This week’s homework is going to connect to the next two weeks, so it’s important to follow these directions carefully.
First, think of a website of a large organization, company, government entity, nonprofit, etc. that has been around for at least the last three decades. Go to its website and copy the URL (uniform resource locator). Then, visit the Internet Wayback Machine, paste the URL, and hit enter. Verify that you can view a version of that website older than 2005–you will want to use the oldest version for our homework assignment next week. If the website that you selected is available today and there is an archived version older than 2005 then you are ready to proceed. If you were not able to find an archived version older than 2005, you will need to select another website until you find one with an archived version older than 2005.
Second, using a clean sheet of white copy paper, draw a site map (see this Wikipedia entry and this Adobe XD Ideas entry for support) based on what you see on your selected website’s homepage as of today (don’t worry about the archived version in the Internet Wayback Machine until I talk about our homework next week). Remember to focus on the links on the homepage that lead to other pages on the same site. You do not have to document links leading to unaffiliated external sites (e.g., social media sites). Take a clean photo of your drawn site map (crop out anything that isn’t the paper and avoid casting a shadow over your illustration). Upload your image to imgbb.com as you did in last week’s homework to generate an embeddable URL to your photo. Alternatively, you may use software to draw your selected website’s site map, but this is not required. What you may not do is rely on a website that autogenerates the site map for you.
Third, write a memo as shown below in which you state the website that you selected, embed your site map, and describe how the website is organized in your own words. Your memo should be between 250-500 words depending on how much explanation you need to describe the site’s site map based on its homepage.
TO: Prof. Ellis
FROM:
DATE:
SUBJECT: Site Map for [YOURDOMAIN.COM]
INTRODUCTION
One or two sentence introduction to your memo, its purpose, what it contains, etc.
SITE MAP FOR [YOURDOMAIN.COM]
Embed your photo of your site map illustration here. Go to imgbb.com, click "Start Uploading," select your photo, set a time for it to be deleted (leave it up for at least 2 weeks), and copy the URL generated at the bottom of the "Upload Complete" screen (it will look like https://ibb.com/letters). Return to the comment box on OpenLab, click the icon that looks like a photo, paste the URL to your image, click Save. After you click "Publish Comment," your image should appear where you inserted it (which should be here after your introduction.
SITE MAP DISCUSSION
Write 250-500 words describing the website's site map that you illustrated above. Some relevant details to include might be where certain links are located on the page, which are emphasized and others de-emphasized, and your own observations about what the site map and its links tell you about the company/organization whose website you selected.Fourth, stay tuned for the next stage of this homework, which we will begin in Week 5. As you might have guessed, you will create a site map for an older version of the site. Then, in Week 6, you will compare the site maps for the contemporary website and its older archived version.
TO: Prof. Ellis
FROM: Jaida Clouden
DATE: 2/28/23
SUBJECT: Site Map for [https://payless.com]
INTRODUCTION
The purpose of this memo is to explain my site map for an over three-decade-year-old website. This site map contains information about the current Payless website.
SITE MAP FOR [https://payless.com]
SITE MAP DISCUSSION
Once I click on the homepage of the Payless site, a banner with an image of shoes shows up on my screen. The image is an advertisement for the items the website has to offer. Below the banner, there are multiple tabs for customers to choose from. The tabs are lined up horizontally from each other at the top of the website. The tabs serve as a guide for the user to identify what they are looking for.
The seven tabs shown are: Women, Men, Girls, Boys, Accessories, Sale, and Brands. These tabs are shown in black color.
The âclearanceâ tab was emphasized and bolded in red color.
This is an example of smart advertising because the color red stands for âsaleâ in shoe and clothing stores. This alerts the user to identify the sale tab easily.
Each tab sends you to another link from the company.
-The Women tab sends you all the women’s items
-The Men tab sends you all the men’s items
-The Girls tab sends you all the girl’s items
-The Boys tab sends you all the boy’s items
-The Accessories tab shows you all the extra items you can purchase
-The Sale tab shows you all the items that are on sale
-The Clearance tab shows you all the items that are on clearance
-The Brand tab give you information about the several brands associated with Payless
My overall observation about the site map is that there are a variety of links that you can click on from the home page of Payless. The companyâs website allows users an easy experience to find exactly what they are looking for.
TO: Prof. Ellis
FROM: Khaled Akam
DATE: March 4, 2023
SUBJECT: Site Map for fbi.gov
INTRODUCTION
This document is a site map for the government’s official FBI website design that is vital to give information promptly to civilians. The purpose is to show how the site is made up to guide the audience, which is important to receive feedback without pushing others away from not being able to navigate the site, which could be detrimental to human life.
SITE MAP FOR [https://www.fbi.gov]
https://ibb.co/n1qvnnT
SITE MAP DISCUSSION
The first thing an audience member should look for on a government website is if it is official, which is the first thing on the top left of the screen. It explains that .gov belongs to the government and that https means you are safely secure. Moving below the page is a tab option followed by the FBI logo and what it stands for. Further below we see a picture of an FBI agent wearing the logo as well. Toward the bottom are three titles labeled âI Want To,â Featured Contentâ and âNewsâ followed with links under each category. Scrolling completely down the front page of the FBI site is a condensed section of categories and links below these sections. Lastly, we see the FBI logo with social media icons come into play again just like at the top of the page. Looking at the tab options I mentioned at the very top of the page I notice that this site gives repetition throughout its entirety. For example, on the tabs option it has a âMOREâ title that you can click which opens other tabs on top of tabs already to the right of this option moving along to the right of the page. If you look at more options, 17 tabs are shown, and it repeats the tab options that are already shown without having to click more. Not only this but the three categories that were mentioned previously as you scroll down the page are mostly shown in the tabs with the same titles. FBI emphasizes the importance of these titles which have been thoroughly repeated on the entire site from top to bottom. The FBI puts significance on civilians to know more information about what they do prominently. It is the only thing that resembles not only tab options you can click but is also on the picture that shows up at once when on the site and takes up most of the page you stare at. This is an organized organization that gives multiple options of the same thing.
TO: Prof. Ellis
FROM: Sphear Forde
DATE: March 4, 2023
SUBJECT: Site Map for [https://www.pbs.org/]
INTRODUCTION
The purpose of this memo is to inform users about PBS and the pages on the PBS website. It contains a site map for the PBS website and a summary describing the site map.
SITE MAP FOR [https://www.pbs.org/]
SITE MAP DISCUSSION
On the PBS website home page there are ten tabs centered at the top of the page. The ten tabs are: sign in, home, shows, explore, TV schedules, shop, donate, search, live TV and PBS Thirteen. The âsign inâ and âlive TVâ tabs are both enclosed in bolden shapes while the PBS thirteen tab is capitalized in bold letters. Each tab navigates users to different pages on the PBS website. For example, the shows tab navigates users to the âshow allâ subpage which consist of all the different shows available on the PBS website. The explore tab consists of ten subpages that divide the shows by genre. When users click on each genre they are directed to the shows under that genre. On the site map, each main tab is represented by a medium size box that is linked to the homepage box. The subpages for each main tab are linked to main tab boxes. The âsign inâ and âlive TVâ boxes are bolden to reflect the design on the website.
Based on the site map, I can tell that PBS is an organization that value their users and their needs. The PBS website is organized in a way that is easy for users to navigate and understand. The main navigation tabs are located at the of the homepage and organized from most important to least important. Important tabs are enclosed in white boxes. Less important Information such as information about the organization is located at the bottom of the homepage.
To: Professor Ellis
From: Sandy Fougeres
Date: 03/05/23
Subject: Site Map for Meetup.com
INTRODUCTION
Hello Professor, this is a memo to describe the site map that I created for Meetup.com. I explain my process in choosing Meetup.com, how I decided to draw the map, and my thoughts on the siteâs organization.
SITE MAP FOR MEETUP.COM
SITE MAP DISCUSSION
Meetup.com is a website for creating and attending groups that are hobby or interest centric. I started my site mapping process by first inserting the Meetup.com URL into the Wayback Machine Internet Archive. On the Wayback website, I was able to see that the site has existed since the 2000s. While drawing the site map, I took notice in how the landing page was organized. On the upper right corner are three tabs for choosing the siteâs language, login, and sign up. I put these tabs in my site map by drawing Meetup.com at the top and to the right, I added English then the links including the forward slashes for login and signup. I then drew a long horizontal line to branch out the seven tabs that appear under the Meetup URL but are in different folders.
I drew the seven tabs by their folder names including their links and forward slashes. I then wrote the names of the tabs like how they appear on the website, which is boost your career, find your zen, get moving, share your language and/+ culture, read with friends, write together, and hone your craft. I decided to deemphasize on the search bar and the additional tabs under the See Whatâs Happening heading. I didnât want to focus on areas where people would have to enter their personal preferences such as location and the day of the week they wanted to attend an event. As I scrolled down, I noticed a How Meetup Works heading I decided to include the tabs under the heading on my site map, writing them down vertically.
I noticed at this point that there was some repetition with the registering and how to start/join a group tabs. On the site map, I included this by putting the register link next to the join a group tab. As I continued to the bottom of the website, I noticed there was three additional group tabs. The groups are: your account, discover, and meetup; I listed the folders for each of the groups in my site map. Finally, I created a line to indicate the very bottom of the webpage which has the terms of service, privacy policy, cookie policy, and help. My overall thoughts is that there is a emphasis on getting people to create accounts. The site is organized for searching/exploring interest groups and promotes the variety of groups by location, making it easier for people to attend the events.
TO: Prof. Ellis
FROM: Nikka Rosenstein
DATE: 3/5/2023
SUBJECT: Site Map for valvesoftware.com
INTRODUCTION
This memo contains a brief overview of the site map and organization of valvesoftware.com, the gaming company currently best known for the Steam platform.
SITE MAP FOR VALVESOFTWARE.COM
SITE MAP DISCUSSION
The home page for Valve software seems to be designed around the assumption that most site traffic will stem from potential job-seekers. The bulk of the main page is a list of expandable departments underneath which are job titles, each of which links out to the relevant job listing(s) in that section of the website. Above this, a large “About” link leads to a page with far more detail about Valve itself. A standard footer bar at the bottom contains the majority of links within the domain besides job listings. Both the landing page and the About page have multiple links over to the Steam landing page, which is a separate domain.
To: Professor Ellis
From: Tiana Beatty
Date: 03.06.2023
Subject: Sitemap for Bestbuy.com
This memo is about the creation of my sitemap for Best Buy. Best Buy is a retail electronic supplier that specializes in the selling of electronic devices, games, toys, and wearable technologies. The site map that’s pasted is the current site map for Best Buy’s current website.
Creating this sitemap was somewhat of a difficult challenge. The reason was because the tabs presented on the homepage didn’t have another information. But in the menu bar, there were lots of categories that represented a specific type of electronic or service so the user can navigate what they wanted to look at on the site. That’s what I drew first because I thought that was important to include. After the menu and the different categories that were there, I noticed that there were other tabs on the homepage even easy access to the account settings if someone would like to login to their account. Next to the account tab was order status, recently viewed, and saved items. I thought that this was a smart idea because if a customer is absentmindedly exploring the site and they come across items they like, it’s easier to click on the “recently viewed,” or “saved items” tabs to see the items that could their attention. This allows for the shopping experience for the customer to be easier to access and navigate. The order status lets a customer who may have placed an order on this site to check up on it. Well it was shipped to their home or available for pick up at the store, just knowing that a customer could easily check up on their order without having to be directed to a third party site makes the experience easier as well.
Overall Best Buys’s website was created simply and organized to give the user easy accessibility and navigation while also providing products, services, and account personalizations to help make their shopping experience easier to enjoy.
TO: Professor Jason W. Ellis
FROM: Ronald C. Hinds
DATE: March 06, 2023
SUBJECT: Site map for stc.org
INTRODUCTION
3. SITE MAP DISCUSSION
The Society of Technical Communication, STC, website page allows easy access to general information e.g. the link âJoin and Renewâ has a dropbox which shows 3 categories; Individual Membership, Sustaining Membership and Corporate Value Membership. All 3 can be accessed for information for each of the 3 categories respectively. The link âMembership Benefitsâ has a dropbox which displays access to Benefits, Value Calculator, Member Perks and Logos. However, the âMy STCâ link dropbox does not automatically display âMy STC Profileâ because the user has to sign in with âUsername and Passwordâ to gain access. This allows a degree of confidentiality and privacy. The âForgot Passwordâ hyperlink obviously means that the user has to redo the sign-in protocol. Some of the hyperlinks for example âMembership FAQsâ do not have a dropbox so the user can click and read and review âFrequently Asked Questionsâ.
Another feature under the âMy STCâ dropbox opens âEducation Report Cardâ among others. This report card displays all education (classes and training) a member participates in within the past 3 years of membership. To view the memberâs education report the user has to sign in again because of privacy and confidentiality concerns.
The sitemap tells me the priorities of the STC and the goals of the organization and what membership offers. It shows tools which a member can use to learn new skills and to improve existing skill sets.
I recommend each of my classmates access the http://www.STC.org site, if they so desire, and see what it offers.
TO: Prof. Ellis
FROM: Naila Butt
DATE: 6 MARCH 2023
SUBJECT: Site Map for nytimes.com
Introduction:
This memo will present the site map I created for the current New York Times website.
Site Map:
Site Map Discussion:
I chose to deconstruct the New York Times (NYT) website and soon realized that there were a large number of categories within their site. The New York Times has a set of two tab bars to navigate through its website. Tabs located horizontally on the top of the home page led to some categories such as world, U.S., Politics, Business, etc. However, there is also a menu bar (hamburger button) to the left of the site which, if you hover over the categories, you are given subcategories to choose from. Though, if you click on a category on the home page (under the NYT logo), you can still click on a subcategory option on the specific page you chose. For example, if you click the science tab, some tabs under the science page still lead to different subcategories. Some options are even different from those offered under the hamburger button.
Upon creating the site map, I found the many subcategories to be overwhelming, so I felt that my site map was a bit busy to look at. However, the website does a good job of sorting a lot of information. It is easy to choose a topic and continue to narrow it down to your choice of interests, as this site has tabs for navigation throughout the entire site. When you view an article of interest, recommendations for other articles that fall within that subcategory appear at the end of the page. This shows that the NYT is aiming for a user interface-friendly site that is catered to the interests of a wide range of audiences.
TO: Prof. Ellis
FROM: Bria Glenn
DATE: March 6, 2023
SUBJECT: Site Map for [https://www.llbean.com/]
INTRODUCTION
In this memo, I will be showing and explaining the site map I created for a company that has existed for more than three decades. My site map will include information about the clothing company L.L. Bean.
SITE MAP FOR: [https://www.llbean.com/]
SITE MAP DISCUSSION
L.L. Bean is a retail company that caters to items mainly for outdoor activities. The company was founded in 1912 by Leon Leonwood Bean. The website is packed with a lot of information, and most of it can be found right on the home screen. Compared to other retail companiesâ websites, it is a bit lengthy, but it gives all the necessary information which includes shortcuts to navigate you to other parts of the site quicker. Everything is spanned horizontally across the homepage compared to some websites where a lot of the categories and information is off to the side. There are pictures to go along with the larger categories they have such as new collections. They have some of the same categories such as contact information and order status at the top and the bottom of the home screen. The site navigations are geared toward the upcoming season to show you new items that have been released. Along with the presentation for the new spring collections, they provide educational videos for tips on camping.
My site map shows how busy the website is. Much like any company there is a lot to advertise and the red lines going down the page represents the pictures that are in between the bigger categories. I attempted to emulate the layout of the site as best as I could because of the amount of information provided. Each category at the very top of the site map does have a drop-down menu to show the sub-categories. Next to the title, the smaller wording in red represents the smaller informational categories that are also at the top right corner on the websiteâs home screen. The main purpose of my sitemap was to include as much of the information I can. A lot of the necessary information can be located on the homepage apart from the subcategories of items which would show pictures and descriptions. Once you go into the subcategories, you can click on one and it will take you to that page. You can also easily navigate other categories that pop up on the left side of the site. The side panel also includes filters to make the shopping site easier. Each site you get sent to has the main idea of that page at the top before showing the products or other information underneath it.
TO: Professor Ellis
FROM: Lisette Rivera
DATE: 03/07/2023
SUBJECT: Site Map For nypl.org
INTRODUCTION
This is the site I decided to make the site map for was my job’s site, nypl.org. The purpouse of the site map is to show the sections of the site that are the most important part of the site that many people see first and what they look for.
SITE MAP DISCUSSION
When going into this assignment, I found it a little hard because when you go on the website there’s a lot of information on one page. The first thing you see when it opens up at first, it shows a banner, that changes every month depending on what the month intells. This month is women’s history month so the banner shows a link and images with information on inspirational women throughout history. So because I knew that it was something that changes, I did not include it.
Now when you scroll on down the site, there’s other options like “Spotlight”, “What’s on”, and “Staff’s Pick”. But onces again, those are things that change throughout the year, so I thought, why include them? But, I did include discover, because even tho it changes, it still has important information that is actually repeated throughout the homepage. So I included those. I also only put a site under the top headers because those are the ones that stay static throughout the year.
Through the site map, I feel like the website is extremely messy. The amount of information that they want to show off to the people who go on the site is kind of overwhelming. There are so many things that can be changed like the amount of things put on the cartegories on the site. An example being ‘Spotlight’; place the most important things and the events they think that people need to know about or that they are going to show up for. Little things like that can make an impact on how the site looks visually. Not only visually, but when you word vomit on an audience, they just wouldn’t want to look at the site at all.
TO: Prof. Ellis
FROM: Khemraj Persaud
DATE: 3/6/23
SUBJECT: Site Map for ThePirateBay.org
INTRODUCTION
This memo will discuss the site map for ThePirateBay.org. Its purpose is to break down the home page of the site and will contact a drawn-out site map on copy paper.
SITE MAP FOR ThePirateBay.org
SITE MAP DISCUSSION
The site map I created for ThePirateBay.org is a rather simple one. It is apparent that they put a lot of thought into this design. They wanted to emphasize functionality and not clog the page with unnecessary content (although I do run an ad blocker so I may not be seeing any ads being used on the page).
At the very top is the logo of the organization which also serves as a link to the homepage. The next group of links are styled in a basic hyperlink text, which include âSearch Torrents,â âBrowse Torrents,â âRecent Torrents,â and âTop 100.â This shows that they want you to be able to borrow their content without necessary having to know exactly what it is you are searching for. This has been their way of presenting their content since their inception on July 15th, 2004.
Next, the middle contains a simple search bar. Here, you can search for specific files. Under that, there are check boxes with different types of files, such as audio, video, and apps, among others. These boxes help narrow down your search. Below them are type clickable action boxes entitled âPirate Searchâ and âIâm Feeling Luckyâ. The first box is used to search what youâve typed in the box, and the second executes a random search. Another design decision to keep the site simple and functional, while adding a bit of excitement. From there, two rows of links follow. âLoginâ and âRegisterâ are on the top row, followed by âTOR (New V3),â âForum,â and âVPN.â
Finally, the bottom of the page contains links to various crypto wallets for donations. This addition came several years ago, and it signifies the ever-growing value of cryptocurrency, especially in the realm of ThePirateBayâs operation. The wallets are âBTC,â âLTC,â âETH,â and âXMR.â