Paul
Unfortunately I didn't have the time to take part in the previous
discussion, but watched it go past - partly with interest, partly with a "oh
here we go again" feeling that often accompanies this debate.
What we wanted to do with Ingenious was to step outside the norm and create
a site that not only had great, interesting content and showcased a number
of our objects, but also did what most Museum sites often fail to believe is
important - make it look good as well.
The point I've often wanted to make as I watched the "accessibility"
discussion roll by is that we have a responsibility to accessibility - yes,
to the <2% of people who view our sites with something other than IE; but
ALSO to the >90% of people who view them *with* all the necessary plug-ins,
browsers, etc
The first thing that makes me - and probably the vast majority of human
beings with any kind of appreciation of layout, look and feel or colour -
turn away from "yet another Museum website" is when it looks horrible. And
so, so many of them do.
The common response at this point is "well, the two aren't mutually
exclusive - why can't it be accessible AND look great?". It's a good point
well made, except I really haven't seen a great number of examples where it
happens. Net result, ANOTHER website with potentially great content that
works in every browser under the sun but that *looks really, really
horrible* and, also important, doesn't do anything NEW.
My second point (that was number one...) is - of course it passes NOF
guidelines - it had to. The whole of the site passes W3C validation for
HTML4.0 (even Create! - see
http://validator.w3.org/check?uri=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ingenious.org.uk%2Fcreate
%2F). The one exception is the homepage, and we're working on that as we
speak.
Third point - it's a work in progress, as any good site should be - not only
are we tweaking the code and navigation, we also do rigorous summative
evaluation which will pick up on any further issues and bring them back into
future phases. Any comments from MCG about Ingenious - and I'm sure there
will be some - will of course be fed back into the loop.
Let's get out of the rut of killing ourselves for 2% of our audience AT THE
EXPENSE of the other 98%. This obviously doesn't mean we should ignore the
2%, but let's move the focus. Then we might stand a chance of building some
museum websites that really do some funky stuff. If we don't, I believe that
the MCG forum is in danger of becoming very negative, rather than a useful
place to discuss new ideas and concepts.
Regards
Mike Ellis
_________________
Web Site Manager
Science Museum
Exhibition Road
London, SW7 2DD
01225 835 447
Please note new email address: [log in to unmask]
[existing address will continue to work for forseeable future]
http://www.sciencemuseum.org.uk
http://www.danacentre.org.uk
http://www.ingenious.org.uk
-----Original Message-----
From: Paul Ratcliffe [mailto:[log in to unmask]]
Sent: 15 June 2004 15:36
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: Launch of www.ingenious.org.uk
here we go again... Looks lovely in Internet Explorer 6 for PC but for
starters the 'Create' section looks terrible in Netscape 7 and is completely
unreadable in Opera. I haven't the time to start on the accessibility
issues - why doesn't everyone just read all the e-mails following the launch
of the Take One Picture site again...
Paul
-----Original Message-----
From: Museums Computer Group [mailto:[log in to unmask]]On Behalf Of
Ellis Mike
Sent: 15 June 2004 15:06
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Launch of www.ingenious.org.uk
Celebrating human ingenuity - Ingenious has arrived!
Wednesday 9th June marked the launch of www.ingenious.org.uk, a stunning
online resource including over 30,000 objects and pictures taken from the
Science Museum, the National Museum of Photography, Film & Television and
the National Railway Museum.
Celebrating and exploring the many feats of human ingenuity that have shaped
our lives, www.ingenious.org.uk is a fascinating and absorbing insight into
science and culture for everybody interested in human invention.
Ingenious.org.uk offers users:
> Read - In-depth articles across a range of subjects from 'The Nature And
History Of Addiction' to 'Is War The Mother Of Invention?
> Debate - Online discussions, including 'Should the state pay to make ugly
people beautiful?' led by comedian and actor, Mat Fraser.
> See - Access to over 30,000 images from NMSI collections - many are
previously unseen
> Create - Create your own image library and send e-cards
www.ingenious.org.uk is the result of an unprecedented collaboration between
the three museums that together form the National Museum of Science &
Industry (NMSI). The site has been backed with more than £1 million in
lottery good causes money from the New Opportunities Fund.
NMSI invites you to log on and browse the site...enjoy!
Regards
Mike Ellis
_________________
Web Site Manager
Science Museum
Exhibition Road
London, SW7 2DD
01225 835 447
Please note new email address: [log in to unmask]
[existing address will continue to work for forseeable future]
http://www.sciencemuseum.org.uk
http://www.danacentre.org.uk
http://www.ingenious.org.uk
This e-mail and attachments are intended for the named addressee only and
are confidential. If you have received this e-mail in error please notify
the sender immediately, delete the message from your computer system and
destroy any copies. Any views expressed in this message are those of the
individual sender and may not reflect the views of the National Museum of
Science & Industry. This email has been scanned for all viruses by the
MessageLabs Email Security System.
--
This email was forwarded via the University of Cambridge alumni email system
Visit http://cantab.net/ to update your forwarding details
________________________________________________________________________
This email has been scanned on behalf of NMSI for all viruses by the
MessageLabs Email Security System.
This e-mail and attachments are intended for the named addressee only and are confidential. If you have received this e-mail in error please notify the sender immediately, delete the message from your computer system and destroy any copies. Any views expressed in this message are those of the individual sender and may not reflect the views of the National Museum of Science & Industry. This email has been scanned for all viruses by the MessageLabs Email Security System.
|