Hi SUN..

I am looking for some willing volunteers to serve as a focus group.  I`ll take any feedback, but my key demographic is adults with children who have an interest in outdoor recreation participation with children (hiking, biking, fishing, geocaching, etc.)

Background:
I am in the process of developing a website built around two things that I am very passionate about:  Family and Outdoor Recreation.  The mission of the site is to provide information and outdoor recreation education to parents with children between the ages of 1 and 15 (an underserved demographic in the outdoor media industry, IMHO). 

Your Part:
Let`s assume that you just found a website with the mission described above.
If you have children in this age range and are intrigued by the idea of outdoor recreation as an alternative to indoor/electronic recreation, what web features would you find most useful for the purpose of learning and expanding your knowledge?

What I hope to accomplish:
We are about four weeks away from completing our site.  We have developed cool graphics and a great theme.  All of the features above are design requirements, but by understanding what features are most useful, we can make some decisions about where to invest the most time and resources.

Thanks much for your time and opinion!!!!!

Mike Barlow

I don`t see anything there about activity planning? Maybe that`s already built into the new site. Maybe it`d help if you also listed what features you already have, and then the poll would be easier to follow.

In other words, if you already have such and such as main features, then would the above items be useful as secondary items. :-)

Thanks Craig.

Just for clarification, all of these features are already onboard.  We are investing time and resources into tuning them up.  I guess another way to ask the question could be "What type of web function do you find most useful in learning new ideas or concepts"

Unfortunately, I don`t think that I can edit the poll question at this point. 

Thanks again...

Mike

Actually, with all the geegaws and gimcracks of Web technology, from what I`m seeing, the old ways are the best ways. Time-tested, handed down from father to son......oh...wait....wrong cliche! :-)

I believe the best way to rapidly get across a point or idea on a Web site is by using the same principles used in visual presentations such as PowerPoint, or before that, story boards.

A minor amount of animation might be useful, but more often than not it`s used badly. Instead, having a 1-2-3 type of graphic, with 1-line bullets or headings to explain the three steps, is almost instantly comprehensible to most people.

Thats true.  I have recently become obsessed with simplification.  You`re more than welcome to drop by for a visit when its all done.