Website Review and Suggestions

**digitalfusion** · 02-08-2007, 09:44 AM

Hey!

www.tornadodesigns.co.uk is my portfolio site to showcase my website and graphic design works..

I'm currently studying my 2nd year of my HND in Multimedia at college just now and i am developing my portfolio as i go (well as much as i can!)

I have worked on a few sites and stuff and built this site back in late 2005 to put my works onto.. however it has expanded a bit and put other things on there aswell such as a forum etc..

Please feel free to crticise, comment, compliment, whatever you feel are necessary to help me improve and build on what i have got on there..

Regards,
Martin

----------------------
Sites i've built:

www.tornadodesigns.co.uk
www.teenium.com
www.kirkgandss.com
www.worldofmuscle.co.uk

**3rdShiftStudios** · 02-08-2007, 10:32 AM

i expected tornados and got a dust bunny...just didnt' have an impact on me enough to explore the site.

**digitalfusion** · 02-08-2007, 01:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 3rdShiftStudios

i expected tornados and got a dust bunny...just didnt' have an impact on me enough to explore the site.

first off what do u mean by you expected tornados and got a dusty bunny, pleas explaing what you mean and why it didn;t have an impact for you to explore the site...

Regards,
Martin

**RanaD** · 02-08-2007, 03:01 PM

You fail on 43 errors at W3C's validation service

The url suggests something powerful and exciting. The header for the blog and forum is much more exciting than the one on most of the other pages.

Your site is based on a template? There's CSS is your HTML head section. It suggests you're not comfortable with CSS, nor HTML really, so I wouldn't use you to build a site, though I may consider letting you do graphics for me, once I've gone to all the trouble of going to either your blog, forum or portfolio.

Your first page is where you capture people. Not a good enough impression there, and they won't bother going anywhere else.

**LadynRed** · 02-08-2007, 03:45 PM

Quote:

what do u mean by you expected tornados and got a dusty bunny,

LOL.. just goes to show that not everything translates very well

A "dust bunny" is a blob of dust, the kinds of globs that you might find under your bed or in corners

Your templates page is a real fright in Firefox 2.0.

As already mentioned, with a name like "Tornado designs" you expect a site design with a lot more to it. What makes YOU a 'tornado' ??? Why not use a tornadic image or theme ?

The html, quite frankly, is not something I would pay anyone to do.

**3rdShiftStudios** · 02-08-2007, 04:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by digitalfusion

first off what do u mean by you expected tornados and got a dusty bunny, pleas explaing what you mean and why it didn;t have an impact for you to explore the site...

Regards,
Martin

lady n red hit it for me. Just saying that with a name like "tornado designs" I expected a highly energetic, very wild site. Your is very drab and the misrepresentation of the name turned me off from viewing the rest of it.

**digitalfusion** · 02-08-2007, 06:38 PM

Ok so basically gathering up what you guys have said, i need to work on the following areas:

- HTML and CSS coding
- Overall Design
- Integration of domain name with the theme/design

and basically redo the whole site...

In basic terms a bad website..

Back to the drawing board it is then any siggestions for the layou or anything..

Thanks for you comments they really do help

Regards,
Martin

**olschool** · 02-09-2007, 12:43 PM

I like it alot

**digitalfusion** · 02-11-2007, 07:51 PM

Hey!

I have changed the overall theme and design of the website... i know it's not perfect but just wanted to check in with you guys and see what you think of it now

Regards,
Martin

**Jeffeh** · 02-12-2007, 01:17 AM

I would avoid the use of iframe, instead use php and include statements

**digitalfusion** · 02-12-2007, 07:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jeffeh

I would avoid the use of iframe, instead use php and include statements

Where do you get the iframe from i haven't used iframe on my website.

Regards,
Martin

**Sydpix** · 02-12-2007, 07:13 AM

There is most definitely and overflow statement in your css. It makes your content in layer one scroll.

here is your code.

Code:

 #Layer1 {
    position:absolute;
    width:610px;
    height:399px;
    z-index:4;
    left: 307px;
    top: 370px;
    background-color: #FFFFFF;
    overflow: scroll;
}

Just remove either the overflow statement or the hight if you want to get rid of it.

**digitalfusion** · 02-12-2007, 06:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sydpix

There is most definitely and overflow statement in your css. It makes your content in layer one scroll.

here is your code.

Code:

 #Layer1 {
    position:absolute;
    width:610px;
    height:399px;
    z-index:4;
    left: 307px;
    top: 370px;
    background-color: #FFFFFF;
    overflow: scroll;
}

Just remove either the overflow statement or the hight if you want to get rid of it.

Ah i see what you mean that is to restrict the content into that one panel in the middle of the page...

**twiggy** · 02-13-2007, 08:51 PM

Why all the tables when you have a list of CSS commands longer than a pint can of premium wife beater?

Beats me.

Design I hate it, very un-attractive, code messy, hardy to navigate.

I think what the people above are saying, is not to relate your site to a tornado as such, just the title makes it sound dynamic and exciting (something different). Different it is but not in a good way.

My opinion is a complete re-design.

**digitalfusion** · 02-14-2007, 03:43 AM

ok i appreicate all your comments, i think the reason the website is full of tables is because that is the way photoshop outputs the page and i guess i'm not too comfortable with <div> tags yet...

Same with css i'm trying to learn it but everything i seem to do comes out wrong...

As for design can you be more specific as to what parts of the design you do not like so i can see areas to improve on.. becuase re-designing a million times isn;t going to help if i don;t know where i;m going wrong...

Regards,
Martin

**Sydpix** · 02-14-2007, 04:25 AM

You just need some inspiration. Here is a site full of it. Check it out.

http://www.cssbeauty.com/gallery/

**digitalfusion** · 02-14-2007, 04:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sydpix

You just need some inspiration. Here is a site full of it. Check it out.

http://www.cssbeauty.com/gallery/

Thanks will have a look at that website and hopefully build a website using css and xhtml...

Thanks again
Martin