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Re: [microsound] www.badorb.com + recommendations



Actually, I don't think this is a very well designed site at all. Strictly
speaking as far as "design" goes I'll say that yes, it does "look" good. But
the web is so much more than looks. The web is an interface for content and
I feel that the Badorb website although not the worst has done a poor job
representing itself in this medium.

The website is slow loading and cumbersome. Some links pop up new windows
for no apparent reason and contain no return link or close window buttons.
Clicking on "The Dark Side" for instance popups up a new window. Clicking on
the Badorb link in that window popups up another. This in turn has a link
which popups up yet another. Here I sit with 5 browser windows open just
from casually surfing around the site.

The music while beautiful is automatic and has no noticeable "mute" button.
This sucks, if I'm at work I certainly don't want any music all of a sudden
playing while I take a moment to check out this link. Quick! mute the music!
Doh! Close the Browser!

Additionally, the commerce page is fairly distracting with it's animated
background. It's also very CPU intensive. My current stats show me running
at 94% CPU usage - with the audio playing from the prior browser window, the
animation from the popup window, and the looping flash on every page of the
5 browsers I now have open. Also, the data entry for personal info such as
name and address is entered in a non-secure browser session. This raises
privacy concerns - a policy of which is nowhere to be found.

So I try and send a message but the communication link isn't very user
friendly - how do I enter text? How do I send it? Oh there, did it work?
Should I try again? Hmm.. maybe I messed up. Lemme try again.

This may sound nit-picky but I'm always rather frustrated when visiting the
badorb website and as a first-time user a year or so ago it took me a while
to figure out the navigation and how there are different links on the inner
and outer parts of the logo and how some pages link internally, some link
externally and some lead to the same place as others.

So yeah, I'd say if you're looking for good "design" head on over to badorb.
If you're looking for good designed "sites" however, head on over to
somewhere that's structured a little better - like I dunno,
http://www.edgeofmyseat.com/ or http://www.alistapart.com/ or
http://www.colorschemer.com/online/ or http://www.wolfsmithmedia.com or
http://www.the5k.org/


And um, since I'm just sitting here bitching I suppose I'll add my 2 pence
to the "recommendations of music" discussion. I'd have to say it's much more
helpful to state *why* you think an album is good - much the same as why
it's helpful to state a website is good (or bad for that matter). I feel
it's a better contribution to actually spend the time and include an opinion
when posting a one-liner to a discussion list. Stating for instance that
Biosphere's 'Substrata' is an "unexplainably good album" and leaving it at
that hardly does it justice. It also isn't very helpful. The message doesn't
even clarify what genre it is - other than the email subject which indicates
it's a contemporary/classic masterpiece. Same goes for "check out this link"
type messages and the ever helpful "wow" reply.


So yeah, my apologies for the harsh tone. My opinion just feels like flowing
this evening...



Shimone/Justes
http://www.staticbeats.com | Electronic Music
http://www.shimone.org | Digital Photography


----- Original Message -----
From: "Boban Ristevski" <sir_blacktooth@xxxxxxxxx>
To: "microsound" <microsound@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Tuesday, May 21, 2002 11:31 PM
Subject: [microsound] www.badorb.com


> if yr looking for good designed sites, check this:
>
> http://www.badorb.com/nobob/flash.html
>
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