October 5, 2008
Worst search UI ever
On the whole, the Barack Obama campaign has been very internet-savvy. Maybe their web site JohnMcCainRecord.com is yet another example of same. But to my eyes, it has such an appallingly bad search interface that people going to the site are apt to be annoyed. To wit:
- There a huge search box in the center of the screen.
- All the search box ever does is take you to one of the 13 categories listed right below it.
- Usually, it doesn’t even do that. Instead, it just fails. For example, I entered terrorism and hit “Go”, and got no response. Ditto nuclear energy.
- When it does give you an answer, it’s apt not to be what you were looking for. For example, entering Iran takes you to the Foreign Policy page, which contains nothing about Iran.
And then, of course, there’s the funny stuff. For example, if you search on foo, you are taken to Rural Issues.
In general terms, I like the idea of the site. But absent some serious changes, JohnMcCainRecord.com should not have a search interface.
Edit: More here in my post on The Obama campaign’s Search Engine to Nowhere
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