Introductory Summary
This website is very functional and navigation is easy. However, some of the labels could stand change and the design is unexciting, somewhat drab. Some of the text should be larger. There would still be plenty of white space. The “Featured Employers” links need work. The color scheme is uninspired, almost irritating. It simply has almost no visual appeal. The graphics are few, and they do not seem to have any particular message or point. The site is very functional, but boring, even for mechanical engineers.
Detailed Analysis
Navigation
The navigation of the site is easy for the most part. However, The “Home” link is labeled with the site name, which is confusing. It is also disconcerting that all the news links open up other sites. The site seems to have no news of its own. Much of the linked text is a bit small, sometimes difficult to read at high resolution. Drop-down menus are well done.
Consistency
The site is consistent. Every page looks like every other page. It is consistently uninspired. If the first page gets a little tweak to spice it up the rest will look good too. The links to featured companies should be changed. The logos should be arranged in a collage to form a link where the individual employers can be clicked on the next page. As it is the graphics are uninteresting.
Clarity
The purpose of this site seems to be to keep mechanical engineers up to date on the industry news and to provide a place where employers and employees can meet. However, the main animated graphic area is quite nice. The blurbs under the news links are nice, but I would use title capitalization on the headlines. Perhaps a short mission statement on the top bar would clarify the site’s purpose. Advertising is related and unobtrusive.
Legibility
The articles are well written and easy to read. I expect that anyone who comes to this site will be able to read and understand the content. I did not investigate all of the linked sites, but the ones I did investigate had the same high quality of content. The content is informative and interesting, written in a nice conversational new style.
Conclusions
With only a little work, this site could be outstanding. The flaws I found were mere design flaws that make the site a bit dull-looking. The one label is confusing, and some of the text should be a bit larger. However, the site is functional, easy to navigate, easy to read and the content is interesting. Sprucing up the look will convey the idea that the content is interesting.
References
Mechanical Engineer.com. 2008, Web.