Website re-design

Gollumford · 04-10-2006, 12:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Alex McKee

As I understand it, Manic Monday are not given much support by UKIP's heirarchy.

Why do the nastly little webraiths hate us so? We work hard with Manic to make the precious ever more beautiful, and all we get is complaints...

Quote:

Or weren't, anyway, perhaps that will change with our new leader.

We serve the Lords of the Precious, the Necromancer and the Sage, out of the East, not the Metalsmith in the South...

SponPlague · 04-10-2006, 12:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Soddball

Quote:

Originally Posted by Alex McKee

It isn't easy, if you want it accessible, W3C-standards compliant and the rest.
I am a website designer.

I run an IT company and I have a website designer - and used to dabble a bit before I moved into networking and servers. It isn't hard to make a website look good. If it was, web designers would be earning much more because there would be fewer of them.

The problem is not the looking good bit - the problem is disabled access (a legal requirement, these days), standards compliance, working across different browsers, browser versions and operating systems, differing download speeds etc. etc...

Soddball · 04-10-2006, 12:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SponPlague

Quote:

Originally Posted by Soddball

Quote:

Originally Posted by Alex McKee

It isn't easy, if you want it accessible, W3C-standards compliant and the rest.
I am a website designer.

I run an IT company and I have a website designer - and used to dabble a bit before I moved into networking and servers. It isn't hard to make a website look good. If it was, web designers would be earning much more because there would be fewer of them.

The problem is not the looking good bit - the problem is disabled access (a legal requirement, these days), standards compliance, working across different browsers, browser versions and operating systems, differing download speeds etc. etc...

I'm well aware of the issues surrounding website design. Thankyou. My point remains that if every other political party and almost every major business can achieve these standards AND avoid having their website look as though it was knocked up by teenagers, then UKIP can too.

SponPlague · 04-10-2006, 12:32 PM

I'm not for a moment saying we shouldn't have, or aim for, the best website possible... but you said

Quote:

It's not hard to make a site look good.

-
Actually, it is hard, and the sooner the leadership acknowledge it and get going on it the better...

brian lee · 04-10-2006, 04:33 PM

If disabled access is a requirement, I must be ultra disabled because I find it very confusing to navigate.

Then somebody needs to decide who the info is directed at. It should not be used as the main or sole vehicle for keeping members up to date. (E.g. during the leadership election, members had been informed by paper, sometimes vaguely, about the hustings meetings but not who the candidates were. You could only find this out if you had access to the web. If the website had not been there, the election timetable would have to have been arranged better).

Whenever we comment on such matters, it always comes back to the same problem. A lack of proper organisational structure in the party and not enough competent people to do the jobs that are necessary. Shortage of funds can be quoted as the reason UKIP has stayed amateur for so long, but I believe there is money available but it is spent on the wrong things.

It will only improve when somebody at the top recognises this.

SponPlague · 04-10-2006, 05:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by brian lee

If disabled access is a requirement, I must be ultra disabled because I find it very confusing to navigate.

When I spoke to David Lott, whilst tendering for the web contract a few years back, disabled access (a legal requirement) was the only specified 'must', although no specifics were given. I assumed this to mean RNIB 'Bobby' compliancy etc...
http://www.rnib.org.uk/xpedio/groups...resources.hcsp

As the EU was paying, cost was not to be a retraining factor, or so I was told...

Alex McKee · 04-10-2006, 05:44 PM

Thank you Sponplague, you made the point very well.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Soddball

My point remains that if every other political party and almost every major business can achieve these standards AND avoid having their website look as though it was knocked up by teenagers, then UKIP can too.

They don't, though, do they.
Try running the conservative party website through the HTML validator.

It often comes down to client will and budget. While I personally endeavour to create standards compliant and accessible websites, many website designers still do not understand the need, and clients less so.

FuroraCeltica · 04-10-2006, 09:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sean43

Hello,

Im Sean from Cardiff, I have just started my AS Levels which includes politics. I have a great admiration for UKIP but I feel that the party is not making enough in roads as it should be.

In terms of appealing the younger vote, I think we are a long way off. The website I aslo feel needs a re-fresh. Too much text is placed on the page and I find the navigation to complex. We need an introduction page, outlining what we aim to achieve. We all know the potential with this party and I hope Nigel Farage can actually go on to achieve great things.

I second that. We also need to make more use of YouTube, as the other parties like the BNP and Respect do, and it greatly widens their potential audience. We need to do the same.

Gollumford · 04-10-2006, 10:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by FuroraCeltica

I second that. We also need to make more use of YouTube, as the other parties like the BNP and Respect do, and it greatly widens their potential audience. We need to do the same.

There are some briilant examples of UKIP video technology already out here... here's one we admire...

http://www.ukipscotland.org/scotland....php?t=1&id=31

Britannist · 04-10-2006, 10:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Alex McKee

It isn't easy, if you want it accessible, W3C-standards compliant and the rest.
I am a website designer.

Alex, what is W3C? I'm not 'on top' of all the latest computer language :shock:.

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04-10-2006, 04:33 PM	#25 (permalink)
brian lee Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: South Essex Posts: 611	If disabled access is a requirement, I must be ultra disabled because I find it very confusing to navigate. Then somebody needs to decide who the info is directed at. It should not be used as the main or sole vehicle for keeping members up to date. (E.g. during the leadership election, members had been informed by paper, sometimes vaguely, about the hustings meetings but not who the candidates were. You could only find this out if you had access to the web. If the website had not been there, the election timetable would have to have been arranged better). Whenever we comment on such matters, it always comes back to the same problem. A lack of proper organisational structure in the party and not enough competent people to do the jobs that are necessary. Shortage of funds can be quoted as the reason UKIP has stayed amateur for so long, but I believe there is money available but it is spent on the wrong things. It will only improve when somebody at the top recognises this.