site prototype comments
After you read your own group's comments, please read the comments for all other groups, as what is written most likely will inform your own group's work.
Group 1 | Group 2 | Group 3 | Group 4return to site prototype
Group 1
I was very happy to read that your "group tried to maintain a balance of what the client expressed and what the site needed in order to be more functional and user friendly," and you can certainly see that balance at work in the site. You have done a great job of creating a "fun" feel without going so far that you lose site of the goals of the site. I also like your re-interpreted logo and that you have added the mission statement to the front page. Though I am concerned that the size of the statement is taking up some valuable real-estate that could be used for other purposes: highlights of latest news, showcasing some of the STA work, that kind of thing. Go back and take a look at what Neilson writes about screen real-estate and reconsider the shape and size of that image. I also suggest making the content area a bit wider - right now it is quite thin. I understand the desire to have the columns of equal width, but we shouldn't let the page size be dictated by how an image looks.
There is also something about the site that makes it seem a bit scattered to me - and I'm pretty sure the client would not like that. I think its because there is no clear eye pattern for what I am seeing; there is no one thing that I am focusing on to ground my reading of the site. I jump from place to place without knowing just where to land, and that is not a great thing. Try to reign in the spotlight sections and the left navigation links so they feel a bit more professional - CSS will certainly help with this - as will making the mission statement smaller. Overall, though, a very good start - I look forward to seeing the final design!
Group 2
This is an exceptionally good prototype, one that goes a very long way toward your goal of making 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." The pages are clean, consistent and to the point. I like the extra-large navigation sections, though reducing the size of the header font will go a long way in preserving some needed screen real-estate. I also wonder why you moved from the 4 colors on your rough draft to the 2 colors in the prototype. I think the 4 colors adds a bit of "fun" to the site, and will also help your user distinguish which section they are in (as will changing the shade of the section when they are in a particular section - or dulling the ones they are not in - let me know if this is not clear). Also consider the order from left to right in terms of what is most important. I can see why you have including "funding" in the "sales" section, but in this case I think the funding might go better with Courses because the funding is being used to design the Courses. A better heading might be "Projects": "course listings" makes it seem like the courses are a part of LA ITS (like Intro to Web Development is a part of STS), when they are really course web sites that are designed by LA ITS. It's a minor, but important distinction. And by labeling it Projects, you can include links to the STAs and the DAIS, which are both missing.
Note, too, that on the Instructional Lab page that you have two Contact sections - one on the right and one in the main content area. And with the right Contact sections, you might consider changing the heading from "How to Contact Us" to "Who to Contact in _____" and then add "Audio Services" or "Video Services" depending on the page. I know these are small things, but your design is at a level where not-picking will help make the usability clearer. And to add to the "fun" of the site, you make want to consider different background themes, as the folks at Spoono do, or some photographs from the DAIS archive. Overall, a great job!
Please also see above about introducing the ITS site.
Group 3
I enjoyed reading about the process your group went through in deciding how to design the new site, and I think you made a good decision to go with the simplicity of Brian's design. The problem, however, is that I think your design is too simple, with much too much white. In many ways your site is very much like the current LA ITS site, especially with the banner being exactly the same. Yes, you have moved the navigation to the left and added the Quick Links, but other than that there is not that much new aesthetically. Add color, redesign the banner, place a border around the content section, add photos from the DAIS archive or screen shots of some of the projects the STAs designed (great job, I must say, redesigning the STA page). Go back to Brian's design and include some of the features that you haven't included: an updates section, and image on the right side, text wrapped in boxes - and then see if there could be a way to add some of the interesting and fun features from the other designs.
Or, take a new stab at the design by employing some of Octavio's ideas of a horizontal navigation bar and sub navigation down the right. Simplicity does not necessarily mean a lack of links; simplicity can come in the backbone structure of the site. Bring some of the things that LA ITS is particularly proud of - DAIS, STA projects, etc., -- to the font page. It is clear that you have an excellent understanding of the site and its goals. Now that you have created a completely simple site, lets try and expand on it to make it feel more alive.
Group 4
I was happy to read that one of your main goals for the redesign was to "ease navigation for the user," something I know we talked a lot about in class. I'm not sure, however, that your re-design has been completely successful. Though I can see that the navigation on the top of the page has less links than the current LA ITS navigation system, because of the vast amount of small text throughout the site, a user can get similarly confused with what to do. Also, uses might want the lists to be links and will get frustrated when they aren't. Unlike Group 3's simple design, your design is a bit cluttered: there is so much to look at and so much to take in that its hard to focus. Much of it is also hard to read: the banner texts blends in too much with the very cool background; the gradient in the navigation buttons blurs the text, and the small text throughout the page is, well, too small - and there is too much of it. Please also see what I wrote about funding in Group 2's comments.
This is not to say at all that your concept is not a good one - it is. I like how you are trying to explain to the user exactly what they can find in each section. The thing is, however, that you do not need to spoon-feed the user. Instead, give them an idea what they can find. This can be done incorporating text and images in interesting ways. Ultimately, this page seems more like a site map to me than a home page that invites the user in by incorporating various things that LA ITS is proud of - DAIS images, STA projects, etc. When you move to your final design, start thinking more about uniting LA ITS projects with layout and less about structure, and lets see where you go. Overall, a very good start - I look forward to seeing what you do next.