Re: Comapny Website

by simone(at)genesisnetwork.net (Demitrius)

 Date:  Sun, 22 Feb 1998 13:58:47 -0800
 To:  "Wes Funderberg" <wes(at)scescape.net>,
"HWG" <hwg-critique(at)hwg.org>
  todo: View Thread, Original
Hi Wes,

Site critiqued: http://www.aercomtec
Viewed with a P133, 28.8, 640x480, MSIE 4.0

First Impression: your left side navigation does not need to scroll at my
screen res if you made the fonts a point size smaller. You would achieve a
much cleaner look, sans the scroll bar. Also, the background threw me for a
moment, then I realized what I was looking at. Why not put the image right
side up?

Your title graphic, Beyond_AerComTec.jpg, is way too big at 48.5k. I would
chop it up into 2 sections, top and bottom. The top 1/5 (the section with
the red arches and the logo) I would make a transparent GIF. The bottom
section I would make a JPEG and compress it as much as possible.

The other option is to use a program called JPEG Optimizer. It allows you to
select a section of your image to compress *less* than the surrounding area.
So, in other words, say you compressed the entire image 40%, you could then
drag a box around the arches and logo and reduce its compression back so it
doesn't fall apart.
http://www.xat.com/  Very cool.

BTY, I *love* that twinkling star! Nice detail. However, at 10k it could
stand to go on a diet too. Use Ulead's Smart Saver http://www.ulead.com/ to
do this.

What is AerComTec anyway? I have no idea at first glance. IMO, the purpose
of a website should be obvious in the first section. How about a small
paragraph stating what the company does?

You have your tables set at WIDTH="630". Why? That makes it very laborious
to read your pages. I'd use WIDTH="100%" instead. That way nobody has to
scroll horizontally to read. Be kind to your visitors!

I like your graphics. Very nice.

On the other hand, all of them are too heavy. Maybe even in the wrong
format. For example; your products.jpg image weighs in at 20k. I would step
up the compression or if that messes up the text too much, save it as a GIF
with a small optimized color palette. This will accomplish 2 things; you
will have a smaller file size and you will be assured that the image will
render well in 256 color displays (of which there are *many* out there).

Granted, the image will not be a sharp as it is now, but creating a
professional website means you must know when and what to compromise.

BTY, you'll likely catch heck for the black background, but I like it.

Your feedback page is laid out well, but there are no input requirements.
This Point Is *Critical*!!  Without a means to make sure the visitor fills
out the form completely, the company will get incomplete leads. I should
know, it's happened to me and my clients before. IMO, put JavaScript
validations or a CGI validation script to ensure that the prospect fills in
the basic contact info completely. I prefer JavaScript (not to be confused
with Java). It's fast and works on the majority of browsers visiting your
website.

Your form confirmation page - what'supwiththat? Make it look like the rest
of the site. Consistency is important.

<Ahem!> Awards? On a client's site? IMO, that's amateurish. </Ahem!>

Lastly, I would include full contact info on each and every page. Why?
Because what if a person visits your website, prints out a page, and 2 days
later forgets how s/he got to your site? Lost prospect. Lost revenue. The
website failed to do its job.

IMO, you've done a good job so far. With a little tweaking, it'll be better.

Regards,
Demitrius >I<
------------------------------------------------A. Demitrius Lopez
       W  E  B  S  I  T  E     D  E  V  E  L  O  P  E  R
             http://members.aol.com/mrdemitri/
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