I will be researching websites in order to decide whether or not to make one for one of my 2 ancillary tasks. During my research, I have found that there are 6 points to creating an effective website:
1. Plan it out first: I must have a clear idea of what I am doing before I start, this can be done by drawing a site map. A site map includes what I will be including on each page and how I want the pages to look. This will reduce any changes that might need to be made, as any changes will create a knock on effect.
2. Think about your audience: I must decide what the purpose of the site is (e.g. to inform or entertain) and how I can attract a wide audience to it.
3. Test it out: I will enlist some friends to test my website out by asking them to do a task using the site and see if it works.
4. Navigation - clear and simple: All the links I create need to labelled properly and separate from the main body of the text so visitors know it is a link. This can be achieved by using a link bar at the top or side of the page.
5. Fonts (typefaces) and pictures: Most websites use familiar fonts as anything over than a basic font needs to be inserted as an image. I need to consider how many images compared to text I have on the page so I do not overload it with images, as this will affect how quickly the page loads.
6. Homepage: This is like the 'shop face' of the website and if I haven't got my audiences attention within 2 seconds they will not want to look at the rest of the website and click onto another site. I have to consider what the most important bits of information and put them on the homepage. I should also consider the amount of white space compared to visual clutter.
Web 2.0 - The next generation of the internet.
Web 2.0 is the World Wide Web being used as a platform for cheap and easy ways to share images, files, videos and experiences. The tools haven't changed, but there has been a shift in the way people use the web. For example, businesses are using social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter to advertise products and services. It is predicted that in the future design will be done by teams rather than individuals.
The new age of online blogging enables everyday people to spread the news by weblogs, MySpace, Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. This has proven to be a powerful propaganda tool and shows how the way we seek and receive news is now changing because of the online revolution.
The way websites are made is rapidly changing as people are getting bored of seeing the same old thing. Websites that have been designed in light of this are Nike's website and Ebay. Nike have innovatively blurred the lines between a website and a TV commercial on their site, claiming they want the audience to 'experience' as well as purchasing the product. Ebay allows the user to customize their homepage according to what they want to fast access to.
Website Terms
- Cookies - These allow websites to remember your details so you don't have to re-enter them when you return.
- Tabs - These are the links as the top of the webpage.
-Really Simple Syndication (RSS) - If you are interested in a particular article this feature allows any related articles to be sent straight to you.
- Citizen Journalism - This refers to everyday people who are creating blogs, MySpace pages and Twitter updates and YouTube videos to spread the news. This is the future of the internet.
- Transferability - This means creating a corporate identity so that a website links to a CD cover and a magazine advert promoting the band and a music video.
- Roll-overs - These are pictures that change when your curser moves over them.
- Interactivity - This is when you allow users to actively participate in your webpage.
- Scrolling Marquee - This is text that moves across the page.
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