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internetworkers - Re: [internetworkers] straw poll - your opinion please

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  • From: Scott <catfather AT donpoo.net>
  • To: "Internetworkers: http://www.ibiblio.org/internetworkers/" <internetworkers AT lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [internetworkers] straw poll - your opinion please
  • Date: Wed, 30 Jun 2004 11:06:40 -0400


On Jun 30, 2004, at 10:21 AM, Wolfe, Joanna wrote:
The feature is a scrolling ticker similar to the one on the Durham
County Government website (left hand column - under This Week) as seen
at:
http://www.co.durham.nc.us/

What do you think about this feature?

When I read (actually parse) a web page I'm looking for information that pertains to the reason I'm there. Unless the site is a news based or stock based type site a scrolling ticker just tends to make me wait longer to get the info I need. So I guess the content and focus of the site and ticker matters much is what I'm saying.

Does it make you stop and spend more time on the site?

Chances are I would use google to find the info I need elsewhere rather than read the scroll.

Does it make you draw your eye or cause a distraction?

It does catch the eye. If it's distracting depends on font, size, position, speed, etc. The example on this page and the Apple home page are not distracting. Maybe if a <blink> tag was added....

Does it engage you and then make you want to look at more of the
static links on the page?

For me, no, not really. One of the first things I think of when seeing a ticker is "I hope I don't have to wait for that thing to scroll through before I find what I want." The other thought tends to be "What if what I want isn't listed in the ticker?". I guess I tend to think of scrolling tickers as the VRU of web pages. :)

Now I'm not against tickers in general. For example, a ticker showing news headlines with a static link located by the ticker to see all current headlines is a fine idea. The example page lacks that static link forcing the end user to read / use the ticker interface which is a bad idea for several reasons.

Another example would be at http://www.apple.com/. Notice they have a static link next to the ticker that brings you directly to the Hot Headlines page.

--
Scott





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