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First impressions

After having learned about the different ways in which people access the web, visit a website of your choice and try to apply this new knowledge to it.

When evaluating a site, consider different disabilities, users of assistive technology, and different levels of expertise.

Some questions you might ask :

  • Is entry into the site straight-forward or are plug-ins needed? Can intro pages be by-passed?
  • Does the page load in an acceptable length of time?
  • Does the page contain too may graphics, slowing the download?
  • Is the page well organised or overly cluttered?
  • Does it look user-friendly or overwhelming?
  • Will it be easy to find what you are looking for?
  • Are there too many distracting elements on the page?
  • Are the font sizes too small? Can they be adjusted?
  • Do foreground and background colours contrast sufficiently with each other? Is the text readable?
  • Can links be identified by their colour? Are they underlined?
  • Are images used to convey information? Are there other ways to get to this information?
  • Is the content comprehensible? Is jargon explained?
  • If the page is fairly complex or contains a large amount of graphics and scripts, is there a alternative text-only version?
  • Can the website be navigated without a mouse?

Have a look at some case studies.

Evaluation

[ Introduction ]
[ First impressions ]
[ Keyboard access ]
[ Different browsers ]
[ User control over presentation ]
[ Validation of code ]
[ Case studies ]

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