Can you help?

[richardmarshall]

Hi guys, im quite new to this and i have only just got my StatCounter at the beginning of December. I saw this forum and decided to see if anyone would be interested in rating my site.

It might not be the most interesting site in the world (but it is not a personal one... i was told what i had to have in it). I just want some feedback on what you all think about the DESIGN mainly (if you want to comment on the content i will be more than happy to take criticism).

Please tell me what you think (be HONEST).

Thanks guys.


Richard Marshall

[Momo]

I think that the graphics are nice, but the fonts are way too big. I can also see that the site would not fit in 800x600 screens without horizontal* scrolling. This is really annoying for 800x600 users.

Because of the large fonts, the site seems confusing at first.

Also, the little ad boxes at the bottom don't do anythinkwhen clicked, though they say "click here."

*Is an edit

[trackerm]

Put the location of the theatre on your home page. Even though you have been round the place for so many years many people still wont know. Put where in the UK Ponteland is too.

In the Synopsis of Annie I feel you give away too much of the story, in fact you tell the ending! Even though Annie is a best loved story don't remind us what happens :) Lets wait till we see the story unfold.

I would increase the font size of "Ponteland Repertory Society" and , as Mo says, drop the others back a bit.

The email addresses can be done as mailto links. Then when they are clicked a blank addressed email message will pop up.

All the best for Annie. It’s a great show.

Mark

[Arne]

The font size is just perfect in my opinion! Since you have not set any specific size for the content text, anybody can see it in their prefered size (as they set in their own browser settings). For me it's 100% in Mozilla ("normal" in IE). So if it seems to big or to small for somebody, let them change the browser settings. That's what this feature in the browser is for, to let the user decide what (s)he prefer! But you should use headings (H1, H2, a.s.o.) for the headlines, not "font size=6" or whatever.

And I agree what has been said about the page don't fit in to a 800x600 screens. That gives a horizontal scrolling because of the "headline" image (optitle.gif). That image should be set as a background image. Then it will be "cut off" in a 800x600 screen and not cause the scrolling. Try also convert the image to *.jpg or *.png if possible. That would "downsize" it from 30 kB to less kB and save some download time for dial up visitors.

You should also add an alt text (alternative text) to at least the more important images (e.g. the menu buttons). If they are not downloaded (for any reason), the visitor should at least will get an idea about them.

Since we recently had some discussions about using flash animations (movies) on web pages, I'll say you use flash in a way that shows how it can be used (as a small part of a page). Your animations is a lot better alternative to Java Applets that is still used for the same purpose. I hate Applets and therefore have it disabled on my browser :)

But it's difficult to see (read) the "message" in the uper flash. Some of the text is to small and an bad font face and color (for this purpose anyway).

As a "summary" I think the site looks good as a start to work on little further with. For now I give the vote "6" for it :)

[motorwatchercounter]

I like the ticket header (although you can see that it is mirrored) I would change the buttons as these do not have the same effect as the header.

I agree with Trackerm about the location of the rep.

As for enhancements there are a couple of things you counld do to make the site more dynamic.
Try a location link to a site like www.multimap.com to show where you are performing.
Add a dynamic news posting programme (there are a lot of free ones) to make your forthcoming shows easier to post.
Possibly add a quote programme (again a lot of free ones) to take famous lines from shows or maybe good reviews.

[Momo]

Arne,

I'm just so used to writing vertical that I wrote it instead of horizontal above. I will edit that now. :)

[motorwatchercounter]

Quite often to keep them uniform. Sometimes they form part of a template so you don't need to keep writing code from scratch.

[mistro]

my first impression (and first impression count I think considering you have like 5 seconds to grab a person with a web site) is that it's too big and confronting - perhaps a little confusing.

Content is good I just think it may pay to scale it all down a bit - I wouldn't rely on people adjusting their browser view because there are so many web pages out there and if they are anything like me they'll just not bother and find a site that fits their web page.

Just a thought anyway - hope it helps.

Chris
http://www.openpath.org
:wink:

[Nomad]

Wow! Ponteland! I come from up the road from there lol. Wooler - Fair bit up I know but I used to use the Ponteland route up through Otterburn and Riedsdale... Gawd that was years ago lol.

Gimme a shout I have some really nice templates would suit a site like yours and a couple of ways to make it more interactive...

PM me here or catch me on IM :)

~ :)

nb: Insert normal Northern Accent for clarity ;) (Mike Neville and George style ;) )