Originally, this set of articles appeared on the CDM Custom Software Services (CDMCSS.com) website before it was merged into the HirMon & Associates site. It was very popular but as time went on, it became somewhat dated and needed an upgrade.
Quite proudly, I can say that I (Chuck Montgomery) am probably one of the most despised educators on the Internet. I enjoy popping fanciful bubbles, pointing out marginal web designers for what they are, and I am especially fond of barbequeing Sacred Cows. Be warned: I don’t mince words.
So, if you are looking for the "quick fix," "magic bullet," a "one page cure-all" or some down-and-dirty way of figuring out what needs to go into a new website or fix one that is a dismal performer - go somewhere else.
Unless you willing to invest a small amount of time to understand what websites are really all about - no one can help you.
Besides authoring all or parts of websites for a lot of big-name organizations (and tons of smaller ones), I contribute to published articles such at the one that appeared in the Colorado Downtowner Magazine reagarding the topic: What’s in a website?
These articles address some of the myths, misconceptions and outright stupid concepts floating around on the Internet about what a website is, what they are supposed to do and what makes and effective website.
Here is a quick example: Take a second and consider the following (and, no, this is not a "trick" question):
Are websites designed for the benefit of their owners or the visitors?
A lot of website designers would like you to believe they are created for the owners benefit (that’s the standard "party line"). If you were thinking or have ever been told by someone else that the answer is owners - you might want to read the article titled: How to fulfill your website expectations and reconsider your answer.
This is also an "unstructured" presentation (unlike the original Web School), so feel free to jump around and read those topics that are of particular interest to you.
Most of these articles are a short read. That is intentional, although some topics could (and are) represented in whole books. There are even entire websites devoted to some of them!
What we at HirMon are trying to do is to give you a "heads up" about the most common pit falls found in websites today; not an exhaustive description of each topic (which few people will read).
If you find yourself interested in a topic, feel free to use Google and explore it to your satisfaction or use our Contact page and just ask.
We don’t mind answering questions. After all, the only person you are going to hurt by not asking a question - is yourself.
Fair note: If you find one of your "Sacred Cow" beliefs about websites landing on the BBQ, that’s a good thing. For one thing it might spur you to avoiding a costly mistake in your new or revised website. You may disagree with some (a lot?) of the things the articles present and a few folks will reject them out of hand because "they know better."
That’s fine by me! Because here’s the scary part:
You don’t have to take my word for anything said in these articles!
Within these articles - I’m going let you prove various concepts - all by yourself...
Finally - Please understand that we don’t really have anything against other website developers. They are doing the best they can, given what little they have to work with.
