In this report, the two sites I have chosen to compare and contrast are the Belfast Education and Library Board, and the Southern Education and Library Board. SELB have recently commissioned a redesign of their website, which was scheduled to be live by September. I have taken a snapshot of the site in its current incarnation, and will be basing my conclusions on its condition on 1st October, 2002.
Having recently been in touch with the Belfast Education and Library Board concerning my application for study here at Magee, I have used their website to find information about grants and other awards, and to track my own application. Several months before, I applied for a position as web designer with the Southern Education and Library board. Though I was unsuccessful in my application, I have been following the development of the site since then.
I will analyse both websites on the following 6 criteria:
NOTE: I have highlighted good points and bad points (neutral points are black), and reduced the report to a series of statements to help scanability.
Both the SELB and BELB cover large administrative areas.
With lots of information from various sources and departments, consistent style is important.
Information architecture should be well planned, for ease of use and good throughput.
Must be cross-browser compatible, and allow for disabled access.
Must be quick loading.
Must appeal visually to wide range of tastes.
Contains many pictures of people, of all ages, male and female.
Colour scheme subtly changes in each department, while maintaining the same style.
Site is tidy and professional, but does not resize to allow for different screen sizes.
Opening page is irrelevent; the picture of houses would mean nothing to most people.
Designed for any resolution above 800x600; very simple design.
The main page is a simple blue and white combination, with a picture of some people.
However, it is not a good representation of the expected user base; and the only male seems to be mentally impaired.
Cartoon font on most pages is not very professional.
Buttons on left do not all match; "SELB Home" button uses a different font.
Scores: |
BELB |
SELB |
4 |
2 |
Shows current date and news items; this gives impression that the page is very up-to-date.
Address and contact telephone numbers are listed; this promotes a feeling of confidence in the organisation.
Search function could be confusing; only one field is required but it gives the impression that both are needed. Two search buttons may help.
Colourful image, but no text content.
The only text is as an image link to a PDF file, and flash-based text links to two other pages.
It has no welcome nor introduction to the functionality or purpose of the site.
Scores: |
BELB |
SELB |
3 |
1 |
Site is made up of 7 primary sections, and 5 secondary links in the top right corner.
The 7 main links are more prominent than the 5, and are well named and easy to read.
Within each section, a drop-down menu appears along with a secondary line of links. This ensures the user doesn't have too many choices.
Easy to identify the relevant section, and most sections have their own colour; useful for return visitors.
Appropriate 'alt' tags.
Large clear buttons.
9 options (perhaps too many), which are not intuitively named.
Options become a new list under "Board". Inconsistent.
Inappropriate and inconsistent 'alt' tags on some of the navigation options.
Scores: |
BELB |
SELB |
5 |
2 |
Good choice of images; many kinds of people represented. Consistent style.
Good use of .gif and .jpg for optimum download times.
Appropriate 'alt' tags on images.
PDF and Word logos when a link leads to non-html destination.
Appropriate use of 'alt' tags on most images.
VERY POOR choice of image formats (.bmp and .png) resulting in page load of over 210k on the main page.
Images used instead of text on some internal pages, when text would definitely be the best choice.
Scores: |
BELB |
SELB |
4 |
1 |
Functions well in Netscape 4.72, Netscape 6.2, and Internet Explorer 6.
Menu system does not work in Opera 5.11.
Good use of 'alt' tags throughout.
Nested tables and complex menus may prove difficult for speech browsers.
Download size specified when a link leads to a file.
Functions well in Netscape 4.72, Netscape 6.2, Internet Explorer 6 and Opera 5.11.
Uses frames, which can result in difficulty in bookmarking and can result in orphaned pages (with no navigation).
Uses many <p> tags for layout with no closing tags. This does not meet XHTML specifications.
Scores: |
BELB |
SELB |
3 |
2 |
Sets out clearly the various sections, departments and activities of the BELB.
Makes it easy to locate the relevant information through good choice of options.
Shows the user what it has to offer, but manages not to crowd the screen with extra links.
Cold design that holds information behind confusing section titles.
Difficult to locate information unless familiar with their own terminology.
Does not feel like an easy site to use, nor does it make apparent the depth of the site.
Scores: |
BELB |
SELB |
4 |
2 |
Overall scores:
Scores: |
BELB |
SELB |
23 |
10 |
As the score indicates, I have found the BELB site to be a much more usable and well designed site. It is not perfect, but it manages to present its content well. It also looks good and maintains a professional image throughout.
SELB, on the other hand, "could do better". Misuse of images is perhaps the major problem, as this chokes a slow connection. To add insult, the heavy images do not present any intrinsic value. The site is confusing to use, and would be impossible to use correctly with a non-graphical browser, due to the manner in which images have been used to represent text, without good 'alt' tags. The information has not been organised in an intuitive way, as the options do not all match the destinations they link to.
I intend to revamp the images, and bring into use their new logo, which was designed at great cost some months ago yet has not yet been included on the site (it has been used on letterheads).
I will rename some of the menu options, and reduce them to a more reasonable number, with correct use of 'alt' tags. I also intend to present a more consistent, professional appearance across the site.
To do this, I will use a consistent typeface, and design a more visually appealing layout for the information. I will make better use of the SELB's favourite colour, blue.
For accessibility, I will ensure that the code is tidy and well constructed, and I will not use frames. I will also ensure that the redesigned site looks correct in a wide range of resolutions.
To ensure people know where they are on the site, I will include a simulated 'breadcrumbs' feature.
To the redesign!
Assignment 1:
Assignment 2:
How is this done? Download the countdown flash file.
Human Computer Interaction
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