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Review for Adieuamour
I like the overall organization of the site. Although it seems somewhat odd that the text size of the layout theme on the header is much larger and more visible than the actual site title. The name of your site should be the most prominant aspect of the layout, then any other words and/or phrases that follow, not the other way around. The layout itself looks interesting, as does the color.
Information
Site: Adieuamour
Type: Blog
Owner: Heather
Reviewed By: Misao
Date Received: 02/21/06
Date Completed: 05/16/06
Preview
Presentation
Just as mentioned above, it is odd that the text size of the layout theme on the header (Photogenic) is much larger and more visible than the actual site title. Many people might be mistaken to take “Photogenic” as your site title. I like the way you have the site title curved along with the filmstrip of Cameron Diaz, perhaps it should be just a tad bigger. Or if there is not enough space, it can curve around the zoom lens on Diaz’s face.
I am not too fond of the teal blotch on Diaz’s face in the lens. The rough edges seem rather abrupt and out of place. If this is an added feature, the colour patch can be feathered into the image to blend in more naturally.
I like the organization of the blog. It is very easy to access. The wide line height makes reading easier. Your external links (such as links to your loved ones (friends) and hostees) should open in a new window. This allows visitors to visit your friend’s site at the same time they’re still browsing yours.
Onto the HTML coding, I’m not sure why you have the >!– END –< tag at the very beginning of your body when you don’t even have a >!– START/BEGIN –< tag anywhere before that. This tag also appears at the very end of your HTML file after you ended the HTML tag. If you are to define anything, it should be within the HTML tags not outside. You also define a footer divider layer at the end, which is also specified in your style sheet, but yet, you have nothing in this layer. Your disclaimer and copyright sentence is written right before the footer layer. Seems to be that this is either 1) misplaced, or 2) a waste of space. Everything else is properly placed and defined.
You can simply certain attributes in your style sheet by stringing common-type definitions together. For example, instead of:
background-image:URL(http://adieuamour.com/wp-content/themes/Version7/images/bg.jpg);
background-color:#CCD2DE;
background-repeat: repeat;}
Try to string it together as:
background: #CCD2DE URL(http://adieuamour.com/wp-content/themes/Version7/images/bg.jpg) repeat;
It saves space and time, and prevents confusion within coding. As for defining padding, it is padding: TOP RIGHT BOTTOM LEFT or padding: TOP/BOTTOM RIGHT/LEFT. In the second example, you only list two values; the first defines the top and bottom while the second value defines right and left. In your case, you only list three values, and missing a fourth. This is incorrect. With one missing, sometimes the browser has trouble figuring out which direction the three values are defining.
Also, unless you define a background colour to your links, the default is set at transparent so you can delete that extra attribute. If you’re going to define your colours using hexadecimal values, you should keep this constant throughout the style sheet, rather than switching between RGB values and word definition.
Content
Underneath ‘The Girl’ header on the main page, there is a grammar error. “She is very outspoken and most of the time, a perfectionist.” You’re missing a word and a comma. The last sentence is also missing a pronoun as it should start with “She lives in…” Underneath ‘Hostee’, Talia hasn’t the time to put up her site yet. Not sure if you are aware of it, but a link to an empty sub domain is not very fun. “Intrested?” is spelt wrong. Since you included the validation links, I clicked on it to find out that you have two HTML errors. The errors have to do with your direct IM link. You also have a CSS error; you’re missing a semi-colon after an attribute. I am not sure if ‘Ignore’ is the proper heading to use for your administration links. It might cause some confusion to your visitors. Perhaps you should use ‘Admin Links’ or some sort to clarify other people from trying to click on these links. ‘Other wise’ is one word altogether.
I like the format of your blog, and how you separate each entry with a image bar. It is clear-cut, and the added line height definitely helps with reading. Glad to see that you’re one of the people who divide their thoughts and topics into paragraphs. Some people don’t bother and it becomes really hard to read. Since you already have a link to your ‘Heather’ section, there is no need for the ‘more’ link after ‘The Girl’ paragraph.
Heather
I like the use of internal links here. Since each section is relatively small in size, there is no need for a separate page, and internal links gives it a nice touch. There is a period after your school name before the word ‘School’ that is misplaced. When you’re listing information about yourself under BASICS, you don’t need the period after every single listing category. Periods are specially for ending complete sentences. When listing your weight, make sure to include the measurement (eg) pounds or kilograms. Canada prefers to use pounds whereas the States tend to use kilograms if I am not mistaken. The first letter to ‘mom and dad’ should be capitalized. The same goes for ‘cat’.
The first letter of each category and the actual list underneath FAVOURITES needs to be capitalized. This follows proper grammar rules and keeps everything consistent with what you have started underneath Basics. ‘Atleast’ is two words spelt underneath your ABC’S. Number one to your ‘Random Facts’ is somewhat repetitive since you already mentioned the dark as one of your dislikes/negatives earlier on. You might need to elaborate a little on not being the ’stereotypical’ cheerleader. I see that you purposely imposed the small script on breaking down the name of one of your teddy bears, but remember to leave a space after the word you’re explaining so it is grammatical correct. For example: “CAR- as in a car and MEL- as in Mel Gibson, which was named and given to me by my bf.”
INTO HEATHER: “I don’t think I’m pretty but I better say my boyfriend does before he kills me!” does not make sense. Do you mean “I don’t think I’m pretty but I’d better say so before my boyfriend kills me”? You’re missing the word ’so’ following after ‘at least I think” when explaining that you’re fun. Some of your sentences are worded awkwardly. For example, compare the following rewritten sentences to yours:
“My eyes are hazel and normally green, but occasionally change to brown and blue.”
“I am not very patient, and most of the time, I angry really easily.”
“I am overly talkative, therefore I am never shy.”
“I am a very trusting person, but if some one loses my trust, it is hard to gain back.”
“I just love life because it is so much fun!”
That’s all I can really correct before I end up correcting the entire page and the rest of your website. The most common errors you make are leaving out an essential word in a sentence, stringing two completely separate ideas together into one sentence, using the wrong conjunction to connect two sentences, and undistinguished usage of passive and active sentences. For more information on grammar, check out Daily Grammar Lessons.It covers everything from verbs to sentence structures to punctuation.
‘Competion’ is spelt wrong. I’m sure Walter must feel special for you made the MY LOVE page just for him. I really like your PICTURES. They really capture what you had wanted, and a great way to present and explore yourself on a blog and personal site. You look like you had lots of fun in each and every one of your photos. However, you need the category breakdown on each page. The internal links also do not prove to be helpful. This section can do without. I like the comment form you include at the bottom of each page, but the light teal background colour creates too much of a contrast. Perhaps a darker hue and leaning more towards blue to match the blue in your layout header. I especially like the CHARACTERS IN MY BLOG page. It is a good way to include your friends. Make sure you link the BOOK CHALLENGES to a new window browser for the same reason listed above.
Visitor
First off, what do you mean by personal? Do you mean a personal web page? Or for personal use? This was somewhat confusing. Rule 4 is a further elaboration of rule 3; the two can be put together. Rule 5 is not even a rule, so therefore it can also go.
It would be more efficient if the graphic links open in a new window. That way, I can still look at the previews on your main site, and go back and forth to the actual graphic window. It also helps with doing comparisons. I like your BLENDS, they are all made beautifully. However it would be more helpful if you also include the last name of the celebrities. If someone used one of your DOMAIN NAME suggestions for their domain or if they just happen to pick one exactly like yours (coincidence happens), are they liable to include your link as a credit? It is hard to say with domain names so you must be clear on how this section works toward visitors. Even though you have very nice name suggestions, some are really lengthy. Try to include a few that are a single word such as malicious.org.
Very cute SMILIES. I like them. I suggest making a duplicate of them in larger sizes for in case some blogs prefer to use larger fonts and smilies. Also, your entire introduction paragraph is grammatically wrong. Here is the revised version: “Please link back as I spent hours making these, and I would appreciate the credit. Also, do not claim these as your own. There are instructions attached to the zip file on how to upload to Wordpress. Please enjoy!” What happens if I’m using Greymatter? Will these smilies still work? If they are only compatible for Wordpress, make sure you state this clearly somewhere on the page, preferably at the top.
Make sure to state the size of your ICONS as they come in many different sizes across programs like AOL and MSN. What is the difference between ‘People’ and ‘Celebs’? Aren’t celebrities also classified as people? When are your ‘New’ icons moved into their proper categories? If they take a long time, take out the ‘New’ section and just add the icons to their proper pages, with an alt tag stating that they are new. The sizes of your ‘Monthly’ icons are different from the others. Is there a reason why there is no background to September, and why the edges of the text seem rather pixelated? Do you do requests if the year I was born in is not displayed on this page? Be careful with arranging the ‘Love’ icons since they come in all different sizes. I like the Paul Frank icon. The spin.gif icon listed in ‘Others’ should be moved over to ‘Love’.
Some people don’t know how to use templates or bases, so you should include an easy step-by-step instruction on how to use them. I like the first textures. Isn’t there another section for this? The colour blend is very pretty. With regards to your BASES, some information about who is on the icon and where the image is taken from are a few of the basic information required for crediting.
The format for your LAYOUTS is somewhat confusing. You have the layout info and title beneath the large thumbnail preview. For a second there, I did not know if the info is for the first or second layout. It would more be more wise to have the layout title displayed up top, followed by a smaller sized preview of your layout and all other relevant information underneath. Since I can’t really see the overall appearance and layout type from your preview, try making a thumbnail of the entire layout as seen with a full sized browser. Make sure to include the type of layout in the information. Rather than listing your email address as a way to download the layout, have a direct link to a zip file. 1) Direct downloading off the site saves both you and your visitors’ time, 2) If you don’t answer your email within a month’s time, then obviously this person has to wait a long time just to get a layout from you, and 3) You don’t even have directions on how to download them. Are they suppose to email you and say …? “I want your layout?” I think not. Even by doing this, you can’t really track how many use your layouts.
The PATTERN page seems rather pointless. If you’re going to have a section like this, you could at least put a little more effort into it like your others. Instead of writing “This set includes diagonals, horizontal, and vertical lines”, make a small image preview of what kind of lines they are. Are they solid, dashed, dotted, thin, thick, etc.? Before downloading any graphics, I prefer to have a visual preview of what I am downloading. I’m sure lots of people feel this way as well.
The REQUEST page is something that should be linked at the bottom of the list. Again, like the rules for your free graphics, the rules are not even rules. They not regulate behaviour nor do they completely enforce behaviour either. This section can be elaborated to include whether you pick the image or the buyer does, the procedure of linking back, a satisfaction agreement (buyer should only pay if they are happy with the product), etc. Things you should also list (under a different category) are your type of skills, the amount of hours you spend on a type of graphic, the maximum amount of images you’ll blend into a layout, an expected time span, etc. There is no need to list your Paypal account here since you’re asking for the buyer’s to invoice them. It should be “What do you want?” instead of “What did you want?” The difference between the two is the first sentence is worded in present tense and the second in past tense. The button link to CodeGrrl is mislinked.
I am not sure I understand the purpose of SONGS. Is this a list of songs you recommend? If so, it’s not exactly something for the visitor to take and explore. I would stick this under the ‘Heather’ section as Recommendations or Daily Favourites or something along that sort. Unless you’re offering the MP3 file and/or lyrics, this page is somewhat useless.
The quality of your TEXTURES are questionable. I don’t see anything special to your textures besides blotches of colours. I understand you might have spent a lot of time on these but from the amount of textures and patterns I’ve seen on other graphic sites, this is one of the worst. Not to offend you but some of the textures, especially the first orange and the last two silver, seem like you used a large round feathered brush and swirled the colours together. That’s not exactly called textures. Plus, you should also list the resolution sizes of these images and their format. Believe it or not, some people still use dial-up Internet.
The TUTORIALS are just as worst as your textures. For example, “How to make a base”: Don’t ever place image in the middle of a sentence. If you really want to include a visual of what you’re doing, display it after you’ve explain the instructions in a complete sentence.
“2. If the image appears way too big (especially for avatars and icons), and you only want a specific part of the image as your based, we simply use the crop option to cut out what we need.
-IMAGE SOURCE-”
Even if I crop the image to 100 x 100 pixels, I can still easily add in a border that takes no more than five seconds. In the Photoshop version of the tutorial, you did not bother to explain where you can find that bar with the crop image size and how to change it (in which the image is larger than your blog field). There is another way to crop the image. You can click on the crop option, select a fixed image size or fixed image ratio for the size of the final crop outcome, and drag over the image. Then you can resize the image to whatever your heart desires. Everything else is too confusing and messed up to be understood. The following is taken from the Photoshop version of the ‘How to use a template’ tutorial: “8. Now ur the magic wand and select the green area (or w.e color there is…if there is none then you are done) and delete it the same way u did the white.” Don’t use shorthand, spell out the entire word.
It is not necessary for you to include a preview of how the texture will look with a base under each image property setting. Allow the visitor to experiment. Half the time, they will add another colour layer on top or below, a few brushes here and there, and the final outcome will look completely different. With the ‘text outline’ tutorial, all you have to do in Paint Shop Pro is select a stroke colour and set the fill colour at none or at a colour different from the stroke. If you’re going to use text on your visual examples, use a different colour than blue and make sure the size of the text is large enough to be noticed. I could barely see the ‘Whatever size you want’ that you included for the ‘border’ tutorial.
I have no idea what you are trying to explain on the FAVICON page. I didn’t understand how I clicked on the link you provided and read off there. Your instructions are too confusing and grammatically wrong to understand. Be specific. For example: “FavIcons are used in the scroll down menu of your internet browser where you type in site URLs. In IE, it is right next to Address, and directly below the toolbar. In Firefox, it is …” There is a obvious difference in my explanations and yours: clarity.
It is helpful for you to include a WHERE DO I? page but the section title is rather ambiguous. For certain programs like Photoshop, put an asterisk next to it to warn visitors that you must pay for the program. When listing links, allow each one a line of their own so it doesn’t look so crowded.
“Where can I find templates for all sort of graphics?
Templates Resource
Icon Templates
Icon Templated
templates___”
Adieuamour
A brief history of how you came up with the site name. I must say, the name is very romantic, and that is precisely what you aimed for. Did you not come up with other names for the domain as well? I like how you organized the REVIEWS page, but again, link them to a new browser. You should add in comments in the completed reviews on things you don’t disagree. It doesn’t hurt to express your opinions since in some cases; the reviewer misunderstands how the site is supposed to look like. The link to FHR is mislinked.
With your rules for HOSTING, I should add that the one introductory sentence is split into four lines. Click here to view. Also with the last point, it is pointless to ask visitors to write in the word ‘love’ in the application form, considering that most of your rules can only be applied until being accepted. How can I update my site at least once a week or make regular back-ups of the database when I have yet to be considered for hosting. Bullet 7 is not a rule; it is more or less a regulation/policy/agreement that you can delete the account based on certain circumstances. It has nothing to do with prior to applying. How much is “plenty of bandwidth”? 10GB or 100GB? PHP is not something that comes included with a hosting package. It is a script that is either supported or not supported by a host. How many MySQL database is offered per account? At the bottom of page, there is an extra >br /< tag in the middle of a sentence. Your application form is not coded with the same template as your main site. The text is too small, hard to read against the background, and your buttons are huge! You should edit this page so that is incorporated to your main skin/template.
Very thorough DISCLAIMER. You can tell that this is clearly copied and pasted from another site. Some of the content does not even apply to your site. When did your site do offers? You do not have any business data included on the site (email address and home address is personal unless they are addresses to a business organization). You try to make the page look professional and flashy with the illegal rant, but it looks stupid. For blogs and personal pages, just include something along the lines of “This site is copyright © to Heather. All content, custom-made graphic, opinions, and writing are properties of Heather unless otherwise stated. All custom-made graphics are prohibited from redistribution. All rights reserved.” Short and simple. The HISTORY paragraph is very similar to the About the Site section. The two can be combined together. Obviously how you came about web designing is relevant to how you purchased a domain and eventually this particular domain. By the way, here is a revised version of your paragraph:
“I started learning about HTML from a site named Sparkle 2001, which I stumbled upon accidentally one day when I was looking for a siggy company. I started to experiment by making my first few sites with expages with no real experience of web designing. I eventually picked up further advance HTML knowledge through ___, and made Play Dough in 2003. Play Dough was a site about ___. After awhile, I just kind of forgot about web designing until earlier this year when I learned more HTML, and made a site called Glam Me Up Icons. As time went on, I also picked up PHP script and made this site, Adieuamour. After trying out a few hosts, I decided that I wanted my own domain, and bought this one.”
After this paragraph, you can start a fresh one about how you came up with the domain name. I like your Past Layouts although you’re missing a debut date for each of your layouts (when and how long they were up). The link to ‘Squnamefingers’ is mislinked. Be careful with linking the site title versus the entire sentence. The link to your host is out of place here. It has nothing to do with the CURRENT LAYOUT and has everything to do about the site history, which is already included at the top of the page.
Your SITEMAP is not a sitemap. Not entirely. What you have is a breakdown of what pages can be found in which category that is located in each section. A sitemap not only includes this but also tells the visitors what can be found in each section. For example:
“Heather - a section about the web mistress and all things related to her
Visitor - free goodies and graphics, including a tutorial section and graphic request”
Exits
What does the heart and asterisks mean? Are these special friends or sibling sites? You should move the footnote for this to the top of the page. By the way, what do you mean by ‘loved’? Do you not love all your other link exchanges? Are the links that have neither symbols not link exchanges? I sure hope they are not your enemies because you’ll be advertising free for them. Alex and Becky’s site is no longer online. Try to make buttons in other sizes, try standard sizes. Your buttons are at 80×15 pixels but the standard is 88×15 pixels or 88×31 pixels. You’re a little off. Is there a way to text link your site then? Do you prefer direct linkage as well?
Final Statement
Your site upon entering seemed rather organized and pleasant at the beginning. But once you dig deeper into the site, you’ll notice lots of flaws. I don’t mean them in a bad way, but there is a lot of things you need to work on. The primary focus is your grammar. Microsoft Word has a spell check and a grammar check if you feel up to copying and pasting your writing into there and correct it. Or have a second person to read over it for mistakes. Make sure you update your links every once in a while so you won’t be left with broken links. Besides what is already pointed out in the review, keep up the good work!
2 Comments to “Adieuamour”
Heather Says:
May 21st, 2006 at 11:32 amNote: It is not Cameron Diaz, just a couple random models. Also the splotch came on the center face, I added the other ones.
Layout: I had to code it like that because it did not align correctly if I didn’t that is why they are combined and stuff.
Heather: I just link it twice in case people like it easier there because people prefer certain things.
Visitor: I have them email me to get the layout so I can change the site name for them. Thats the only reason and I always get back ASAP. The songs, I am adding a radio blog with them very soon, I just haven’t gotten around to it. The textures, I actually took the pictures, and they are just simple light textures.
Adieuamour: The Hosting page is a script so I can’t change too much on it, but it just makes it easy to handle hostees. You can’t intigrate it. The sitemap is a wordpress script and I can’t add a description, I just this so they could find a page easily and most my pages are self-explanitory.
Thanks for the very in depth reveiw, I have taken a lot of it to heart and fixed a whole ton. Thanks
Misao Says:
May 21st, 2006 at 9:33 pmThe model certainly looks a lot like Cameron Diaz. Regarding the layouts, it would be wiser if you gave instructions on emailing you for the purpose of you adding on the site title. But on the occassion, some people rather do it themselves, prefering a certain font or area for the title.
I am glad you found the review helpful and I like the new layout!