I’ve added a daily RSS feed to the TwitEye app that was launched a few months back; the RSS will give you one (hopefully good) idea for an application, service, iPhone app, or piece of software each day. TwitEye uses the Twitter search API to look for requests from people for various applications & services, and streams them on the TwitEye homepage.
From looking at how it’s been used so far, there are return visits and people arriving through search. To make it easier to get at the good ideas, I thought an RSS feed with some of the better ones would be helpful. You can grab the feed, or look at the published ideas, on the TwitEye Ideas page. Over there you can also look at different categories of ideas, and search the daily archive to see if there’s anything of interest. Or, if you’re intersted in taking a look at the full stream, check out the TwitEye homepage.
I just finished working with Jo from The Beauty Agent to launch a website designed for her new business.
The Beauty Agent is an intimate and exclusive workshop that arms you with the skill, know-how and insider tips to recreate that perfectly groomed look every day with minimal effort. They will help you to recreate amazing looks with advice and personal guidance from the fashion and film industry’s top make-up artists and hair stylists.
As Jo says,
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I’ve just done what a lot of people hate doing, paid my TV Licence. For the first time, I used the online service for TV licence renewals. While it’s a useful service, and no-doubt saves lots of administration work for An Post, parts of the website design is pretty poor. I’m not sure how long this service has been available, but seeing as some of the €160 I spent on my licence last year probably went on web development, I thought some feedback was in order!
Site Homepage
There are a number of things that struck me about this page:
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It can be difficult to hear, and more importantly, listen to criticism of your website, business, product or service. Having people from the outside telling you that parts of your website don’t work, or that improvements are needed to how you conduct business can be a painful process. This is especially true for small businesses where one person has spent a lot of time transforming their vision into reality. Read More »
Staying with the theme of how I’ve been keeping busy, this week saw the launch of ReVibe.ie.
ReVibe offers a range of services to companies seeking to invest in the health of their employees, and individuals who are interested in a healthier lifestyle. As Eiginta, ReVibe’s founder says, they are committed to:
“…educating, motivating and inspiring people to create healthier, more productive and fulfilled lives. Our commitment lies in supporting, maintaining and enhancing the health and wellbeing of those we work with, and empowering them to make better lifestyles choices”.
Judging by the glowing testimonials from satisfied clients throughout the site, the services offered by ReVibe should be a big hit in Galway.
Further information on this, and samples of other recent web design and development work, are available from the Portfolio section of the site.
I’ve been keeping busy lately. To show you how I’ve been filling my time, here is some of the recent web design work I’ve delivered for clients recently.
Firstly, a new site was launched for Kenneth Madden Photography. Kenneth is a photographer based in Galway who needed a website that showcased his work, without taking away from the impact of his photos. There are some really nice images on it, and it’s well worth checking out.
Secondly, I’ve completed an Intranet site redesign for the Office of Corporate & Legal Affairs (formerly the University Secretary’s Office) at University College Cork. Following their change in name and focus, a redesigned web presence was in order. The site is only available on the UCC Campus Network, but here’s a preview of the Office’s new clean & spacious homepage.
Further samples of, and details about, some of the work that’s been keeping me out of trouble recently are available in the (newly redesigned) Portfolio section of the site.
Allowing users to enter information in an easy a way as possible is an important part of any web application. With many web apps depending on date or time data, considering how best to ensure usability requires consideration in the web design & development process. Before looking at what affects your choice of input method, I’ll give some examples of the options you can choose between.
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I haven’t included non-commercial web design work I’ve done in the past on this site. However as some of the features used by this Wedding Website I developed for some friends may also of use to business, I thought a quick overview would be worthwhile.
www.gerandgus.com
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The Irish Small and Medium Enterprises Association (ISME) this week released a survey on SME e-Business
This identifies a number of problems perceived by SMEs when dealing with Web Designers & Developers:
- 76% admitted that their site needed improvement.
- 44% of businesses agreed that ‘commissioning a website was a confusing and/or frustrating experience’
- 41% agreed that ‘Web designers try to confuse us with jargon’
- 30% agreed that ‘it was hard to find a web designer that understood their business’
- 23% were unhappy with the quality of graphic design on their site.
- 40% were unhappy with the level of business generated by their website.
- 36% did not find it easy to update their website.
The results of this survey do not make great reading for those working in Web Design / Development. Before looking at the issues releated to poor experiences with web developers, there are a number of interesting points:
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Returning visitors to the site will notice it has been give a facelift. Any opinions on the new look would be welcomed (in the comments below, or contact me directly).
After looking at the profile of website visitors (in particular, the statistics to do with screen-size), the old design wasn’t making the most of the machines being used to view it. The old site was designed to take into account the recommended minimum screen size that should be targeted (800 x 600). However, since the site went live about 5 months ago, there haven’t been any visitors using this size monitor.
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