new folder
Sunday, August 05, 2007
new folder (15): liverpoolwebsites.info
liverpoolwebsites.info - directory of Liverpool websites updated daily.
liverpoolwebsites.info - directory of Liverpool websites updated daily.
Labels: blog, liverpool, website
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Wednesday, July 25, 2007
Best 404 error pages on the web
Great roundup of customised 404 error pages.
Great roundup of customised 404 error pages.
Labels: website, website management
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Thursday, July 05, 2007
Suggested improvements for the Virgin Trains website
I use the Virgin Trains website that often, and there are that many things that annoy me about it, that I thought it's best to keep a note somewhere. I'll update this regularly as I come across more of the issues.
Problems such as:
Problems such as:
- the total lack of a site search facility
- I know there's a section called 'My Account' that contains details of tickets I've booked, etc, but there's no apparent link to it from the home page or anywhere else. The only way that I've found to access it is to pretend to buy a ticket for another journey and then a link appears in the main navigation.
- if you fill in a particular hour for travel, you also have to fill in a quarter hour. So you can't just choose a train after 11, you have to choose a train after 11,00 (two separate drop down boxes)
- if you book multiple journeys in the same transaction, you receive a separate fast ticket code for each journey. So, when you pick up your ticket at the Fast Ticket machine you have to put several separate codes in (inserting and removing the same credit card each time to identify yourself. I'm sure they don't post each journey separately but maybe they do.
- pointless pop-ups - at random points throughout the site clicking on links opens the new page in a new window. Click on the new offer on the homepage? Popup. Submit your planned journey times? Popup. It's not unusual to find myself with six tabs open by the end of a visit to the site.
- the homepage's opening message - 'Hello and welcome to the Virgin Trains website. To bookmark this site press CTRL+D'.
- at first you're allowed to select any month of the year, but if you select a date more than 12 weeks in advance you're sent to an error page telling you you can't book more than 12 weeks in advance. The form on this page only shows the next three valid months, why doesn't the first form just do that? (added 6 July 2007)
- trying to view your booking details to cancel a booking and receiving the message 'The page isn't redirecting properly. Firefox has detected that the server is redirecting the request for this address in a way that will never complete.'. (added 6 July 2007)
- stick a time in the form on the homepage, less than two seconds later receive the message 'Due to inactivity, this site has timed out. This is for your security. Please visit the Home page to continue.' (added 6 July 2007)
- clicking on the Request Refund button to open a page with the message - 'Our new Refund Online facility is currently under construction - we expect to launch it shortly.' (added 6 July 2007)
- search for times, select available trains, reach last stage of booking form and receive message 'Sorry, tickets not available for this journey, please search again'. Go through the full process again, selecting the exact same trains and times, booking goes through (added 9 July 2007)
- regularly hitting the screen that says: Sorry, due to a technical issue we are currently unable to process your request.
If you have not yet reached the payment stage, please go back and try again.
If you have received this after you have submitted your payment card details, please click this link View Booking History.
View your booking details and check to see if your transaction is listed. If it is listed your transaction is completed and you don’t need to do anything. If it is not listed the transaction has not completed and you have not been charged so please go back and try again.
Alternatively you can call 0870 010 1127 to speak to our agent. You will need your email address and the time that you received this message. (added 13 July 2007) - wouldn't it be great if I could export new journies straight from the website booking system into my google calendar? (or outlook, or upcoming...) (added 23 July 2007)
- give your credit card a nickname, tick the check box to remember the details, next time you try to pay? have to enter all the same details again (added 2 August 2007)
- if you choose 'return' you're offered the return fares with a clickthrough option for single fares. If instead you have chose 'single' you're still offered the return fares with a clickthrough option for single fares (added 28 August 2007)
- their popup calendar sorts dates with the week starting on a Sunday instead of a Monday (added 28 August 2007)
- you choose to 'add another journey' having already booked a return journey. For this second, new, journey though you decide to only have a single and not a return. The website refuses to accept your new date of travel and will only ever give you dates for the previous journey you booked (added 28 August 2007)
- fill in your journey details on the homepage and get sent to a page 'Site down for maintenance'. Couldn't I have been given this message on the homepage? (added 17 September 2007)
Labels: website
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Tuesday, June 26, 2007
Novel UK ticket buying system
I tried to book a single train ticket for Liverpool to London for 7 July yesterday (13 days in advance). In the morning the Virgin website quoted £12.50 fares available on all times. By the afternoon they didn't have a single ticket available for less than £57. One less trip to London.
Thought I'd check if anyone else had any cheaper tickets and I came across trainline which (thankfully) I've never used before. I couldn't believe their system. You have to guess a ticket price and then they tell you if there is a ticket available at that price (the answer for each of the first 13 options is no!).
.
This appears to be the main train ticket booking website for the UK...
Thought I'd check if anyone else had any cheaper tickets and I came across trainline which (thankfully) I've never used before. I couldn't believe their system. You have to guess a ticket price and then they tell you if there is a ticket available at that price (the answer for each of the first 13 options is no!).
.This appears to be the main train ticket booking website for the UK...
Labels: website
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Tuesday, June 05, 2007
New clean design for Ask.com
As Google continues to clutter its homepage and results pages there's an opportunity for their rivals to claw back ground by offering users clean design. Ask's new homepage offers a modern straightforward alternative.
Apparently, the systems delivering the results have also been updated. I can't judge on any improvement as the last time I used Ask Jeeves was probably the first day I used the internet but trying a few searches that I regularly use in Google this afternoon I was impressed with the results.
Lifehacker doesn't think much of it, but I still think Google is beatable and I'll be looking out for in-depth studies of the Ask system in the coming weeks. ¶ Permanent link 0 comments
As Google continues to clutter its homepage and results pages there's an opportunity for their rivals to claw back ground by offering users clean design. Ask's new homepage offers a modern straightforward alternative.
Apparently, the systems delivering the results have also been updated. I can't judge on any improvement as the last time I used Ask Jeeves was probably the first day I used the internet but trying a few searches that I regularly use in Google this afternoon I was impressed with the results.
Lifehacker doesn't think much of it, but I still think Google is beatable and I'll be looking out for in-depth studies of the Ask system in the coming weeks. ¶ Permanent link 0 comments
Wednesday, May 23, 2007
London Land Grab
It's not often you find anything of interest in The Independent's internet coverage (today's feature was the typically challenging - 'Why are sites so poor?'), but their round-up of googlemaps included this fundraising site from Capital Radio.
London Land Grab encourages site visitors to buy London landmarks ranging from shops and pubs for a fiver to parks and stadia for £50 a go. It's a great, simple idea and clicking round on the map shows that plenty of people have bought their spot.
What does your money go to?
* £5 will pay for a young carer to go the cinema/pantomime/London Aquarium etc etc
* £15 will pay for a child to have a present this Christmas
* £25 will pay for a music therapist to work with terminally-ill children in hospital
* £30 will pay for 200 young victim of crime leaflets to be printed
* £50 will pay for 2 hours of sessional counselling for a child affected by bereavement
* £100 will pay for a specially-trained clown doctor to pay a visit to sick children in hospital
It's not often you find anything of interest in The Independent's internet coverage (today's feature was the typically challenging - 'Why are sites so poor?'), but their round-up of googlemaps included this fundraising site from Capital Radio.
London Land Grab encourages site visitors to buy London landmarks ranging from shops and pubs for a fiver to parks and stadia for £50 a go. It's a great, simple idea and clicking round on the map shows that plenty of people have bought their spot.
What does your money go to?
* £5 will pay for a young carer to go the cinema/pantomime/London Aquarium etc etc
* £15 will pay for a child to have a present this Christmas
* £25 will pay for a music therapist to work with terminally-ill children in hospital
* £30 will pay for 200 young victim of crime leaflets to be printed
* £50 will pay for 2 hours of sessional counselling for a child affected by bereavement
* £100 will pay for a specially-trained clown doctor to pay a visit to sick children in hospital
Labels: googlemaps, website
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Sunday, May 20, 2007
Sixth over, England's second innings
When the Guardian introduced it's over by over coverage of test cricket a couple of years ago it was a great innovation, their sports desk providing an irreverent running commmentary on the match for deskbound office workers.
Everyone does it now and it's all got a bit formulaic - journalist jokes about his hangover, bores from the City email with which pub they're off to, someone emails to say they used to play in the same team as one of the cricketers and they were crap...
I thought I'd put together a round-up of all the different ways to follow a cricket match online but I realised that with the crappy urls they all use the links would be out of date in 24 hours.
So here's one over, the sixth of England's second innings against the West Indies this morning, from several different perspectives.
BBC Online
Daily Telegraph
Times Online
The Guardian
Cricinfo
When the Guardian introduced it's over by over coverage of test cricket a couple of years ago it was a great innovation, their sports desk providing an irreverent running commmentary on the match for deskbound office workers.
Everyone does it now and it's all got a bit formulaic - journalist jokes about his hangover, bores from the City email with which pub they're off to, someone emails to say they used to play in the same team as one of the cricketers and they were crap...
I thought I'd put together a round-up of all the different ways to follow a cricket match online but I realised that with the crappy urls they all use the links would be out of date in 24 hours.
So here's one over, the sixth of England's second innings against the West Indies this morning, from several different perspectives.
BBC Online
1301: A bit of Gayle before lunch - I reckon there's plenty of ladies out there who'd like some of that. Plenty of turn for Gayle a and his final ball turns past Cook's outside edge -but England are in tact at lunch. Don't go flicking... 8-0
Daily Telegraph
Over 6. Bowler: Chris Gayle. England: 8/0(rr 1.33)
Runs 0.
* 5.6 Gayle to Cook. Off break length ball, outside off stump on the front foot, left for no runs. Like Panesar in the previous innings, Gayle is getting some turn.
* 5.5 Gayle to Cook. Off break length ball, outside off stump on the front foot, left to wicketkeeper for no runs, fielded by Ramdin.
* 5.4 Gayle to Cook. Off break length ball, outside off stump on the front foot, left for no runs.
* 5.3 Gayle to Cook. Off break length ball, outside off stump on the front foot, left for no runs.
* 5.2 Gayle to Cook. Off break length ball, outside off stump on the front foot, left to wicketkeeper for no runs, fielded by Ramdin.
* 5.1 Gayle to Cook. Off break back of a length, outside off stump on the back foot defending, to short extra cover for no runs.
Times Online
England 8-0 (Strauss 6, Cook 1) Overs: 6
Chris Gayle bowls the last over before lunch, and serves up a maiden. England go in with a lead of 124, but they'll be wanting to crack on this afternoon. I suspect Ramnaresh Sarwan's men will be very content with their display so far today. Join me shortly to see how they fare.
The Guardian
6th over: England 8-0 (Strauss 6 Cook 1) Sarwan throws the ball to Crystal Gayle for an over before lunch. "To be fair to the BLF," begins Andy Bradshaw, "their rule changes are nowhere near as silly as the ICC's "Supersub" brainfart they had in 2005." And that gag has neatly filled in the six balls that take us up to lunch. There was nary a run scored off them. Right, I'm scurrying down the ladder and back to the turf beneath to scout out a chip shop that'll provide me with enough saveloys to keep me steaming through the afternoon. In St John's Wood? I'll be lucky eh? See you shortly.
Cricinfo
And that's lunch
5.6 Gayle to Cook, no run, excellent ball to finish the session, spinning away sharply from Cook who survives
5.5 Gayle to Cook, no run, Cook takes a step down the pitch before padding it away
5.4 Gayle to Cook, no run, tighter line, very well bowled in fact and Cook ignores it
5.3 Gayle to Cook, no run, ooh big turn from Gayle here, but too wide of the off stump
More "oohs" from Ramdin
5.2 Gayle to Cook, no run, left alone outside off this time
Ramdin makes a noise
5.1 Gayle to Cook, no run, just on off stump and he comes forward to defend
Around the wicket
Right, not long til lunch. I am absolutely starving, too. Chris Gayle removes his cap and he's on for the last over of the session
Labels: cricket, internet, website
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Wednesday, May 09, 2007
Definitive contemporary design, Liverpool
New website for Definitive, Liverpool, specialists in 'the design and supply of accessories, furnishing and complete interior refurbishments'.
New website for Definitive, Liverpool, specialists in 'the design and supply of accessories, furnishing and complete interior refurbishments'.
Labels: website
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Monday, February 05, 2007
a modern toss winter
Re-live winter as it used to be with the new Modern Toss website.
Re-live winter as it used to be with the new Modern Toss website.
Labels: website
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Thursday, November 23, 2006
Watch Your Mouth
Watch Your Mouth from News Sniffer provides access to censored message board posts from BBC Online. The feeds show posts that have been moderated / removed.
Labels: moderation, website
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