Navigation:
Is it easy to navigate or difficult?
Extremely easy! Very elegant too—smooth transitions.
How are you led through the site?
Viewers are lead through a common set-up of a blog where you have your menus on top, features/news that’s most current underneath that and additional menus to the side(s).
What visual clues are given to tell you how to interact?
The main visual cue that is given is that of color variation. This becomes most evident when you are scrolling over any of the links that are on the site. Another visual cue is that of receiving feedback when you are looking at the video examples that each feature has as well as it incorporates “Fitt’s Law”.
Does the designer use a metaphors to get you to move through the website?
What Kind of metaphors are used? Organizational Metaphors = (organized by type, kind, etc…); Functional Metaphors = performs a “real world” function (in Photoshop you can figuratively “cut” and “paste”) or Visual Metaphors (common graphic elements familiar to most – the traditional “play”, “fast-forward”, “rewind” buttons found on CD players)
A combination of Organizational and Visual Metaphors are what is being used on this site. Organizational because of the group setting that is typical of a blog-type site. And visual in that even though there are a few common graphic elements, they still help put the viewer at ease while navigating.
Information Architecture:
Does the information in the site make sense?
Yes. The information on this site does make sense. I just wished that under the “About Us” section there had been a brief description about the company and not the definition of the company name. Reason being is that not everyone would understand that portion.
Can you access the content you want easily?
Yes. Precision is key and this website has it! Even though it may seem like a blog site it still functions very well as a normal site.
How is the content organized? (By location, alphabet, timeline, category, etc?)
The content on this site is interesting in that it is organized by all of the mentioned items listed in this question: Location in relation to the navigation bars. Alphabet and Timeline in that you as the viewer are allowed to choose that option when looking at the projects that are being presented. And category in that there is a number of categories that one can access.
Is there visual and content hierarchy that allows you to easily understand and access the information presented to you?
Yes, but at times it almost seems like they are competing against each other but at the same time are balancing each other out.
Usability
Is this site easy to use?
Yes—so easy and yet interesting too.
How do the above two concepts, navigation and information architecture, work in terms of making the site usable or not? Do the metaphors make sense with the content?
Both of these concepts are working extremely well in that the information architecture is supported by the navigation portion and vis-a-versa. They are such important parts that by combining them it makes it so much easier on the viewer to grasp what they need.
Overall- does the site sustain your interest and engagement?
Yes. Its simplicity seems to compliment the feel of the overall site look.
Meaning-Making: (Narrative and Metaphoric Structures)
In what way is the designer creating meaning in this site?
In that this business/company is about being professional and yet entertaining when needed to. This can be seen by the way the website looks and operates.
Are they using metaphor? (Remember, metaphor is very common in our experience with computers, sometimes so common we don’t even realize we are using it, i.e. the desktop, cutting and pasting, file systems, buttons, etc.)
The only real metaphors that are being used are those of the navigation menu bars. Everything else doesn’t seem to fit this description.
Is there a narrative, story or event that unfolds over time?
No. There doesn’t seem to be a set order to support a narrative in this site. Except for the part of the storyboards for the designs.
Is this narrative linear, non-linear, or multi-linear?
N/A
Reflection of the User:
Is there a reflection of you, as the user, on this site? Does it change according to your specific visit? Do you receive mouse feedback? text feedback? Does the site store any choices you have made? Are you engaged enough in the site to linger and explore.
You mainly receive mouse feedback, especially when you hover over the links. But the headline seems to change color every time you enter a different portion of the site.
Transparency of Design:
Does the design of the site lead you to pay more attention to the content or to the design itself? Does the design feel transparent or “natural”, leading you to focus on the content and forget the design completely? Or – Is attention called more to the design itself?
They both seem to work very well that it is hard to say that it only focuses on one. But in reality, the content is more important then the actual design. Reason being is that the business/company is trying to demonstrate the professionalism of what they do.
Does the transparency or lack of transparency of the design make sense with what the site is intending to do?
No comments:
Post a Comment