THE 7 BEST Web Sites @ Harvard

Everybody's doing it. Web page creating has become so easy that many people feel it their duty to put up a personal web page, no matter how bad it may be.

David B. Alpert, '00 business manager of the Harvard Computer Society, says it is hard to find a good web page because "what makes a good Web page can be very controversial."

Alpert says the controversy arises because pages can span the spectrum from being a work of art to focusing solely on content.

According to Alpert, "it isn't hard to make a Web page. If people spend a little time thinking about it, they can come up with great designs." He believes that "the lack of good Web pages is due to the lack of time. Most students are just busy."

Most Web sites at Harvard seem to focus on the person and their immediate friends. Many pages have dead ends--no place to go but to press the back button on your browser--and lack characteristics that might make them unique.

Some pages have great ideas, but the information is so hard to find that users get frustrated just looking at the page and give up after five or six seconds. Other pages have great organization but lack content or have broken links--links that create errors when they are clicked on.

Of course understanding the technical details is a prerequisite for creating a Web site. However, putting that aside, the focus should be on good Web page design. In order to help you design a great Web page, take a look at these sites, and see what they do right, and what they do wrong. www.college.harvard.edu

Site Summary

This Web site has it all. From great design to great content, this Web site exemplifies a good site. Everything from student life to academic life can be found here. Need to know about the weather, Harvard publications or the shuttle schedule? Need to find someone on campus, or just want to know what the campus looks like? This page has it all. A link-intensive clickfest gets you to what you want to know.

What's Right

A navigation bar that lets you know where you are and where you can go at all times. There are no dead end pages, and the graphics show the importance of contrasting colors in order to highlight.

What's Wrong

Lacks the glitz and glamour of Java-enhanced pages, which some people prefer. volonnin.student.harvard.edu

Site Summary

Talk about a New Jersey Devil's fan. This site, authored by Michael R. Volonnino '01, who is a Crimson editor, has it all. A well-designed and easy-to-use site with everything you ever wanted to know about the New Jersey Devils but were afraid to ask. A photo gallery, video clips, editorials and box scores. Complete and frequent updates keep the information fresh and the news interesting. (Of course, if you aren't a Devil's fan you'll have to look elsewhere.)

What's Right

This site is well organized and shows a good use of tables. The content is rich, and there are lots of click-able areas, which make Web browsers happy. There are also clear color contrasts, which make for easy readability (as opposed to putting blue writing on a blue background). It also demonstrates a good use of Java.

What's Wrong

The page is really long. A good practice is to make the pages shorter and to add more links. The site could also use a navigation bar in a separate frame so that there is always a way to get right where you want to go. hcs.harvard.edu/~harvcrew

Site Summary

Though it is only a front page which links to the three separate organizations (each page administered independently), the Harvard Crew Team's Web site shows how important a front page is.

What's Right

It is not only aesthetically pleasing but information-packed, too. It houses an interesting page of crew information as well as links to other Harvard areas so you don't get stuck on a dead end page. There are links to all the different crew sites. Additionally, the graphics are unique to the site and not just copied from another site (one of the most important features of making a good-looking site is having snazzy graphics).

What's Wrong

This page, too, lacks the glitz and glamour provided by Java scripting. The page is static, which means that people probably won't keep coming back if they don't have to. Dynamic and changing sites keep a browser's attention and patronage. www.fas.harvard.edu/~alississ

Site Summary

The home page of Mohamad M. Al-Ississ '00. While most home pages talk about the student and his or her friends, this page has some real content to it. A list of not only the typical stuff (information about self, friends, classes, etc.) but information on the Arab world and a plethora of links to it. There are even links to Arabic radio and Real Audio sites.

What's Right

This site skillfully combines animated graphics and a great background image. There are also unique graphics employed and an interesting Java script which change on picture for another when your mouse is on top of the picture.

What's Wrong

The site is missing a search and comments page. Though these are more complex to pro-gram, they effectively make a good site into a great one. www.fas.harvard.edu/~hnguyen

Site Summary

If you are looking for information on Vietnam or looking to design a site that has a great user interface, you have come to the right place. Chockfull of information on Vietnam, this site has photos, music and links.

What's Right

This site features a navigational style to be admired, showing a skillful combination of Java and text as opposed to the typical superfluous use of the Java language. Additionally, the graphics are unique and well-designed. Furthermore, they flow together to create a comprehensive site design instead of a page-by-page design.

What's Wrong

The site isn't monitor-friendly. Unfortunately, not all monitors are the same size or display at the same resolution. Therefore, it is important to engineer your site to cater to most of your viewers. Typically, it is best to make your pages no wider than would be seen on an 800x600 monitor. www.hcs.harvard.edu/~hub/

Site Summary

The Harvard University Band's Web site has vastly improved in recent months. With songs now played out in full and recorded in MPEG format, the site has gone from samples in MIDI format to clear sounding Harvard songs--a must for any student with an MPEG player. Additionally, the site clearly marks out the different band links.

What's Right

The site offers something unique that other sites don't have: music. The use of MPEG technology makes this site a must-visit.

What's Wrong

Some of the information is disorganized on the front page, and images could have better contrast to highlight the difference between the white background and the whiteness of the images. www.fas.harvard.edu/~sarmad

Site Summary

What this site is about is anyone's guess, which is one of its drawbacks. However, this site by Shaikh M. Sarmad '97-'99 represents some important site design concepts.

What's Right

This site features wonderful graphics and a great user interface. Navigation is easy and fun. There is humor and music, and the page isn't too long or wide, which makes it Web browser-friendly and allows for quick loading.

What's Wrong

There appears to be a lack of focus in the site itself. Though having really great design is important, you have to have something important to say as well, and it should be easy to discern what this important thing is.

So, if you've been contemplating the creation of your very own Web site but didn't know how to begin or what it should look like, just take a look at these examples and get yourself going.

"The best ways to come up with a good Web page is to think about what you want and your target audience. Look at a lot of pages on the Web and see what you like," Alpert said.

"Then try to make a lot of different pages and experiment with different characteristics and try putting things together in different ways. It isn't that hard."