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Site Name: Dandee
Owner: Courtney
Reviewed by: Georgina
Reviewed on: 4th February 2009
Site Name
Dandee is a cute name, and it’s short and easy to remember.
Coding and Validation
Your coding is valid.
Your CSS is valid as well. I’m impressed, and your coding is also quite organised.
Browser Compatibility & Usability
Your site looks great in most browsers according to Browsershots.org so well done on that! Your layout is centered which is great, and the width is enough to fit in smaller resolutions.
The main text is easy to read but I would personally make it a tad bigger.
I don’t like your navigation. Your site has a blog as one of its main parts, but there’s really no point for the archives to be in your sidebar. If so, they should be further to the bottom. Not many people navigate by way of archive links, and your ‘Main Menu, as you call it, is right underneath all these links. That’s not really a “main” menu then, is it?
This ‘Main Menu’ should really go directly after your introduction in your sidebar (if not before), and the quick menu should follow. It’s not very nice to scroll down to navigate, I can tell you that.
Layout
Interesting funky concept of ‘a lifetime of puzzles’. I like the images in the layout – the puzzle and the traditional magic square, not to mention the hourglass.
I would have preferred if your site name was on the image somewhere.
The choice of colours is interesting and unusual, but they all look alright together.
The layout’s centered and simple, it’s all good!
Content
Courtney
I’d prefer if this link said ‘owner’ or ‘about me’.
Nevertheless, I love the way this page is written. It’s very fluid and sophisticated, and it’s not too long or too short.
A mysterious shade of dark brown, you say? Well, I think you’ve come across as mysterious already with the wonderful way you write.
At this point I am puzzled by your navigation as it switches. Firstly, on your homepage, the order of your ‘Main Menu’ links is Courtney, Dandee, Et Cetera, Home. In this section on yourself, it’d be better to keep them in the same order.
I am not used to navigation in which the subpages appear in the sidebar. I shall move on, but if I was a little surprised, so will some other people.
All these writings are fine until ‘home’. It’s easy to get a bit confused with home as in site, and home as in life. I would really recommend tweaking this navigation to make it more understandable.
As a personal site, all these writings really show personality and are well written.
The cliques are pretty self explanatory.
Dandee
I’d prefer if this link said ‘website’ or ‘domain’. I know I poked at your other link, but it’s best to be really blunt to people out there, so they’re not mistaken in any way.
Again your links for the ‘Main Menu’ are in a different order, and it’d be nicer if they were in the same order.
I’m on a roll looking through this section about your site. Everything’s so well organised, neat and error-free. Did you add credit for the images in your layout? I’m not too sure.
Et Cetera
Finally, someone who spells ‘Et Cetera’ correctly! 
‘Reviews’ would be better as ‘book reviews’. I haven’t heard of any of these books, but they sound great!
I’ve just taken your first quiz, and my phrase is ‘BRB/TTYL’. Hilariously enough, I say ‘BRB’ way too much on MSN Messenger, but it’s not because I don’t want to talk to anyone – well, I guess I’m a huge multi-tasker. As for ‘TTYL’, I say that way too much. 
Your second quiz is just as interesting; I got science fiction/fantasy. No for the fantasy, but science fiction indeed! These quizzes are interesting and I’d like to see more.
I do love your poems, but I like finding the inner meanings, so you kind of ruined it for me when I saw the meanings and what they were about!
On a final note about this section, it’s a nice idea that you’ve called it ‘Et cetera’ rather than ‘visitor’ (or whatever word is used for things unrelated to the owner) – it shows that this is the part of less focus and it encompasses your site more as a personal one, which I’m sure is what it’s meant to be.
Originality & Creativity
Everything was original, without a doubt. Your writings were obviously original and everything I saw was!
Your layout was very creative and the pieces you have in your site as well.
Organisation & Errors
Fairly well organised but the navigation was confusing at times. I suggest a horizontal CSS block navigation for the ‘Main Menu’, and the subpages can stay where they are. I’d also recommend removing the Archive links.
No errors or broken links found.
Overall Comment
Courtney, your site was very unusual, but in a very unique way. I would have preferred more content that was visitor-oriented, but I can see you’re doing great for a personal domain.
I have a little question – do you exchange links with others or ‘affiliate’? I would have thought you’d have some, but you didn’t.
Nothing much to improve on but I’d sort out the navigation, as mentioned. Pop the ‘Main Menu’ under the header image as horizontal navigation.
Other than that I don’t have many suggestions. Things look great but I’d prefer a bit more visitor content.
