Usability is about making a website simple, easy, quick to navigate, and enjoyable to use. It is also about presenting the information in an easy to read format.
Accessibility is about making the website navigable to everyone including people with disabilities or people with slow internet connections.
They are both important because people with slow internet connects don't want to wait while the site loads only to have to wait more because they can't find the information or product they visited the site for. Also because of the America with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA), some sites could be subject to an ADA claim which could include reduced site traffic and maybe even a lawsuit.
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Friday, January 27, 2012
Is it always a good thing that anyone with a computer can create a website?
It is not always a good thing that anyone with a computer can design a web site. Anyone can design a website. This is true. However without being properly educated about aspects of design or having enough experience, the website might look more like a two year old just colored on the wall. Designing sites for practice/experience is one thing, but if you are designing for someone else, that person probably would prefer for you to be more professional, so that the site functions properly. On the other hand, there are some people who learn well enough as they go to be able to pick up the nuances of design quickly without encountering too many run-ins with bad design. Either way, trying to find a site designer that would fit your expectations and budget can be an arduous task.
Advantages/Disadvantages of creating your own website.
Advantages:
Low cost
You can work on it any time you want
It's your vision
You can put as much time into it as you want
You can make changes to it any time
Disadvantages:
Higher cost
Site work is done on their time, not yours
If you don't like how it looks, you will have to pay more to have it fixed or do it yourself
Making changes could cost you more money
Their vision of your site
Low cost
You can work on it any time you want
It's your vision
You can put as much time into it as you want
You can make changes to it any time
Disadvantages:
Higher cost
Site work is done on their time, not yours
If you don't like how it looks, you will have to pay more to have it fixed or do it yourself
Making changes could cost you more money
Their vision of your site
Monday, January 23, 2012
Being more critical
I already have been critical of the information they contain, but now I have other things to evaluate. I already will be critical of my website project because that's the way I am normally, but now I will have other things to make sure I stay in line with along with the content. It will help me shape my site projects and hopefully they will come out better than what they would before taking this class.
Evaluate 2 Websites
Woot!
Purpose: Advertising site
Visual Appeal: Web safe colors. White and green backgrounds with black/white text and additional colors for the image links to other products.
Navigation: Easy clickable links across the top with duplicated links on the bottom of the site. The top half displays the current product with a noticeable clickable button to buy right below the item description. Small display from the forums is listed next to the product.
Loading time: Very fast load time, less than a second.
The site is consolidated in the middle of the screen so the majority of screen resolutions will be able to view the content.
WRFY-FM
Purpose: News and entertainment site
Visual Appeal: Colors make you blind. Red, yellow, and orange on the side bars contrasts with the whole page. The solid red header bars seem to blend together.
Navigation: Seems a little confusing. Across the top is a quick look to who is on air and some news. The bulk of the information is below the big header bar which requires scrolling.
Loading time: Fast, but could be better.
The site is consolidated in the middle but there is a lot going on that probably could be cleaned up a little.
Purpose: Advertising site
Visual Appeal: Web safe colors. White and green backgrounds with black/white text and additional colors for the image links to other products.
Navigation: Easy clickable links across the top with duplicated links on the bottom of the site. The top half displays the current product with a noticeable clickable button to buy right below the item description. Small display from the forums is listed next to the product.
Loading time: Very fast load time, less than a second.
The site is consolidated in the middle of the screen so the majority of screen resolutions will be able to view the content.
WRFY-FM
Purpose: News and entertainment site
Visual Appeal: Colors make you blind. Red, yellow, and orange on the side bars contrasts with the whole page. The solid red header bars seem to blend together.
Navigation: Seems a little confusing. Across the top is a quick look to who is on air and some news. The bulk of the information is below the big header bar which requires scrolling.
Loading time: Fast, but could be better.
The site is consolidated in the middle but there is a lot going on that probably could be cleaned up a little.
Page 154 Quiz
Website B presents a better visual impression because it is a cleaner layout. There is a navigation menu down the left side and corresponding links across the bottom. Website A seems a little all over the place with huge buttons down the middle of the page that a user would have to scroll to see the rest. There is also a broken image link on the bottom left.
Problem with A: Navigation buttons down the middle
Solution with B: Navigation menu on left side
Problem with A: Big clickable buttons
Solution with B: Smaller clickable buttons consolidated on left side menu
Problem with A: Lacks site intention
Solution with B: Site description in paragraph form below site logo
Problem with A: Broken image link
Solution with B: All images shown, no broken links
Problem with A: Hard to read
Solution with B: Very easy to read because the text is formatted and structured.
Problem with A: Navigation buttons down the middle
Solution with B: Navigation menu on left side
Problem with A: Big clickable buttons
Solution with B: Smaller clickable buttons consolidated on left side menu
Problem with A: Lacks site intention
Solution with B: Site description in paragraph form below site logo
Problem with A: Broken image link
Solution with B: All images shown, no broken links
Problem with A: Hard to read
Solution with B: Very easy to read because the text is formatted and structured.
Tuesday, January 17, 2012
Additional Comments #2
I enjoyed reading about color. I know of a several people that use CMYK color model and I have heard horror stories of the printers not lining up the colors correctly thus creating a shifted image. I have seen this in the Reading Eagle over the years, particularly with photos.
Reading about CSS has me a little excited to be getting to some actual site building.
Here is a little bit of information on color that might perplex some people:
"The color of the objects that we see are largely due to the way those objects interact with light and ultimately reflect or transmit it to our eyes. The color of an object is not actually within the object itself. Rather, the color is in the light that shines upon it and is ultimately reflected or transmitted to our eyes. We know that the visible light spectrum consists of a range of frequencies, each of which corresponds to a specific color. When visible light strikes an object and a specific frequency becomes absorbed, that frequency of light will never make it to our eyes. Any visible light that strikes the object and becomes reflected or transmitted to our eyes will contribute to the color appearance of that object. So the color is not in the object itself, but in the light that strikes the object and ultimately reaches our eye."
This is taken from Light, Absorption, Reflection and Transmission.
In essence, objects only reflect the color it does not absorb. A red apple is not actually red. It absorbs every color but red, and that color red is reflected off of it to our eyes.
Another way to understand it is if you think of it this way: If you hold a black piece of paper in front of a mirror, what color is the mirror? It's not black. The mirror is only reflecting the black and is itself not black in color.
Reading about CSS has me a little excited to be getting to some actual site building.
Here is a little bit of information on color that might perplex some people:
"The color of the objects that we see are largely due to the way those objects interact with light and ultimately reflect or transmit it to our eyes. The color of an object is not actually within the object itself. Rather, the color is in the light that shines upon it and is ultimately reflected or transmitted to our eyes. We know that the visible light spectrum consists of a range of frequencies, each of which corresponds to a specific color. When visible light strikes an object and a specific frequency becomes absorbed, that frequency of light will never make it to our eyes. Any visible light that strikes the object and becomes reflected or transmitted to our eyes will contribute to the color appearance of that object. So the color is not in the object itself, but in the light that strikes the object and ultimately reaches our eye."
This is taken from Light, Absorption, Reflection and Transmission.
In essence, objects only reflect the color it does not absorb. A red apple is not actually red. It absorbs every color but red, and that color red is reflected off of it to our eyes.
Another way to understand it is if you think of it this way: If you hold a black piece of paper in front of a mirror, what color is the mirror? It's not black. The mirror is only reflecting the black and is itself not black in color.
Readability vs Legibility
Legibility is how easy it is to determine all the letters in a given context such as banners, headers and other shorter lines of text.
Readability is how easy it is to read larger blocks of text and still be able to comprehend it.
Typography plays a big roll in this because depending on the readability and/or legibility of your web site determines how long visitors stay and peruse it. For more informative sites that provide a lot text, you would want readability to be the #1 priority when determining the typography. For more of a ecommerce site, you might want the item descriptions to be more readable and the item captions to be more legible.
Readability is how easy it is to read larger blocks of text and still be able to comprehend it.
Typography plays a big roll in this because depending on the readability and/or legibility of your web site determines how long visitors stay and peruse it. For more informative sites that provide a lot text, you would want readability to be the #1 priority when determining the typography. For more of a ecommerce site, you might want the item descriptions to be more readable and the item captions to be more legible.
Niagra Falls!
Slowly I turn....step by step.....inch by inch.....
Changes to get an image ready for a web site.
1 - Crop the tourists out of the image and save the new image in JPEG format for use for later as a full scale image.
2 - Resize the image down to 72 to 96 pixels per inch so that it can fit on the site easier and make for less site loading times.
3 - Resize the image down with regards to height and width to what you want to display on the site.
4 - Create a thumbnail of the photo to be use to link to the full size picture.
5 - Save the JPEG for the web. There you can choose the JPEG quality (high, medium, low).
6 - Add text to the photo for copyright information and/or add a title of the photo regarding its location.
Changes to get an image ready for a web site.
1 - Crop the tourists out of the image and save the new image in JPEG format for use for later as a full scale image.
2 - Resize the image down to 72 to 96 pixels per inch so that it can fit on the site easier and make for less site loading times.
3 - Resize the image down with regards to height and width to what you want to display on the site.
4 - Create a thumbnail of the photo to be use to link to the full size picture.
5 - Save the JPEG for the web. There you can choose the JPEG quality (high, medium, low).
6 - Add text to the photo for copyright information and/or add a title of the photo regarding its location.
Blog Extra #2
Creating the poll for the blog this week was very easy to do. I enjoyed reading every one's poll and viewing the results. Some subjects like the health care poll are not as simple that and has heated up many a forum board over the years. I was surprised that 7 people answered my poll by selecting 'Who?'.
Make sure you proof read before posting for grammar and spelling. I only noticed now that I misspelled Bukowski in my poll, and he is one of my favorites.
Make sure you proof read before posting for grammar and spelling. I only noticed now that I misspelled Bukowski in my poll, and he is one of my favorites.
Tuesday, January 10, 2012
Additonal comments
After reading the material and doing the homework assigned, I learned that I think I will enjoy this class more than I already thought I would. And that is not a kiss ass statement. When I first signed up for this class, I thought that it would be all about web sites and just coding them. I was wrong. It also about actual design. Besides learning Photoshop is always a plus.
Oh boy, it's a Quiz!
#1 Print, because not every stockholder could have a computer to view the reports. Also, I know when I view a printed report, I like to highlight, underline, and make notes on the paper for future reference.
#2 Web, because post the portfolio online for everyone to see and it gives them the option to be able to print it out if they choose. It also would allow far more people to view the site then sending out printed material. If I really wanted to grab people's attention, I would print up a huge lot of business cards with just the web site's address on them and hand them to everyone executive I see, and leave them in several establishments.
#3 Web, because I can host the updates online for faster distribution. All the customer has to do is to click the link to download the updates.
#4 Web, because print would take too long and cost too much to continually update, print and ship. Also by the time changes are made and shipped, new changes could already be needed, thus making the previous material outdated. Posting secured files online or emailing them directly is vastly cheeper.
#5 Web, becuase depending on the size of the material, printing a chap book would still cost too much, were as posting to the web allows the reader to download and print the material if they choose.
#6 Print, because it allows you to keep all the detail in your the work to be admired. Also if the work is too big, the book would have to be bigger in size and on the web this would require scroll bars that would not allow the viewer to bask in the works full intended glory.
#2 Web, because post the portfolio online for everyone to see and it gives them the option to be able to print it out if they choose. It also would allow far more people to view the site then sending out printed material. If I really wanted to grab people's attention, I would print up a huge lot of business cards with just the web site's address on them and hand them to everyone executive I see, and leave them in several establishments.
#3 Web, because I can host the updates online for faster distribution. All the customer has to do is to click the link to download the updates.
#4 Web, because print would take too long and cost too much to continually update, print and ship. Also by the time changes are made and shipped, new changes could already be needed, thus making the previous material outdated. Posting secured files online or emailing them directly is vastly cheeper.
#5 Web, becuase depending on the size of the material, printing a chap book would still cost too much, were as posting to the web allows the reader to download and print the material if they choose.
#6 Print, because it allows you to keep all the detail in your the work to be admired. Also if the work is too big, the book would have to be bigger in size and on the web this would require scroll bars that would not allow the viewer to bask in the works full intended glory.
My understanding of web vs print
Designing for both mediums you have to consider your audience. With print you have to worry about the size of the piece and the capabilities of the printer if you want to stay local to keep costs down. Web design has to take into consideration everyone and anyone who will be visiting the site. This means having to accommodate every type of computer configuration so that the most people possible can view the site. However with today's graphic and design programs both print and web can be designed on the move. All that is needed is a sufficient laptop capable to do the work. However depending on the type of design for print or even web, a more robust desktop computer could be needed, thus limiting the mobility factor. And lastly, designing for print is more about art and designing for web is more about function.
Graphic Design
I learned that there is a lot that goes into graphic design, whether it's for the web or for print. Layout, color, text, pictures, all have to be thought about as to how they are going to be used to make an impact for the finished product. Without graphic design I think most of us would go blind looking at the atrocities in the advertisements. People driving by billboards would be getting into accidents because the they would be squinting their eyes trying to read text that was too small. It would be mass chaos!
Proper graphic design makes want to turn the page or click the link that takes us deeper down the rabbit hole. Good graphic design makes want to buy products and services. Well except Spam. I don't think people buy Spam because of the design on the container.
Proper graphic design makes want to turn the page or click the link that takes us deeper down the rabbit hole. Good graphic design makes want to buy products and services. Well except Spam. I don't think people buy Spam because of the design on the container.
Blog Extra #1
Adding other blog links to my blog wasn't such a hassle. Just have to remember that Ctrl+C (Copy) and Ctrl+V (Paste) is your friend. One bit of advice when adding link is to make sure you click the 'Save' button. I saw that someone complained about not being able to add more than one link at a time. I can understand this, but I also understand not wanting to add more than one at a time. I don't think that everyone wants to add a lot of links to their blog for people to click and have that person's attention moved somewhere else.
I perused several other blogs and they all look nice compared to my very plain blog. As I get more time to play with the settings, I'm sure I will come around to the dark side and design something more festive.
I perused several other blogs and they all look nice compared to my very plain blog. As I get more time to play with the settings, I'm sure I will come around to the dark side and design something more festive.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)