Comments on: Open Records Request Made for Million Dollar Web Site http://dancody.org/archives/open-records-request-made-for-million-dollar-web-site.html Progressive commentary & Wisconsin politics by Dan Cody of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Thu, 11 Mar 2010 19:22:05 -0600 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.6 hourly 1 By: Dan Cody - “Left on the Lake” » My Open Records Request Reveals a Shocking $2 Million Price Tag for State of Wisconsin Web Site http://dancody.org/archives/open-records-request-made-for-million-dollar-web-site.html/comment-page-1#comment-55131 Dan Cody - “Left on the Lake” » My Open Records Request Reveals a Shocking $2 Million Price Tag for State of Wisconsin Web Site Tue, 03 Feb 2009 19:38:10 +0000 http://dancody.org/archives/open-records-request-made-for-million-dollar-web-site.html#comment-55131 [...] in early January I filed an open records request with the GAB to find out the details of the Request for Proposals (RFP) the GAB put out and just how they came [...] [...] in early January I filed an open records request with the GAB to find out the details of the Request for Proposals (RFP) the GAB put out and just how they came [...]

]]> By: Dan Cody - “Left on the Lake” » Response to My Open Records Request for Million Dollar Wisconsin Web Site http://dancody.org/archives/open-records-request-made-for-million-dollar-web-site.html/comment-page-1#comment-55083 Dan Cody - “Left on the Lake” » Response to My Open Records Request for Million Dollar Wisconsin Web Site Mon, 02 Feb 2009 19:47:40 +0000 http://dancody.org/archives/open-records-request-made-for-million-dollar-web-site.html#comment-55083 [...] http://dancody.org/archives/open-records-request-made-for-million-dollar-web-site.html [...] [...] http://dancody.org/archives/open-records-request-made-for-million-dollar-web-site.html [...]

]]> By: Arlen http://dancody.org/archives/open-records-request-made-for-million-dollar-web-site.html/comment-page-1#comment-54164 Arlen Sat, 03 Jan 2009 17:02:45 +0000 http://dancody.org/archives/open-records-request-made-for-million-dollar-web-site.html#comment-54164 Danny boy, I'll give you this for free: I've prowled around under the hood a little bit, and frankly, I defy any professional in the industry to look at the web code here and keep a straight face. I confess, I didn't know whether to laugh or cry, looking at what was behind this. Imagine, for example, claiming a doctype of XHTML and using a center tag! (For the uninitiated, this is akin to finding a kerosene lamp inside something advertised as an LED flashlight.) For a million, I'd expect gold standard tools and hand-crafted excellence, yet it's just built with standard, off-the-shelf .NET tools (maybe some deeper .NET-heads could refine that projection; I'm not sure if things like WebResource.axd ever made it into 3.x, for example) like winform and RADcontrols. (Why someone wants a website to look and feel like windows instead of something easier, especially when representing a state that sued MS in the past, is to say the least a debatable question.) Instead of a modern web application, we get a table-based design filled with spacer.gifs! (Again, for the uninitiated, this is like building a house using stone tools and square nails.) For that kind of money, they could have at least hired someone to put a 21st-century face on the site, if they were incapable of doing it themselves! (For those tempted to blame .NET for the bad code: I've worked in a .NET shop before; bad code comes from bad coders, not the tools. I mean, I don't have a high opinion of .NET, it forces you to use some, well, interesting techniques, but stuff this bad isn't .NET's fault.) This thing is a kick in the groin to Wisconsin web firms. I know a dozen places just here in town that could turn out a better piece of work than this for less money. Danny boy, I’ll give you this for free: I’ve prowled around under the hood a little bit, and frankly, I defy any professional in the industry to look at the web code here and keep a straight face. I confess, I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry, looking at what was behind this. Imagine, for example, claiming a doctype of XHTML and using a center tag! (For the uninitiated, this is akin to finding a kerosene lamp inside something advertised as an LED flashlight.)

For a million, I’d expect gold standard tools and hand-crafted excellence, yet it’s just built with standard, off-the-shelf .NET tools (maybe some deeper .NET-heads could refine that projection; I’m not sure if things like WebResource.axd ever made it into 3.x, for example) like winform and RADcontrols. (Why someone wants a website to look and feel like windows instead of something easier, especially when representing a state that sued MS in the past, is to say the least a debatable question.)

Instead of a modern web application, we get a table-based design filled with spacer.gifs! (Again, for the uninitiated, this is like building a house using stone tools and square nails.) For that kind of money, they could have at least hired someone to put a 21st-century face on the site, if they were incapable of doing it themselves! (For those tempted to blame .NET for the bad code: I’ve worked in a .NET shop before; bad code comes from bad coders, not the tools. I mean, I don’t have a high opinion of .NET, it forces you to use some, well, interesting techniques, but stuff this bad isn’t .NET’s fault.)

This thing is a kick in the groin to Wisconsin web firms. I know a dozen places just here in town that could turn out a better piece of work than this for less money.

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