Why I Hate The Nation Website

The Nation Webmaster 

I have a great deal of respect for The Nation for their incisive editorials and take-no-prisoners approach to Thai politics. But their website is an absolutely mess. I've emailed the webmaster several times with suggestions, but have never received a response and assume my critical comments were trashed rather than ever revealed to higher ups, who might take actions to improve the website and perhaps roll a few heads down Sukumvit.

1. 65 Items Loading

That's what your horribly overcrowded website screams at visitors when they click the URL in their favorites. What? Do you realize how fucking slow your website loads? Do you really need all those whirly gadgets and flashing advertisements that keep your newspaper website among the slowest loading in the known universe?

2. Incomprehensible Post Descriptions

Hello, The Nation webmaster and editors. Have you ever bothered to read the short descriptions on your website, which should quickly summarize what's the story? In many, many cases cute wins out over clear English, and few readers except for mind readers could possibly guess what the story is all about. And nobody has enough time to willy-nilly click links to figure out what the hell is going on. If you are vague on this concept, I'd suggest looking at the website at The New York Times, where the short summary descriptions always give a good indication of the background of the story.

Guess What the Hell the Following Means:
Catching the Killifish Trend [killer combat fish for sale?]
Fiery "Ball" Out [sun is dying?]
Go Natural [nudist resorts in Thailand?]
Travel Realities [whoa...now there's a big subject!]
Election Day Drawing Near [this was posted on Monday, Sept. 6]

3. Your Letters Page

OK, so there's a Letter link on your homepage, which you can click to read the latest rants and tirades by disgruntled farang, Thais, and embassies offended by a recent story. But your Letters link doesn't lead to letters, it leads to another page where another link is listed that leads you to the Letters section. Look. Time is money. Why in the world have you set up this torture chamber?

4. Your Pages Expire Almost Immediately

You links to stories rarely last more than a few days, and anyone who blogs or posts links to your page will be sorry when readers click your links and head directly to Expired Page. Expired Page is the responsibility of The Nation and it's a crime to throw away your good work. Please post original and unique links, then archive them and keep them active for future historians, bloggers, and webmasters. The Nation will never be remembered if you continue to let your story links expire. Sad.

Also

And do something about that Photo In the News section, which is slow and primitive to say the least. And those flashing ads across the top are old and nobody pays any attention. And get rid of those outdated sections. Today is Monday Sept. 6, and you've still posted Governor Election, Election Day Drawing Near. What? Somebody is asleep at the wheel.

If it make you feel any better, the website for The Bangkok Post is also pretty lousy and I'll burn down their cheery bandwagon shortly.