Rate my Website

[trapped]

I thought after the recent rate my logo thread I would ask for feedback on my website. I originally created the site way back in the 1990's and didn't really update it until I started working the business full-time about 10 months ago (due to a layoff, thanks awesome economy!). I'm currently publishing the site using FrontPage (cause that is what I know and I'm too cheap to get a pro).

So far I have gotten positive comments on it from my customers, but I appreciate comments/constructive criticism. Right now I am #4 on Google local and in the middle of the first page organic for "elk grove computer repair" searches.

Thanks in advance for taking a look.

http://www.thecomputergeeks.com

[JosephLeo]

Originally Posted by trapped

I thought after the recent rate my logo thread I would ask for feedback on my website. I originally created the site way back in the 1990's and didn't really update it until I started working the business full-time about 10 months ago (due to a layoff, thanks awesome economy!). I'm currently publishing the site using FrontPage (cause that is what I know and I'm too cheap to get a pro).

So far I have gotten positive comments on it from my customers, but I appreciate comments/constructive criticism. Right now I am #4 on Google local and in the middle of the first page organic for "elk grove computer repair" searches.

Thanks in advance for taking a look.

http://www.thecomputergeeks.com

As an ex-graphic designer I must inform you that I don't think serif fonts go well with web-pages. Especially those with dark backgrounds. Also I've never been a fan of the "binary matrix code" as a background. But it does its job and that's inform your customers what you do, why you do it, and how long you've been doing it.

My recommendations?

• The left toolbar goes away when you click any pages, I want to navigate the site at all times- not when you tell me to.
• There are two navigation areas. the top and the left- you should choose only one...I would go with the top one and bring the stuff on the left one there as well.
• If you're going to have a matrix background at least set up an area with a solid background for your text so that it's easier to read. Maybe just a simple black box with all your text in it.

There you go, that's not meant to be offensive in any way- just constructive criticism. All in all I give it a thumbs up- it's good enough to use so you don't really have to do anything.

[trapped]

That is exactly the kind of feedback I was looking for, thanks!

I tried the black background but I thought it looked weird. I'll try doing some further tweaks.

[MM PC Solutions]

I instantly navigated away from it as the background & the text colour makes it uncomfortable to read.

[JosephLeo]

Originally Posted by MM PC Solutions

I instantly navigated away from it as the background & the text colour makes it uncomfortable to read.

Nothing is wrong with the text color- he wants a black background with white letters. High contrast is great- but the thing is that the text (or numbers in this case) behind them is distracting your eyes which is why I suggested he remove it. Also- serif fonts look horrible on screens and especially more so on dark backgrounds.

[MM PC Solutions]

High contrast is one thing, appealing to prospective customers is another.

[atlanticjim]

IMHO
I find that the black is unattractive (personally it reminds me of warez and hacking sites).
There is nothing in the block text that helps me navigate it with my eye.
For example "For the Home" "For your business" "Service Area" "Laptop Service" "Networking".

Again, IMHO and I am not in anyway a graphic designer.
I will be submitting my site soon and expect and hope for a slew of "creative criticism".

[cmonova]

Not a big fan of the black myself. I think the content is great and alot of it but really dislike the layout of it. I'd try something brighter and more inviting to the potential customer.

[ComputerClinic]

Take a look at these sites:

http://www.color-wheel-pro.com/color-meaning.html

http://thethemeblog.com/tutorials/ev...ion-with-color

Pretty interesting stuff.

P.S.: please ignore my site. I'm waiting for a flexcroll license so I can update my website with a new look. Then it will have the same colors as my avatar.

[Reviver]

The text is hard to read due to the grey binary code in the background.

I love making black background websites, but I don't think they are appropriate for a business website. The reason for this is the "atmosphere" that it exudes to visitors. As someone here mentioned it feels like a warez site.

Light text on black background websites tend to feel like a hole hidden away somewhere on the net, while a white or light backgrounds give a website a feeling of lightness and life.

I would also stay away from most animated GIFs.

I would also probably drop the visible hit counter. It gives the page an amateurish web 1.0 feel. Customers probably won't care how many people have visited the site. (keep an invisible counter though for statistic reasons of course!)

I also second what JosephLeo said about the serif fonts. Check out this great list of sans-serif fonts to choose from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of...ces#Sans_serif (of course, only a few are available in-browser on all browsers).

I also agree that the left sidebar navigation is not very nice in the way the main links disappear when a link is clicked, giving the user an option to move "up" to the previous navigation level. This will most likely confuse non-web/computer savvy customers. The best thing would be for the links to remain static on each page viewed, with links relevant to the currently active link/section to be "revealed" below the main link in indented or bulleted form.

Your content is looking pretty good. I hope my criticisms help, I wish you the best of luck in your business!

-R