The homepage isn't designed for scannability, the text sweeps the whole screen but isn't very long, so it's unpleasant to read. I would change the format to bulleted lists and use phrases instead of sentences. I like that the headlines are short, within 2 and 6 words, and are fairly straightforward, bolded and enlarged for easy reading. I discussed in my other post how "What is Resnet?" and "What's new?" should be eliminated and combined as the home page, I also hate that these links were questions instead of statements. The bottom banner uses a smaller font which is good, however there is way too much text there so it's hard to read. There also isn't enough contrast for some of the text - it's a light grey and I can't read it. Legal online music also isn't relevant to the sites content and doesn't warn you with a description before you're directed to another site. The general colors of the site are good, black and white for maximum contrast and the font is readable in size.

The Resnet website makes a valiant effort to meet the strict guidelines of content design as outlined by Nielsen, however the main problem that remains is the wordiness of the main page as related to its users. I do agree that the masses are not interested in reading very much at any given time on the site and the content design when it comes to words on the screen, an extra step in conciseness must be taken in order for the site to be success. I did not notice many other issues with other address content such as titles and multimedia, so a redesign with word content in mind is key.

The Resnet website is successful in that it uses headlines, bolded, underlined, colored, and linked text, and overall is not too wordy. Although the literature is not excessive, it does not cater to great scannability. Not only children, but adults know as well, that images make for a much better story than words. If small "how-to" images instructed you on the step up process the site would be not only more helpful but pleasant as well. College students moving into the dorms are eager to get their things in...set up their internet...and tell everyone on MySpace and Facebook all about it....NOT read all the details of Resnet and illegal music downloads. The Resnet web page can't be made into a wonderful, fun filled, animated, colored website but the addition of small images and obvious catchy headlines would make the site a quick, simple, and useful site.

The Resnet site has divided subsections of information, which is what Nielson thinks is good. However, some of the content is not that important. I think that steps 1,2,and 5 are the essential steps and that 3 and 4 could be placed somewhere else. 3 and 4 are important steps but they are not directly related to getting the internet up and running but more like the icing on a cake. With the content being more concise and straight to the point, viewers wouldn't have to scroll as much and the site would be more efficient. Also, I think some of the content can be reduced by taking out extra words like "simply." The font is also very ugly and needs to be changed.

One of Nielsen's main guidelines for content usability is to "be succinct" with text. Unfortunately the Resnet site has more than half the needed text to describe the set-up of their system. I really think the site would serve a better option if it provided a diagram with Alt text of the step by step set-up process. This way it would eliminate the initial overwhelmed feeling I have gotten each time I go to the site. Within the diagram there could be links to the specific steps by clicking the icons for further inquiry. There is just waaaay too much text on this site right now and it would be a less overwhelming if it were simplified.

I think that the Resnet site is well written. There are not many passages longer than a paragraph and the scannability is fairly good. I guess it is almost inevitable, when communicating about computers, to have jargon free text but the site is pretty good about keeping it to a minimal.

One suggestion from Mr. Nielsen that I think could make the resnet site better is to have a less scrolly main (navigation) page. The connecting to resnet directions could be on a separate destination page and the home page could be more like the 'what is resnet page'. Also perhaps put some 'visual interest' in the home page so that students want to purchase resnet and not just walk to almost anywhere and get wireless. I also think the page titles can be more clear and descriptive.

The headlines, font and background are nice and vanilla but everyone likes a little mix in every once and again. I think that examples could be used to better exemplify the technologically challenged and to help foreign language students better. Mr. Nielsen even says he can't stress enough the need for examples! perhaps we can have some photos and even a cheesy video or two, along with background music, illustrating the process of connecting to resnet. Of course the media would follow Mr. Nielsens recommendations.

I got internet at my place (sbc yahoo in San Antonio) and the cd that came with the package to help with installation was very helpful. It had simple but very descriptive animations and text (not scrolling or flashing) on the bottom of the screen to guide me through the process.

The Resnet site follows Neilson's guidelines for useability by keeping the site fairly simple for the user. It uses different colors, font thicknesses, and headings/subheadings to break up the text visually. However, I feel the text on the home page could be broken up visually differently and make it easier for readers. The site does well to present information in blockd the "one idea per paragraph" rule. It does have some small, simple graphics, which also help make the page easier for viewers to look at. Perhaps using bulleted points with key points, rather than paragraphs within each step could also help.

It does make useability easy by keeping a simple background, left-justifying text, using contrasting colors for text, and keeping the text in a san-serif font.

Also, Resnet users will be UT students in the dorms who will have access to a high speed internet connection. Having slightly more graphics can help the site more interesting and also make the information easier to follow. Other information may be more important than what's on the homepage; It doesn't seem like the most important information is persented on top of the fold, but on other pages it is.

The Resnet site seems to follow closely with the guidelines outlined in Chapter 3. The important information is located at the top of the page in the inverted pyramid style. The site makes good use of bullets and subheadings and does a relatively good job at keeping paragraphs short. There aren’t really any graphics that would slow down download; however, I think that it could use some simple graphics or something to make the site more attractive and easy to look at. While users do need to scroll down for the steps to get started, it would be unnecessary to have a separate page for each step which would probably annoy users more rather than simply scrolling down the page. So I think that part works out fine.

According to Neilson's chapter 3, the Resnet site does a pretty good job at content usability. The main point of the page is listed at the top in an inverted pyramid style, it uses short paragraph headers, and utilizes a numbering and bullet system. The text contrasts with the background well, and there isn't and abundance of downloadable images to slow download speed. The scanability of the homepage is nicely done and more or less succinct.
However, there is no denying that the Resnet site needs a facelift. People today have MUCH better screen resolution than in Neilson's time, as well as faster downloading capabilities. The main audience for this site are students in the dorms with a T3 connection! Therefore, I believe the site could use a few graphics, the changing of a few link subjects for more clarity, and a homepage that is different than just a lot of text thrown at the user. The homepage should be a separate page than just the step by step instructions that require scrolling down. As one person said in class, perhaps there should be a separate page for each step, with instructions telling you how much farther you have to go.

One of the first things that Nielsen talks about in chapter 3 is writing on the web, and how you should always keep the text short. Based on these two factors the only part of the Resnet page that I think should change is the information under the title "Before You Begin". People like to scan pages and I bet that most people don't read this section, and go straight to the first step "Connect Your Machine." The editing is fine; grammar and spelling wise.

I think the biggest thing that Nielsen has emphasized is time. People don't want to wait for a page to load. This should not be an issue with this site because we know that everyone that is using this site is in the dorms and they all have the same internet connection, an internet connection that would allow you to download pictures and videos quickly. So I agree with J. Zalawadi and Sanath Kodali that we could probably add a video or pictures to help people connect to Resnet and increase the usability.

While Resnet has a scannable layout, the big blocks of text are not very concise. I noticed that several paragraphs could be reduced to one or two sentences. I don't think there is a need for graphics or videos, the steps seem pretty straightforward.

It's good that the first page you see is about how to get connected. People would be pretty annoyed to see a welcome page when they are trying to get connected.

While scrolling to read all the steps is necessary, it's not that bad. Each step is fairly short and there is only 5 steps. I think more time would be wasted if each step was on a different page.

I appreciate that they made an effort to make the text more readable by organizing information with bullets and subheadings. However, there were still several paragraphs that my eyes just glazed over because it looked like a big block of text.

I think the home page should say what Resnet is. I think a lot of people do not understand what "broadband Ethernet" is. The language is too technical. If you notice, they don't even use the word Internet on the home page. I like Illinois State University's ResNet page because it uses plain language and has an overview of ResNet on the home page.

Resent website using Nielson's theories regarding content design, follows as its describe in ch 3. It follows step by step instruction on how too, but it would be helpful if it was divided in different pages. The heading and title is appropriate and follows Nielson's theory. It would be helpful if the site has a video preview of the step they have to follow to make user have a visual and audio content then just plan reading it.
Overall the site does a great job of enplaning what they have to do, but just needs a little work to make it better.

In terms of content design, I think that the Resnet website does this pretty well. It is meant to be a very clear, plain, informative website, which means that it doesn't need to much more than the necessities of a webpage to make it functional. It is easy to scan over the pages to see what you need to read because of the subtitles on the page, the fonts are clear and readable, and the font size is fine. The important links are at the top of the page, thus eliminating unecessary scrolling and reading, and the pages are titled properly so that the user can navigate through the website pretty easily. I really don't have any suggestions in this area, because I think that the page gets the job done.

In the way of content usability, I don't see a lot that absolutely needs to be changed on the Resnet site. I found it very easy to scan and as I scanned it tried to imagine myself setting up my Resnet account for the first time. Of the 5 steps listed on the main page, I could skip reading the subtext of 3 of the sections based on the headlines because I don't need to be told how to plug a network cable in, and already regularly update my computer and maintain its security with anti-virus/spyware and firewall. This left just 2 of the sections of subtext for me to read. In both of those sections my eyes were immediately drawn to links that would help me finalize my Resnet service.

Multimedia: I'm happy with the simplicity of the site. Too many sites are crowded with how-to pictures accompanying informational articles. I don't need a picture or a video showing me how to plug in a network cable and I can't imagine many other people needing one either. Any additional multimedia would, in my opinion, be unneccesary.

I also found page titles to be appropriate, but would be open to hearing reworked titles as well.

I don't have any issues with scrolling. Personally, I'd rather scroll a bit down a page than have one screen full of information and have to click a button to continue. If my hands already on my mouse, scrolling with a scroll wheel requires less effort than moving the mouse to hover on a button and click it. Laziness wins in my opinion.

The Resnet website seems to have everything just splattered down on the mainpage. This should be organized more efficiently into seperate proceeding pages. The site does not have to worry about imaging or video problems, however it would be a good idea to include such multimedia such as pictures in the redesigning process to help students visualize the steps in activating thier interent access.

Also there should be a more information differentiating the different plans you can choose from and explaining how the bandwidth limit works for the less sophisticated users.

The Resnet site's main focus should be on page chunking using plain language and organizing the information better. For the most part it does a good job with the bullets, numbered steps and bold text but it still seems a bit chaotic. I do not mind scrolling as long as it is no more than 2-3 seconds long which most of the pages are under. The pages like Acceptable Use under the Policies link are longer but necessary.As far as scanning it there are too many bold words which makes it a little harder to pick out what is of a more concern to you.

I don't think any type of multimedia could be implemented to enhance the site other than images the is truly necessary. For instance images that relate to the steps or the requirments may give the user a better understanding of what is needed to get connected using Resnet.

One thing that could be changed on Resnet is the titles. While most of the titles are a one to two word description of their respective pages, they all start with the word Resnet. Nielson advises against this practice. While its good to have Resnet in every title, it should be the last word. This way they user can immediately know what the page is about, which may capture their attention in a search engine, their history, or a book mark much quicker.

I also think they site could benefit from having the content in a table with relative width attributes that takes up a smaller percentage of the screen. I'd much rather read text in a limited space, where my eyes don't have to do a lot of work in moving a long distance from left to right. I have a 23 inch monitor, so when my browser is set to full screen, the text on the resnet page extends all the way across. If a more defined area was used in the code, this could be avoided.

There is too much wordage in the content of the website, a negative on Nielsen’s list. Neilson recommends that scrolling be a minimum on websites and he presents the study that people read 25% slower when reading online than they do when reading from a paper. The amount of reading should me lowered so that the user can use the scanning method and follow the basic steps.

Nielson recommends keeping the text short but Resnet provides DETAILED assistance-information that is probably necessary for users who are both setting up their computer and the internet simultaneously, not for those who have already figured out how to get to that webpage. The first paragraph on the website is not necessary; if a person has reached the Resnet webpage it is because they have already completed those steps!

There should be a more “scannable layout” or “combined version.” One thing I can say is that I did not find any spelling errors on Resnet (but I am not alluding that there are no spelling errors) as Nielson suggests, but I cannot say the same for the book.

my immediate impression of the resnet site's content is that it is unclear and doesn't specify any sort of logical structure to guide a user.

The writing is also bad ,"Follow the tasks outline in these documents." is in the first little bit at the top of the site, this type of writing exemplifies unclear, unnecessary, and grammatically incorrect.

the steps that are posted larger and in orange I don't think do well in the middle of all that text, it would be good to separate them more clearly so someone scanning the site doesn't have to locate them in the midst of all that text

Keeping the Resnet site usable seems to be the main thought behind the site.

All content on the site is short and to the point with plain language and scannable in mind, they used short paragraphs and bullet points to display information or instructions. Important items in the content is linked and underlined to the related pages. With each page no more than one or two page scrolls down,

The content of each page is stated in the every title of each page, helping the user navigate and scan the page quickly. The site used positive text for most content, using different colors and bold styles to point to importing information.

Almost no media other than a few images is used in the site.

I found that I lost my place when navagating the site. Having the "Breadcrumb Navigation" on the top would help people in their search for information.

I also found some broken links to images, like this one
http://resnet.utexas.edu/support/winsupport.html#step1
that is the first step that you need to do in Troubleshooting.