I liked the third one the best however, this one and the second one both
have night scenes of MAC. They seem to dark. We want people to see the wonderful campus in
the daylight.
Although the McMaster at night photographs are attractive, I just don't
want to look at nighttime every time I log on. I can do without a picture of a student as well. I
do like the maroon background of the bottom one though.
1. Why should any of the pages have a night photo of the campus? It may
be fine from an artistic/aesthetic point of view, but hardly conveys an image of Mac as
a bright, happening sort of place, where people meet and study throughout
the day.
There isn't enough of a "picture. I do like the buttons though! We
have so many different walkways and hiding spots.
Page 1, I don't like the odd geometrical thing you have happening there.
The choice in colour and building is great, however.
Page 2 is too dark and I definitely don't like the yellow. Not enough
buttons.
Page 3 is okay, I guess. I don't like the girl though - scruffy looking
girl has to go!!! I do really like the colouring you've used though and I
like the buttons.
KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK FOLKS!!! I KNOW YOU'LL DESIGN SOMETHING TO MAKE
MAC PROUD!!!!
2 and 3 are too dark; the menu bars on 2 are clunky and unattractive.
And what's wrong with the current home page?
The 2nd and 3rd ones are too dark; I found them difficult to read. I
like the curved lines of the first one (although I can't say why). I don't really like the colour
combinations in the 2nd and 3rd ones either, especially the yellow in the
2nd and red/burgundy in the 3rd.
Don't like the darkness of the pictures used in Homepages 2 and 3. The
homepage should be brighter, similar to Hompage 1. Also, don't like the use of latin in
Homepage 1 without an English translation. If you want to use it, tell us
what it means!
Is the photo in the 3rd option a Mac photo? I recognize it as one that
appeared in first drafts of the Student Affairs "Contact 2000: Your Guide to Mac" and am
wondering if it is one of the generic file shots that we rejected I don't
like the use of a night-time shot in the second option; it looks like
cheesy tourist promotion. This leaves the 1st option, while not good, as
the most preferable of the bunch. What I don't like is that it looks like
the dialog box screen for the CD player in some earlier versions of
Windows.
Actually, the current home page seems better than any of the three new
options
My preference is for the top design because of the white space. I find
the bottom two too dark although the idea of a night shot is unusual and might work for one of
the button designs behind design one.
I prefer option #1 as it is the most visual striking. Very clean, easy
to read and the visuals project a sense of the University's character and strength.
Option #2 does not appeal to me at all. It makes McMaster look like a
Fire Station. The colours and lighting project an image of distress or
emergency.
Option #3 is also unappealing visually. Looks more like a brochure for
student recruitment rather than an invitation to explore McMaster
University
My personal preference is the lighter shots of campus... I don't like
Homepage #2 it is too dark. Homepage #3 would be OK if it could be lightened. I find the dark pages
too hard to read... maybe just my age :-) yikes
The second sample page is dreadfully dark, especially the pic. The first
choice is a refreshing change from the current home page.
Sample two is very dark, and it gives the impression something is on
fire just behind the building.
Sample three is also very dark but is improved by the addition of a
person to the picture.
Sample one is my favourite. However, in today's world, how many people
can read and understand the Latin. Perhaps, you can provide the English
translation?
I was pleased to see that all three samples passed the "Bobby"
test which measures accessibility for persons with disabilities.
#3 too dark; #1 has nice shot of university but seems cluttered
whichever one wins I hope it loads faster than the current home page
The second and third ones are too dark. Also what is most important is
the choice of menu which I cannot read on these samples. As a McMaster faculty I find that
navigating the webpages is very difficult
All three are not very good. Too much dark color and Text do not show
clearly and its font size is small.
Too much empty background in all three (not so bad with first one - it's
white). Second & third seem dark & dour (although facial expression brightens the last
one). I'd rate them #3, #1 and then #2 but don't prefer any of them to our
current page.
I preferred the 3rd one out of the three. I find it is overall too dark.
The colours should be lightened up a bit. Either the background where the University Hall is
or the page background colour.
While they are all quite good, I believe the first one is the best of
the three. The two pages with the night shots of University Hall are different but have a bit of an
'eerie' feel to them. Looks a bit like a haunted house.
the first one is good... but I really like the one we have right now.
the other two are too dark
Why do you need to say "Click here for Daily News"? For all
the other links you presume that the user will also click. Why extra
instruction here? Better to use a 'catchy' icon to indicate the Daily News
link (e.g. Town Crier or Newspaper image).
Daytime photos seem a bit livelier; the ivy covered buildings connote a
nice "University" feel, while the people photos emphasize that
we are 'student friendly'.
I like page #3 best, for functionality and form, but with changes in the
daily news link selection, and perhaps a change to daytime only photos.
I found the second two pages too dark. I don't think a nighttime shot,
however picturesque, is appropriate for a university homepage. Could you
lighten up the burgandy on the top one? There seems to be some kind of
background image there, but it's hard to see what it is.
I do like the clarity of the link options in the second page. Could they
be brought up a little in the first one?
The second page design appears to dark, not welcoming.
The first is modern with a view to the future.
The third is time limited by styles.
Two night pages are way too dark and the first page is barely different
from the original - personally, I wouldn't even change it if these were my only choices.
# 2 and 3 are too dark.
I like "lighter" as opposed to "darker" (more dense)
pages. Hence, I prefer #1. However, I like
the gold colour in #2, and #1 would get a higher rating from me if the "cylindrical
shape" was less irregular.
The first page has a good colour scheme (not too dark like the second
and third choices) but I think the layout of the third is nicer. The first page reminds me a Sony
Walkman (I'm not sure if that's good or bad...) As for access speed, as
long as you don't have lots of animated gifs or mpegs (which doesn't seem
to be a problem here) then it doesn't really matter, even at 14400bps.
Just as an aside, I've noticed that the longest part of loading the
current web page is waiting for Netscape to load the Java interpreter (I
actually start at the current news page). All in all though, I think all
the pages are well done :-
The layout of #1 is good. My comments/suggestions are:
An English translation of the university motto is necessary.
Also, The University Hall photo is over-used. A spring or summer shot of
the front view of Burke Sciences Building showing the gardens would be my
choice. #2 and #3 are much too dark and give me an eerie feeling - HAUNTED
HOUSE?!
first one best represents McMaster- pleasant to look at! the second one
is to dark, too depressing, makes UH look intimidating! third one is just a combination of the first
two.
the bottom two are kind of ugly. The third is too dark, and the middle
one is just plain ugly. The top one is simple and bright.
All loaded at about the same rate, the second and last samples were too
dark.
But what's the big deal with the same building in the background! The
Arch is great for wedding pictures but is losing appeal for a Modern
University that changes tomorrow today. What about a carousel to flash
each campus building depending when you access the page.
Similar to the Research carousel. And Please make the home page "The
Home Page" the daily news should be a link on the Home Page.
The speed of access was average. However, I find the second and third
choice are just too dark, and uninviting. The first one is bright and easy to look at.
Options 2 and 3 are far to 'dark' in their appearance. To me, the
homepage should appear welcoming and warm...especially to prospective students and donors!<
The evening shot is quite interesting - a different perspective of a
popular McMaster image. Winter and/or evening photos are rarely seen in our publications or on
our websites. The 'selection bars' are clearly identified and easier to
read than in Option 1 or 3. I would however reduce the type size of
'Welcome to McMaster' at the top of the photo, (as in Option 1 or 3), so
it's not so busy looking.
The darkness of the second one is something new and different which
might be why I like it (ie. the first one is too similar to the one we have - change is good I
think). Plus University Hall looks great lit up the way it is in that
picture at night. I'm not a fan of the third one because, I don't know, I
just don't like having a person (and who is that person, anyways) on the
page.
I really liked the incorporation of the night photography
Love the night photo!
Very colorful and attractive entrance sites, but the relative simplicity
and clarity of the right hand choices on the middle one makes it my favourite.
Having the night shot of university hall [my fav mac building] is
excellent. it is always a day shot, so this is quite different! This page is also simply laid out, but
nice at the same time. One thing that i think is really great about the #1
sample, is the latin below the school crest! that's great. Thanks for letting us have a say!
Comments on Colour
#1 was close, but just didn't look right. #2 didn't contain any maroon,
too much gold which it makes it look like one of McMaster's colours. #3 was the best, only the
typeface for the "Click here for Daily News" should be changed
(though it may be a marquee, can't tell from there)
On my computer, I found the burgundy background almost black. Perhaps a
translation of the latin would be nice to have.
#1 my favourite of the three -- to me, its look is cleaner than 2 &
3, and appears more "current" (esp. with the use of curves, which is so prevalent in design today (though
not one of my favourite trends!)). I find the gold in 2 be a tad vibrant,
and somewhat off-putting. Further, the combination of fonts/background/colour seems a bit stodgy. #3 isn't bad if the desire
is a more traditional look than #1. I prefer the fonts/colours/layout to
that of #2 however, I'm not keen on the graphics. All this being said,
even though my personal homepage is set to "Dailynews," I
actually rather like the current Mac homepage!
I really like the spacing of the different links on the first web page,
but like the darker colours on the third web page design. The second seems to have many colours that do not
represent our school (Maroon and Grey)
I am going to be using dial-up when I am back at school, in my place, so
I pray the academic, CIS and muss sections are reasonably quick on low bandwith connections. Will you
folks be looking at the awful mugsi frames pages- those really need an
update... Oh, and at least for me, the link didn't include the
www.mcmaster.ca, so you might want to talk to the daily news updaters...
Although I think that homepage 1 has the cleanest interface, I like the
full colour nightime shot of convocation hall in page 2(daytime photos of
the pyramid spire things on the top corners gets kind of boring)... The "click
here for the daily news" thing with the electronic board look would
irritate me if saw that on a regular basis...
The third home page may look better if there was more pale yellow. Pale
yellow is a nice contrast to the maroon background. And it may be better looking if the entire centre
block, or table was bigger. In the second one, don't like the gold colour in it. Perhaps more
university colours will make it look a lot better. The first one looks
really good.
The first one reminds me of a TV screen and the lines are too "rounded"
for me however, I do like the colour scheme in this one the best.
The second one is also o.k. however I'm not keen on the gold colouring
nor all the grey surrounding it. The third one is also alright but far too much burgundy surrounding the
main features and the photo colouring does not do our beautiful campus
justice.
The lettering in #'s 2 and 3 at "Click here for Daily News" is
not pleasant to the eye at all, in my opinion.
I think a combination of the three may produce a lovely final product.
Thanks for the opportunity to comment. Great ideas overall!
HP1: good incremental change, higher comfort level, good info:noise
ratio
HP2: change too radical, lousy info:noise ratio
HP3: too noisy, with poor info:noise ratio
Anyone checked if these pages are red/green colour-blindness safe?
I like the first page setup, etc. But prefer the colors in second page.
Perhaps some gold or yellow in page one (outline?) would enhance it a
bit.
I would like to see a webpage that is consistent with McMaster's
official colours. Also, I'm not sure if this will be the case, but I would discourage any use of Flash
technology, as many students may not have the capabilities to access the
page. Speed and accuracy should be employed as opposed to glitz and
glamour. Nonetheless, I'm sure it will look great!
It is tricky to see what the page will really be like with a screen
capture. This does not allow for the viewing of java apps on the page. It also
does not give any indication of how big the graphics are or how long it
takes to load. It would be best to have preview versions of the actual
HTML versions, rather than just screen captures. Homepages 2 and 3 appear
to be too dark in colour and makes the navigation more difficult. Homepage
1 appears similar to the current page and is brighter, easier to read.
#1 - Background colours appear as black (not maroon), white and grey.
Curves, white space do not enhance content.
#2 - My favourite: straight lines facilitate selection. Photo is too
dark.
#3 - Too dark. White on black is more difficult to read than black on
white
I picked the first one because it is the one that fills the screen the
most and it looked the nicest. I am not the least bit fond of the colours in the second one at all. That
yellow or whatever it is, is just wrong and very ugly The last one is okay
but it's just too small. Why is the maroon border so thick? Mind you I
rather like the colours in the last one I'm just objecting to the size. If
it were a shade bigger, I might well have chosen it instead.
On my computer, I found the burgundy background almost black. Perhaps a
translation of the latin would be nice to have.
Comments on Latin text in #1
It'd be good to have a translation of the Latin somewhere for homepage
#1.
I voted for homepage #2 as my favourite: the nighttime view is different
and appealing. Homepage #3 is simply okay.
the picture is good on the first one, but forget the latin
They are all good. If you use the first one, take away all that Latin
please!
I like #1 but think that you should provide a translation for the motto.
I like the photo being separate from the text links (rather than underneath), which makes the links
stand out.
#3 is my least favourite because the two unrelated photos bother me, and
the links are less prominent on the strong coloured photo background.
I don't like the long phrase in latin next to the graphic in #1. I like
the daily news headlines and lead story that the current page has.
No 1 has a Latin text that is incomprehensible. The overall frame could be improved.
Otherwise it is fine.
I like number 1, but the latin wording is nonsense, and out of place
anyway. do not like the way that all of the proposed pages have the routing to
the Presidents Office on top of the list; put it at the bottom! Only
number 1 has click place for the "daily news"; this should be on
all three. Number 1 would be very good if the latin were changed. I prefer
the picture in 2 to that in 3 all seem to be running slow
the latin should be explained and i am not sure it adds anything to the
visual i do not like the idea of a night shot representing campus - the
majority of students time is spent here in the daylight i do not like the idea of one type of student representing all of macs
students
Page #1: Very traditional, not much point in changing it. What's with
the Latin? The items are hard to read.
Page #2: Items are easier to read and it is definitely a new look on an
old tradition. However, it seems a bit dark and scary.
Page #3: Too much maroon!! Once again, dark, scary, and very hard to
read.
#1 is good but that Latin (I presume) isn't really necessary. I assume
is the school motto or something, but none of the students will care about it...it is kind of meaningless
if they don't understand what it means. If it needs to be there, I suggest
making it not as prominent.
#2: Besides the picture, this one just isn't nice to look at. The yellow
menu on the right is kind of gaudy. The whole thing seems to segmented in
that there is a rectangle for this and a rectangle for that so it doesn't
seem to flow together.
#3: This one is nice but it is too small...it doesn't fill the screen
enough (I'm using 800x600) and is also too segmented.
Latin is a little pretentious. I have never seen it in any McMaster
literature before, so this seems to give it a pride of place it doesn't
normally enjoy. Secondly, the colour scheme in #1 is a little sterile. Could you
possibly incorporate some of the gold in #2 (the colour scheme is the best
part of #2) into #1?
I find having the latin quotation on homepage#1 pretentious.
Probably very few incoming students will be able to translate latin (?)
these days. But for this, the first selection would be the best. The lighting of the building gives it a
somewhat eerie appearance in the other two, especially number 2.
For the 1st one, I dont like all the writing in a different language.
Its intimidating to people who dont understand it. and on the other two i dont like the font and space used
for 'click here for the daily news' -- on the third one it just detracts
from the page completely .... just make a nice little applet saying
'mcmaster daily news' or something, more subtle like it is on the first
one. and i think the third one doesnt take up enough of the page.
Comments on Student's Picture on #3
I like the third one - will the photo of the student rotate with other
images I like that it highlights the people aspect of McMaster rather than the brick and mortar of the
campus...
I like the third one with the student but didn't think the background
was attractive and it seemed busy
I like Homepage #3 but I think it's too dark. I like the idea of a photo
of a student and really like the one you chose.
I think the thing I don't like about # 2 is that it's too dark as well.
I like the layout down the right side but the left side puts me off.
Design #1 is clean and bright, but too traditional for my tastes. #2 is
OK but the coloring is dark. The third design is interesting because of the focus on the student, not
just a building. Plus the maroon backdrop adds a "regal" look.
Only neg. comments are that the photo of the student could be more
dynamic (there's a great shot around of students walking through the
University Hall archway, with some guy on roller blades -- very hip!) and
the link to the Daily News page could be more prominent. Overall, all
three are very good designs and any one would serve Mac well -- good job!
Homepage #1 looks too gimmicky.
Homepage #2 reminds me of Hallowe'en.
Homepage #3 is friendly--actually has a student represented--isn't that
what we're all about? The right-hand side could be with being a bit lighter in tone.
Homepage #3, notwithstanding the comment above, is attractive by
virtue of having a photo of a person. Viewers, I am convinced, connect
visually with pictures of "people like them." Incidentally, at
least via Netscape on a 15" screen, 800 X 600 pixels, etc., the photo
of the young woman is fuzzy: graphics need to be sharper.
Although I like the first one best I'm not sure about the Latin verse??
I hope you're not going to change the DailyNews page which I find very clear and concise.
No 3 is OK - I think perhaps you should include pics of students after
all they are probably the ones checking us out! This one is rather unsharp
(not just the background) It really does need to be attractive to
prospective students as well as presenting a professional and up-to-date
image.
Hi
Thanks for the opportunity to provide input - it's good for community
morale if nothing else. All three are very informative and easy to use. I like the building
picture in the first one, and I like having the student's picture from the
third page. Two and three are too square! I like the rounded lines of the
first much better.
I don't find the photo of University Hall used in two of the pages very
flattering for the building, which is why I chose them last. I also much prefer the maroon colouring rather
than yellow. I think the rounded edges of the first option look smart as
well, which is why I think that one is the best pick out of all three.
#3 is best because, after all, what are we about? - students, and it has
our signature building as well. The design hangs together very well (but fix the typeface on "click
here for the daily news.") It is very well balanced with a appealing
combination of colours and typefaces.
#1 ditch the Latin, it has a place in university life, but this is not
it. Here it's just pretentious. The ivy covered hall picture is getting a
little tired as well. The basic design with its rounded corners is
interesting but does not match the impact of #3.
#2 sorry, the gray bars and white dots just do not attract, and why is
the logo in the lower right corner? The menu on the top line should be on
the bottom, that the word "disclaimer" isn't the most prominent
on the page. There are a couple of other criticisms but suffice it to say,
not a very appealing design
I like the design/layout of the home page#1, but not the picture
The picture of home page #2 is great, but I am not fond of the layout
Home page #3 I do not like having a person's picture on the home page
nor do I like the layout.
Thanks for asking my opinion, Good luck!
Access via the campus systems has been great.
Regarding the 3rd sample, I didn't know that Chelsea Clinton attended
McMaster!
I don't think one single student should be the focus of a university's
home page. More students, actually doing something like research would be better
I really don't like option #3; I don't think there should be a student
on the homepage, especially not one who's dressed so trendily it hurts.
Option #2 is okay, but University Hall looks like it's either on fire or
haunted. Honestly, this one's kind of creepy.
Option #1 is the best, but I do have a couple of qualms. First of all, I
don't believe having one girl as the focus of the home page is a good
idea. she does not represent the students of mac very well (i.e there are
a lot of different nationalities.) the pages with university hall is
a better representation of mac.
Comments About Fonts
I think that you should pay some attention to typography. I can't tell
if there are a bunch of different fonts used in the first example but the use of italicised with
non-italicised fonts gives a real mish-mash appearance. Try to get some
continuity. Furthermore... if you are going to use those grey lines which
are extended from the main frame then you should not use the shadow effect
of the main frame. It spoils the flat, graphic effect. Finally... you
could use another line extended into the top, left corner to balance the
composition.
The second option is terrible.
The third option is also so-so- Again with the typography (pay
attention)- and perhaps you can use the picture of the school in this
example- (rather than the girl). I think that we have a beautiful campus
which can be a real selling point for the school- use it!
All the images are good - I didn't really like the font/style used for
the different locations that you can go to (i.e. library) in the middle
design
Homepage #1 has a great daytime photo, but the layout is reminiscent
of a 1950's television screen: somehow I find it unconvincing.
Homepage #2: the font for "Libraries" is a point or two
smaller (looks odd and the "Disclaimer" button is very prominent
(are we worried about something?)
Here's my vote: How about combining the photo and white surround of #1
(light bright, letters stand out clearly) with the "people picture"
concept of #3, and retaining the concept of letters over graphics, which
is much more elegant than the separate information bars on the right hand
side of #2.
Of course, that's probably not what you're looking for, having poured
thousands of hours into the designs already. But you asked...
Incidentally, I frequently log on to University home pages, and
frequently find it difficult to access the information I need. Has anyone
surveyed your prime users, to discover what they want to know first when
they log on? My guess is 1) contact numbers (an easily-accessible snail
mail address is still essential!); 2) programme and course information; 3) fees and financial
aid; sports and recreation opportunities. Anyway, it's worth a survey.
Miscellaneous Comments
Try to make it easier/faster to load.
Not impressed with any of them! First one is OK (the lesser of three
evils), but...I think Mac can do better. New MSU site is pretty cool - perhaps you should do something
along those lines!
#1: Looks neat and uncluttered. Although a bit conservative, it's the "first
impression", therefore should be kept that way.
#2: No other comments
#3:The picture on the left is nice and fun, could be used in a different
area of the web site; the picture on the right is too dark and "busy".
none of these pages really blew me away.....other than graphically, how
are they different than what we have??? i mean really only the pictures have changed and so has the text
type but all the links are still in simple list format..........good luck
making them better......i won't tell you how cause that would be doing
your jobs for you
Page #3 gives clear concise access to all the link options. I like page #3's use of link option text (bulleted list) floating over a
background picture, rather than using a plain colour background. Works OK
as long as the text vs picture is high contrast.
If possible, you can choose some abstract pix on webpage just as other
famous technical school, MIT CMU.
#1 has a beautiful shot of UH but the "modernistic" interface
clashes badly with the traditional stone building.
#2 The orange motif is a bit of an eyesore, and the bulleting used isn't
as nice as on the other two. The shading on the photo is eerie--very
interesting, but I wouldn't call it appealing to students you want to
attract.
#3 is the easiest to read of the bunch--the lettering is very clear
against the darker background. I don't like the picture of the generic
student, though. It doesn't do anything for the intro.
I hate to say it, because it's a pain to program, but I think a
combination of the three would be best (mostly the first and the last).
All three take a longer time to load than the current page.
I think the current home page is superior to any of the three which are
being proposed.
If you're using a large graphic on the main page, you might consider
developing for worst-case-scenarios --- i.e. 640x480 pixel screen area
sometimes mugsi or the career sites are down and for extended periods of
time
If you could incorporate the modern, intriguing spirit of the 3rd HP,
into the completeness of the 1st one, it would be great!! The third HP is too compact in the middle, and
something is kind of missing on the sides Thank you.
THE ONE THING I THINK SHOULD BE ON EVERY UNIVERSITY HOME PAGE IS THE
MAILING ADDRESS AND A CENTRAL PHONE NUMBER. THE NUMBER OF TIMES I NEED
THIS INFORMATION AT OTHER UNIVERSITIES AND HAVE TO GO HUNTING ALL OVER
FOR IT YOU WOULD NOT BELIEVE.
I hope not only the homepage will be updated, but also all departments
webpages are updated and consistent with the above homepage.
It would be nice to access email from the main page when connecting from
outside
The first page is great. The image bubbles out of the screen and reminds
me of a lens. It creates a feel of 'looking into Mac'. The design of the second one is very good also.
Except the colors: the orange, black and red gave it an immediate
'halloween' feel. The third one is designed well, too. However, it's a bit cluttered. All
the links are too close together...don't jump out too easily (as they do
in the first one).
I don't think the first picture shows enough of the building or the
campus. It's a nice picture but it doesn't do our campus justice.
The second picture is very nice, but very dark. I think it should be lit
up a bit. And the third picture is covered by the writing - that picture
shouldn't be hidden.
The first option has a nice, traditional look...it reflects McMaster
University well. It is a good evolution of the current page. The other two options are trying too hard to be
trendy or different.
If #3 is chosen, I hope it will not always be a young female student,
but a changing set (e.g., young male, older female, older male, female of colour, male who uses
wheelchair).
#1-clean and bright but reduced the font size and impact of greek school
motto (not that important)
-also have the photo of university hall change to other photos on
mouseover of the main buttons
#2-to dark for a university homepage and too many boxes
#3-close 2nd, photos are good choices
-the links are the most easily noticed of the three, on the other
homepages it is hard to tell which words are actually links
Visually I preferred #1 - it's very clean looking, even though it's
slower then my second choice (#3) to load up.
Wonderful job overall!
I think having the "A-Z" button very important to continue to
have on the first page.
Homepage 3 kicks ass....good job boys and girls
I hope that the new WEB page will not have Java applets at the beginning
as this makes it really really slow as can be seen from the current home page which is very slow
loading compared for example with that of Univ. of Waterloo or Uof
Toronto. Also big images seems to slow the first appearance so much, avoiding it
as much as possible would help.
Also, some departmental sites are not properly maintained or organized
as it should be. So, the CIS frequent supervision may help in this.
speed: #3 was slightly faster than the others, but #1 and #2 downloaded
at a acceptable speed.
aesthetics: I much prefer the oval-based look that #1 uses over the
rectangular look of #2 and #3. The evening shots of U. Hall are an
interesting idea, but have the potential to make the page too dark.
Overall: #1 has the added benefit of being new, but slightly reminiscent
of last year's design. There is a sense of continuity, and a natural
progression of the site.
For a 56.6k dial up, the mac pages loads very well and fast.
The first homepage looks amazing, rounded designs are very in with newer
site mac is real cutting edge. but the darker picture of the archway looks amazing props to the
photographer
Number One has a superior look and feel to it.
Presidents Office? Please use an apostrophe - President's Office
The new webpage interfaces are terrific...
I think that "Homepage # 1" is the best option as it gives
that non-rectagular look and feel to the viewer...
As well, try to incorporate Flash animations and JavaScript Mouse-Over
effect to make the page look more dynamic and lively...Try not to use Java
(please)...
I'd like the 2nd one for a specific night classes home page!
give us some real input.
Rather than graphics, how about asking for comment on what goes on the
menus, whether they are pull down, etc. etc.
#1 IS THE BEST OF THE LOT - EXCEPT THAT THE LATIN RUINS IT. MOST PEOPLE
WILL JUST THINK IT'S PRETENTIOUS, IF THEY KNOW WHAT IT IS AT ALL. IF IT'S
LEFT ON THE PAGE, IT NEEDS TO BE MORE APPEALING TO THE EYE. THE TYPEFACE IS
TOO LARGE - IT "TAKES OVER"
# 2 AND # 3 BOTH SUFFER FROM MUDDINESS - PUTTING TYPE OVER PICTURES DOES
IT.
THE NIGHT SHOT USED FOR # 2 ISN'T REALLY EFFECTIVE
BOTH SHOTS USED FOR # 3 GET A NEGATIVE VOTE FROM ME.
MCMASTER'S IMAGE ISN'T WELL SERVED BY A FEMALE IN A WATCH CAP.
(SHOULD THE HOME PAGE HAVE HUMANS AT ALL? MY OPINION IS NO.
ALSO THE SHOT ON THE RIGHT COULD BE DRACULA'S CASTLE OR ANYTHING.
1&3 are fairly modern, #2 just looks too out-of-date. Not what we
want in a school known for its innovation.
The first page displays the Mac colours which is important. It is simple
and looks easy to navigate from the home page. It is classy. The 2nd one is dark and way too orange. The
third one looks like an ad for a telephone company.
The first one is definitely the winner because it reflects the
university best As a special needs student I appreciate LARGE/clear print
I like #1 but the font used for the bottom of the page is hard to read
This page didn't take to long to load. Rather impressed because I had a
56K modem going.
# 1 is the best because of its user friendly console design.
improvements: the latin phrase should disappear to show its english
translation ( using JAVA )
the existing picture of university hall should be replaced with the
picture used in pages # 2,3.
I suggest keeping the graphics low. The faster the page loads the
better. The page with the fastest load time and clearly marked links to major areas of site make it better for
the less web savvy. Also enabling javascript links in a directory tree
like structure so that visitors to the page won't have to visit another
area of the site which can decrease the bandwidth needed. Of course those
links can't expand to all areas of the site but it can help visitors get
to the major areas and at the same time keeping traffic low cause they
won't have to load new pages for new links. Also having the same type of
layout in other areas of the site will make navigation easier
Since I wasn't given the ability to view the pages being rendered in my
own browser it is hard to say how good the speed was. Showing an image (.jpg) simply isn't sufficient
in a speed test.
have some kind of registration access on the web
How about changing the style of "McMaster University" logo on
the H-page? Check out the Economics page, sort of like the one on the eco. page.
Otherwise they're quite good!
The first one looks too much like a big "D" - might do for
Dalhousie, but not us :-). I'm new to McMaster. Great way to seek input for the website.
The first page is the best of the three - it looks the most
profressional and is fit for a university.
However, it could use some changes:
-the white background is a bit too dull (but the maroon background of
the 3rd page is too dark, too)
-there should be a link to the "McMaster Students Union" on
the front page (since its a different website that is very useful to
students - most other university put a link to their students unions on
the front page)
-there should be a link to the new muss web interface to check e-mail
The page with the student might be quite good, except for the fact that
the person looks a lot like one of the Clinton's!, which you don't want, I'm sure, and it is too
'stereotypical' in it's representation of a student - you might want to
portray students who vary in age, race, gender, etc.. Also, the colour on the right hand side of the page seems inappropriate and not
appealing.
Number 1 is traditional but the layout is quite interesting and
intelligent.
Number 2 presents a scene that is very difficult to interpret - I can't
tell if it is winter, or if the streets are wet with rain, or......
I prefer the current one. I like the one-line news headings to be on the
front page. I would prefer a day-light photograph--I don't like either of the
night light photos.
My choice would be homepage #2, but with a daytime picture. (How about the
picture from #1 instead.)
My compliments to whoever decided that those accessing the McMaster
Website should first go to a home page, rather than being forcibly led to
the daily news.
Finding information on the pages beyond the homepage can be difficult.
If you change the homepage, make sure to spend time changing the rest of the site, a much as
possible, to make it consistant with the style of the homepage.
Also, too many Java applets = bad for some low-end setups in regards to
load time, but I'm sure you know that....
These are all very amateur-looking sites.
#3 seems too busy - the menu over the picture is distracting.
# 2 is striking and different-looking, but I like #1 best because it is
visually striking as well, but everything is very clear and easy to read.
(I guess you have noticed by now that the link to the macvote page, as
shown the dailynews page, is incorrect...)
The main problem with the old one is that it took far too long to load
using phone line.
I would like to see a campus aerial shot available at a click, although
the photo in number 1 is great for the intro page. #2 looks like we have something to hide. #3 could be
used by any university, even one with an industrial campus.
I chose number 2, because it provides the Campus Directory and Find
People, at the TOP of the page. This is of practical importance if you don't want to wait for the whole
page load. All three pages were slow to load using my modem connection from home!
One typographical correction (to all designs): It should be **President's** Office,
in the possessive case.
My voting is based on a preference for a fair amount of white space on
the homepage, and on the desirability of showing something unique to McMaster as the picture,
rather than a student who could be anyone, anywhere.
Might it be worthwhile to have a link from the Daily News page directly
to Campus Events and News? Making the link reciprocal would seem logical
to me.
While I'm commenting on the site, I might suggest that the A to Z Campus
Index could do with a careful reworking e.g. the link to Bookstore goes
only to Titles, with no indication that there is also a bookstore in HSC;
nor could I find an entry for the capital campaign or for fundraising, for
example. Perhaps these kinds of entries are outside the scope of what the
index is intended to cover and to accomplish, but if so, you might wish to
reconsider....
I think that Mac's existing web page is also fantastic, but it's good to
see that you folks are not resting on your laurels. These new pages are all very nice, and I have made my
selection above. My greatest concern, however, is that Mac's homepage not
be subsumed by the daily news page. As it stands now, the daily news page
loads first, which makes little sense for first-time visitors to Mac's
page. Please ensure that the daily news is accessible from the home page.
Thanks, and keep up the great work.
It costs too much time to open the homepage which we are using now.
I thought that sample #1 looked the most professional. #3 was also quite
nice but I preferred the aesthetics from #1.
The speed of access is ok!! I love the Pic.1 much for its cyber looking
but I think the background can be more improved rather than just in white!!
Health Sciences/Medical School web site need improvement.
The first page is by far the one that most matches current trends in web
design. The second and third are very conservative and not where I would like to see Mac's web presence
heading. As a student, I know that a university's web presence is
important to its image -- I like where Mac has been going recently
and hope it only gets better. If you ever want a critique of some of the
Mac pages, let me know...
the site should reflect the current time. the first example looks the
best. the white background contrasts well with the central control panel.....
it is very crisp. :)
