"The XKCD comic in Figure 2.5 is funny because it’s often true. First, look at the “things people go to the site looking for” list. Do you agree with this list? Why or why not?"
I looked at the “things people go to the site looking for” list and I agree that the topics listed on the site are things that students and other individuals probably frequently search for. The academic calendar, department/course list, and campus map are all useful things for incoming and/or returning students and other people to search for on any university website. Initially, it struck me as odd that students, faculty, and other individuals might want the number for the campus police, but I guess having the number might be useful if an individual has neighbors who are frequently very loud at inconvenient hours. Everything else on the list seems like things that people would search for.
"Second, visit your University website homepage and see if it follows the patterns listed in this comic. If so, why do you think this is the case? If not, what differences do you see and how do you think they matter when it comes to the purpose and audience for your University’s homepage?"
The Gonzaga University website follows some of the patterns listed in the comic including the website having the full name of the school, a campus photo slideshow, and statement of the school's philosophy. Having these things on university websites seems to be a popular trend which is used for the purpose of making the university look good and to attract new students.
I agree that a university homepage should attract new students. Do you think the functionality of a homepage could be a quality that a potential student looks for? What was the biggest difference between the WSU and Gonzaga websites? Did that benefit or harm the website? Did the Gonzaga website make you want to learn more about that school?
ReplyDeleteI think we're on the same page here. I think it's important for a university to present itself nicely to the general public, including (and especially) those who are interested in attending the school. But I think often times they sacrifice functionality for a good appearance, which hurts the current students. Do you think doing something like integrating our zzusis system with the main wsu.edu website would be beneficial, or is it better just to keep them separate?
ReplyDeleteNice example and decent analysis, though as the blog post asked, integrating some of the terminology from the readings would've helped. Thanks.
ReplyDelete