Site Critique: Time Spent Alone

The site I came across was http://timespentalone.com/. This site really caught my attention because it has a very similar style to what I had imagined my page would look like. This page seems to incorporate several places across the globe and various photos of breathtaking landscapes as well as some of natures little wonders. On my site, I plan on incorporating the world as this giant, enormous and mysterious structure with an emphasis on how small humans are in comparison to it. Where identity comes into play is the idea that our individual identities may be hard to find amongst such enormous, overwhelming surroundings, but as unique beings we are some how able to find our place on this earth. This site speaks to me because of the author’s connection to nature and his fascination with travel. When the author focuses on “time spent alone”, it is the authors chance to step away from the social world and sort of become one with nature. I liked how this author wasn’t afraid to incorporate their passions and the things that they enjoy the most. This author, to me, was sort of thinking out loud. This author decided to take their deep thoughts and questions, and put them on a site. I liked the site a lot.

The homepage of this site is simple in its layout with a few cells on the top of the screen and a scrolling background. The background looks like a view from Google Earth as it rolls across the screen. As you scan your mouse over the image links, they change from transparent to more opaque images. I like this idea, because it makes to page come to life. It makes it an interactive site. In my site, I hope to create a sort of animation when scrolling over words. Hopefully images as well.

I like how the links of this page are the author’s thoughts. Each link is titled, but then has an image to go with it. For example, one link is titled “I wish I could read faster” and the image is a big stack of books. This is great to me, because it is the inner thoughts of the author. It seems as though they just took an idea and went with it. When you click on this link it sends you to a room where books are just piling up. It is very creative, because the books fall from the top of the screen as if they are just being piled on one by one until they fill up the screen. A bit like the game Tetris. This was a very creative part of the site. You can clearly see the titles and authors of the books, which makes me think that these are some of the books the author likes to read. You can tell a lot about a person by their book collection. So this may be a way for the author to reveal a bit about his identity and the kind of things he is interested in.





Another link is when the author wonders whether his memories unravel with time. He wonders if his memories just sort of disintegrate into space when he isn’t looking. Which is really odd and different to think about, but the author definitely thinks about it. Here he has a picture unravelling. It’s slowly falling to pieces. It’s also an interactive page because when you click on the image, you are able to unravel the image further and sort of hurry up the process of the picture unravelling. I definitely want my site to be interactive in a sense that clicking on different things can lead to different ideas or different images or different messages.






Another link which stuck out to me is titled, “the places I would like to visit”. When you click on this, you are taken to a site that resembles and search engine map. Like Google Maps or Google Earth. You type in the place you would like to go, then the map in the background takes you there. The author seems curious about where other people would like to go as well as his own desires. He makes it interesting because he added a bit of flare to the search engine because whatever you type into the search box appears in large, bold letters on the right side of the screen. This sort of emphasizes the place you would like to travel.

It is an all around creative site and I think I can draw a lot of ideas out of it. It gets in tune with nature, and travelling, and has a more global point of view, rather than just a stationary, local one. I like that and I can definitely grab some ideas from it.

Give it a spin...

After:
When I swopped places with someone, a completely new image was produced. One that I hadn't thought about. It has this idea of spinning the wheel and not really knowing where i am going to land in a big group of people. I like it. It's different and new.

Some Inspiration...

I took a few photos that were inspiring to me. I haven't thought about what I would do with them yet, but I feel like I could possibly use them in photoshop to get some really cool designs out of them. If nothing else, I can sort of have a starting point for my site. Here they are.

some identity sites

I looked at a lot of interesting sites that I think may deal with Identity. Most of these I found from the WebArt blogpage.

Here:

http://www.group94.com/#/website/news/20090703/

http://www.pierrewinther.com

http://www.beonlineb.com

Still comtemplating...

I've thought about my current ideas on Identity and I want to really sit down and think about where I am going with that. What will the ending be? Where will I end up once I sort of "zoom" into myself? That bit I have to work out and really think about.

Thoughts on identity

Identity. What is my identity? I am a small small dot on this earth. I know that my life will be short compared to the life span of this earth. I appear and disappear in a mere 100 years. I am small, I am so small it's like I am invisible. Yet, I have the opportunity to do many things and make big impacts on the earth in the time that I have. I may be small, but I am unique. I stand out from all the other 6.7 billion people on this earth. I have been given life so that I can make a difference on this earth. I have been given life, so as not to waste it, but to do great things with it.

To put this idea into a webpage, I am imagining a globe. A view of the globe from space. Off to the side of the page. With text at the top that starts small, but becomes large once you roll over it. You roll over the text, to

get to the earth. The text draws you to the globe. Once it gets there, you click on the globe and it blows up. Huge! It fills up the screen. Animation of some kind.

Then once you zoom into the earth it's a better view of the earth, but will 100,000 of small people on it. But people that when you scroll over, they get bigger. They become someone, they have a name for them. Then, when it scrolls to me, I am bigger than the rest, and clicking on me, brings the viewer to the next page.

The theme is to follow that in reality, I am so small in comparison to the rest of the earth and the rest of the people, but once you go deeper, and go deeper into my life, you see that I have a unique role to play. I have a unique function for this earth. The deeper you go

, the further you get into my life, and who I am, and what I contribute to this earth. Here are some photo ideas...

Numero dos!

Here are some inspiring photos. Haven't done anything with them yet. They are a good starting point.

Blog numero uno

So...as my first blog, I'm not sure what is required of me, but I'm assuming it's mostly writing down my thoughts and ideas.

I've been thinking a bit about my IDENTITY site and I've come up with a few ideas. Seeing another's site, I was reminded of the passion I have for animals. I was thinking I could have somewhat of a jungle theme or a safari theme. Animal print background or the animation could involve moving animals. I would want to make sure that it doesn't turn out too childish, however. Not like a child's book.

I also have a passion for traveling. I want to see the world. Every last corner. And maybe I could tie in the idea that I don't belong in one set place. My heart belongs at different ends of the earth. I'm picturing sunrises, nature, etc. Pictures will come later...