Usability Study

Usability Study 

October 24, 2012 

Name of site: CNN News

URL: Cnn.com

COMMUNICATION & MESSAGE 

What is the sites purpose and message? 

It is to show news stories from all around the world.

Does the site convey a clear sense of its intended audience? Who is the intended 

audience of this site? 

It is geared towards everyone but in is a liberal news site.

Does it use language in a way that is familiar to and comfortable for its readers? 

Yes 

CONTENT 

Is the content organized in an intuitive manner?

Yes it is smile to find what you are looking for.

Is the site content appropriate for its intended audience? 

Yes for people who are looking for news it is perfect. 

Is page length appropriate to the site content? 

Yes the articles stay short so you can read it in one sitting.

USABILITY & INTERFACE 

Is the interface consistent throughout the site? Are all pages unified? (If so, give 

examples of how this is accomplished. If not, what suggestions can you provide to 

the site designer to create more unity throughout the interface?) 

Yes it never changes.  It keeps the same big CNN at the top of every page no matter where you are on the site.

Does the interface use a fixed or flexible layout design? 

Fixed at the top and flexible for the sides.

Do you have to scroll to view any of the content or information within the site? 

Yes some articles go past the one page mark.

Were all graphics appropriate and did they support the intended message of the site? 

(Which ones did or did not add value to the site?) 

Yes they all match the story information. 

Did it appear that all graphics were optimized for quick downloads? 

You were able to download many of the images.

Is the text of the site readable? What happens to the site layout and readability of 

the text if you change the browser settings for text size? 

Yes it all readable and changes with the size you want.

How would the page print? (Hint: Use the print preview option to view how the site 

would print – please save a tree, don’t actually print the page!!) 

It prints a printer friendly black and white version.

NAVIGATION 

Is the navigation easily recognizable? Is it consistent throughout the site? 

Yes it always is at the top.

Was the navigation easily learned? Did you have any trouble navigating the site or 

understanding how to access all the information within the site? 

No it is all categorized by news type example tech news world new and justice news is all split into tabs.

Did all of the links work properly? Are the links obvious in their intent and 

destination? 

Yes they are professionally done and done well haven't seen one link that led me to the wrong place. 

OVERALL SUCCESS 

What suggestions do you have for improving the navigation, interface, or usability of 

the site? 

I think it is great how it is and have a great thing going. 

Youtube And Vimeo Video Reviews

YouTube Videos

My frist video can be found here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lCoV539Rt2M&feature=g-high-u

this is a video by Phillip Defranco he shares news stories that matter to him. He has excellent video editing skills with pictures, HD video, and amazing audio.  He knows how to cut at the perfect time and doesn't have any clips that do not need to be there.

My second video from youtub can be found here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FHtvDA0W34I&feature=g-logo-xit it is on the recent Felix Baumgartner free fall jump from 24 miles up.  Redbull knows how to make amazing quality videos. They have plenty of different camera angles that gives great cinematic effects especially that it is in HD. The audio lay over means no problems with audio matching up with the video. The song also goes well with the video.

The final youtube video I am going to talk about was found here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-oC33AqkJtg&feature=g-user-u This is one of my favorite youtubers he is a professional editor and used a phantom camera for taking video. The camera is used for super slow motion shots and cost about $30000.  This makes it perfect for the video they were shooting. The video is edited to the music and makes for a crazy effect especially that it is dubstep music. 

Vimeo Videos

My first Vimeo video can be found and watched here http://vimeo.com/23744121 it is from my favorite band Mumford & Sons. It is a live video of their hit song The Cave the video is in HD but it is a live audio feed to so it is a bit goofy because of how loud the speakers are. 

The second vimeo video that I watched was another music video: http://vimeo.com/18923281 It is Macklemore's song Irish Celebration. It is really well done music is laid on top so it is perfect sounding and it is shoot in HD and is not shaky at all. 

Skype Vs. Face To Face Podcast

Gentrey and I have compared and contrasted Skype watch this video to see what we had to say.

All About Skype

               This is my review of the Skype application.  Skype is a widely supported application that will let you talk to your friends, peers, and work partners all around the world. Essentially what you need for Skype is the program, a electronic device with a camera and your all set. You can Skype from your phone, your playstation 3 and a whole lot of other devices.
               We had everyone get Skype and exchanged Skype names then we talked to one at a time really quickly if we wanted to we could pay for the 4 way chat but we didn't want to do that for this project.
               I love using Skype with my friends from Germany and Brazil and using it for this project was nice because you can see facial expressions and its more interactive with the other person. It is a lot easier to talk to someone face to face instead of text, emails, or phone calls.

StoryCorps or Case Study 1

              For class this week we needed to listen to a couple StoryCorps stories and watch a couple to learn a little about interviewing skills.  I listened to the following http://storycorps.org/listen/stories/shelli-wright-and-graham-haggett/ It was about a young boys grandmother that died in 9/11 tragedy his picture was the last picture that his grandmother saw. He was only 11 months old when his grandmother died so he never really knew her.  The second story I listened to was this one http://storycorps.org/listen/stories/tierra-jackson-and-john-horan/ it is about Tierra Jackson and how she was from a very low income family and was late to school some days because it was a hour and a half drive to get to school. She finally told one of her teachers the situation and the teacher didn't treat her differently after that. The third one I listened to was http://storycorps.org/listen/stories/james-ransom-and-cherie-johnson/ It was an interview about Miss Devine.  James Ransom and Cherie Johnson remember their neighbor and Sunday school teacher.  How she acted crazy and would never let you miss sunday school class. The next two that I watched were the animated version of the StoryCorps. The first one was called A Family Man it was about a young boys father that worked 14 hours a day.  The man telling the story which would be his son described how his dad wouldn't physically discipline them it was just a look that he would give them. The second animation that I watched was called Danny & Annie The story of how they meet and their whole life together till Danny was diagnosed with terminal cancer. 

            All of these interviews were very easy to understand and they made sense.  The video made the interview even easier to understand. The stories were very interesting in their own special way. What is needed for these interviews is the right questions and a clear idea or else the listen will get lost in the nonsense. 

My mashup video for class. 

4 Pictures into a video. 

Enjoy!

Photoshop Editing Project

PhotoShop Editing Project

Original Picture Before Edits

Cropped 

Black And White Edit

Full Edit Part 3