Five Worst Web Sites

A list of the five worst web sites seemed like the next logical step, after listing the five best web sites. I won't be linking to these sites, because when judgement day comes, I don't want to be guilty of having facilitated someone in going to any of these sites.

Also, I don't make a habit of visiting web sites that I don't like, so I'm going to have to be a bit creative in listing these. I'm going to have to resort to some categories instead of specific sites.

1. myspace.com
2. flash movie web sites
3. sites with music
4. --
5. --

1. The Web existed long before the majority of MySpace users were born (ie, circa 2005). The mid-90's was in fact a very bleak time for web site design. We didn't really know what we were doing. By way of example, see this. The headline from Digg describes that site best: 1996 called, they want their GIFs back. Many lessons have been learned since that fateful time, and those lessons are widely applied across the web and totally absent from MySpace. Just quickly referencing the images that have been burned into my head from the few seconds that I've been forced to look at MySpace pages: I'm thinking of text over-laid on an image; embedded music that plays by default; blinking images; blinking text; endlessly long pages; no organization whatsoever. I'll stop now. MySpace easily takes the number-one slot here.

2. I know that flash movie web sites isn't entirely specific, but it covers a category worth mentioning: all of those movie web sites where the entirety of the content is Flash, and it wants to resize your browser window. It's all evil. If you want to watch a movie trailer, you go to apple.com/trailers. Speaking of which, did you see the new Star Trek trailer? That movie is going to be so amazing. If you think I'm being sarcastic, then you have no taste.

3. I'm probably already listening to music, and even if I weren't already listening to music, it is very unlikely that I want to listen to your music. If a web site has music that automatically plays, I close that page and then I don't go to that site any longer. I have not yet wanted information from a site so badly that I was willing to endure the author's music. If you embed music on your web site, you're an idiot. Cop a clue. Stop acting eleven. Your music taste sucks and no one likes you.

4. ...

5. ...

I'm having problems coming up with the rest. I'll be hit with some inspiration eventually.