ust

I chose the site of the University of Sto. Tomas because it is my dream school way back then. If your will browse the site you will find more about the campus, the history, the courses offered and so on. The website is www.ust.edu.ph

What the site is all about? The site is all about the University of Sto. Tomas. It features the Headlines in their school, the Calendar of Activities of the school, the History, the Map, Admissions, Academics, Research, Library, etc.

Load Speed: The load speed of the site is some how the usual load. It may take 15 seconds for the homepage and 10 for the links.

Multimedia Function: You have to have a Flash Player to watch the videos they uploaded.

Navigation: The site is for the students, alumnus and for everyone who want to know about the University. The site is very easy to access, you just have to click the things links above.

Site Consistency: The designs of the site are uniformed. When you click the links of Admissions, Academics, Inside UST, Research and links, you will notice the calendar of activities is in the upper left of the page. The pages has a uniformed colors and designs, but there is only one page that is very unlikely, the library. When you click the link a different form of design will appear

Over All rating: the site is good, i like it. But, when i click the link to the library i got disappointed becuase the site does not look like the homepage, although the address is www.ust.edu.ph/library. The site is always upadated to there news events and other activities.

martha stewart website

Martha Stewart website

MarthaStewart.com is an educational site, for me at least. People who have no skills can easily learn easy to do recipes and easy to do crafts. For those who already know how to do these things they can enhance their skills using the site tips and tricks. Martha Stewart is a site that discusses from from food to crafts to entertaining etc. Theres so many to learn in this site.

PAGE LAYOUT: The site gives off a fun and homey feel. It uses light and cheerful colours all complementing each other. On the other hand, the site may look a little confusing because there are so many different things on the homepage, one may not know where to start. Everything you need to navigate the site is highlighted properly to the category of use.

SITE FEATURES: This site gives step by step tutorials of anything homemade. It is full of beautiful pictures and how-to videos to make learning easier. It takes tutorials to another level because it gives store addresses and store links for the materials used. There is a daily update for the site on: craft of the day, recipe of the day, etc. There are also monthly updates for example, all time best cookies, crafts for the summer. Also you can watch certain sections of the Martha Stewart show, if ever you missed those parts. There is no need to be a member to be able to browse through this site although being a member has some perks for example, blogs, special recipes and special how to crafts.

SITE CONSISTENCY: All throughout the site the colour and font is consistent. There are some pages that are different but it stays true to the theme of the site.

LOAD SPEED: The load speed is relatively normal. There are pages though that require flash, this makes it longer to load and if your computer does not have flash it will not load at all.

CLARITY OF PURPOSE: Martha Stewart promotes homemade and organic products. She created this site to make her recipes and her homemade projects accessible to her followers.

NAVIGATION: This site was made for users of all ages. Whether you are a frequent user of the net or not. It is very easy to navigate because everything is specified and categorized for the user. In every page the home selections remain on the top of the site so if for example from cooking you want to switch to crafts the button is on the top and you wont need to press the back button to get to home.

CROSS BROWSER COMPATIBILITY: The site is compatible with any web browser.

I give this site a rating of 90 over a hundred. This site was well thought of and easy to use.

Website Critique(www.metalhistory.com)

NYFA Critique

Every year, more and more people see the value of education. They finish high school and go on to college. Some of them actually go and try out their chosen campus before deciding to enroll. Most of them however, check the internet.

College or University sites are one of the most accessed websites on the internet. They have to look good and be user-friendly at the same time. A College site has to catch attention and to exude class because it is the gateway of the school to the online world. A website has to have a clear purpose, its content should be easy to understand, and it should be easy to navigate. I found one site and I believe that it is really well made. Well, let's head on to:

The New York Film Academy site!

As you can see, the NYFA has a good website. While it may not look as professionally done as most University websites in the States, I can assure you that it does its job quite perfectly.

The criteria are Form (40%), Content (40%), Speed(10%), and Accessibility(10%).

Form
As you can see, the layout is very easy on the eyes. It has an old school feel with it. The letters are large and easy to read, the colors do not clash, and it has all the basic information about the school at the front page. Meaning that you don't have to go to another page just to find out what the school's address or telephone number is.

Content
Everything is easily accessible through the links on top. Click on Film School Programs and it shows you a page where all the information about the Film courses they offer including a really short syllabus. Click on apply online and you'll even be able to apply online without the fuss. You can even watch sample works(videos) of the students. You can even apply for financial aid online!

Speed
The loading speed of the website is faster than most websites I visit. The high resolution videos even download much faster than YouTube videos. Speed is a huge factor in University/College websites. After all, who wants to browse a really slow website?

Accessibility
I tried accessing this site using 4 different browsers. They all worked fine. None of those "optimized for IE7 only" crap. I tried them on IE7, IE8 beta, Firefox 3, Opera, and Safari. Everything loaded fast and beautifully.

Website Critique on DevianArt.com

Not all artists have the money to make their own art gallery. Not all artists can display and sell their masterpieces to everyone. Internet allows people meet and interact on one cyberspace and DeviantArt.com takes advantage on it. DeviantArt or dA aims to provide artist their own exhibits through their own webpage to show their craft for free. A wide variety and forms of art are displayed in thumbnail images of photography, traditional art, graphic arts, sculpture and even literature. Topics are also subcategorized to organize their archives. Moreover, users’ works can also advertise and sell their work, instead of looking for an art gallery and pay for space.
The DeviantArt Community is free to give comments to anyone’s work. Some give tips, lessons and some give destructive comments. Sometimes these comments are very helpful in enhancing the work of other artist.
DeviantArt used a simple web layout without flash or animated computer software for web design. It is probably the least negative thing about the website. Earthly and basic colors are used to make the images of user’s works pop out making the page user centered. On the DeviantArt homepage, different artworks are displayed with the title and the category it is under. This gallery is categorized by the newest or the most popular. It also can be filtered by the most popular of all time, in one week, one month, etc.
All artworks have different categories so they can also be filtered. If a viewer is looking for photography only, a click on the left side menu bar will filter only the photography section. Under the the photography section, it is divided into nature, animals, surreal, etc. DeviantArt makes it easier for viewers to search quickly.
Besides a user homepage, several features are also offered by DeviantArt. Users can also shop, chat with the DeviantArt Community etc. These icons can be found on top of the webpage. Quick navigation is easy through features. Navigating on artworks is difficult. There are so many categories to choose from so viewers do not know where to start.
Homepage loading is fast as well as the entire site, loading the full resolution of images sometimes takes time.
DeviantArt makes artist more confident with their craft and passion. Chances are given to those who aspire.

A website critique on "kidsknowit.com"

www.kidsknowit.com

I found the design of Kidknowit.com to be clean and, given the significant amount of information it provides, relatively simple. In general, the text and image graphics helped me to understand information, as well as the navigation links.. I found that colors were used skillfully to aid in navigation and organization. Appropriately, font size decreases as categories become more and more specific.The font in the content descriptions is big and bright, after I had been reading on the site for a while, It distracted me. But overall I found the design of the site very attractive.

Primary Purpose of the Site
The primary purpose of kidknowit.com is to provide children around the world with an absolutely free educational resource.

Primary Audience of the Site
Its stated primarily audience are teachers, parents, and home schoolers.

Update of contents
It clearly stated at the bottom of the site that “The KidsKnowIt Network we provide accurate, updated, and fun information for you and your student.”

Contact Person
At the bottom of the home page there is a linked "contact us" a user can ask question via email and will be given a response as soon as possible.

Speed of hompage Loading
The page loaded quickly, with graphics and the sounds.

Heroin content
For me its heroin appeal is the talking icon.

How long did it take to understand the navigation?
It didn’t took me long to understand the navigation especially its designed for kids. The only thing that I had a little difficulty is going back to the portal(the main hompage) then I realise that I just have to click the “kids know network icon”

Did a click ever take you somewhere you didn't expect to go?
Nope it always take me were I want to go and the structture of were you click is like a step by step procedure. “spoon feeding”

Are there enough links for both forward and backward movement? Did you ever get stuck on a page?

Yes the first time I used it I got stuck. Due to the reason that it have so many hompage. I couldn’t go back to the main homepage or what you call the portal.

How is the site organized overall?
Yes it is all overall oraganized. There a place to the different sites. And had enough spacing that the icons don’t scramble up.

How does multimedia (graphics, sound, and video) function on this site?
It doesn’t require you to install any flash player. The loading of music , graphics and videos are fsta. No interruptions.

OVERALL RATING
Its amazing how fast the homepage loads. Because from the homepage have mucis,talking icons and moving pictures..
Other pages also loads fast enough for users not to get bored.
The site is very easy to be identified right at the top of the site with big font it is stating that “The totally free childrens network”.
It does not focus on one topic that’s why it’s a little bit confusing but it also gives the user a wide variety of other subjects.
There is no roadblocks or dead ends in this site.
The fact that it is for kids it is very simple.
The navigation is clear and consistent.
It very obvious.
The site have the proper look and portray the proper image that the kids would love.
As for me my first impression to the site is very nice. Me as an teen were fond of the colors and images that was used. it very pleasing to the eye it really caught my attention.
There is no misuse of design all of it has its purpose. That is to entertain.
Best of all Compatible to all kinds of browser

sona

Ano ba ang naririnig natin sa sona??
ang pinakanapansin ko lang sa pagnood sa video nito sa youtube ay ang mayat mayang palakpak ng mga taong nakikinig. Dapat bang palakpakan ang mga nagawa niya na hindi naman sapat? pati ang kanyang mga pangako mukang hindi naman niya matutupad?
Hindi naman mali ng magkaroon siya ng goal para sa 2010 pero wag naman ung masyadong mataas. Ako lang po ay naawa sa mga taong kapuspalad na umaasa sa kanyang mga salita.

Alam kong hindi ko dapat sinisi ang ating pangulo may parte rin naman sa sarili ko nagpupugay sa kanyang pagsisikap na pataasin ang ating ekonomiya. May parte rin naman na sinisi ko ang sarili ko at ang kapawa ko filipino lalo na ang mga taong nanunungkulan sa batas sa hindi natin pagunlad.

Sana lang dumating ang panahon na maipatupad ang mga binitawang salita ng bawat pngulong uupo para maglilinkod sa ating bansa.

critique

the educational site that i chose is brainpop.com. it is accessible to kids and adults. it contains different educational informations such as math, science, art, etc.

the site is very colorful and attractive. it is very readable and easy to use. it doesn't have dead end pages(any page has access to different pages). it doesn't have alternative sites that you could visit incase the user wants o look for more information. it also has a contact page where you can leave messages or comments

educational website critique

The website psdtuts.com is a very useful site especially to those who already have some knowledge about Photoshop. But this site may also be used for beginners, those who are just starting how to use Photoshop and want to enhance their knowledge about it. The site provides plenty of different kinds of tutorials. It can guide you through each and every step that you have to make in Photoshop to be able to create that image. And the best part of it is, the site actually provides pictures and videos for each and every step which makes it easier for you to understand and follow the procedure that is being taught.

As you enter the website, viewers may think at first that the page is cluttered. There are a lot of images that will be seen. But it is not cluttered in a way that the page is not divided into certain categories. There are a lot of pictures that can be found at this site but you will see that it is arranged quite well. The website is actually very easy to browse through. The links that can be found there are easy to understand and are very useful. This website if very detailed and can hardly find anything wrong with it. It also provides other communities and forums where people can discuss about Photoshop. What’s interesting about this site is that it also has its own Wikipedia except it is a Wikipedia for everything about Photoshop.

PSDTUTS can bring out good effects with to a lot of people. Children may be able to use this website although Photoshop isn’t really known for very young kids. Kids use the computer to play games and find things that interest them, and with this site they would need a certain amount of knowledge or vocabulary to even understand the steps they need to take. Teenagers and older are the ones who are most likely to be intrigued with this website for by this time they would be exploring the different kinds of things that they can learn by themselves.

As for me I find this website very useful since I am starting to learn more about how to edit photos or create my own kind of animation with the use of Photoshop. There may be other great Photoshop tutorial websites but compared to a lot of Photoshop tutorial websites that I have visited I never found site that carried complete information and easy accessibility like PSDTUTS. I can find everything that I need or would want to learn with this website.

critique of an educational website

Sparknotes.com is an educational website that exists for the benefits of both students and teachers. It helps students practice their skills in Literature, Math and Science. As for the teachers, it could serve as a study guide for them. This fun-filled website was created by some Harvard students whose main objective is to make learning fun and easy. Sparknotes is also the perfect site to check out if you want to write but not quite sure how to start. There are so many topics to choose from: Literature, Shakespeare, Biology, Chemistry, Film, History and even Biographies of famous people the world has ever known.

The creators of Sparknotes work under the philosophy: “to support and improve education, not to undermine it”. They believe in providing only the best supplement for understanding subjects in the most exciting way. The website is not a substitute for learning but is helpful in understanding Literature and other subjects. Moreover, the site gives you the impression that it is very educational. It has its own way of attracting students to use it more often so it is best to understand what the website really is all about and what it contains. Just because a site looks good, does not mean it is really good for you. Below are my comments under certain categories:

FORM

First of all, the site does not use any kind of grand presentations as you enter the site. It is simple and as I mentioned earlier, looks very educational. It is as if after browsing the site, you probably know half of the world. The colors used are very appropriate to their target audience: high school and college students. There are specific icons to click depending on how you want to use the site and how you want your needs to be met. The Sparknotes Free Study Guide icon links you to several study guide categories that you could choose from. For example, you click on the “biography” icon, it links you to the possible names of people that you would like to know about. You either sort your searching by title or by author. So it really is very friendly when it comes to accessing to a certain topic. It also downloads fast and the topics are organized properly.

One of the things I noticed when it comes to the layout of the site is that it is very basic. Any “baby” user of the internet can find this site easy to use. The fonts they used are also simple and understandable. The creators really understood what students need and how they want their needs to be catered. They knew the behavior of their visitors because they are students themselves. They want to give their audience a feel of having a friendly tutor online that answers almost all your confusion.

The website’s main function is to assist students and “wannabe” writers on various topics that for some people may seem complicated but for others too easy. For instance, not a lot of people like studying Shakespeare. I, for sure, found it so difficult to understand his points for his characters and as to why he needed to use words that for some reason I don’t hear anymore. I thought it “gibberish” before simply because I was not interested but I had to read it because I was required to. So imagine how easier it would be for students who are required to study Shakespeare is there is such a site that provides them everything to know about him and his works. I actually used this site back in high school when I had to make a report about some parts of Chinua Achebe’s “Things Fall Apart”. It was a lot easier for me to analyze the text than it was listening to my professor. Apart from that, they offer the audience tons of study guides for free that are not only downloadable but printable as well.

Sparknotes.com has a search icon that lets you type in the key words of what you are looking for. Aside from that, there is also a special icon called “subject browser” that makes you choose between the four subjects offered by the site: Literature, History, Biology and Shakespeare. Most importantly, the authors of the website made sure that any type of suggestions or comments are welcomed and appreciated. For viewers, it gives them the sense of knowing that at least the website they are visiting is legal.

CONTENT

The website’s tagline “Relax. You’re here.” gives anyone the impression that the site is first of all, educational and most importantly, worry-free. It is a worry-free website because everything you need to know about Literature and other areas of knowledge are already given. It’s just up to the audience to how they want to use the information they have learned. Although, I may say honestly, that the website can make students lazy and can eventually resort to plagiarism. Besides, who would want to write anything more than what is already given in the site? The biggest concern is that if the site will discourage plagiarism and cheating although they firmly stated that Sparknotes “adamantly condemns cheating and plagiarism”. Nevertheless, the site is too open for cheating to take place. Of course the stuff they give are really good and so there is no doubt that students can easily use the materials in the site for their own benefits.

Years before, Sparknotes was only created for the purpose of understanding literary works but now, they even offer free practice SAT and ACT tests. This one, I suppose, saves the time and money for test-takers to go to SAT tutorials when they can have tutorials online. It is very helpful because it somehow makes the people prepare for the real test. It lessens their fear and anxiety of taking the test. Another thing is that they have added other subjects besides Literature. If you go to the “Economics” section, all the topics related to that subject are listed according to categories. Not only that, the topics are being explained using simple language – precise but easy to understand. It just proves that this site is created to let people appreciate learning and to take out the usual notions people have about studying Literature or Shakespeare.

Educational websites such as Sparknotes gives people the benefit of learning at home where you find yourself relaxed and free from the pressures your teachers can give you. I mentioned that it is not only for students but useful for teachers as well. They can use this site to get additional inputs for their material.

For the most obvious reason, Sparknotes is good for the children. Any child ages 8-12 who accidentally comes across the site will not find any unsuitable content. Everything they have in the site is useful. It does not contain foul words or any angry response from a viewer. That is also why I think the site is friendly and open to anyone who is interested in learning other works in Literature or any high school student who do not have a clear understanding about his or her lessons in Biology.

While people can have different opinions about the negative effects of Sparknotes.com, it cannot be denied that most of the things found in the site are really beneficial to enhance one’s knowledge.

cyberkids

Kids now a days are much smarter and much more attach to computers. Whether it is about running a new software to do a project or even to the latest online games. Games which also gives them the skill to move around the keyboard quickly.

As far as I can say that is a good thing. it is really a necessity now a days to be knowledgeable about computers. And learning early is an edge to what lies ahead.

But contrary to that I still see the bad side that it it gives. Learning about computer in an early age has many consequences. Children are more curious in a lot of stuff. They could see something in the internet that shouldn’t be learned until the right age - Like porn. They could also be fooled by scams…

Lets face it whether it is a good or a bad thing. We cannot stop them. Otherwise they end up sneaking in your backs. The best thing adults could do is guidance and teaching of proper usage of the internet.

a trip to Vandy

I have always had this thing when it comes to University websites, I love to visit them. Maybe because I dream of eventually going to one of them. Because of that I am exposed to academic based websites and I eventually have certain qualities that I like stored up in my head. Here are a few:

• Fast load speed of website (since I am impatient)
• Complete information (especially for those who are interested in their school)
• Simple and credible designs
• Easy to understand, whether through their layout or information provided
• Visuals
• Not too much of the unnecessary design or widgets

All of the positive qualities that I liked pointed to Vanderbilt University’s (http://www.vanderbilt.edu) website. My favorite among the university websites I have visited (I must tell you, I visited a lot of them, from different countries as well).

When you enter the site it will take you only a few seconds for it to load, even if they have a slideshow and even a video feed present in their homepage. Speaking of their homepage, it provides you of a news feed regarding school activities and also their upcoming events. The slideshow let’s you take a peak into the student’s campus life and will also provide a link for interested students.

The site will provide you with all the information you need, everything can be easily found on their menu which can be seen on the left side of the site or their very own search engine, the menu makes use of simple terms and when your mouse hovers over those terms sort-of a drop menu will be seen, showing much more specific topics. This will then lead you to the information you need, and will also show you a list of helpful links which are related to the information on your screen.

The site may provide you with the information you need but at times it gives you a feeling of being bombarded with too much information, sometimes even requiring you to scan through texts just so you can find the information you need. Another downside is that it provides you with too much links requiring you to jump from one page to the next, but it will surely provide you a link back to the homepage and even if you seemed to have moved from one page to another, you will never reach a dead end, it will either provide you with another link related to the topic or a link back to their homepage (as mentioned). Also, there are links that requires you to jump, not another page, but to a different website without warning, which is another downside.

Ohh wait, it provides you with a detailed site map, it helps!

When it comes to design, it is simple and clean. It makes use of the school colors, and even if you go to other websites related to the school (check out the medical center site), it also makes use of simple and clean colors making it credible. The text is just of the right size which makes it easy for you to read. Most pages will also provide you with visuals but some won’t making the said page dull and full of text.

To put it briefly, Vanderbilt’s site, in my opinion is well thought off. It is simple and provides you of the information that is needed, which is the main factor for the visitor. It exudes the Vanderbilt spirit and credibility. Any person, parents or their children, who will visit this site will surely gain knowledge about the school because of complete information and easy to understand terms.

Celebrating the Art of Origami in Cybespace

During our group’s presentation of the commercial that we did for our Scriptwriting for TV class this term, we needed to make our props. One of the props is a bird and I was assigned to do it. I want to be creative in doing it and making an origami of a bird first came to my mind. I get a piece of paper and folded it as I recall how I do the origami of a bird when I was a child but I found myself stuck at the middle of the whole process. I always go back from the first step and I can’t finish it, so I thought maybe the Internet could help me.
“How to make an origami of a bird”, these are the keywords that I typed in the Google search engine. The search posted about 1,050,000 results for my keywords for 0.32 seconds. I browsed three websites from the tons of results but I found only one to be effective which is the www.origami.org.uk.

The website is supported by the British Origami Society. It uses animation for showing the step-by-step procedures in making an origami. The animations are created through Flash. The layout is pleasing to the eye for the colors used in the entire website were consistent and unified. It does not look boring because each page has an element of movement in it. For example, in this picture, the boxes piled in a diagonal order sways together, also the links which are also showing movement of animation everytime the mouse points on it. This element of the website makes it user-friendly. The website also offers clear, simple and easy site navigation. Each page contains the links to easily jump from one page to another. It also have the “previous button” so you can go back from the previously opened page. When on the actual procedure of origami making, there are buttons that you can click to pause, rewind, play, forward a step whenever you like that makes catching up with the procedures easier since you can control it. You can go back to step that is still unclear for you. Aside from the animation itself, a written procedure also flashes in the page that will add help in the procedures. It is also a good thing that the website uses the website itself written in the page banner. Its design is somewhat like an ancient scroll of paper that is able to signify how ancient the practice and art of origami is but still it can be learned through a modern technology. I think the only weakness in its form is that it lacks the element of sound for an animation. The website only used sounds in the games that can also be played in the website. The form of this website is child-friendly and if it wants to attract more kids to visit the site maybe the element of sound should be reinforced. But overall, the strength of this site is that the design and functionality fits the purpose of the site. It used a background that looks like a crumpled paper that enhances the idea of origami, the art of using paper folding to create different figures.
The content of the website is suitable for anyone who wants to create an origami especially for children. It is more effective and friendlier to use compared to other origami sites that will show you complicated and formal-looking drawings of the procedures that even it has the complete procedure written, you still won’t be ale to follow through it. From the pictures shown below, the one at the left side (www.origami.org.uk) is easier to follow than the website on the right that only shows drawings of the procedures.

The website’s content is able to present the needed procedures in basic origami in a creative way and is easy to understand especially by the children. I can say it is one of the educational sites that are really suitable for children because the graphics, words, language used are purely educational. There are games offered by the site but these are simple games that aren’t harmful. Most of the games will exercise your hand and eye coordination same skills that you a child should need in making an origami. But the site also lacks content in a sense that it only offers limited kinds or examples of origami. It only has the origami of a flapping bird and a shirt. A visitor will find this a weakness of the site when that visitor wants to learn an origami other than what they have in the site. But I guess it is explained in the home page (about this site page). The makers of the site explained that the site is like a preliminary attempt to teach origami through the use on Internet and the Flash animation. In time, they will add more origami so the visitors might want to check the site again. The site is very educational since it does not only have the procedures and the cool games for the kids but there are also links in some pages that gives factual trivia about a certain origami.
The website has its strengths and weaknesses but in general it is a good site especially for the young users of the Internet. The site is clear in its purpose of celebrating the art of origami and sharing it to the generation today through the use of the modern technology, which is the Internet.

Superheroes...after the loading ends

(Due to some technical errors, i could not post any pictures of the site because it always says error when i try to upload the image)

I love comic books, especially Spiderman ones. I've been collecting comic books since i was 9 years old. So i decided, for my Website critique, i would choose a comic book related site:

http://www.marvel.com/

Upon opening the website, it took my computer around 20 sec to load up the page, upon seeing the page, i was confused on where i wanted to go too first, it's like everything was put in the first page and it was hard because of all the different pictures, animations and news were shown all at the same time. It would take a ton of time though to load if you do not have DSL for your PC.


Fortunately, since the website offers a lot of information on the Marvel Universe, it will be enjoyed by both fans and visitors. The website offers games for kids (http://marvelkids.marvel.com/games/Hulk_Central_Smashdown), information on superheroes, movie trailers, and a shop offering comics, toys, accessories and gear. Marvel.com also offers forums for people who want to talk about the website.

The website, on my opinion, is an excellent means of information for fans and visitors alike. It also has excellent features like videos and stories, and it also gives complete information on marvel related activities like comic book and movie releases. The comic is also very visual and it is easy exploring all the aspects on it. The only downside is the home page for first time users whereas you will be bombarded with all kinds of information and pictures. Another downside is for viewers who rely on dial up connections, since the page contains a lot of visual materials, loading time will take long. The website gets a high grade because it is really well made and handled. Viewers will most likely spend some time exploring and enjoying the website and its features.

PRESTIGE IN CYBERSPACE

An important, if not the most, feature that an academic based website should contain is the content. It is the first thing that viewers would locate and look forward to as they navigate through the university homepage. In this light, the website in which I am about to critique certainly presents itself with a plus in terms of content, utilization, and consistency. The website I am referring to is the Princeton University (http://www.princeton.edu) campus website.

At the first click of the button, I immediately noticed the speed in which the homepage of the university processes, taking only around 10 to 15 seconds to completely load. This might be for the reason that their university website does not make use of any other technology present today such as Macromedia Flash or Quicktime to showcase the different parts of the site, a feat that provides the website the chance to operate swiftly.

They also incorporated the use of simple images to decrease loading times. However, there are moments when these simple images do not seem enough to let the viewers have an idea on what the content is all about. For example, on the upper left corner of the website is an image that changes whenever the viewers navigate through different pages. Although they are of the university, being photos of students or a science laboratory to name a few, a bigger image related to the subject matter would be appreciated.

The size of the fonts, on the other hand, may pose as a problem to those who have eyesight deficiency; they may be too small the read. Also, the texts are placed side by side making it difficult to discern borders. Though, it is commendable that the proper use of contrast was exhibited. The shifting of colors from orange to gray and vice versa eases the viewers to notice which ones are links and which ones are headlines.

In addition, the site opted to use an orange-white-black theme to complement the university’s trademark colors, as well as, to make it easier for the readers to view the information provided.

Navigating through the pages of the university website is a breeze. Major links are placed on the first column, sub-sections on the second, and on the third, the content. This goes all throughout the website. Thus, it would be easy for the viewers to find what they are looking for with just an average of three clicks.

Unfortunately, there are moments when links to another website (such as a sister site) is included within the set of links inside the main website. This is worsened by the fact that there is no way to determine if the viewer will indeed go to another website. It would be best to include a small icon or a short text that will prepare the viewers for the following action.

In totality, the Princeton University website is well-done. It successfully molds formality, information, and simplicity into an easily accessed website. The academic based site, as expected, is one that is visited solely for a purpose such as a student looking for a university to apply in or parents who wish to see where their children may be in the near future. Certainly, however, whatever the objective may be, the viewers will be able to accomplish since it is loaded with information organized into specific categories and selections. Furthermore, the minute amounts of error found within the contents of the website are not difficult to improve on for with just a slight increase in image size or a quick type of a text it will only get better. The university’s prestige is not only seen within the bounds of the spectacular edifices and walls of the campus. It can also be noticed in cyberspace.