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tundewoods (m)
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To all the web professionals out there,i guess you guys should be able to help me out here ?I've always had this baffling and mind rattling question bothering me for quite some time now.
Why is it that in Nigeria,Half baked websites go live on the internet with so much hype and TV publicity. Here is a practical example that i feel should share with you guys.
I saw an advert of the upcoming Nigerian Musical Video Awards,which is an initiave of Cally Ikpe the producer of the Live Beats, Nigeria's longest running music video program.
The TV advert campaign refers us to their website www.livebeatsng.com for more information.I was quite enthuastic to visit the website in order to find out more about planned NMVA. On getting to the website i was left confused & wondering who was the clown that designed an incomplete website and let it go live on the internet.
Why must we be subjected to such ridicule in Nigeria.
Noticeable is a home page with a very immature flash animation with empty content blocks,None of the navigation links worked while the only link that was visible relating to the NMVA was linked to #.For a clearer view,i guess you ought to visit the www.livebeatsng.com,to understand what i'm talking about.
Its time this trend changed in Nigeria and here are my own recommendations for us web professionals
1] Please ensure you have atleast 75 % of text & visual content to be used for websites before commencing a project.
2] Dont let clients tell you to commence projects and also help them to source for content from other websites.
3] Avoid use of unnecessary numbers of navigation links that the content ready isn't ready
4] Also ensure that your websites are 95% error free before delivering a projects to clients.
5] If your website must go live,for christ sake have a couple of folks,friends or colleagues do usability test.
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smartsoft (m)
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I think the owner of this site can't wait to see the site uploaded and why dude who design the site forgot to put " Site Undercontruction" at least that alone can tell alot, if fans visit the website.
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tundewoods (m)
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@Smartsoft
That excuse will not justify that.Even underconstruction most times is remains that way till eternity.
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Afam (m)
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This is sad but true.
Meanwhile, having under construction pages is not a good idea. Publish and link to content that is ready.
Again, the ability of the web developer to insist on the right thing is yet another issue.
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my2cents (m)
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tundewoods, At least your own better - I can't recount the number of times I have watched a nollywood movie where the distributors list a website that is not even online. I won't even mention websites of those of us here on this forum that list sites on their portfolio page, 90% of which are now offline  As far as your numbered list goes, I would disagree with a couple - a website should be 100% complete, from a visual and content standpoint. As far as errors, I say 99% (because to me 5% is still significant. 1% would be something a user would inadvertently find. It's okay if we agree to disagree on this one though  ). The last time I mentioned Quality Assurance/usability testing on this forum, I could sense that it is new territory for some of us back home. Some people even went as far as saying, for example, "if you look at google, all it is is a blank page and yet they are making billions". Each site has its purpose. In the end, every site shouldn't and couldn't be a google. There are people in the states who are making millions on usability and Quality Assurance alone, not even typing in a single line of code. As a matter of fact, for those who are interested, there is a conference in Boston, USA from Nov 5 - 8 this year where it will be all about usability. I can't wait for when clients will start saying, "boy, do I have a crappy website! I need a redesign. I mean my clients can't even find anything on there". In my opinion, we as Nigerians, your truly included, have been indoctrinated in the ways of, "how I go do now?". If something happens that we don't like, rather than rectify it, we accept it and move on. So, we are used to seeing pages with useless animations, broken links, non-existent pages, etc When I see sites like this, I say to myself, "no wonder clients are not used to paying a lot". My sites may be "simple", but one thing I get, especially from clients at home, is, "the site looks so simple, yet so professional". I hope this helps. |
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webemerald (m)
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My2cents i just visited your site nd i must say im amazed at the simplicity.yet it has a professional feel,good job but from a client standpt a little flash aint bad. While were tryin to draw d middle line between aesthetics nd functionality rem that d client is king. Give them what dey need.
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my2cents (m)
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webemarald, First and foremost, thanks for the compliments. As you have said, "a little flash aint bad". I would like to emphasize, "a little". In fact, having flash on a site isn't bad at all. The problem is in the abuse of flash (or as prodgalson has aptly called it, "flashterbation"). If you go through my portfolio page, I do have a site where I used it, "a little" per client request. If a client wants it, I will use it, but only, "a little", so as to draw attention to something. I wouldn't have it all over the place and/or repeat the animation so many times (ala, and sorry Afam  ) http://www.akwaibomstategov.com or http://www.unionbankng.com/ that in the end, people like me would end up nauseated. Lastly, call me greedy, but it takes time to develop a quality site. In addition to the html/css/javascript, etc, it takes time to design a robust database and it takes time to develop a flash movie. I can't afford to give a client bells and whistles for peanuts. I have mouths to feed. Moreover, chances are that if the table were turned and it was I who wanted a website, they wouldn't cut me any slack. Back to the issue at hand - for the most part, before I launch any site, I let a few people that I have met via the forum test it out. Once it passes their muster, I then announce it on this forum for others to test it out. When I announce, "site review", I am not necessarily asking for one's critique aesthetics-wise. I am asking for you all to do random clicking, verify functionality, etc. This is what is call, "User Acceptance Testing" or "Quality Assurance". I then take the suggestions from you all, I fix the changes and then "release" the site to the client. For the few who still have something to say after release, I tell them that the site not only reflects my opinion, but that of my peers (which means you. Believe me, 'cause of the respect I have for you all on this forum, I promote you guys to the fullest  ) so there is little else I could do from a developer standpoint. As always, my 2 cents |
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Afam (m)
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As you have said, "a little flash aint bad". I would like to emphasize, "a little". In fact, having flash on a site isn't bad at all. The problem is in the abuse of flash (or as prodgalson has aptly called it, "flashterbation"). If you go through my portfolio page, I do have a site where I used it, "a little" per client request. If a client wants it, I will use it, but only, "a little", so as to draw attention to something. I wouldn't have it all over the place and/or repeat the animation so many times (ala, and sorry Afam ) http://www.akwaibomstategov.com or http://www.unionbankng.com/ that in the end, people like me would end up nauseated. I never use flash and there is a difference between a banner ad and flash abuse so I don't even know what my name is doing on a comment concerning flash abuse. |
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my2cents (m)
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Afam, If you recall, there was a time I would link the AKSG website as a perfect example of lack of testing (in particular, I would always say the site looked horrible when viewed in FF and you would always say words to the effect of, "not again"). That's what I meant. I just can't help referencing those 2 sites as examples of what not to do flash-wise |
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Afam (m)
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Afam, If you recall, there was a time I would link the AKSG website as a perfect example of lack of testing (in particular, I would always say the site looked horrible when viewed in FF and you would always say words to the effect of, "not again"). That's what I meant. I just can't help referencing those 2 sites as examples of what not to do flash-wise Ok, I think say you been dey accuse me of flashterbation as I dey hardly use am for sites wey I dey develop. |
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webemerald (m)
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My2cents ,in your portfolio page, dere this application that loads a larger version of the template,ow does it work,it is cool
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my2cents (m)
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webemarald, it is called "lightbox": http://www.huddletogether.com/projects/lightbox/if you think lightbox is cool, check out (on the same site) lightbox 2. For an example of lightbox 2 in action: http://www.ibompeoplescongress.org/ipc-photo-gallery/ipc-jazz-night-photos.phpWhile you all are there, you might as well review it for me, if you all don't mind. I finished this site 2 weeks ago but was lazy posting it here for a review, in particular because I am tired of hearing, "your site is so simple" damn! when it comes to what i use to make my sites unique, I can't believe I am giving away my secrets. Oh well, if I no love una, I no for do am. If I don't play my part in helping my brothers and sisters back home with respect to putting up quality websites, who will?  I hope this helps. |
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timmy (m)
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SInce when did people start givin my2cents design props, we all know hes one of the worst skilled guys around yet he critiques like ever, abeg just become a web jurist and leave deisgn for skilled fellas (don't wry i aint part of them)
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my2cents (m)
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timmy (sorry, I meant Rotimi Oluwunmi ), like a cockroach in heat, u don come again. no ya wa. I re-read every single thread on this post and nowhere do I or anyone on here mention anything about my "design props". Contrary to popular belief, I actually pride myself in my lack of "design props". As I have maintained over and over, I am a developer, not a designer. At work, I don't come up with design. Rather, I take what a designer gives me and turn that into a web page. I offer my critiques based on my years of experience. I have done a lot, seen a lot and I read a lot. Just because I don't eat amala doesn't mean I wouldn't know how to appreciate amala that is well-prepared. Remember, you are the same person who, on this forum, boasted to all about how you put up an 800-page website You started something similar to this at exactly this time last year. Now, you are at it again. I will respectfully ask you to stop and apologize. Otherwise, I will be forced to divulge information about you on here that will make everyone lose respect for you. We are all on here to learn and not to be adherents to the "Crab in a basket" mentality. A word is enough for the wise. |
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Afam (m)
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Timmy get a lot of energy to set that website up and don't forget that he has to manually update the pages. A properly written script would make the management of such a website easy. |
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