http://www.communityarts.net/
this has become my favorite site yet with in the art education realm. i spent a good three hours straight exploring all the different resources offered. i've discovered this site in perfect timing for gathering information for my thesis. it has been a bit of a challenge finding information but i found a handful of very relevant articles related to my topic on this site. a huge weight has been lifted from my shoulders.... phew.
at first i was a little overwhelmed by all the information with in the different links. after some browsing i became more comfortable with the site. because i was able gain so much relevant information from this site i can see how it could be possible that the site has too much non-relevant information for other viewers. i really like the array of topics and sub topics on the left of the page (disciplines, populations, etc.). when searching for a specific interest these links are a great time saver. the site offers much updated news and events. but i did notice that many events listed are on the west coast. possibly that could be updated with east coast events as well. in addition to all the wonderful resources this site offers it also has a book store from which you can order from.
again... so happy i found this site! thank you!!
http://artsedge.kennedy-center.org/
my first visit i took notice to the simple and clean design, great color palette, and i was not overwhelmed with many links. i liked this. but i do wish more was said about the site on the home page. just one or two sentences under the main title would suffice. i like the variety of art lesson plans, etc. not just visual art but music and theater as well. the teach tab offers so much useful information for school teachers. the connect tab offers a handful of links relevant for teachers in the classroom. the explore tab is a great feature. here is a great example of how to use technology in learning/teaching. here are interactive lessons, websites that i feel will put excitement into classrooms. i like the link that leads your to a whole list of art quotes. reading the quotes gives me a few free moments away from homework yet still inspiring. i also enjoy the calendar on the homepage giving attention to an artist born on that day. it's the little fun additions that bring me back to a site again.
http://arted20.ning.com/
right away i felt welcomed to the site. they explained who they were and what the site was about and was easy to access on the homepage. more sites need to do this rather than concentrating on design elements that keep this information from being displayed. to use this site you must sign up and become a member. i am always reluctant to sign into sites or create an account. this site doesn't offer much browsing with out being a member. i'd like to look around the site before signing up- not much leway to do that. from the tabs and links there seems to be a lot of great information but i feel at this point i will search for other sites with similar information before signing up.
Friday, February 20, 2009
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
web critique #3- saic portal
pros:
of course there are many pros to this portal. it is essential for students here at SAIC. not all colleges i have been to have had a portal or one with relevant resources. right away your email is visible. that's helpful for me because i do not want to miss any important messages from professors or classmates. important announcements are displayed for your immediate attention as well. some of the announcements or more critical than others but none the less it is a great feature. i really enjoy how events for both the school and museum are posted on the main page. it's nice not to have to retrieve the museum's home page to get this information. the courses tab reveals all your current and past courses. at first it was a little difficult for me to navigate through my courses using the files, photos, contacts, etc links. when used correctly, gaining and spreading information through your courses home page is very useful. events calendar and public programs tabs offer a lot of information, which is great. the academic resources tab i feel offers all the useful information we need when inquiry about the library, equipment, and training resources.
cons:
i mentioned above that the clearly visible email box was very useful, but i have found that i receive many irrelevant emails. in the past i have over looked important emails mixed in with others i wanted to ignore. possibly there is a way to sort these emails as they come in. i am not sure. one major issue i have with this site is that some of the links offered in the tools and services tabs and very user unfriendly. i find it quite annoying to have to log into another site for my academic information or job hunting information. the self-service site and the career development website are separate from the portal. i wish it was all obtainable on the portal. when first using the portal i found myself getting frustrated having to use different passwords to gain this information. also, when i contacted help/support about these sites i would get a very late response if any. today i am still trying to log onto the career site grrrrrr. and why wouldn't the self-service site be under the services tab and not the tools?? on top of every page is the helpful hints bar. maybe mine does not work but every time i type in a keyword, question, etc. nothing appears. i am still waiting for help/support to email me back about that...sigh...
as for the design of the portal it is simple, clean, and easy to navigate. since we are all artists using this portal i wish there was a little more character and color. possibly that is something that can be created under the customize me tab, which i have yet to explore.
of course there are many pros to this portal. it is essential for students here at SAIC. not all colleges i have been to have had a portal or one with relevant resources. right away your email is visible. that's helpful for me because i do not want to miss any important messages from professors or classmates. important announcements are displayed for your immediate attention as well. some of the announcements or more critical than others but none the less it is a great feature. i really enjoy how events for both the school and museum are posted on the main page. it's nice not to have to retrieve the museum's home page to get this information. the courses tab reveals all your current and past courses. at first it was a little difficult for me to navigate through my courses using the files, photos, contacts, etc links. when used correctly, gaining and spreading information through your courses home page is very useful. events calendar and public programs tabs offer a lot of information, which is great. the academic resources tab i feel offers all the useful information we need when inquiry about the library, equipment, and training resources.
cons:
i mentioned above that the clearly visible email box was very useful, but i have found that i receive many irrelevant emails. in the past i have over looked important emails mixed in with others i wanted to ignore. possibly there is a way to sort these emails as they come in. i am not sure. one major issue i have with this site is that some of the links offered in the tools and services tabs and very user unfriendly. i find it quite annoying to have to log into another site for my academic information or job hunting information. the self-service site and the career development website are separate from the portal. i wish it was all obtainable on the portal. when first using the portal i found myself getting frustrated having to use different passwords to gain this information. also, when i contacted help/support about these sites i would get a very late response if any. today i am still trying to log onto the career site grrrrrr. and why wouldn't the self-service site be under the services tab and not the tools?? on top of every page is the helpful hints bar. maybe mine does not work but every time i type in a keyword, question, etc. nothing appears. i am still waiting for help/support to email me back about that...sigh...
as for the design of the portal it is simple, clean, and easy to navigate. since we are all artists using this portal i wish there was a little more character and color. possibly that is something that can be created under the customize me tab, which i have yet to explore.
Thursday, February 12, 2009
A-Z = fun!!!
i really enjoyed the last assignment, a-z. i felt like i was in my first year of photography school ten years ago... ikes... ten years ago! this is an adventure i would not endure with in my current priorities. i'm glad i had this chance to explore the city more and enhance my perspectives on it. i had a different experience once they were on my computer and the battle between me and the pdfs began (video soon to come). below are some of my favorite shots...
A
D
O
Q
R
X
A
D
O
Q
R
X
Friday, February 6, 2009
web critique #2- hydepark art
http://www.hydeparkart.org/
content: there is a lot of great, useful information available. i was not overwhelmed with too much. i like how the site welcomes you on the first page. it encourages you to view more. it inspired me to read more about the center.
design: the design is simple and clean. the color palette used for the fonts could be more vibrant. also, the font size a little small which might make it difficult to read for some users.
usability: this site is very easy to navigate. links are accessible but i feel the fonts could be larger to make them more accessible. i like how there is abstracts for each sub subject followed by a link that says "details>".
content: there is a lot of great, useful information available. i was not overwhelmed with too much. i like how the site welcomes you on the first page. it encourages you to view more. it inspired me to read more about the center.
design: the design is simple and clean. the color palette used for the fonts could be more vibrant. also, the font size a little small which might make it difficult to read for some users.
usability: this site is very easy to navigate. links are accessible but i feel the fonts could be larger to make them more accessible. i like how there is abstracts for each sub subject followed by a link that says "details>".
web critique #1- cps, artic, naea
http://www.cps.edu/Pages/home.aspx
content: i am not too familiar with the chicago public schools but site is loaded with information that i feel will educate me as well as be informative to others familiar with the system. i really like how the site is accessible for different users- parents, students, teachers, community, etc.
design: the design is very simple, clean, and straight forward. it lends to easy navigation. from an artistic point a view it seems a bit bland. but i realize this site is catering to a large, diverse population, so an eye-catching design is not necessary.
usability: the site is very user friendly. there are many clickable links that lead other easy to use pages. the larger and bold fonts that direct users to more information is noticeable and functional. i feel that all ages can surf this sight.
http://www.artic.edu/aic/
content: i feel this site covers the basic information needed for a museum but also "covered" other interesting information such as the history of the museum. because it is such a large museum i find surfing on their online collection a little overwhelming. there are great resources for students and teachers.
design: again, i find the design a bit bland. but again, i know this site is intended for many viewers and accessibility is more important than an intricate, artistic design. the color palette chosen coincides with the nature of the museum- clean and classic.
usability: this site is user friendly. i wish the links to the left of text/images of the sub pages were larger and more distinct. the information there is interesting and useful. if i overlooked them i'm sure many other users would as well.
http://www.naea-reston.org
content: i am a visual person and enjoyed the great images accompanying the text through out the site. there is a lot of useful information as well as resources. it is up to date with news and events. outdated sites always annoy me.
design: the design of this site is my favorite of all three. it is more colorful, imaginative yet still clean. the slide show of images and text on the main page is a great way to grad your attention.
usability: links highlighted better than the art institute site. it is extremely easy to navigate and relevant information is easily available in headers/footers/side of pages.
content: i am not too familiar with the chicago public schools but site is loaded with information that i feel will educate me as well as be informative to others familiar with the system. i really like how the site is accessible for different users- parents, students, teachers, community, etc.
design: the design is very simple, clean, and straight forward. it lends to easy navigation. from an artistic point a view it seems a bit bland. but i realize this site is catering to a large, diverse population, so an eye-catching design is not necessary.
usability: the site is very user friendly. there are many clickable links that lead other easy to use pages. the larger and bold fonts that direct users to more information is noticeable and functional. i feel that all ages can surf this sight.
http://www.artic.edu/aic/
content: i feel this site covers the basic information needed for a museum but also "covered" other interesting information such as the history of the museum. because it is such a large museum i find surfing on their online collection a little overwhelming. there are great resources for students and teachers.
design: again, i find the design a bit bland. but again, i know this site is intended for many viewers and accessibility is more important than an intricate, artistic design. the color palette chosen coincides with the nature of the museum- clean and classic.
usability: this site is user friendly. i wish the links to the left of text/images of the sub pages were larger and more distinct. the information there is interesting and useful. if i overlooked them i'm sure many other users would as well.
http://www.naea-reston.org
content: i am a visual person and enjoyed the great images accompanying the text through out the site. there is a lot of useful information as well as resources. it is up to date with news and events. outdated sites always annoy me.
design: the design of this site is my favorite of all three. it is more colorful, imaginative yet still clean. the slide show of images and text on the main page is a great way to grad your attention.
usability: links highlighted better than the art institute site. it is extremely easy to navigate and relevant information is easily available in headers/footers/side of pages.
belated introduction...
finally, the blog of sophistikatie has some substance. due to circumstances out of my control i missed the first week of classes and now taking the time to complete past and current web critiques and any other assignments. i'm excited for this class. it does not seem to be too stressful but at the same time practical and fun. enjoy my critiques, comments, rants, images, etc. 'til the next blog...
peace
katie.
peace
katie.
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