scott-e-xperience.com

dateablescotty · #1 (**permalink**) 05-05-2004, 08:45 AM

Personally created site to review please:

www.scott-e-xperience.com

All commments welcome - few pages not yet complete.

ellar · #2 (**permalink**) 05-05-2004, 09:32 AM

Hi

I went and checked out your site. It was quite cool for a personal site.

Just a couple of things. The frontpage is very slow to load. I have a broadband connection and I almost cancelled the page because it was taking so long so imagine what it would be like for those still on 56k and yes they do exist ... I was one until 2 months ago.

The way of life link takes you directly to another site. Perhaps it would be better to have a page that tells people about your way of life and why you enjoy it with a link to the outside page on this page within your site. I must admit that I closed the page down because I hate being redirected outside a site without warning.

Others probably have a better idea what to improve than I do as I have only been writing pages for about a month and my first one is about to over go a complete overhaul after the feedback from wpw members which has been absolutely invaluable.

Overall a nice site and your right I enjoyed the picture of where you work with the fountains in the foreground.

Cheers

CallieJo · #3 (**permalink**) 05-05-2004, 07:19 PM

Well, it loaded fine for me on 56k so maybe that is fixed. Love the intro into the site -> very nice...

My first impression was -> "ok, what's the site about?"

I see where it explains how to navigate, and where it says the links below relate to IT etc. But, I'm still confused on the initial entrance on site.

What I mean, is that my first impression was "I'm lost"....the graphic of the anapod caught me first hand and kindof held my gaze even when I tried to look around.

The menu was the last thing I seen after I quit staring at the anapod thingie wondering if it were an ad or what. Cause the saying that goes to it I initially thought went to the site I was on:
This site went live on
1 December 2003 and
will be updated daily -
except for weekends

I'm no pro, so excuse any comments I make and please don't take any to heart either, k ;-)

I like the site, but got lost on first glances....I would start with an intro about the site, then go down to telling about the anapod thingie like as a new news below your intro, then tell about the links at the bottom right above the linkies.

Anyways, good luck sweety and have a splendid day ;-)

Hugs*
CallieJo

hal · #4 (**permalink**) 05-05-2004, 09:10 PM

Hello dateablescotty,

How may I help thee re: <scott-e-xperience.com>? Let me count the ways...

My answer to your question depends in great part upon what it is you are trying to accomplish. You say this is a personal site. I only had time to check the Home page.

Based on Ellar's warning, I did not wait for the Flash to come up. (Yes, Ellar, I am still on 56K. I need to know what my clients' clients are experiencing.) Ellar was also right on target re: redirection to another site.

So, I cannot address the Flash time issue. However (and Flash lovers will now nail me to the wall), you are killing yourself. Please understand, I do not hate Flash. I do, however, recognize it for what it really is... a highly gratuitous, huge imposition upon Web site visitors which chews up both bandwidth and time, and 99-44/100% of the time without any useful purpose. Flash does have great uses... putting it on a Home page, though, is almost always a pure waste. Almost? Well, I do hold out hope that some day I might actually see a Flash front page which does has a reason for existing. Still haven't found one...

Does that about cover it? Uh... no. Those thoughts are quite mild compared to my impression of most Flash implementations; by and large they are just a smidgen short of criminal when they are done for a paying client. Reason... while the brag is now that <google.com> can finally start to read Flash, just look at some of those listings and you can't help but laugh -- and then disregard the entire site by not even going to it.

About the Flash page -- Who/what is/are BT Yahoo? Also, there is nothing on that page for search engines to really latch onto. So, it's a page quite well designed not to get listed.

By the way, why are you using Frames on the front page when there is only one Frame?

All that being said, thank you thank you thank you (!) for offering a quick and easy way to bail out of that feldercarb and get in to your real site.

The first thing on the page is a mess of styles and JavaScripts. Even though you are claiming HTML 4.0 Transitional, it will never pass validation. Move this stuff down into the <head>. I could not find a </head> before the <body>.

If you have nothing else, you really should have <title>, <description> and <keywords> tags. You do have a <title>, but it doesn't say anything of use to a search engine user. Use upper and lower case, not all upper case (no need to scream -- except for those viewing this on a huge wall-mounted flat panel TV, we're all within just a couple of feet of you <g>).

On the visible screen, your page title is a graphic. O.K., fine, you are using that as a link; I see that. However, if you are going to say something important in a graphic element, you must also say the same thing in text. Otherwise, spiders won't see it.

Personally, I don't believe "last updated" statements... especially when they reflect the very moment that I opened the page. It makes me disbelieve anything else that you might say on that page.

I also have a problem with "will be updated daily - except for weekends." While that may be true on other pages, look at the dates at the bottom of this page. While it may be only this topic that gets updated once a month, at first glance the disparate dates appear to fly in the face of the above comment.

Geez. This comes out sounding harsh. Not meant to. ...Just directly to the point.

Enjoy your site,

Hal

Niko Holopainen · #5 (**permalink**) 05-06-2004, 03:45 AM

I've made a habit of using several browsers, of which incidentally the main one is Firefox without Java/flash or any plugins installed.

On that aforementioned browser the page doesn't load at all, there's the flowing top image, computer and two non-clickable java/flash images that to my understanding would probably contain menus etc.

Thus the page loaded fast, downside being that there was absolutely nothing to see without the Java/flash installed.

Thus depending on your target group, the usability and accessibility may be an issue or not. Out of curiosity and doing one of my two weekly reviews (trying to keep the habit so that once I ask for a review in 2-3 weeks when the reconstruction has been finished, some would be inclined to help) I fired up my IE (that has java/flash installed).

The intro has quite high volume (I had to tone down my office speakers, to state the truth, hehe!) and is a little longish (like movies, that I'm sure it was made to resemble) but very cool! Also the main site looks nice although possibly a little mixing (lost for english words, ... fade/blurring?) between the three images would probably make it appear a little more finished. Navigation is nice and clear, good work!

So all in all, maybe the two java/flash buttons (intro, skip intro) could be simple images? Since now neither of them work without a plugin, nor is neither one visible for the actual content.

Oh, and to add to the other comments - no waiting time for me, using broadband (10mb) from Finland, and to answer the possible statement "you shouldn't have any waiting periods with 10mb", some sites for review actually have me waiting for quite a bit ;)

Hope this helps and congrats for a very visually pleasing site =)

Yours truly as always,

: Niko

wen_laat · #6 (**permalink**) 05-06-2004, 08:59 AM

You could change your blog's entries, newest entry on the top, because now it looks like you haven't updated since July. Normal blogs always have the last entry at the top.

jstarkweather · #7 (**permalink**) 05-06-2004, 05:52 PM

You need to learn how to pre-load your roll-over images if you want to do roll-overs. Otherwise they are annoying. Also judging from the time it took to load them it's probably your host that is making you site so pokey.

I didn't find the flash to be very compelling. Not what you want to hear I am sure but you are making all the "classic" web design errors. Design another 50 sites and you will improve. :)

Jim

PatantConsultants · #8 (**permalink**) 05-11-2004, 01:39 PM

nice site>>> i love its simplicity. I use dial up and found downloading time within acceptable standards.

I love the butons, what programme did you use to make them.

I do not have the flash plugin installed>>>so i guess I can see you flash work.

With respect to the links below I would categorized them, as againts to having them all mixed, therfore making it easier for people who are interested in the respective topic.

hope this helps

Carla

dateablescotty · #9 (**permalink**) 05-16-2004, 10:38 AM

Thank you all for your comments so far. I've been working on the home page a bit more, and so would appreciate feedback only on that at present.

I am currently working on the rest of the pages at present, and so initial feedback on the homepage is required at present.

Thanks in advance, and bye for now.

Scott