Worst Web Sites 2008
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Worst Web Sites of 2009: Worst Web Sites 2007
Worst Web Sites 2006
More Bad Web Design
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Daily Examples of Bad Web Design
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Checklist 1
149 Ways to Kill Your Web Site
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82 Ways to Ruin Your Web Site
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Worst Web Sites of 2008 — Contenders #1-10
Web design is an art. Great web design occurs when design and content are seamless and you don't notice its greatness. With great web design, it's easy to find the information you need. The content makes you want to return again and again and, most importantly, great design gives credibility to the company/organization.
Unfortunately, the following sites don't feature great web design. This group features the leading 10 candidates for the Worst Web Site Featured on Web Pages That Suck during 2008. These candidates were Daily Suckers from January through June. Their order of suckiness will certainly change in the following months.
God help us. We've got six more months of potential candidates.
1. University of Nebraska-Lincoln Architecture (Honorary contender)
Introduction to University of Nebraska-Lincoln Architecture web site
"If architects designed buildings the way they design web sites, then the first woodpecker that came along would destroy civilization."
What in the name of God is wrong with architects? I hate stereotypes like "White people can't dance," but it's a fact that "Architects can't design web sites." Take a look at these architectural gems if you don't believe me.
Contrary to popular belief, I’m not the only person who recognizes that architects have problems with their web sites. treehugger takes architects to task over their web sites. I’m going to add these suckers to my Bad Architects Sites.
Here are some more articles about bad architectural web sites: bd and the Guardian.
The UNL architecture site was a shoe-in for worst web site of 2008 until they fixed it. Thank goodness, I captured the site on video.
Here's the YouTube version
Here's a higher-quality version of the video at WebPagesThatSuck.tv
One fact that's always forgotten about designing web sites is: somebody had to approve the site. Someone signed off. I'd like to have been at the meeting where this site was approved.
Here's the revised University of Nebraska-Lincoln Architecture web site as it looks today. Looks like a normal web site doesn't it?
Comments
2. Brill Publications
Introduction to the Brill Publications web site
What were they thinking when they created this site? This isn't some cutesy little company with a niche product. This is (supposedly) a real company with real products.
Vincent Flanders' comments: If that banking site (BVS Performance) made the list of worst sites for 2007, this sucker is guaranteed a place in the 2008 listing. We need to stop the use of metaphoric navigation today. Is it possible that there are internet surfers who are so mentally incompetent that they need this type of navigation? Does anybody find it useful? Does anyone think it's clever? Does anyone not hit the back button?
Other comment #1: As soon as that creepy avatar started talking, I was totally put off -- what's the point of having a site that talks to you? What a horrible site.
Other comment #2: This is such a waste for creativity ! I don't like the elevator music ! At every floor, When I click "Back to the Lift" how come I fall back to the ground floor and need to take the stupid ride all over again!
3. Havenworks
Introduction to the Havenworks web site
Vincent Flanders' comments:
- I searched through my files and couldn't find anything that said I've used this site.
- Words fail me.
- This is a great candidate for the worst web site of 2008.
- I think I've gone blind.
Submitter #1's comments: If you guys haven't already, you should spotlight this site. If you have already, sorry I missed it.
Submitter #2's comments: Words fail me for this web site, Vincent, and words will probably fail you too.
Submitter #3's comments: Hi Vincent... Yeah, you're right. I promise you I won't submit Web Design firms sites anymore ;)
As I really enjoy Web Pages That Suck, I can't help myself to look for candidates to submit.
This one was found by my husband and since it is too awful, I can't even think of a comment... Honestly, are there people out there who like the site? Anyway, I hope this is a good candidate for the Daily Sucker :)
Submitter #4's comments: Take a look at this site, but I warn you, you may go blind.
4. CUH2A
Introduction to the CUH2A web site
Working with most architects, their web sites are considered well-designed compared to working with their unbearable egos. Even so, you can't discuss design in any shape or manner with them.
Here's but yet another bad design by an architectural firm.
Vincent Flanders' comments: God bless architects' pointy little heads. When it comes to web design, their industry is truly one that sucks.
You just know those circles are Mystery Meat Navigation. You just know it. Of course they are. Granted, they have a real menu at the top that suffers from poor contrast, but clicking on a link of this Flash menu brings up a whole bunch of other links that have even less contrast.
Clicking on these submenu links doesn't give you consistent results. You may get new links that are Mystery Meat, or a new set of "regular links," or you may get content. I'm hoping this firm doesn't use this type of navigation in the buildings they design or like Theseus in the labyrinth of the Minotaur, you'll need a ball of string to find your way back (I've got to find some way to use my degree in Classics).
What in the hell does their name mean? C'mon, CUH2A? Besides being pretentious (it would be like calling myself "FLANman"), they're wasting the TITLE tag's importance in search engine optimization.
Contrary to popular belief, I’m not the only person who recognizes that architects have problems with their web sites. treehugger takes architects to task over their web sites. I’m going to add these suckers to my Bad Architects Sites.
5. Newcastle Spiritualist Church
Introduction to the Newcastle Spiritualist Church web site
I stumbled across this charming and delightful site recently. I'm glad I was sober or I might have tried to remove the freaking coloured flying things (yes I'm sure they have a name but I don't care 'cause I'm never going to use it).
Aren't the colours purty?
Vincent Flanders' comments: The flying thing is called a "trailing cursor" and I'm quite happy you're never going to use it. The site is, of course, built with Microsoft FrontPage and it sucks. I hate those saggy hotdog-looking menu items, the colors, the centered text, the fly-in text, the lack of contrast, the "index" TITLE tag on the home page, etc.
On the other hand, they tell you that the newsletter is in PDF format and how big the file is. They also, as far as I can tell, don't automatically play background music. When I saw the home page I was expecting to hear music from Enya or Steven Halpern.
6. Welcome to C-Ville
Introduction to the Welcome to C-Ville web site
Please take a look if you haven't already. If it matters, I believe the cost of this site is astronomical: something like one million dollars - no kidding.
Vincent Flanders' comments: It took me a while to figure out what the site is about. The URL confused me — "OwnYourC" (my capitalization) and I wasn't sure what "C" represented. Turns out it's "Choices." It's an anti-tobacco site that, I assume, is paid for by tobacco companies as part of a settlement or to get some good PR or something like that. What's a million bucks to a tobacco company?
The text version is pretty straightforward but it's the Flash version that's out of control (surprise!). It's the usual Mystery Meat Navigation silliness. Ironically, the Flash version has a big message that tells you what the site is about. It's much better than the non-Flash version.
On the other hand, the Mystery Meat is horrible. Normally, when you mouse over an object you find out its purpose. Not here. You have to click. What's great about the site is that once it went online, they'll never need to update it. It's a disposable web site — just like an empty pack of cigarettes.
7. 5safepoints.com
Introduction to the 5safepoints.com web site
If you're prone to seizures, I'd stay away from this site — especially stay away from some of the subpages. I'm guessing that while this company provides classes, they're basically one, big advertising site for other driver-related companies.
Vincent Flanders' comments: The site lacks any kind of focus and it's so bad, I'm not even sure about the name of the company. The View Class Schedule link takes you to a page that's wider than my 1152 x 864 pixel monitor, which causes the dreaded horizontal scrolling effect.
After yesterday's fiasco of hidden porn links, it's a little disconcerting to see what looks like keyword stuffing going on here. At least the stuffing is related to the site.
The site is a car crash on the Information Highway (pun intended). It needs to be nuked and redesigned.
8. Saman Zerin
Introduction to the Saman Zerin web site
It's one of the first web designs where I didn't actually have a clue what I was supposed to do. Not even a hint. And even when you work it out, the site is still unusable. It seems to link you to a random page depending on what you click.
Vincent Flanders' comments: I'm not ashamed to admit that I cry every time the Pedigree commercial "A Dog Named Echo" comes on my TV set (it even ran during a poker show!). On the other hand, this site makes me want to cry — but in despair.
Since it's a web site for a magician, Mystery Meat Navigation almost makes sense except for the fact that you want people to find your content. It took a while for me to find the navigation. Before I found the navigation, I somehow closed the "door" to the site and got a message that the site wanted to close the window.
The screeching sound that's made when the pages move is horrifyingly annoying. It's almost like hearing fingernails scratching a chalkboard. The site also shows one of the perils of translation. There's one page that says:
Not really accurate English.
9. Lemon Bay High School
Introduction to the Lemon Bay High School web site
Check out Lemon Bay High School for the worst example of a school web site on the planet. Talk about alienating your user base LOL.
Enjoy the useless splash, Mystery Meat Navigation, 3? viewable content iframe and marvel at the .. well … what IS that thing, anyway
Other comments #1: Click the logo (is it a bat?) on the splash page and see where it takes you. Then repeat after me: 'WTF.'
Vincent Flanders' comments: KidsToday sigh. The most positive thing I can say is, “At least they didn't use a Star Wars theme.” It's technically competent, but so what?
Other comments #2: The graphics are impressive, but then...bwah? I am an old band director and went to the band page to see what was up there. Every link click causes one to wonder who did the work! Oy! I get the impression that students were given different pages to do as projects to see what they could do. It would certainly account for the (ahem) variety!
Other comments #3: Another classic example of people designing sites for look and not substance. Tsk tsk.
10. Alternative Transport Services
Introduction to the Alternative Transport Services web site
It's always "refreshing" to see a new type of web design mistake. I've seen (horizontally) repeating background images, but I've never seen (vertically) repeating navigation.
I don't think I've ever seen the word "darling" used so many times on a site that wasn't about punters (an homage to my readers in Great Britain).
Submitter's comments: Animated GIFs, two of the same image viewable at once, marquee tags, using colored text for emphasis and then very similar colored text for links (seems to be left justified and not centered on my wide-screen monitor as well but whatever).
I suppose you can navigate from the table on the left... if you can stop being distracted by the rest of the page long enough to look at it. They also seem to have what amounts to the exact same information 3 times in plain view of one another (hint: they all are colored, enlarged, bolded "Hi Darling"s).
In fact I'm pretty sure this page has created an 8th deadly sin... though I'm not sure what to call it.