Please post assigned and unassigned project 1 work you think is necessary to post.
Submitted by wolff on Thu, 09/15/2005 - 10:21am.
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Wolff STS 311
Our prototype design maintains the fun, friendly tone desired by the ITS staff while also incorporating the important usability elements detailed in our Communication Brief. The color scheme is similar to the colors used in the current ITS logo, and gives the web site a welcoming, pleasing quality. The University of Texas heading banner has been incorporated into the layout design without making the page too obviously a UT website. We restructured the navigation by categorizing the subnavigation according to four main functions that seemed most important to ITS: Services, Facilities, Courses, and Sales and Funding. The navigation is laid out cleanly at the top of all pages so that users can immediately find exactly what they are looking for without searching through many icons and links. The navigation structure clearly displays everything offered by Liberal Arts ITS without overwhelming the user. We also integrated a search module into the design to provide users a faster way to find information. The main page features a section about the ITS department and a section of spotlights; this gives the user a direct, solid introduction of the web site. The featured spotlights give the site a more up-to-date feel, and the dynamic content will increase the likelihood of the user returning. The footer, accessible from all pages, includes contact information, a link to the UT web site, and a link back to the index of the Liberal Arts ITS site. The text colors and font help establish levels in the content so that titles and headings are easily distinguishable from the rest of the content.
What is that you are trying to convey to the audience? How should they react to visiting your site?
How often do you update the information on the web? Who maintain the web updates?
How would you describe the current COLA ITS website audience, and how does that compare to your idea of the target audience?
How many unique visitors per month are there for the Liberal Arts ITS website ?
A navigable, aesthetic website which provides valuable content in an organized manner for the target audience.
UT's Liberal Arts Instruction Technology Services, despite being involved with technology, has a distinguishably lacking website. Their current site contains most of the information users might need, but a user arrives confused at a messy index, with many menu options that he or she must read through before navigating. Our design team will be completely revamping the website, concentrating on a more navigable website from the start page and in ordinary pages so that users from external sites will more clearly understand where they are and what their options are. So, our primary goal in this redesign is usability. We also would like to create an aesthetically pleasing look for the site, because the current colors, images, and fonts leave a sterile feeling with the user. In the long term, hopefully we will be able to create a marketable site that faculty and students can turn to for quick solutions to their problems regarding technology in the Liberal Arts department.
The overall message we would like to convey is personalize content and efficiency. We will convey this message by presenting a more personalized information, more directed site path and more compelling visual content. Audience will be able to recognize their needs that can be fulfilled by ITS department and easily understand what they should do to receive service from ITS department.
1. What does the target audience think and feel
about the company and the current website?
The icons that link to the pages are appealing and easily access the page intended. The actual page is lacking appeal. The text is a bit small so not ideal for the user with poor vision. The pages the icons link to are also dull and just present a lot of information that can seem overwhelming.
2. What do we want them to think and feel?
We want the users to be able to easily navigate through the site. We want it to be more appealing to keep the user’s interest. We’d also like to use a text and text size that is easily readable for all users.
3. How will this new website help achieve this goal?
We want to use more visual aids that hold user’s attention. Making the text more readable will make the site accessible to more users. The improvements will bring more traffic to the site.
4. What adjectives can be used to describe the way
the website and the company should be perceived
by the target audience?
Accessible, Usable, pertinent, intriguing
5. What are some specific visual goals the site
should convey?
The site should appeal to the user to keep them returning and interested.
Communication Brief
Audience Profile:
1. Who is your target audience?
Occupation: Student & Prospective Students & Staff
Age Range: 17-40
Gender: Male & Female
Online Frequency: Variable
Purpose: Students, prospective students, staff who are interested in the Liberal Arts College ITS department and wish to seek more information about it.
2. What is a typical task the visitor might perform on the new site?
The main task a visitor of this site will be to search for information about the Liberal Arts College ITS department and see what services they offer.
3. What do these people care about? Why are they interested in the product the site will be offering? What trigger would prompt them to visit the site, and why would they be enticed to return?
These visitors care about what the Liberal Arts College ITS department is about, what they offer, and how to contact them. They are interested in this site because they are either students of the Liberal Arts College or they are planning on attending it. Visitors will continue to visit this site because there is an abundance of useful information and resources available to them.
Our redesign of the content pages uses space more efficiently and makes browsing and reading information much more pleasant for the user. The current content pages of the Liberal Arts ITS site shrinks navigation to almost illegible text crammed at the top of each page. The navigation of the redesigned content pages clearly displays all links of the website, eliminating the need for a separate site map. Also, users entering the revamped website from external sites will be able to utilize navigation just as efficiently as if they were entering through the main page. They will also be able to use the search module to find specific information. To eliminate confusion and reduce ambiguity, all acronyms (such as LACIL and DASE) are defined in the navigation of the redesign. In place of the monotonous, hard-to-read text of the current Liberal Arts ITS content pages, we have given the text a clearly-defined hierarchy so that the user's eye can easily distinguish between links, headings, subheadings, and content. Currently, the index page of the web site seems inconsistent with the rest of the webpages. The consistency of the our content pages design with our main page design gives the website a greater sense of unity and allows the user to navigate through pages with greater ease. The utilizaion of links rather than graphic icons for navigation decreases page loading time and increases versatility of content for users who prefer larger or smaller text. Overall, our design team has successfully addressed all of the usability issues that we targeted in our Communication Brief.