Professional Practice in IT Report

This report provides a comprehensive analysis of Western Sydney University's website (http://www.uws.edu.au). The analysis focuses on the website's architecture and design, accessibility, ease of use, and overall functionality. The report praises the website's simple and easy-to-understand design, its accessibility across various devices and browsers, and its ease of learning and memorability. However, it also points out some areas for improvement, such as the use of duplicate links, the small font size in some areas, and the lack of accessibility for visually impaired individuals. The report concludes with recommendations to improve the website's design by making social media links more visible, improving accessibility for people with disabilities, and ensuring that all links function correctly. The report demonstrates a thorough understanding of website analysis and provides valuable insights into improving website usability and accessibility.

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Letter of Transmittal
December 15, 2016
Professor
University
Subject: Letter of Transmittal
Dear Sir,
With due respect I, Fahad AlSuwaidi, the undersigned student of batch have reported on the
“The Western Sydney University’s website” under my course.
This report has helped me in gaining insight into the detailed analysis of Websites. The whole
course was every entertaining and challenging as well. I want to thank you for your support.
Kindly provide me with a judicious advice on this particular effort.
Yours sincerely,
Fahad AlSuwaidi,

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Assignment No. 1
Professional Practice in IT
Fahad AlSuwaidi
u3161044

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Table of Contents
Letter of Transmittal........................................................................................................................1
Executive Summary.........................................................................................................................4
Introduction......................................................................................................................................5
Analysis...........................................................................................................................................5
Conclusion.......................................................................................................................................7
Recommendations............................................................................................................................8
References........................................................................................................................................9

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Executive Summary
The paper presents an overview on The Western Sydney University’s website suggesting its
format and structure. A critical analysis has been presented in the paper by analyzing the
structure, format and links provided in the website. Throughout the paper, various websites and
the benefits are being provided for marketing and creating awareness regarding the organization.

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Introduction
Aim
This report provides a rhetoric analysis of the Western Sydney University, whose website
address is http://www.uws.edu.au.
Method of investigation
To conduct a proper analysis, the report focuses on analyzing four major aspects (architecture
and design) that contribute to making a good website.
Scope
Today, websites are important components of many organizations and individuals because the
provide opportunities for organizations to expose themselves as well as create awareness and
market the organizations. Currently, websites are utilized in all types of entities, including
schools, universities, business entities, and individuals (Khosrowpour, 2003). With the
importance of websites increasing every day, it is imperative that entities analyze their sites in a
bid to determine the quality and level of usability of the website.
Analysis
The Western Sydney University’s website is set in a simple, colorful, and easy to understand
manner. At the top of the website is the university’s name and logo, presented in red and black
color. The university name is also a link, which takes you to the homepage of the website.
Immediately beside the university’s name and logo are six links that direct the user to the home
page, future students’ page, student’s link, international link, research, and alumni links. These
links can also be found at the bottom of the page where additional details are added to improve

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the ease of access. The middle of the page has a bright red slide show with images of
professionally dressed individuals who reflect the mood of the page.
The website architecture and design are simple and easy to understand. All the links on the page
are easy to identify, thus improving the maneuverability and ease of information access. The
major links and the sub-links have been linked well thus giving users an easy time. In spite of
this, the architecture of the website is not sound in that the website has duplicate links. For
instance, the link that takes a user to the alumni page can be found both at the top of the page and
the bottom of the page. The website is also plain in that was only designed with two major colors
red and black. As a result, users can miss other essential aspects such as the social media links,
which are all in black. The fonts used in some of the links, like the link to the ‘library page’ and
‘Sign into,’ are too small and may require some individual to strain in order to see them.
The website is easy to access from a variety of gadgets including smart mobile phones, tablets,
and laptops. Even though each of these gadgets requires specific protocols to connect to allow
access to information, the site was set properly to ensure that students could have an easy time
when accessing the site using the different technological devices that are available today. The
website can also be accessed from many regions of the world. Consequently, it creates awareness
and ensures that any interested party from anywhere around the globe can view the site.
Additionally, the website can be accessed using different browsers without any challenges. A test
using Safari, Chrome, and Firefox browser proved that the site could be accessed using most of
the browsers that are available in the market. However, the website has not been designed to be
accessible to some people with disabilities. Some of the fonts are too small for the visually
impaired individuals to see.

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Owing to its simplicity, the Western Sydney University’s website is easy to learn and memorize.
First-time users can easily accomplish many tasks because the links are self-explanatory and they
function properly. This ease of learning can be attributed to the good design and architecture of
the website, which allows users to follow links and sub-links without many challenges. Besides
being easy to learn, the website is memorable. The web address is simple and easy to remember.
The web outlay is also simple, easy to follow, and remember. Hence, return users find it easy to
use the website even after long periods of non-use.
An overall analysis of the website showed that there are no errors. All the links in the site
function properly and lead the users to the information and pages they expect. In addition, the
spelling and language used are flawless, thus making it easier for users to determine what they
need without getting lost. An attempt to sign into the ‘student's email’ with the wrong login
details was met with a statement indicating that either the password or the username was wrong.
Bearing this in mind, one can assume that the website is designed to identify errors and refuse
login if the student inputs the wrong details. This provides security and ensures that students are
not victims of security exploits due to errors in the system.
Conclusion
The essentiality of websites in today’s society cannot be underestimated. Different entities utilize
websites for different purposes, such as marketing and creation of awareness. For this reason,
many organizations attempt to analyze the websites to determine their viability and usability. An
analysis of the Western Sydney University’s website showed that the site had a simple and easy
to understand architecture. The site was also accessible from different gadgets and browsers
despite the fact that the site may not be accessible to some visually impaired people due to the

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small fonts used in some of the important links. Nevertheless, it was easy to learn how to use and
maneuver the website, and its simplicity made it memorable.
Recommendations
1. The social media links must be written in different colour or font as the users tend to miss
out important details due to red and black font.
2. The website must be designed in a manner that it is accessible to some people with
disabilities.

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References
Khosrowpour, M. (2003). Information technology & organizations : trends, issues, challenges &
solutions. Harrisburg, Pa: Idea Group Pub.