Local government websites
24dash.com reports "on tests carried out by SiteMorse, which assess key aspects such as code standards, functionality and accessibility". Thrilling, huh?
Anyway, because I have not suffered enough recently, I thought I would have a look at the top five: Liverpool, Bridgnorth, South Norfolk, Thurrock and Slough. And the bottom five: North Lanarkshire, Torbay, Hambleton, Ballymoney and Dungannon. All places I will not be making tracks for any time soon, by the way.
So, herewith my wholly unscientific judgments, based entirely on my gut reaction to the various front pages.
Liverpool - Ugly as sin. Far too much gratuitous spot colour and logos a go-go.
Bridgnorth - Which is in Shropshire. Lots of green, and a rather badly designed logogram which makes it look as though the place is called Briagnortn.
South Norfolk - Lots of blue and orange. Bad mix. And a gratuitous arty photo of a wind turbine.
Thurrock - Just plain ugly. Looks like it has been knocked up as plain text and has then had some bits added on. Although it does wish visitors a 'good afternoon', which is nice.
Slough - Fairly clean and modern looking, but it leads with some minor pop star having beenpaid chosen to turn on the Christmas lights. Classy.
North Lanarkshire - Same sins as Thurrock, but does not stop to wish me a good time of day. Although it must be psychic, as it says 'you are here: home'.
Torbay - Not bad, although there is so much blue, with a bit of yellow, that it looks like the old conservatives.com.
Hambleton - Which is in Yorkshire. Claims to be 'An Excellent Council Making Life Better'. Uh-huh. Nasty, nasty, nasty. Hideous mess of fonts, coloured blobs and the like.
Ballymoney - Also a mess. I rather like the 'how to find Ballymoney' link, although sad to say it did not suggest digging down the back of the nearest armchair. Fonts are all over the place, and it uses Courier - the world's ugliest font - in places.
Dungannon - Has Father Christmas on the front page. Oh dear. Seems to be an odd place, in that the Republicans / SDLP have a majority, but the mayor is UUP.
If anyone has examples of spectacularly ugly council sites, let me now. The Croydon site is likely to send you into a coma within seconds, it is so lifeless.
Anyway, because I have not suffered enough recently, I thought I would have a look at the top five: Liverpool, Bridgnorth, South Norfolk, Thurrock and Slough. And the bottom five: North Lanarkshire, Torbay, Hambleton, Ballymoney and Dungannon. All places I will not be making tracks for any time soon, by the way.
So, herewith my wholly unscientific judgments, based entirely on my gut reaction to the various front pages.
Liverpool - Ugly as sin. Far too much gratuitous spot colour and logos a go-go.
Bridgnorth - Which is in Shropshire. Lots of green, and a rather badly designed logogram which makes it look as though the place is called Briagnortn.
South Norfolk - Lots of blue and orange. Bad mix. And a gratuitous arty photo of a wind turbine.
Thurrock - Just plain ugly. Looks like it has been knocked up as plain text and has then had some bits added on. Although it does wish visitors a 'good afternoon', which is nice.
Slough - Fairly clean and modern looking, but it leads with some minor pop star having been
North Lanarkshire - Same sins as Thurrock, but does not stop to wish me a good time of day. Although it must be psychic, as it says 'you are here: home'.
Torbay - Not bad, although there is so much blue, with a bit of yellow, that it looks like the old conservatives.com.
Hambleton - Which is in Yorkshire. Claims to be 'An Excellent Council Making Life Better'. Uh-huh. Nasty, nasty, nasty. Hideous mess of fonts, coloured blobs and the like.
Ballymoney - Also a mess. I rather like the 'how to find Ballymoney' link, although sad to say it did not suggest digging down the back of the nearest armchair. Fonts are all over the place, and it uses Courier - the world's ugliest font - in places.
Dungannon - Has Father Christmas on the front page. Oh dear. Seems to be an odd place, in that the Republicans / SDLP have a majority, but the mayor is UUP.
If anyone has examples of spectacularly ugly council sites, let me now. The Croydon site is likely to send you into a coma within seconds, it is so lifeless.
This entry was posted
on Wednesday, November 15, 2006 at 12:54 pm.
You can skip to the end and leave a response.
Serious point here . Local authorities are obliged to make loads of inf available on line but it is absolutely impossible to find . GLA even worse, try finding out about housing plans ( well you might find it easy)
Hiding in complexity and detail . So easily done
If you think the Croydon site is lifeless, look at the Colchester and Watford sites!
Dear lord, the Watford site is a stinker, isn't it?
» Post a Comment