We’ve given the Irish Isp Test site a minor facelift while fixing some of the bugs, removing the login requirement and added a couple of new features.
You can now check your connection speed without logging in or signing up. The login session has been fixed, so regardless of where you login you will stay logged in ie. login to forum or test page – it won’t matter
Added a simple IP display with whois output..
More features on the way..
Michele Neylon :: Pensieri
Technology, Marketing, Domains, Thoughts
Can I be a f….. for a second and say that it needs a little more work?
I see this: “To check your current speed click here NO login required!”, click the link and the first thing on the next page is the login form. It would be more user friendy if the “Run Speed Test!” link was brought to the top of the page.
When I click “Run speed test” nothing happens for me … probably because I have Java disabled, however there was no error meaage or warning telling me to enable java.
The whole point of the site revamp is to get people to use the _NEW_ features. People can still run a test with no login. If the “Run Speed Test!” was the first link on the page not only would people not use these features, they would probably get confused.
EG: “Where have my results gone?”
We opened the “no login” feature back up to allow anyone who didn’t want to opt in to these features to run the test. We still have over 5000 members to think about.
We will have a look into this.
I’m sorry to say I find it confusing too. So much text on the front page! The test — the main function of the site — is hidden. Tricking your visitors into using or discovering features will only annoy them and send them elsewhere. Trust me on this, I’ve made the same mistakes you’re making now.
I agree there is a lot of text on the main page, this is something I am trying to trim down without loosing too much of the forum/poll titles.
The main function of the site is clearly located on the main navigation and side nav:
Home | Register | Test Your Speed | Forum – Latest Discussions | Contact Us
The “Test Your Speed” option is one of the first 3 choices on each menu. As you may be aware, these placements are in the top 3 “Hit Zones” for Navigational items. Eye Trait studies clearly show this is one of the first places an eye focuses while browsing.
Once you go to this page you only have 3 options.
1. Login, redirects you to the speed test after logging in.
2. Register, Sign up for a free account
3. Don’t Want to Register?, Run Speed Test!
How more clearly do you want? It clearly says what you can do and even simplifies the process with only 3 options.
I don’t see how we are “Tricking” anyone. The user clearly has 3 options on the login page. Can they not read? It clearly says “Don’t Want to Register?” how more clear can you get!
I’m sure you have made similar mistakes in the past. These changes have been implemented not only to save bandwidth (140 gb a month) but to include more value for the end user.
I understand some of your rationale, Jason, but it’s flawed. Especially regarding the navigation: I’ve never heard anyone talk about “hit zones”; it’s not a term used in the web dev community. And an “eye trait” is something you inherit from your parents. 🙂
But I’m being a bit of a prick on that, sorry. There’s nothing terrible about the site. Best of luck with it.
By the way, if you want to cut bandwidth, remove those mental meta tags! By trimming the unnecessary ones (going by Alexa’s data) you could save at least 15 GB per month!
Eoghan
Thanks for your input.
I wouldn’t be overly concerned about the bandwidth and as Jason isn’t paying for it …….
The meta tags are hardly “mental” – there maybe more of them than what you are used to…
Eoghan I didn’t mean to sound bitchey in my reply. You can’t imagine how many comments have been made about the site both positive and negative. Everyone has their own opinion on the new site, that’s fine, I was just blowing off steam :).
I was talking about eye trends and patterns. The “hit zones” was just a refrence to the first items within the nav.
Agreed some of the Meta is redundant. Most of the traffic was from the download tests, only a small % was pages. 15 GB? LOL
Anyhow thanks for the feedback.