
a) Describe the Design
Steam’s design seems to focus on simplicity. The main page uses 5 colors, all from a fairly dark palette without being too dark. Rather than using lines to separate the different columns and areas, there is instead an abrupt color change, from dark gray to a far lighter gray. There is no mistaking one column for another. Hyperlinks are the Internet standard of blue, and text is a nearly white shade of gray. Images are used to denote deals and give a quick glimpse of whatever games are available, and even those are kept relatively small. So one’s eyes are drawn to the large central image, one which showcases the best deals or hits the site has available at the time.
b) Purpose
The primary purpose of Steam is simple: An online games delivery and launching tool. Rather than having to go to a brick and mortar store for their games, Valve developed Steam to cut down on costs and make digital delivery easier for users. Since it’s inception, Steam has grown to feature far more than Valve games, perhaps becoming more popular than even they anticipated.
c) Audience
Because the site and program were developed solely to deliver games, Steam was obviously meant for gamers. At the time of it’s release, it was the only program that managed to do what it could, and as of now, it’s one of the most popular digital distribution methods on the internet. I’d say that Valve has safely hit whatever goal they set.
d) Context
While Steam is a downloadable program, it requires the internet for even the most basic acts of firing up any game. As such, the website (steampowered.com) looks almost identical to the program, which easily cements the relationship between the two in users minds.
e) Use
Ultimately, I’d say Steam is a very user friendly program. The creators made a fairly streamlined program with just enough bells and whistles to stand out, while not so many as to distract the user. If anything negative could be said, it would be that ordering can be a cumbersome activity, due to the fact that the program doesn’t store information locally. While this keeps personal data safe, it can make repeated use of the client difficult. Also, the fact that Steam has to be connected to the internet in some manner to play anything, even single player games, isn’t advertised too readily, making that a touchy point as well.
f) Perspective
Ultimately, I am a person who plays games. Perhaps entirely too many games. As such, Steam is a fairly important tool to me, as a program meant to give me access to games more quickly and easily than going to a store and hoping that they have a copy. It’s also fairly interesting from a business standpoint, because nearly everything that goes towards a game purchase on Steam is profit for Valve or the game’s parent company. It’s amazing more companies haven’t adopted this delivery system.
09/11/2008 at 3:48 am
Oops, HTML didn’t work out too hot.
Actual link to Steam:
http://www.steampowered.com
09/11/2008 at 6:03 am
http://www.nfl.com – Vince Nutini
A. Design
It uses a lot of blue and white with red as an accent, drawing those colors from the official logo. Despite the absolutely enormous volume of information, the design manages to stay relatively concise and compact, without becoming too cluttered or hard to navigate and read. The straight lines and rectangle/square shapes help to break up and separate different sections of the site, while keeping the layout clean and sharp. The sans serif, straight-lined font also helps promote that idea of a crisp, efficient site that says “the NFL knows what its doing”. Eyes are initially drawn to the large revolving graphic in the upper-middle left, helping to initially catch eyes and draw them to the “featured articles” being promoted.
B. Purpose
This website is intended to be the online headquarters of the National Football league. It is supposed to provide news, injury, trade and information updates, as well as scores and stats for all 32 NFL teams and individual players. I believe it is used for its intended purpose, to inform the audience about any and all NFL related issues.
C. Audience
The audience for this site in a stereotype would be teen to middle aged men who are interested in and enjoy professional football. That can be broadened to anyone who has an interest in the sport. One caveat to me seems that the NFL is aiming more toward the tech-savvy population because of the tendency to use and promote more video media than a news site for example.
D. Context
The NFL has been the most or one of the most highly followed sports in the United States, with growing popularity in Europe. The bread and butter of the NFL, the games, are held in various stadiums throughout the season. These stadiums can only hold so many fans, and travel is expensive so the NFL expanded to television as well, even having there own network where you can catch every game every Sunday. Still, it is only available in some areas and cable only shows one or two games per Sunday. So from that comes the website, since the majority of people can get access to the internet and check the website, it finalizes the tri-fecta of media coverage and exposure.
E. Use
In general it is fairly easy to navigate around the site, the sections are clearly marked and identified as “Headlines” or “Analysis and Opinions”, etc. Getting to a specific team or player is relatively easy as well. You scroll over “Teams”, go to the team you like, click and your there, it is just as intuitive to get to a player on that team. One thing that is difficult is actually deciding where to go first. There is a lot of information that is initially thrown at you and it makes it hard to decide what you wanted check out first.
F. Perspective
This is interesting to me because I’m a football junky. I do the whole fantasy football thing; I watch every Sunday, go to as many games as I can, the works. It’s great because when I’m stuck at work on a Sunday I can still get my football fix and track my fantasy players. I use it to decide who I should pick in my football pools and make decisions on who will be good or bad this week.
09/11/2008 at 12:10 pm
http://www.keweenaw-community-foundation.org/index.php?p=home Shelley Farrey
•I decided to analyze the logo in left hand corner of this page because this logo seems to portray a positive environment. Your eye is immediately drawn to the rays of the sun and its center. Since blue seems to be one of the most popular colors in website design, I think that the blue background is either more like a default color or it could be that it is a softer color which, again, portrays a very positive image.
•This design is one that is used for a website for a local non-profit organization, whose motto is, “For good. Forever”. It portrays the good with its rays of hope and the forever in the sun always shining.
•The audience that this logo was designed for are the donors to the non-profit organization. I can’t really say that the design will reach the audience it is meant to reach. That is hard to say since I am involved in this organization and can only hope the audience it is intended for will be reached.
•This design is located on the organization’s website and also on any publications that are distributed to its audience. Since I believe the logo pretty much represents the company and all its good that it is doing, the logo is intended to portray a positive image to the organization.
•It’s a pretty basic logo to understand. I mean, you wouldn’t find a logo like this on an extremist website. It’s pure, simple and good, just like the organization it represents.
•I find this logo interesting because I love its positive image and if I were to design something for this organization, I would have done something similar to it.
09/11/2008 at 3:10 pm
Artifact Analysis: Debian.Org
Sean Bulger
While there are many websites that I visit on a daily basis, and numerous that I could write an in-depth analysis about, my attention for this short paper goes toward a website that is of particular importance to me: Debian.org. This website houses my primary operating system of choice, Debian GNU/Linux. As such, I am required to use this website to find ISOs (CD or DvD images) of Debian. Along with this, fairly vital, use of the website, the Debian site serves several other purposes. For one, it informs visitors of what Debian, GNU, Linux, and Open Source is. It also provides support information on Debian, and provides news as well.
One thing that many people, including myself, notice about the Debian website is that it is very plain. It is largely white with black text, a very simple red bar with blue buttons running along the top, and a light blue side bar along the left containing various links. The Debian logo is at the top left and the page’s width is dynamic. The plain look of the website is intentional for several reasons: it is designed for function over form, and it sticks very closely to web standards, it is intended to appeal to a certain techy crowd that doesn’t care about the flashiness of a website – which is becoming less and less true as more people adopt Linux, including Debian. The design of the website draws the reader’s eyes below the red horizontal bar and the blue sidebar, to the corner they make together, with the text “What is Debian?” displayed. The side bar, while being more complicated to look through, is toned down significantly with its dark blue links on a light blue background. Instead, eyes are drawn to the red and blue horizontal bar that contain fewer, and simpler, links.
From there, the website starts to run into problems, notably in the “Getting Debian” page, which is arguably quite important. The reader is presented with what appears to be a large wall of text. It is difficult for someone to go into this page, and click past it without reading through an awful lot of information. It is difficult to just continue past this page if you know what you are looking for. It seems the developer tried to make it easy to do that, with the bullet points, but they still come off as too wordy.
The Debian website suffers from many similar problems as this, and at times, is a pain to use. However, it does stick to web standards very well and uses a simple design that does allow the reader to access most areas of the website to find the information they need easily. The problem lies within those sections, as finding that specific bit of information becomes a challenge.
09/11/2008 at 5:56 pm
http://espn.go.com
A- Design
The design of the website ESPN.com is very clean. The colors of red are common with all of the ESPN affiliated TV stations. Whenever I visit the site, the picture on the left edge first catches my eyes. This leads into the main story of the day. The right of the page also has a video section where daily highlights are shown. I like the design of the page. It is easy to understand and navigate. It is a user friendly website.
B- Purpose
The purpose of this website is to offer up to date information about sports. You can read articles, look at photos, and watch videos from the daily sports coverage.
C- Audience
This websites design is intended for sports fans of all ages and interests. The design does a great job of offering it’s needs to every kind of sports fan. If you are not experienced with the internet it is an easy site to navigate.
D- Context
ESPN is the largest sports information network in the world. It offers 5 television channels. When I search ESPN on any search network I am offered many pages to choose from. The first one is the main homepage.
E- Use
Navigation is easy to understand. If you want to find something in a specific sport, you can venture to the top of the page and click on that sport and a dropdown menu bar will give you more options.
F- Perspective
I love this page because no matter what sport or fact I’m trying to find that day, I can easily find it from logging onto the homepage. The links, photos, articles and videos provide me with information and entertainment that I want. It is interesting to me to see how they can provide so much information with one main page.
09/12/2008 at 7:23 pm
Short film: “A vision of students Today” can be found at :
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dGCJ46vyR9o
Answers:
Describe the design: The design of the film was set in a typical college lecture hall. The camera work is fast, focusing only on specific messages that are either set up around the hall or are held up by the different students in the class. Most of the messages are shown either on paper or on the screen of a laptop, with exceptions at the very beginning and end of the film. As you watch your eyes are automatically drawn from one message to the next, the camera remaining unfocused on everything and everyone other then the target. This makes it very easy to follow. Also due to the fact that save for a very soft background music that dose not take away from the overall message, visual attention is a must when watching.
2. Purpose: The purpose of this short film was to highlight some of the flaws in both the modern college system, and some of the short coming of the students attending classes. Attention is brought to the seemingly outdated method of transferring live information, and that setting in a lecture hall alone will not help prepare students for the future. In addition it touches on the fact that many students will pay for class and never attend, bring computers to class to check myspace or facebook, and may pay high prices for text books that they never see the inside of.
3. Audience: I believe that the target audience was intended to be a wide range of people. Students and facility of colleges for sure, but also parents that might be paying for their children to go to a college or university, and older adults that might be looking to go back to school in a attempt to earn their degrees. I think that this short film will be able to reach its audience because of the almost backhanded way that it goes about it. Rather then shouting its opinion it uses a silent message that causes the viewer to pay attention to what is not being said instead of what is.
4. Context: Physically the video can be found on YouTube or Google by doing a search for “A Vision of Students Today.” The video itself was short at Kansas State University by a student named Michael Wesch. The connection between the film itself and the University setting is greatly significant. Many students choose to attend state universities or ones similar where they are but one student in a sea of faces. Even in a smaller university like Michigan Tech it is easy to relate to the feeling of just being a number in a class.
5. Use: For myself I had no difficulties in understanding the film’s message. I found its silent approach very effective and being in college myself at the current time it was easy to relate to what the different students where ‘saying’. However someone who dose not see well on a screen, might have usability issues in just trying to understand the words. Also it may not affect someone who hasn’t been to a modern University, or has been out of one for a long time and is out of touch with how they are run.
6. Perspective: I found this particular piece interesting because of the message and feeling that it tried to convey. I was able to relate well to it, and found myself nodding in agreement most of the time. I have seen friends who pay for classes and then never show, or have heard more about my professor from a website or friends then from the professor himself. I have seen assignments turned in that have never reached the instructors eyes, and found textbooks still in their wrappers when I buy them used.
09/15/2008 at 2:11 pm
Matt Lutze
Greek Life at MTU -> http://greek.mtu.edu
1. Design
The current Greek Life Web site utilizes the barest of formatting and site ergonomics. Using a white background and the standard Michigan Tech link bar, the Greek Life site seems focused on throwing lots of information at the user with little regard to how the user experiences it. There is a link div on the left of the page content, black background with University Marketing and Comm.’s bright yellow. The pages are built without border lines, instead using the top bar and left link bar to create the shape of the content. Some content is centered to the top bar, some content is centered to the container div. Diving one level down into the site, one will find the top bar changes to an obsolete version, sometimes with broken links, and a modulating use of style formatting.
2. Purpose
The purpose of the Greek Life Web site is to provide a front face for the Greek community at Michigan Tech. Through we Web site, the community and the Student Activities office provide general information on being Greek at MTU, links to the community’s recognized organizations, information on Greek awards and service/philanthropy opportunities, and other information. It also provides links to the Interfraternity Council and the Panhellenic Council, which represent together the collective recognized Greek organizations at Michigan Tech.
3. Audience
The audience for the Greek Life Web site is comprised of three groups. First is the set defined by students, ages (probably) 17-23, who are either planning to attend or are in their first semesters at Michigan Tech. The second group is the parents of these students. Third would be current/past Greek students at Michigan Tech. A small portion of the audience could potentially be news media or other information distribution persons.
4. Context
The Greek Life Web site is a part of the Michigan Tech Web space. As such, the office of Student Activities is forced to use what I will lovingly call the awkward color palette established by UMC. Access to the site is presumably gained either from direct URL navigation or from searching the Michigan Tech site.
5. Use
The first audience set, the 17-23 y/o’s, will either be looking for general information about Tech’s Greek community or will be looking for information/links to specific organizations’ Web sites. Parents will be looking for a similar set of content, potentially more focused on academic information and university standings (regarding awards and probations). Greek students themselves may further use the site as a gateway to other organizations or to learn about new/upcoming events.
6. Perspective
I find the Greek Life site, and it’s adjacent sites with the IFC and Panhellenic, to be in dire need of updating/reconstruction. The navigation is my first point of contention; bright yellow text on black is very difficult to separate and derive information from. Further, the order and hierarchy of links is at first confusing. Page content layout is a flashback to the 90’s. Large blocks of text are common throughout, further decreasing information location and consumption. Style formatting is not universal, photographs and images are sometimes broken or “squished.” In general, the site encourages students not to stay, and further discourages users from searching through pages for more information. It needs a serious face lift and a copy writer to boot.
09/18/2008 at 7:46 pm
Randomwebsite.net
Design:
This website is set on a black background with white text. The graphic of the dice is perfect for site. Dice symbolize the game of chance.
Purpose:
This website is more complex than what it seems. It’s a big database. In a sense it is another search engine except it is completely random. It’s the best way to kill time on the World Wide Web.
Audience:
This site is for those who are extremely bored, graphic designers, and network technicians. How do I know this? Simple, The author of the website tells you. Granted yes, it may be used by other audiences but not ones you can predict.
Use:
For what it is, it’s pretty useful. While I was using it I did find some things to improve on.
• Display the web address automatically
• If the website offers other language…display the language options perhaps
Outlook:
Out of all the years I’ve used the internet, I have never thought of seeing if there was a website that randomly spits out other websites. On the outside this website seems completely stupid. One who is looking closely can see how ingenious it is. However I don’t want to think too deeply on a random website that finds random websites.