WGBH Web Site Complaint

I love PBS. I listen regularly to WGBH 89.7 FM for Celtic Sojourn, Folk, and Prairie Home Companion as my top three shows. I don't like the pledge breaks but understand their need and contribute yearly. The WGBH web site is severely lacking in user friendliness, especially for members. You can login I suppose and not be a member, which starts the problem. Because when you do login, you are not asked for your member number. You are asked to become a member. But if you already are, that doesn't help. And if you go from the home page (already logged in) to the Shop to purchase something with you member discount, you get a big banner across the top asking you to become a member to save more. More what? I already am a member and you don't recognize that. In order to get the member discount you are directed to go to the Member Benefits page and obtain the code. I got into a loop twice but did not find a code. I did find plenty of info on how to become a member and what the membership options are but I already am a member (did I say that already?). I saved myself further frustration by looking at the membership card I dug out of my wallet and was happy to find the elusive code there. Halleluiah. Given the hassle of this site, I won't be spending too much time or money here. The member discount was equally offset by the shipping cost. Oh well....

5 for Friday

In the art, design and user experience space today, I have the five following links for you to explore: 1 - Sarah Nelson a noted UX person from Adaptive Path Sarah's site lead me to Tucker's 2 - You must visit this site and be SURE to read the comments. Priceless! 3 - I found this from Tucker's site: Based in Los Angeles, Zero Degrees Art is the online presence of our art community. We consist of artists, curators, and critics. Everyone included on this site is connected to someone else. The name Zero Degrees comes from Stanley Milgram's phrase "Six Degrees of Separation" a term derived from his social experimentation. In the new millennium, degrees of separation have narrowed due to global communication and ease of travel, often the actual degrees of separation are much closer than you might think. Since we began this project, we have connected artists and curators, given art writers a forum, and helped promote emerging artists. Through this website, we invite you to join our discussion, discover new emerging artists, and network with each other. 4 - I lost track of how I found this, maybe from something else with Sarah. 5 - and finally, to prove (again) the point that you to not need to travel far to find what you need. I found Kevin Brooks, storyteller on the schedule for the Adaptive Path conference coming up in Washington, DC in August. And when following the links to find out more about this storyteller, I find he is has a connection to MIT. Enjoy!

10 Best Intranets 2007 - Jakob Nielsen

The weekly AlertBox arrived today. Jakob runs through the top 10 intranet sites. Full of good insights, practical information... stuff you should be able to use easily. For the full report and to sign up for your own email with the AlertBox, click through here.