Week 3 - Oh boy, it's a Quiz!

Of the two web pages, I found Web Page B much more visually appealing.  Some of the problems I found with Web Page A was that it does not give a clear indication of what this web page is about, the buttons are too large, the link list is too small and hard to read due to the font selection, and all the information does not fit on a viewable screen.  If I came across this web page, I would probably click out of it without giving it a chance.  Web Page B on the other hand is more visually appealing.  The colors are warmer and more pleasant to the eye.  The links are arranged in a more organized fashion.  Even though I still am not sure what this web page is about, I would probably be more inclined to give it a chance. 

Week 3 Website Evals

www.deerparkwater.com 

Navigation – I found this website to be easy to navigate.  The links were clear and they were consistent throughout the website.  As I navigated through the website, the selected link was highlighted in yellow.   

Visual Appeal -  The use of color was good.  Three colors were used – white, blue, and yellow.  I found some of the text hard to read due to the cloud background.  I also found that the home page did not entirely fit on my laptop screen.  I had to scroll down just slightly to see the bottom of the home page.  Every page was like this.  I did not find it too distracting as most of the important information was viewable. 

Purpose – The purpose of the website was clear...to tell the viewer about the company’s product. 

Load Time – I found that due to the graphics, the web pages took a few seconds to download.

Usefulness of Content – In addition to describing the company and its products, the website also provided information regarding the product’s health benefits and the company’s efforts in addressing environmental issues through product packaging and recycling. 

Overall, I found this website to be very well planned out.  There are a few minors issues that I described above, but didn’t find that they made a negative impact on the website. 

www.calvinklein.com

Navigation – I found navigating through the website was easy enough.  The links are subtle, small type.  The main focus of the website is the products offered.

Visual Appeal – I didn’t find this website to be visually appealing.  The pictures flashing repeatedly on the home page was distracting and the backgrounds were bright compared to the rest of the website.  The pictures are also too big and do not fit on laptop monitor screen.

Purpose -  The purpose of the website is easily understood…to present the items available for sale.

Load Time – The load time was quick throughout the website.

Usefulness of Content – Website was informative.  Product descriptions and prices were available.

I found this website to be lacking in visual appeal.   Although Calvin Klein is not a flashy designer, I felt the website could have used a little pop.  The big pictures on the homepage were distracting and I didn’t like having to scroll down to view the entire picture. 

 

After reading the material and evaluating websites, I feel I will definitely be more critical of websites.  Realizing that the web designer has control over issues such as content fitting within a viewable space and links to other website that do load, will make me more critical of sites.   I find it annoying to click on a link only to get the message “page not found.” 

Through the readings and evaluations, I’ve also developed more of an appreciation for the web designers.  Not only is there a lot of creativity that goes into a website, there is also a lot of planning to make the website both appealing and functional. 

Week 2 Blog - Polls

Setting up the poll was easy.  The hard part was narrowing down a topic – I had many ideas.  I enjoyed reading and participating in all of the other polls.  I felt everyone had a good idea, so I am finding it hard to favor one over another.  I also like the polls because it helped me get to know the students in the class a little better.       

  

Week 2 Blog - Readability v. Legibility

Readability is the ability to read and understand easily a lot of text.   Legibility is the ability to decipher individual letters and characters. 

There are many things to consider when designing a webpage.  You want your webpage to grab the viewer’s attention and keep the viewer on the page.  One of the ways to do this is to incorporate good typography when designing your page.  If your website is easy to read and legible, a viewer will be more willing stay on your page.   

Some things to consider when designing your page is that you should not set the text too big or too small; you should not bold, italic, use all caps, etc. on a large amount of text; you should not make the text lines too long; and you should make sure that the text color shows a good contrast against the background.

Another thing to be conscious of is the style of font you choice.  You want to choose a font that is universal to all computer systems.  If you select a font that is not universal to all systems, when the viewer opens the webpage the browser will replace the font with a default font changing the look of your webpage and may even make it hard to read. 

Week 2 Blog - Niagara Falls Photo

To make the Niagara Falls photo web ready, I would do the following . . .
1.  Open the photo in Photoshop
2.  Add a layer, so that the original photo is unedited
3.  Change the resolution of the photo to 72, which will make the picture smaller
4.  Crop the photo so that the tourists do not appear in the final photo
5.  Save the photo as a .jpeg photo and save again including "web" in the file name.

Week 1 Blog

Graphic design is a means of communication.  It is all around us, everyday.  Graphic design plays a role in everything we touch; such as drink bottles, doorknobs and cars, from the design of their shape to their product packaging.  Graphic design also plays a role in everything we view; such as newspapers, magazines and web pages, in the way they are displayed.  Graphic designers have the task of creating a design that both attracts an audience and keeps the audience interested and wanting to return. 

There are many issues to consider when designing for the web and designing for print.  One issue is cost.  When designing for print, the more colors, text styles, and size/pages used, the costlier the service will be.  When designing for the web, cost is relative low and the size and number of text styles and colors do not play a role in the cost. 

Another issue is the ease of making revisions.  If changes need to be made to a company print media, such as updating product information/services or updating contact information, a revision and reprint of the media would have to be done.  This is both time-consuming and expensive.   On the other hand, web pages can be updated easily and daily if there is a need for it. 

Another issue to consider is the distribution of the material.  The internet is accessible anywhere and it allows you to reach the greatest number of people.  Whereas the distribution of printed materials is limited in terms of the number of materials available for distribution, the location in which the material is distributed, and the people in which the material is distributed to.

Whether designing for print or web, the goal is to create a visual display that draws the audience in and keeps the audience interested.     

Blog Extra #1

Blogging is a new concept for me.  I've only started texting within the last 8 months!  I am a member of Facebook, but I am not a very good Facebook friend. 
I found that setting up a link list is a fairly simple task.  I enjoyed visiting students' blog pages.  I like Victoria's background - it is fun and colorful.  I also like Penny's background picture of the mountains and bridge. 

Oh Boy It's A Quiz!

 1.  Print – Not all stockholders have access to a computer.  Mailing annual reports guarantees that all stockholders will receive the information. 

2.  Print – Ad agencies would be able to keep the printed brochure, portfolio, and contact information on hand for reference purposes. 

3.  Web – Providing updates to clients via the web is more cost efficient to the software company.  It also assure that client receive the updates in a timely manner. 

4.  Web – Providing the information via the web assures that clients receive the time-sensitive information promptly.

5.  Web – Publishing the booklets on the web provides the greatest distribution of the material.  More people will have access to the material.

6.  Print – Printed material provides higher-quality results.   

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