Things that bug me about websites. What's a queen to do? I'm venting on a few pet peeves. Don't feel you have to care or respond. Bad spelling and grammar. People, people: this is first on the list because spell checkers are everywhere. Although anyone can make a mistake, especiallly me, there's no excuse for leaving unfixed any typos or grammar-school-level errors about apostrophes, capital letters, confusions (they're v. there v. their), etc. It's really awful when even professional, corporate websites have links carelessly labeled "Who to contact." To those with Sprite In You: don't pretend sloppy composition is an artistic statement --please. However, many thanks to non-native English writers who try to create English language websites, considering the difficulties of English! Splash pages. These are otherwise empty pages that say only "Welcome to my website. Click here to enter." AAARGH! Where did people get the idea that a proper website needs an extra layer, a front door? Don't waste bandwidth -- just let the user start off directly with the good stuff. If it makes you feel better, then provide a splash page warning about possibly offensive content; but otherwise, DEATH to all splash pages. Too much artwork. I hate it when my broswer just sits there, grinding away downloading graphics or worse, sound files, from someone's website. Simplify. Also learn how to create and install captioned thumbnail graphics that are linked to full-size pictures so I don't have to wait for long downloads to find the pictures that look interesting. Hot Tip: in most cases use jpg format for photos and gif format for line art. Copycat artwork. Copying may be flattery but it's boring when so many sites have South park cartoons (so last-year) or play the theme from The X-Files. It doesn't say much about who you are when all you've got are puerile, fad-du-jour icons. I can understand posting rainbow flags or other generic or political icons, however. Bears please note: Why is that animated gif of an angry-looking cartoon bear striding toward the viewer so friggin' popular?? Doesn't this contradict the usual Bear posture of friendly and outgoing? Delete, please. Phony friendly. I can't believe it when people put up the appearance of a friendly website and invite email, but reply with a curt note, if they reply at all. If you don't want to receive email from users, don't post a pic of your smiling face! Don't lie! Don't ask for email if that's not who you really are. (And I double-can't believe it when corporations don't respond to email after they invite email comments -- an astounding lack of customer service.) Construction signs and updates. Don't put up pages with links to other pages that say only "Under Construction." Believe me, it's unlikely I'll ever come back to your website, considering there are millions of other websites to explore. And if you say something like "I update this page frequently," then DO IT or take that message down. I mean, is this really so hard?? Web page counters. Harmless but unnecessary and therefore a waste of bandwidth, so please remove. Aren't you embarassed to admit that only 421 people and webbots have visited your site since February 1998? Guest books. Another needless waste of bandwidth: who besides the website owner reads it? If you do post a guest book, at least have the integrity to keep it unmoderated, i.e., don't edit or limit what people can write, even if critical of you, lest it become your own private hagiography -- and you wouldn't want that. (I'm through now. Thank you for letting me vent. :-) |