Thursday, May 6, 2010

Good Vs Bad Websites

A good website is shown by its use of the 10 effective principals of web design. An example of a good website is lockerz.com. Lockerz.com is a good site because it is simplistic, easy to navigate and grabs the users attention. The navigation bar on lockerz is effective because it only has 5 main section headings that are also in a variety of bright and bold colors. This is effective because it is not only simple but due to the colors and how they contrast with the background the site, they capture the users attention near the top left side of the page, which is one of the first places that the user looks at when first entering the site. Another factor that proves that this is a good site is the fact that when first entering the site the layout is aesthetically pleasing and it doesn't have a lot of text to read. Instead it captures the users attention with the use of pictures and videos. This makes the user more interested in the site and more likely to stay and see what the site is about. Another reason why this site is so effective is the layout. All of the important information is in the top hand corner and near he left side and center of the page. The layout format follows an "F" pattern an because of this, the user is can quickly scan over the site and see all of their information that they want you to see. Overall, what makes lockerz a good site is it's simplistic and effective layout, contrasting colors and simple background and its' use of clear text which essentially draws the user into the site, because it doesn't require the user to think upon entering.

A bad website can be characterized by its overall ability to keep the user on the site. An example of a bad website is wow.com. This is a bad website because it doesn't have a navigation bar so it makes it extremely hard to find other things on the website. Another reason why this site is not a good one is the fact that it is too simple. There is not enough information on the actual site to draw a users attention to it. This site also has a poor layout. The colors used are all dark and non-welcoming, also when first entering the site there is no way to tell what the site is about. Another factor that makes this site a bad site is that there is to much small text. This shows that it is a bad site because a lot of text is not going to draw a user into the site. Overall, the fact that this site to simplistic and lacks details which would be helpful to the user, makes it a bad site.