Sabc one’s website gets hit by eGravity!
…And hopefully, that’s only on my mac.
It looks like the website was deprived a very underestimated yet imperative web development phase, cross browser compatibility testing. A phase which ensures that the user’s experience is enhanced regardless of the browser and platform being used to access the site. Ensuring that your website works across multiple web browsers, platforms and devices will ensure that your website is accessible to as wide range of users as possible.
That’s one phase that makes a web developer’s life hell. While the developer’s priority should always be the site’s users with their browsers and platform in mind. That doesn’t make the process any easier because you still have to contend with different versions of those particular browsers, so a website that functions perfectly on IE 6.0 may look completely different on IE 4.0.
The National Broadcaster’s online nightmare is however, worse than I thought. It seems like the website doesn’t display properly not only on mac browsers but also on some windows browsers. If not all.
Personally, I think the site was tested only on one browser. The web developer’s.
I won’t even touch the look of the site, the functionality (or lack of one) is what I will focus on.
And who is to blame? The web developer, or the client?
Simple, the developer.
Reason being, the process of avoiding such nightmares should be part of the debugging phase. You’re free to argue, but it’s unfair for a client to pay and still be given the task of ensuring that their website displays properly across major browsers or at least those of their target market.
Would you think of it as a fair trade if they sell you condoms and make it your responsibility to ensure that they work properly? I doubt it. You might have quite a hefty price to pay, your life. In business ‘your life’ would be your company image.
This looks horrible on the Sabc’s image. What if the visitor is a potential business client doing their research on the broadcaster through their website?
I personally judge people and companies on their image. If you hand me a ‘cheap-powerpoint-designed-looking’ business card and still expect me to trust you with my brand then I’d say you’re being over ambitious. If you don’t take your image seriously then how the hell would I trust you with mine?
A company’s reputation is often confused with their image. Reputation is only one component of an overall image.
The Sabc might have a reputation for broadcasting quality and appealing tv shows to its audience but one thing they should know is that their company image also includes the quality of their marketing, advertising and presentation materials.
Content is sure king and if you agree to that, then that makes presentation queen.
And what’s a king without a queen?
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Can you believe it?!
I have struggled to comprehend this fact of blatant disregard for decent website development since I first saw it.
Being a Firefox user, there is an alternative in http://www.tvsite.co.za/, but how sad is it that we have to use something else to get something simple like their tv guide.
I’m guessing our tv license is not going towards website development and cross browser testing.
One of the saddest thing: their old site broke in FF, and after the redesign it breaks as badly, but in different ways.
So so sad…
[...] wrote about something similar regarding sabc one’s website, but this time I stumbled upon a worse [...]
I see you published this entry in February. Why, oh why is that site still live? I thought the misaligned was just an oversight on the developer’s part until I took a look at the page source code.
SHOCK!! HORROR! HORROR!
It’s clearly apparent that the developer did not know what they were doing. XHTML 1.1 is not recommended if you wish to address a multitude of different browsers. 1.0 transitional is the better choice.
There are two opening ‘html’ tags. One in the correct place at the top, one is somewhere in the middle after the ‘body’ opening tag.
Then you have a mess of different opening and closing tags all over the place (‘td’ followed by ‘div’ then by ‘html’ and ends in ‘/div’) ?
To the SABC: And you guys want to compete with the likes of CNN and Reuters? Not a chance!
Sifiso,
I always find it disturbing when companies which can afford professional design end up with work of such poor standards.
The ‘high’ cost of employing a professional web developer is nothing compared to the damage to their brand that arises from this situation.
Welcome to my blog and thanks for leaving a remark, I hope the Sabc website’s developers will learn a thing or two from your comment and maybe fix some of the coding mistakes that you highlighted!
This has been a personal bugbear of mine for ages. The main SABC site hasn’t worked properly in Firefox since 2007. And it returns 807 errors.
I see the SABC 1 site has been updated to use .. wait for it … frames. Excellent work!
Nice site btw Mokokoma.
Justin Slack,
I think they’re ill-informed, they should realize that gone are the days when browsing meant using only Internet Explorer and IE alone.
Welcome, thanks for leaving your remark and compliments on my website.
Perhaps it won’t be long before they realise that they should be aspiring to the new Whitehouse website: http://www.whitehouse.gov
I’m praying that Obama’s mojo will rub off.
Sifiso,
I hope so, chances are some of the people responsible now sees the power of effective design. Political party, DA had their identity redesigned just after Barack Obama won the elections, their logo even has resemblance of Obama’s logo!