Hello alsinger-ga,
This question interested me since I have been doing the same thing for
a photography website I am helping to set up and design. Therefore, I
have website analyzing on the brain.
Let us start with?
http://www.cabi.org/compendia.asp
*Positives:*
The Navigation panel on the left is very simple and easy to use. The
bulleted points make it obvious that it is a subject you can go to.
The drop down menus at the top are good as well, as it makes it easy
to find sub-menus as opposed to one that makes you slide thru category
after category looking for the 1 thing you want.
This system continues through out the website, giving it continuity
and keeping it simple and easy to navigate.
*Negatives:*
The ?Site map? page changes up the format the rest of the website
uses, making navigation from that page confusing.
Phrases like ?Site Map Jump To,? May make it confusing on the Non-English speaker.
All the pictures, buttons, and graphics may make it a harder loading
page though easier to navigate.
----------------------------------------------------
http://www.bibliotek.kk.dk/
*Positives:*
Nice clean layout, easy to see what is going on, on the page. Text is a good size.
The search feature is located at the top and bottom of the page,
making it easier for the user to search for what they are looking for.
*Negatives:*
Truthfully, I am not a big fan of this website at all. It is graphics
intensive, which requires a longer loading time for users with limited
equipment.
The menus to navigate thru are touchy and unclear. You go to move your
mouse thru the levels of the tabs at the top and sides and have to try
3 times before it does not disappear on you. This would be quite
frustrating if I was not used to the website or the language.
Links are not one obvious color. Some are black, some are white. Some
are bold, some are not. It takes a lot of moving the mouse around to
let you find out what a link is and what text is.
----------------------------------------------------
http://www.intracen.org/textilesandclothing/
http://www.intracen.org/creativeindustries/
I will do these two together, as they are VERY similar in design.
*Positives:*
I like the navigation Menu on the left side. Much easier to use then
the second website, yet it follows the same format.
In addition, the way it follows you as you scroll down the page is a
huge positive for those who are not used to being online or using a
computer/internet.
Once again, the fact the websites used the same layout and design all
the way through makes it much easier on the novice user.
*Negatives:*
Lots of backgrounds and graphics will make the page load quite slowly
for those with dial-up access. I have a cable modem, and this page
hung for me for about 10 seconds, as opposed to 3-4 seconds for the
other two WebPages.
In addition, some of the pages you search for information on are very
busy. You have a printed background with light text. You then have the
dark text of the website, radio buttons, and colored boxes for
options. This is very distracting and confusing. A very simple search
system is what is needed when dealing with users who may have
difficulties with the language and the internet/computer
Ex: Go to ?Data Analysis,? then ?Trade Map,? then ?All HS Codes from
Fibre to Clothing.? That will show you what I mean by the last
?negative?
(http://www.intracen.org/textilesandclothing/)
Also for the (http://www.intracen.org/creativeindustries/) site. On
the right, a menu starts with FAQs, and has a red bar next to it. To
me, that looks like a progress or relevance bar for loading a webpage
or in search engine results. It is, in actuality, a graphic. I sat
there and waited for it to load completely, before I realized it had
no purpose. I think this may be confusing for novice internet/computer
users.
----------------------------------------------------
http://www.cims-la.com/ES/
*Positives:*
Nice Layout, simple, lots of white, everything is carefully labeled.
Gives you an option of the language you want to view it in, English or
Spanish. This may be good for you with users where English is not
their mother tongue.
The rotating guidebooks in the upper right may be confusing as well.
Maybe a list of the different guidebooks in a column would be more
user-friendly.
*Negatives:*
Lots of pictures and graphics, some that change will make this a
slower loading page.
It is quite hard to find where to login, since it is right next to
something else in small text.
It does not follow the same navigation design through out the website,
making it confusing to the user how to navigate.
----------------------------------------------------
Some simple designs.
http://imdb.com/
Always a quick loading site, because of the simple graphics. The
pictures make it take longer, but I doubt your site will have as many
pictures. It is easy to navigate, and follows the same system of
navigation through out.
http://www.buddhanet.net/e-learning/index.htm
It has one simple page, with all linked material the same color and
type. It is not very graphic intensive. Shows the path you navigated
to get somewhere at the top right, so you can remember it or write it
down for next time.
I hope this helps you out in getting started.
If this answer requires further explanation, please request
clarification before rating it, and I'll be happy to look into this
further.
Nenna-GA
Google Answers Researcher |
