For my web review I reviewed the following websites:
http://www.no9park.com/#intro
https://burgatorybar.com/
Both websites follow the standard format of having the navigation bar at the top alongside the logo. They both additionally have some buttons on the right side of the screen used for quick navigation across the page, though it is a bit harder to notice this in No. 9 Park’s website. Overall, the websites are functionally pretty similar, aside from their aesthetic differences.
In terms of some of the issues these sites have, Burgatory’s website changes the conventional navigation system a bit using terms like “Order Up” and “Happenings” that are not immediately obvious. Krug goes over this in his book early on as part of one of his rules, where buttons should be straightforward and not require people to think. No. 9 Park’s navigation, on the other hand, follows these straight forward conventions well.
Both websites are well balanced in that they are symmetrical and keep the reader’s eyes flowing in a natural direction. Emphasis is placed properly where the more important elements are made bigger or more visually obvious. Both websites make the headings and sections distinct and separated for easy navigation. They both maintain unity as each page within this website maintains the same styles. No. 9 Park goes for an elegant style, while Burgatory goes for an informal style that makes use of heavy typefaces and textured type for the top headings. The layouts are all kept relatively simple where most things can be found by clicking links on the homepage. One does not need to go far to find what they need. Of these important principles Krug mentions, these websites do them properly for the most part.
Another thing that Krug mentions is to limit text to what is essential. Otherwise, the reader will typically only scan the text and not read everything written. The Burgatory website does this well in that the text is very minimal, whereas the text in the No. 9 Park site is very lengthy. Though some of it may be necessary, it could certainly be condensed.
In general, the two sites are both very effective, but I think that the No. 9 Park site is more effective. It uses a mix of typography, photography, and design to give the reader an image of what the place looks like, and it has convenient and easy to use navigation. It has a good sense of priority and lists the important topics first, making it easy for viewers to find what they’re looking for. The Burgatory website’s difficult navigation makes it a bit harder to navigate, as even a few seconds of thinking can make a website user frustrated and not want to visit it. Otherwise, I think that the design is minimalistic to a fault, and some of the orange text is hard to read compared to the background. No. 9 Park, on the other hand, excels in this type of contrast and uses images effectively to enhance the website design. As such, I believe that No. 9 Park is the superior website.