What's your favorite disguise? [/meta]

posted by letter shredder @ 11:59 a.m. on 1/20/2006

"Great art is about conflict and pain and guilt and longing and love disguised as sex and sex disguised as love..."
                                          -- Lester Bangs, Almost Famous



Thursday, July 29, 2004

posted by letter shredder at 8:18 PM

Web Reviews
para sa aking Socio 132-- How-to-be-a-criminal class

Dahil wala akong diskette, dito ko muna ipo-post 'to.  Pasensya na.

           
            In an interview with Virgilio Peña, chairman of the Commission on Information and Communication Technology, he emphasized that the government should maximize the use of the Internet to encourage the private and public sectors.    It may use the Internet as a database of its services that may be made immediately available to the public.
            When I occasionally visit government websites for projects and reports, I have the initial impression that they are unappealing.  As a matter of fact, I think government web pages are credible, not by the right path of the address (.gov.ph), but because they look “boring.”
            I first checked the website of the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP).  It had a very masculine look.  It had flash! For someone like me who has a little background on website designing, that was not actually easy.  It had a black motif, which is actually the same with the color of the pants the officers of the agency wear.   There were click-able portions, making the features more accessible.  But if one tries to do so, the areas are not really available.  I find some sections weird. The funny portion there was the “Downloadable.”  I was wondering what one could actually download form there. Wallpapers? Desktop icons? I tried it but it had nothing on it.  The part is probably for forms citizens might need.  I hope so.
            The second site I checked was the national Bureau of Investigation’s.  I was actually surprised with the clean look and the flash at the introduction.  The site was actually good, considering how it would cater to the needs of the public.  It also had the online complaint portion, which would encourage people to file complaints without actually going to the police stations.  It is not sure though that the complaints would easily be attended to.  
            The website of the Supreme Court is not very appealing but it was appropriate.  The look and the feel of the page are not very stressful to the eyes.  The announcements were updated, so the site is checked regularly.  I have visited the Supreme Court and met the staff of the Office of the Public Information Officer and the PIO himself, Atty. Ismael Khan.  
            The last site I checked was NAPOLCOM’s.  The colors were not very appropriate since their contrasts were of the same shades.  The site looked very crowded.  But I have to commend the site for having the “marquee” effect.  It had moving texts that are actually eye-catching so the public would immediately know which part to go to.  The news and updates had their headlines that are found at the sidebars.  So, technically, the site could still be easily read and important portions are easily found. 
            What are really commendable about the web pages are the efforts to construct such that may attend to the needs of the general public.  There were also contact numbers and persons under every division of the agencies.  The web is accessed worldwide, so it is really proper for the government to pay attention to their respective sites.  For someone alien to the kind of government we have in the country, the sites would provide first impressions and might reflect the agency. 
            Peña said that one of the problems of the Internet industry in the Philippines, aside from connectivity, is content.  The sites must offer enough services that the public would make the public make use of these websites.  The efforts to improve the sites can be seen but they should still be improved. 
            The websites have not fully used the advantage of providing multi media settings that can help the people who access them.  There are a lot of services that can be offered to the public through the net. 
            What I learned in Journalism is the use of simple language that an average grade four student would understand.  This principle should also be applied on the websites because it is undeniable that they are not for the average public.  They should also provide alternative Filipino language and dialects. 
            Even in government services, the issue on digital divide is also evident. 

 


0 revealed their disguise