I simply cannot make up my mind about the topic for my website. I think I am going to end up using the CSA idea, not because I'm really in love with it, but because I'm not feeling any particular love for anything else. I thought that if I started to develop the idea I might like it more, so here are some possible pages I could use.
First, What is a CSA? Here I could explain the types of CSA's that exist, and the difference between this and subscription farming.
Second, Benefits/Risks of CSA's. It's incredibly important for people to understand that a CSA is a way of sharing in the good and bad, and that they will, in part, be subsidizing a farm's risk in the case of a bad growing season.
Third, How to Find/Choose the Right CSA. There are a lot of good sites out there to search for CSA's by zip code, and I could link to those on this page. I have also found one good resource for "interviewing" the farmer(s).
Fourth, The History of Community Supported Agriculture. Here I could talk about how the first models of CSA occurred in Japan and Switzerland in the 1960's, and explain Robyn Van En's involvement in the spread of CSA in the US. This could potentially be a sub-page nested under "What is a CSA?"
I am still conflicted about what my personal contribution will be to this page. The only thing I can really think of is that I could be a resource to help folks in Bucks County choose between Snipes, Honey Brook, Guzikowski and Anchor Run. I think I would have to contact each of these farms and ask if they would be willing to share a participant list with me so that I could interview people about their experiences though, because I certainly can't buy shares in every one! I'm not quite sure that all of the farms would be willing to share that with me though. Really, it's not as if they need the publicity; almost all of them sell out their shares every year.
It makes me want to experiment with some Web2.0 ideas, but I think that might go beyond the introductory design scope of this class. I would like to make a Bucks County-centric resource, where people could go to compare the variety of CSA/local farmer's market options available, but I think that giving users the opportunity to share their own experiences is the only real way to do that. On a related note, I was looking for my favorite student rush/standing room only website to share with Charlotte earlier this week, and found that they had completely changed format from a searchable page to a message board. Although I was initially disappointed by the change, I think I know why they might have done it, because I personally had a bad experience with a standing room only policy a few years ago. Essentially, one show had a published SRO policy, but never carried out on it because they always sold the SRO spaces at full value before their rush time started. You are always taking a chance on SRO tickets, but it was extremely irritating to line up for two hours only to find that not even the first person in line could get tickets. Which is all to say, I think there could be a great benefit in having some interactivity in my CSA website. Although I could see it being even more useful if I were to expand outward and include Bucks County farmer's markets in the mix. Imagine a site where people could go to find out if the strawberries had come into season yet, or if the orchard had been thoroughly picked over already. However, that kind of up-to-the-minute information isn't likely to be provided by one single person.
Also, I have this horrible habit of coming up with ideas that directly conflict with the textbook's advice. In Chapter 3, Huddleston writes about making your links as obvious as possible, but I have this idea about a site design with graphics that are almost a "South Park" style--really simple, construction paper cut-out vegetables and fruits--and using those as links to my pages. In my head, they're like Homestar Runner easter eggs, and you only see that they're links when you mouse over them. It's so contrary to what Huddleston says to do, but I can't get the idea out of my head now. I just think it's adorable! I'll probably end up doing some sort of a modified version of this, wherein the links are actually written out on top of the construction paper veggies. More likely than not, my html/css skills wouldn't be able to keep up with that idea anyway.
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I feel you on the obvious linkage thing - it's one of those intriguing 'Human-Computer Interaction' topics. At Tyler, professors certainly did not agree on this issue - a graphic design course with a more artistic bent would encourage me to engage the user by having them learn my navigation strategy through visual elements alone. A more structured site (like my sadly defunct online portfolio of 'student expression' - paintings and drawings that were assignments, which looked ridiculously inauthentic to me within months of being handed my framed BFA) demanded super obvious navigation, because my user was not my plaything, and I should be flattering and easy to get to know, in the cyber self-presentation sort of way.
ReplyDeleteMaybe you could offer two modes of navigation, like a series of simple tabs across the top and a second option of clicking on the construction paper vegetables. It's also interesting - because I've got Content Representation readings ooooozing out of my brain and fingertips (that class is great, but the reading demands are almost inhumane) - to think about what vegetables you might choose to represent different links. For example, everyone knows that tomatoes take over the world in their hyper-abundance, so maybe a tomato would be the logical representative for a page full of links?
I give an enthusiastic "hells yeah!" to your paper cut-out idea.
With regard to the student rush tickets, I remember being an undergrad in Philly in spring 2001 and hearing about the student rush program at the Philadelphia Orchestra but never saw the appeal in standing in line for an hour to "hopefully" get a ticket. Now, though, the EzSeatU thing is so much easier, reserving the ticket online ahead of time...All you have to do now is just "check in" at a table in the Kimmel Center, then hang around near there until the ushers are ready to seat you.
ReplyDeleteAnyway, as far as your own topic...I also really like the clickable vegetables idea for links. I think it would add an endearing quality to your site, as well as convey that you're not a site that takes itself too seriously...which I'm sure would really help to assure people that you won't be preachy about your subject.
On my way home from work I pass what looks like a CSA in Upper Darby. I've alway been interested to know how people can get a plot there and what kind of vegetables they plant. I'm sure there are different types of vegetables that are better suited for this type of farming. That could be another angle to investigate.
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