ok guys/gals,

Let's be honest, this section of NL has been boring for at least a month so I want to shake things up a bit.

Question: What things would you see on a website that would make you say, "yep, this is definitely a website designed/developed by someone in Nigeria"?

I will take a first crack at it, if I may (I base my numbers below on sites that have been up for review here on this site, which I feel is a fair representation of sites designed/developed in Nigeria as a whole):

1) Extensive use of green colors, including various shades of green

2) Abuse of flash

3) Scrolling marquees/scrolling news flashes

4) Forms that don't validate (both server- and/or browser-side) or send the user to page that doesn't exist

5) Tiny fonts

Are there any more? Come on folks, let's stir the pot a little. We haven't engaged in serious conversation in a long time.

-Images collapsing on top of each other.
-Site built without an architectural frame work.
-Site not updated,especially government sites.
-Interactive sites are actually not interactive rather populated with templates.
-SEO standards are not followed,thus,not visible in search engines.
-eCommerce base are not trusted for fear of fraud.
-Traffic is low because the total useability/web awareness is low.
-Professionalism in the web design/IT trade is low because of training,cost,availability of tools/software.

ha!

Very good. I am enjoying this thread. Others, please post more.

Haba!
Are you gees dissing naija webmasters? LOL. Actually agree to all ur posts but then I still belive there are a couple of good webmasters out there.

@kehers, sure there are. No arguments there. In fact, based on this forum, there are more than just 2

I guess where I was coming from is, having seen a lot of sites on profiles/reviews here, I have noticed certain themes and trends. Perhaps many on here are reading from the same (e) books

Using slices like there's no tomorrow.
Empty pages, and dead links.
Abusive use of Adsense. Haba, text links on the left and banner ads on the top and right? Na by force to make free money?
Using too many fonts. Cos fyi, 4 different fonts on a page is childish
Harsh colours.
MARQUEES, OMG MARQUEES!!!!
Poor use of templates
Pitiful use of web standards in terms of coding and HTML
Miserable quality images
Unstructured, etc,

There are probably more.

@yawa-ti-de
u are quite funny, i wonder how many sites you've put up for review, last time i checked it was none

so how can you come to such a false conclusion on naija sites
all u listed prevail on sites of those from other countries.

Tundewoods neva posted channels site for review and there are a lot of designers that will neva post es on forums
clients sites on forums

i learnt why when i listed profakinwandedental.com for review wt pple going as far as contactin d client
talk of hungry webmasters!

i wld also generalize by saying ur coy also produces bad sites

i've been busy designing some sites recently and will not post for review here as some also won't

so you can't judge thru web reviews eg naijagurus.com was not listed for review and its a wonderful site

by the way, web reviews are usually done by those looking to build reputation, who get jobs only
on forums nt real world.

let's look at the positive sides and how we can grow, nland gave so much to me in d days of my2cents and sbucareer

i hope we can go back to those days, [/size][/size][/size][/size]

@webguru,

Let's take a look at the first paragraph I put up:

ok guys/gals,

Let's be honest, this section of Nairaland has been boring for at least a month so I want to shake things up a bit.

Conclusion:
This was a post done purposely, to spice things up. It was boring up until that point. I shall not apologize.

Now, letz parse part of your post:

u are quite funny, i wonder how many sites you've put up for review, last time i checked it was none

and

by the way, web reviews are usually done by those looking to build reputation, who get jobs only
on forums nt real world.

based on the above, I guess I will never post a site for review. I have all the reputation I need

If you want to know more about me, just email me. Don't insult our intelligence by taking style to make me post sites I have done cos I won't. So again, if you want to know me, email me.

let's look at the positive sides and how we can grow, nland gave so much to me in d days of my2cents and sbucareer

May their (nairaland) souls rest in piece.

@webguru
Bet Ya-wa didnt put up the post to hit anyone.
Talking reviews, let's keep it coming, I personally believe there is no know-all and that knowledge can be gained from anyone. From suggestions and critics, we can always gain one thing or another.

@kehers

Here here.

Besides, what if I did that to knock on someone? Haven't any of us here heard of what a wise one said about critics? If not, let me regurgitate it here: We are to love what critics say about us cos they are the only ones true to us. As such we need to make them our friends.

The important part is not succumbing to such criticism but to use such to make us stronger.

Good & Bad responses ! But your responses need to be clear, as he want us to improve our sites, thats the reason he posted this. Even the best sites still reconstruct. Lets keep inproving, but note that what is interesting to u i might not like, so just keep improving.

Another characteristic of a "made in Nigeria" website

Free Webforms (with adverts in the newletters)
Free add-ons.

Inactive links is a common feature.

e.g  www.nairalandmagic.com/#

just going through silverbird's site and trying to view the news but:

http://rhythm937.com/#newstab

@mustay
So I guess what you are saying is that we should add, "blank pages" to the list?

@yawa, me i love green no be small, apart from the fact that it says nigeria.

as for the rest of your critix i just can't stop laughing, thats how we be, man

but i still think webguru is making a point, i will not post my works on nairaland for review.
some guys are as bad as calling up your clients

I can recollect a thread created by someone for site reviews and the first comment was, where did you get that template from as if we must always produce bad works

@webdezzi,

I personally have no problem with green but find it interesting that a majority of sites we develop have that color (or colors close to it) as though someone had passed a decree punishable by death that we must use green. I personally have used green as well so I am not to be spared in all this

As for those who are calling up clients to discredit the original developer, that is a shame, pure and simple, depending on what they said. If they say, "we can do better" or something to that effect, I can see with them on that but to say, "that site sucks and you shouldn't have used that guy at all" or words to that effect is another matter entirely.

Besides, which client having spent say 100K on a site, will immediately scrap it? I know I wouldn't. I would let the site stay as it is for at least a year. After all, someone else is more than likely to rubbish that one as well. I am not the united nations to be handing out money like handing out sweets to a little kid.

The aim of this post is part educational. Some of the points are bad and as a group we need to LEARN from them and be better developers.

yawa-ti-de:

@mustay
So I guess what you are saying is that we should add, "blank pages" to the list?

It annoys me when i need info on something; I click and find the # on the address. Why deceive users?

@mustay

Tell me about it man. I see it all the time.

#? well i will say, they missed something out while anchoring or javascripting, or better still, they have just 1 browser on ground

whichever way, a developer is supposed to test his codes, even when he is dead sure they will work,

u know! those codes could develop minds of their own at times.

So many things i can say

they use the # when they have nothing to "say". Why do you need to place a link you know is inactive? Do you just want to "fill up" your site with nothingness but space and images?

.

nitda's site.
Omo, to get contract for government agency na sweet thing o

Mustay:

Tell me about it man.  I personally know of govt jobs where that govt paid N40million and the result? CRAP, just like what you have attached above, if not worse.  Our problems? Cronyism, nepotism and greed.  What makes it worse is that the above site is owned by an IT agency.  I clicked "contacts" and got the "about us" page.  I clicked "enquiry" and got the "IT industry" page.  It's only after I clicked "ask questions" that I got a form which didnt even validate (front or back end).  Meanwhile, someone is somewhere in an airconditioned office saying to himself, "we too, we follow get website now. E dey for our complimentary card. see am now". Tufia!!!

All I want and pray for is that one single web job, hit am one time, N20million minimum (including maintenance as I hear many will not ask why your cost is so high if you say You will maintain for duration of the executive's term), clean mouth.  Then maybe who knows?  Word gets out, other state govts hear of me and I get to make more N20million jobs.  Either way, whether I hit am once, twice or 36 times (for each state), I still dey clean mouth.

Can I get an Amen? 

AMEN!!!










NOT!


It bleeds my heart

to see people gain over nonsense

Heck! i could do these sites for FREE

i would just need a diplomatic passport,

and salary for life!

Gamine:

Heck! i could do these sites for FREE

he he he

Omo, make person connect me with any government agency, as far as na design; i no get problem

Corruption dey rife for naija true true o! as far as them get web address, na "DONE JOB" be that

d guy sef na badddoskiiiiii. im` make sure say the time dey work for the site meanwhile, e don tey wey I'm update am

2006

mustay, that one better. I know of a govt website that hasn't been up since 2005 but get this: the webmaster is still being paid a salary because he is a govt worker. According to my contacts, he just sits there twiddling his thumbs

Guyz, ever since the creation of this world, it has been a constant but abnormal thing that good things like this does not come to people who have the knowledge of it.

what shall be done?

some do have the knowledge. i just refer to it as laziness

In my language we say, God doesn't give a bad animal horns because they are already bad. In other words, God didn't give a Lion horns but he gave a goat horns. In science, I guess you would say this is so because the ones with horns need to protect themselves from those without them.

Go figure!