Trevor explores Microsoft virtual training

I've spent quite a bit of time recently exploring Microsoft Virtual Academy (MVA). Putting aside the site's content, I think that the website design itself is worth a discussion. MVA runs on a clean, elegant website. What you need to find is easily found; what you need to do is easily apparent. In an era where information …

[TheRealRoland]

so, what is this article about?

That this website looks different from another website, made by google?

That this is one website that shows that silverlight is used, and works on other mainstream browsers that use silverlight?

Don't get it. Where's the button to unread an article?

[Anonymous Coward]

I agree, I'll never get that couple of minutes of my life back. I feel robbed.

[Anonymous Coward]

I haven't looked at MVA in a long time, however the last time I did look at what it offered, I got some kind of impression that it was really not much more than a sales pitch for their products and didn't really "teach" you anything.

I'm not saying it's like that now, or then again maybe it is, perhaps I'll take another look.

I've already wasted 2 minutes of my life reading this article, I might as well burn some more checking out MVA.

[Esteis]

This article could have used screenshots.

I don't have Silverlight installed. If that layout/UI is as good as you claim, screenshots would have given me an impression of that, and the article would have been useful to me. Because, the words? they do nothing.

[Steve Davies 3]

The last line says all you need to know

The Register is a media partner of Microsoft Virtual Academy.

[Microphage]

re: The last line says all you need to know

Just read the adverts, you commie freeloader .. :)

http://s14.postimage.org/5xn62p0zl/mva.png

http://s7.postimage.org/qwrf5vjaz/choose_microsoft.png

[Keep Refrigerated]

Today I read an article on the Register...

I've spent 2 minutes reading the article. Putting aside the content of the article, I think we should discuss the webpage itself. The article is there to read. It's obvious what you need to do - read it.

As is fairly standard with any modern news website, a browser is needed to read it. Lack of a browser is going to make it difficult to read at all. Each article can take 2-5 minutes to read, the comments take a bit longer, you can read and comment on a tablet too but the text box doesn't lend itself well to a virtual keyboard.

Looking at all the Register articles. El Reg has decided to go red top. Lots of ads too. The front page shows all current articles "at a glance".

I am not a content creator. I am not a journalist I'm a content consumer . I need to pick carefully which articles I want to read, or I might end up reading some rehashed press release or puff-piece for Register partners. In this context the article doesn't work well.

There's a ratings bar, showing 3 votes - I just gave it a downvote. Also I'd like to point out other mundane things like - you can tweet this article, and there's some text that tells you how many comments it has. Simple things. But these are exactly the "simple things" that when combined actually provide a helpful and usable experience.

Compare this to Slashdot. No, actually don't.

So here we have an article I've now spent more time commenting on than consuming. But I enjoyed creating this comment far more than the 2 minutes reading the article.

I am not yet sold on this article, I think I could find better one's written by BBC technology reporting.

[Henry Minute]

Misleading

Although the title of this article contains the word 'Virtual' nowhere else does it indicate that the MVA is only concerned with Microsoft's Virtual products.

I have no interest in Azure, Lightswitch or currently VMWare.

I went and had a look because I thought it was an Acadamy that was online i.e. Virtual.

It would have saved me some time if the article pointed out the meaning of virtual in this case.

[Fehu]

Aww, lay off the laddie...

I mean how much can you say about a site that consists mainly of stuff like: "To upload a document, on the menu click Upload a document." That's pretty much the state of "Educational" material these days. Makes you wonder at the intended audience, too.