The StreetWalker software provides a basic technological infrastructure that
allows the design of a wide variety of tourism web sites.
A StreetWalker-Focused Site
The easiest and quickest kind of site to build is a site that has the StreetWalker town (or city or county) map on the home page. An example is shown in the illustration at the right. This site (for Murphys, California) can be explored by pressing the "StreetWalker Demo" button on the Tools for Tourism home page.
This kind of site is appropriate for a small city or town that doesn't have an existing tourism promotion organization and wants users to focus on the tourism aspects of the town. This approach has something of an unusual, no-nonsense look. It says to the tourist: Here's our town. In detail.
Another reason for this kind of site is if it is to cover a large county or region. Large county and regional sites can get complex, and limiting it to a StreetWalker-only style makes it simpler and easier to use for the visitor. A regional site built with StreetWalker can be viewed at www.yosemitevisitor.com
A Conventional Site
Another approach integrates the StreetWalker maps into a more conventional site. The illustration at the right shows an example of this kind of site. It has the usual logo and a slide show of large photos--a popular approach these days now that connection speeds are high enough to allow it.
This kind of site can range from a basic StreetWalker site with just a home page that shows off the town with photos, to an elaborate site with a large amount of information. In the example (which you can see as a demo) the home page shows photos intended to entice visitors, and describes what's particularly interesting about the town, its history, and major events happening in the town.
One issue is the extent to which StreetWalker is emphasized on the site. Having the string of buttons shown--with not only the "Map Based Guide" button and also the buttons for "Lodging", "Eat & Drink", and "Wine Tasting" going to a StreetWalker map, makes it reasonably prominent.
Another way of indicating to the user that the StreetWalker maps are available is shown in the example is a small map prominently displayed that makes it clear that a map based guide is available. It is a good idea to do something that indicates to the user that a map-based guide is available that is far beyond the capability of traditional maps.
If often takes time to make the necessary decisions about the design of a new tourism site and to collect the information and present it. One strategy for agencies that want to build a new site quickly is to start with a StreetWalker-focused site--because it can be done quickly--and then extend it later to a more conventional design.
A StreetWalker-Focused Site
The easiest and quickest kind of site to build is a site that has the StreetWalker town (or city or county) map on the home page. An example is shown in the illustration at the right. This site (for Murphys, California) can be explored by pressing the "StreetWalker Demo" button on the Tools for Tourism home page.
This kind of site is appropriate for a small city or town that doesn't have an existing tourism promotion organization and wants users to focus on the tourism aspects of the town. This approach has something of an unusual, no-nonsense look. It says to the tourist: Here's our town. In detail.
Another reason for this kind of site is if it is to cover a large county or region. Large county and regional sites can get complex, and limiting it to a StreetWalker-only style makes it simpler and easier to use for the visitor. A regional site built with StreetWalker can be viewed at www.yosemitevisitor.com
A Conventional Site
Another approach integrates the StreetWalker maps into a more conventional site. The illustration at the right shows an example of this kind of site. It has the usual logo and a slide show of large photos--a popular approach these days now that connection speeds are high enough to allow it.
This kind of site can range from a basic StreetWalker site with just a home page that shows off the town with photos, to an elaborate site with a large amount of information. In the example (which you can see as a demo) the home page shows photos intended to entice visitors, and describes what's particularly interesting about the town, its history, and major events happening in the town.
One issue is the extent to which StreetWalker is emphasized on the site. Having the string of buttons shown--with not only the "Map Based Guide" button and also the buttons for "Lodging", "Eat & Drink", and "Wine Tasting" going to a StreetWalker map, makes it reasonably prominent.
Another way of indicating to the user that the StreetWalker maps are available is shown in the example is a small map prominently displayed that makes it clear that a map based guide is available. It is a good idea to do something that indicates to the user that a map-based guide is available that is far beyond the capability of traditional maps.
If often takes time to make the necessary decisions about the design of a new tourism site and to collect the information and present it. One strategy for agencies that want to build a new site quickly is to start with a StreetWalker-focused site--because it can be done quickly--and then extend it later to a more conventional design.
Designing a New Tourism Web
Site with StreetWalker
Site with StreetWalker