Website inspiration: Colour and coffee

Posted in Inspiration Website review on 28 December 2009 | Comments [1]

I collect website screen shots in a Flickr set called Website Inspiration. I use the screen shots to remind myself of some fantastic website designs that I see on my travels round the web. Each design has aspects that I love, for example the colour scheme, the typography, or even one specific element that I think works really well. I have never really featured the websites or screen shots on this blog in any detail so this is the first of what I hope will be a series of regular posts that highlights some outstanding website designs. Up this week are Rainbeau Mars and Art in My Coffee

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Make your own podcasts with Huffduffer

Posted in News Website review on 21 April 2009 | Comments [2]

I often discover audio files on the web that I just don’t have time to listen to at the time. What I need is an easy mechanism of saving them so that I can listen later. I think I have found the website that does just that.

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Spock searches for people on the Internet

Posted in Website review on 20 January 2008 | Comments

Spock is a relative newcomer on the search engine scene. It provides people-based searching combined with elements of social networking and other modern website practices like tagging and voting. By signing up to Spock, you can 'claim' your search results which can allow you to shape what people see when they search for your name.

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New BBC homepage

Posted in News Website review on 15 December 2007 | Comments

The BBC website is one of the most popular in the UK, possibly the most popular, so it is always a bit of an event when they launch a new homepage. In fact, the new version is in beta testing mode, which is probably a wise move considering that the website is ranked 41st in most visited websites worldwide.

I quite like the new version and it includes the bright colours and large font sizes that people come to expect these days. Dare I say web 2.0 here?! The new homepage also includes drag and drop content 'panel' customisability, which is similar to that used by iGoogle in recent years, and slide down functionality for editing the 'panel' groups.

The new homepage is centred on the screen which is a small but long overdue improvement in my view. I'd prefer a different font to Verdana though but that's my predjudice. Another new feature is that the user can change the colour scheme by clicking on the links under the featured image at middle right but is this just a bit of a gimmick?

Finally, there is a very nice live clock at top right. This reminds me of one of the old BBC TV identities, some years ago now.

I look forward to using the new homepage over the next few weeks.

Websites for freelancers

Posted in Website review on 10 October 2007 | Comments [1]

I try and keep up with quite a few websites by subscribing to their RSS feeds. Recently, I have discovered a couple of websites that are aimed primarily at freelancers/web workers.

• Web Worker Daily - very easy to read articles including reviews of web software, hardware, working methods, and personal organisation.
• Freelance Switch - nicely designed site that includes articles, jobs board, and forum.

Both websites offer a wealth of information and tips and tricks for the freelancer or home office worker.