The task was to analyse the The Times Online website focusing on the following areas.  It has really made me look differently at websites which I think is a positive aspect of completing this task.

Searchability

When searching for ‘The Times Online’ on Google, it gives results with the first four options presenting different areas of the website.  The user is confronted with a wide selection such as world news, life and style, sport, business and entertainment.  This is useful for the reader as they can select an area of the website and be transferred to it immediately. Conversely, the Times is a well known and popular newspaper, therefore current users and similarly new users won’t need the use of a search engine.

Usability

Usability refers to the ease of use a user has when accessing a website.  To ensure the usability of the site met the needs of the reader, a series of links were tested to show the site was technically stable.  A series of news story’s links were checked and each loaded up very quickly enabling the user to keep concentration on the story.  Overall, usability of the website is quick and simple making it easier for the user to navigate around.  Redish (2007) suggests ‘a useful homepage makes it instantly clear what the site is about’.  The Times Online brings together a range of usability and navigational techniques in order to make the user aware of the type of website it is.  In this instance, The Times Online follows on on-screen newspaper structure, so we know the focus is largely news.

Navigation

From critically analysing the website, it is seen that it is quick and easy to search for topics as it has its own search function giving relevant results to the users search.  The Times Online may look complicated at first glances as there are many stories and images but all sections are laid out professionally making it simple for the user to select where they want to go.  The navigation on this website is very detailed so when the user clicks on one, they are given more options within any given topic.  For example, the money section gives a wide range of choices including ‘property & mortgages’ and ‘savings’ and ‘investments’.  The navigation of The Times Online is very effective, making it a widely used website amongst internet users.

Design

The home page acts as a navigational ground for the user.  There is full use of all links so the user can always return to the home page by clicking on The Times Online logo.  The Times Online has used the form of non hierarchical menus as a navigation technique.   Although The Times Online website employs a detailed design, it is very clear to the user’s eye making them understand everything it has to offer.  It’s well designed, spread out template makes for an enjoyable experience as user’s can easily navigate from story to story.

Content

There is a good selection of well written stories on this site, as you would expect from a major newspaper.  As a user of this website, you are immediately drawn into the main headlines from the day and then further down you are given an insight into the top stories in the business and sport world.  This makes the visiting experience of the user effortless and uncomplicated.  On the right hand side of the screen, opposite the main headlines, the user is presented with short sentenced descriptions of the ‘most read’ stories, ‘most commented’ and ‘most curious’ stories to generate interest amongst its users.

Video and Audio

The stories shown on this website make use of different mediums.  This site contains a video section, under the ‘news’ tab, found at the top of the page, showing the latest videos from the top stories.  It also gives the user the option to select videos to view from various topic areas including business, arts, driving, life and style, and sports.  The Times Online promotes other websites such as the BBC, YouTube and Daily Tube with updated links to interesting videos.

User generated content and interactivity

Through analysis of the website, it has shown that The Times Online encourages user interactivity and content submitted by the user.  There is a wide range of blogs and a comment section allowing the user to input there thoughts and take part in forums through discussion.  In addition, users can take part in live web chats.  This includes talking to other users and receiving feedback immediately, about certain subjects.  Furthermore, the readers of this site can interact by voting in various polls on events that take place.   The Times Online promotes user generated content through web 2.0 where users can publish their own content and comment on other peoples content.

Q.  Firstly Christian, let’s get the boring question out of the way, what made you choose Bournemouth University?

A.  Although I was attracted by Bournemouth town itself, with its popular evening antics, I’d have to say I choose Bournemouth University because of its representation of the Media School.

Q.  Our sources tell us that you are a keen DJ.  What is the best DJ set you have done?

A.  I think you attended.  It would have to be at The Winchester.  It was a fundraising event run by Bournemouth Arts College students.   I was very nervous before I went on but it turned out to be a successful night.

Q.  What is your favourite place in Bournemouth?

A.  Well I think Bournemouth night scene is over rated, but there are some places where I like to meet friends.  These are Dusk till dawn and sixty million postcards.  They offer an alternative scene to the big clubs in Bournemouth.

Q.  Apart from being a DJ, what else do you get up to in your spare time?

A.  Well I’m a pretty all round bloke, I enjoy meeting new people and seeing new places.  Before University, I went travelling to Thailand which was unbelievable.  I also enjoy walking along Bournemouth beach.

Q.  Okay, so Thailand. Have you been anywhere else interesting?

A.  I’ve been to Brazil.  It was amazing. We took a helicopter ride around the Christ de Redeemer statue.  I also went to Iceland last Christmas for a fun-filled family vacation.

Q.  Finally Christian, what are your plans for after University?

A.  After University I would like to continue DJ’ing.  I think I am going to move to Bristol as my two sisters are currently residing there and the city offers a lot more in the way of music.

If you would like to hear more from Christian Newman, take a look at his blog.

As 2011 approaches, it nears the end of the popular cruise liner Ocean Village for people that don’t do cruises’, I thought I’d take the time to let tell you [through pictures] the time I set foot on on the Ocean Village 2, for a holiday I won’t be forgetting any time soon.  All good, please read on!

I believe very much so that your holiday begins whenever you want it to.  For me, I had just returned from a heavy five days at Glastonbury 2010, rushing to pack my summer outfits previously bought and throwing my muddy camping equipment into the garage to save it for another day.  I was less than 24 hours away from flying to Palma de Mallorca airport where I would be catching the cruise ship.  My holiday started now! (After a long bath and a mothers home cooked meal).

After a successful trip to the airport, we sat on the aeroplane peering out of the small window overlooking the beautiful Mediterranean coastline.

It looked like this under the clouds…

Arriving in Mallorca the heat hit us.  Our destination was the port (around 25 minutes and 25 euros in a taxi) so we jumped in a cab and headed towards the port to check in and get on the ship.  As we got closer to the port, our boat sat in the ocean like a child’s toy in a bath tub.  The sun sparkled on every part of the ship.  The Ocean Village 2 cruise ship…

The ship was docked until 6:00pm until it set sail for Rome,Italy.  This, I was looking forward to – swim, eat, swim, drink.  Enough said.  The first day entailed eating freshly cooked Paella and drinking freshly made Sangria as a celebration to the beginning of the holiday.  Mine had started already!  The food and drink was superb, I couldn’t fault it in any way.

Setting Sail…

The first port of call and it was time to rome.  Being students, we did travelling on a budget and took the 2 hour train journey into the centre of Rome to have a look around.  I’ll let the pictures do the talking…

A visit to Trevi Fountain

We did the train journey on the cheap but eating was a problem.  We shared a pizza and had a drink. 20 euros. lunch done!

Before we knew it we were back on the boat and saying bye to Rome.

The second port of call was Geneva, Italy again, and likewise a beautiful place.  A walk around Geneva (Genoa)…

We came across this place on our walk.

Barcelona was the first place on our list, and I had been looking forward to seeing this place, long before I’d booked the holiday.  So we decided to take a guided tour to see the best of the city.

This was our tour guide Jose.  I like this man.  He had style.

The fourth place on the list was St Raphael in the south of France.  It was the first time I have been to the south of france and I was honestly taken a back by it.  The sun, the beautiful coastline, the clear sea, and good food made it an enjoyable day.  As St Raphael port was to shallow for our big boat, we had to take lifeboats to get on land.  When on land, we entered a small market selling crafts and jewellery.  It was great to see how some people earned a living.  My and my girlfriend both bought special presents to take back to the UK.

As I said, the beach and sea were clean and a pleasure environment to be in.

And the food and drink…

The last days consisted leaving the mediterranean behind us and travelling home.  Upsetting, I know! but I am left with the pictures of the holiday.  And to wrap this up, I’ll leave you with a picturesque photo so you know what to expect when cruisin’ the med.  Enjoy!

Bournemouth boasts a spectacular amount of efficient cycling paths so you can get around town with ease.

It couldn’t be easier to begin cycling in Bournemouth with special cycling lanes designed to take you between the town centre, Winton, Charminster, Springbourne, Westbourne and so on.  So you can expect journey times of fifteen minutes from the town centre area to University.  Beats getting the bus!  And with the Bourne Valley Greenways you can be in Poole after a mere 30-minute ride.  Bournemouth Borough Council has been constantly improving the facilities for cyclists, with the provision of a new cycle path stretching from cemetery junction to the new puffin crossing at the junction of Charminster Road.  In fact there are over 83km of dedicated cycling lanes including 16 toucan crossings and seven traffic signal junctions with cycle facilities.  There really isn’t a better place for you and your bicycle.

The cycling lanes in Bournemouth are wide giving you a safe distance from passing vehicles.  They are also clearly marked out and in some areas colour coded making it easier for the rider to follow the route.  Cycling will put more money in your hand, as you won’t be forking out weekly for a return ticket to University.  It will also save you the hassle of waiting to get on the busy bus in the morning.

Getting the right equipment is essential to your cycling experience in Bournemouth.  New bikes start from as little as £79.00 and range upwards.  If this seems too expensive for a first time rider, Gumtree allows you to search for second-hand bikes in Bournemouth and surrounding areas.  Safety is the most important aspect when beginning to cycle on the roads.  Your local Halfords, Holdenhurst Road is an ideal place to start searching for cycling accessories.  Helmets are relatively priced, ranging from £9.99 to £59.99.  Student cyclists at Bournemouth are entitled to a free high visibility jacket meaning you can stay safe and be seen at night.  Bike light sets from Halfords are a must for cycling at night time, as on the spot fines can be given by the Police for not having these.  Value sets can be purchased for £8.99 but enhanced lighting accessories range up in price.  Finally, a good bike lock will be needed to make sure your bicycle is safe and secure.  A starting price of £5.00 is well worth paying for the security of your new bike.  For further security, Bournemouth University offer covered cycle parking situated outside the Marconi Lecture theatre.  However, this comes at the small price of five pounds otherwise there is a large number of parking facilities to secure your bicycle for free.

Get yourself into a daily routine which will save money, time, and improve your fitness dramatically without the need of joining a gym.  There is no need to sweat like a zombie in the gym when you can get exercise on a bicycle in the fresh air.  So replace that fixed machine in the gym for a real bike and get out there to experience the facilities that Bournemouth has to offer.  Once you are up and riding, you will begin to see the benefits of being a cyclist.  Be safe, be seen.

Social networking sites have been around since 1996 with the arrival of six degrees and now facebook is hitting the top of everyones ‘most visited’ websites. Social networking sites allow people to create an individual profile, speak to friends through web based chats and then roam their list of connections. Take a minute to look at the timeline of social networking below:

1997 – six degrees (running for approximately 4 years, attracting millions of users)

1999 – showed the arrival of social networking sites such as AsianAvenue, LiveJournal and BlackPlanet. All have been successful and currently still running to this day!

2001 – Ryze and Cyworld were launched in 2001. Ryze, a business networking site, still running but seriously affected by the arrival of facebook a few years later. Cyworld, still available to visit and take a look at the site but unfortunately they have been forced to shut down.

2002 – A year later, the arrival of photo social networking sites became popular, allowing users to share pictures with friends and upload them to their profile page. These sites included fotolog, friendster. Skyblog is a massive french social networking site, similar to the english myspace that was to follow in years to come.

2003 – A year after the showcased french myspace, saw the arrival of myspace. A social networking site allowing users to create profile to show off their music, pictures.

2004 – facebook was founded by mark zuckerberg in february, initially he created the site as a way to speak to friends at harvard university. However, within in 4 months, colleges wanted in on this and it took off from there.

2006 – this year gave way to the social networking application ‘twitter’. This site has definately opened up a new type of social networking, but has it gone too far? Do we really need to know about celebrities dinner plans? Maybe we do…

I have recently just been given the gift of an iPod touch. Just glancing through the social networking apps, makes it clear the extent to which this industry has grown and what is now available to the average user.

What does the future of social networking hold. Does google have the answer with googlebuzz? Watch this space to find out.

1. Amazon – My favourite of all, easy to use website selling new and used products ranging from garden trolleys to baby clothing.

2. eBay – With only Amazon beating this website, eBay has earned a place in my top five favourite websites with great bargains on offer.  Alot cheaper than buying on the highstreet.

3. HMV – In third place, HMV (see ‘his master’s voice’) seems to have a constant sale, offering every genre of CD’s, DVD’s and books.  Again, alot cheaper than going into the HMV store if you don’t mind waiting for the delivery.

4. Facebook – I think facebook will be in everybody’s top five websites.  I don’t see why not. An excellent social networking website allowing people to catch up with new and old friends.

5. BBC – My 5th favourite website, and probably equally as visited as eBay, allows users to catch up on all the latest television and radio shows from BBC One, Two, Three, Four and all of the BBC Radio broadcasts.  I recommend everyone to have a listen to BBC 6 Music.