What does it look like?
IDEO - When you first enter the site you are greeted by IDEO's design work but in a violet colour. The main menu icon have been given a bolder look i.e. font rather then imagery.
The links from the main page roughly have the same layout. This would be the font on the left hand side with a collage of work on the right allowing the users to view the work. All of the pages also have a different colour theme to each page, the colours being quite subtle.
Sony - The Sony website is a very basic and quite minimalistic.It looks user friendly and the button linking to the other pages supports this, being that each button is clearly labelled telling the users directly where they would be taken too.
When the user opens the main page the colours are quite plain and not very appealing to the viewers eye but when you go through the site the colours change making it more eye-catching. The layout itself is very simple showing an image of the product being sold, price, brief description just like an online shopping site would do.
Apple - Apple has stuck to the theme of how all the products they sell looks like, slick and minimal. I feel that this works for the site because this theme is how people interpret apple products.
Like the 'Sony' site the products have been set in shopping site layout that is easy to the users eye however this only occurs in the 'store' part of the site every other link from the main page is different. Some have inputted widgets or some have just used strong imagery to capture the audience attention.
NOW - NOW has a user friendly layout that is simple for everyone because many different people from different backgrounds use it.
The minimalistic look I feel has been put there as a blank canvas, like a starting point for the new year. All of the main features that the students need can be found on the main page, the buttons have been clearly labelled to make it that little bit easier. The colours have been kept to a minimum but being that the page is for educational purposes I feel that this was a conscious decision.
How easy is it to use?
IDEO - When you first enter the site I did not realise that the buttons are the link buttons until I hovered over them. When you do opened them though many more design links are opened giving you the opportunity to click in a number of different links. It looks very busy and there's alot of links brought up in one time. One thing that the designer did not think of was the page size. What I did not realise and as I think many others would not realise is that there is a menu bar at the bottom of the page, but you have to scroll down to find it. So links are fairly easy to find but it does depend on the size of the screen.
Sony - All of the navigation buttons are on the left hand side making it easy for the user to see which link will go. They have a search bar in the top right hand corner which is always useful because if the user wants a specific something then that's where they would search.
I noticed that there are three buttons that have been put in bold 'products, shop and support' from the way that they are laid out shows that they are important features of the site because they are bolder.
Apple - I feel that the apple web site has the easiest to navigate through. With the buttons clearly labelled at the top you can navigate through the site and easily find your way around the site.
All of the buttons have have been set out by the theme of the page i.e. the shop page the buttons are set down on the left hand side with some navigation, Mac page has a brief scroll menu with images etc all very user friendly.
NOW - NOW being a new site I'm still finding quite difficult to use. All of the things I need I can find without a problems because they have been clearly labelled and place in a certain area of the site i.e. timetable/email positioned left hand corner. However the more I look around the site the more I find and, whats better is that the they have provided an explanation for each page so the user knows what its about, I feel that this was a conscious idea because being a new site people are still learning what the site is about.
How relevant is the content of the site?
Now when ever we are asked this question 'How relevant is the content of the site?' I wonder why do they ask us this? because surely after analysing already we would have quoted if the content was completely irrelevant to the site.
IDEO is a design company so as you would expect they have many different contents that show their design work, this is relevant to the site.
Sony and Apple I feel have more along the same content within there sites. The main aim for both sites is to sell their products and so all of the content that I have seen in this site is all relevant to this subject.
And finally NOW, this is a different site completely and needs certain pieces of content to be successful and to help students. When it first launched I was not impressed with it at all. Everything went wrong but I suppose its because its new so there's going to be glitches but now its all up and running I taking a liking to it.
How clearly is the content organised?
IDEO - Like I said before the main page on IDEO is very jumbled and in your face so when the question comes to is it organised? I would say the main page isn't, your immediately brought to a page packed with different designs and even when you click on a link the user is still greeted with a number of different links. But once you get onto the links I would say that the content is organised in a professional manner with each subject given a separate link , each news feed stated etc the content has been clearly organised in a manner the users can find the information needed.
Sony - Now I feel that Sony has organised the content in a manner that an online shopping site should be, with each product placed in its certain area, the links under each product linked directly to its description its all very easy to navigate through, because its organised. Like the IDEO page I feel that the first page is still very jumbled and there's alot of information to take in.
Apple - Now I feel Apple is the most successful out of all the sites. All of the content has been organised clearly and in a way the users can find what they want. It seems that the content has been organised in a manner that the imagery is the main point of each page, I feel that this was a good idea because having a clear image on what is on that certain page provides the user with a clearer idea on what they're looking at. The content has been given roughly the same layout throughout the site, by doing this gets the user familiar with the site letting them find what they need quicker.
NOW - Now I still feel that the content in the NOW site could be organised in a more user friendly way. I still find it hard to find what I'm looking for. Even though the site has provided instructions on what to do you still have to find the page before the help is provided. Out of all of the sites I would say that this is the one that is the least organised but it is the newest site so this could potentially change.
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