Nice People Thread No. 15, a Cyber Summer

michaels

vivatifosi wrote: »

Re why do councils do things differently. There are a few things..

Unitaries run differently from county/district
The priorities are set according to local need/who is in charge.

There is a drive by government to make websites more similar. They are now supposed to all have websites that are placename.gov.UK and there is some work being done on making things more similar. However that depends on what money/resources is available to make changes, given that there were other priorities that need money, eg elderly care.

It is not a no brainer problem though, the fewer the layers and larger the area the more efficient/lowest cost...but at the expense of local accountability. The UK moved to a model of different systems for different areas to reflect that there may be more than one right answer but of course that makes things even more complicated....

PasturesNew

When researching the "tree" I use archive searches.... they mostly use different systems - and for many I can't fathom them out.

Personally, I like the CALM system - but only because the first archives I used had it and it was "easy" to use and find on their website. Having said that, I now firstly google for the county name and CALM to see if they use it... I have three I regularly use. But population of that is dependent upon the county ... so, while some CALM results yield good stuff, others have virtually nothing.

It has its problems though, I won't deny that ... but of the archives search systems I've found/used, it's been my easiest google result to attempt to find something.

Also, having said that, the results are "useless" in that it's just an index of what they have - and you'd still need to physically attend the office, open the box - and see what's inside.... and it might simply be a single scrap of paper with their name on it, or a 200 page document written entirely in Latin

vivatifosi

michaels wrote: »

It is not a no brainer problem though, the fewer the layers and larger the area the more efficient/lowest cost...but at the expense of local accountability. The UK moved to a model of different systems for different areas to reflect that there may be more than one right answer but of course that makes things even more complicated....

I think that's what they are trying to do I many cases... Change the backroom offering and share costs rather than affect the front line services. Though much of that has ended up down a Capita/Serco type route to outsource rather than shared services.

But definitely... Not without complications.

PasturesNew

Imagine if all libraries numbered their books differently ... no DEWEY! No ISBN. All just "books" ... with some smaller libraries organising them by cover colour and size.



And why oh why are book spines printed in such a way that you have to bend over at 90 degrees to read the titles? Bl00dy annoying as you can't see what's what!

Pyxis

I just did an experimental google of my own area's library services and three adjoining areas.

My objective was to find
a) a list of libraries and
b) whether I could use my card for that area in other areas.

Interestingly, my own area was the 'hardest' to navigate, mainly due to there being too many colourful boxes on the page, and "what's on" notices.
(With ADHD, pages like that just 'swim' before my eyes!)

The other three were easier.

Only one gave me a full answer to b), and on the very first page! Then one more click led me to a full list of libraries with addresses and opening times.

The others didn't tell me about reciprocity, two hinted at it, after a search. Two gave a list or a map of libraries on a further click, without me having to input a postcode.

By far the easiest one to navigate was the one without all the colours and swimmy stuff, and interestingly, it was the one with the most text!

Webpage designers, please note!


(I have noticed in the past that I if I reach a site that is too swimmy, unless it is a matter of life and death, I just butt straight out again, and don't bother. My feeling is that if a site is too time-consuming and annoying to navigate, I probably don't want to do business with them, as their customer service might be equally time-consuming and annoying!

One good yardstick for me is: How easy is it to find the 'Contact Us' details, and do those contacts include an address and telephone option? If they don't, it's akin, in my opinion, to a builder only putting a mobile number on his business card. Untraceable = unreliable/dodgy in my book!)

Pyxis

PasturesNew wrote: »

Imagine if all libraries numbered their books differently ... no DEWEY! No ISBN. All just "books" ... with some smaller libraries organising them by cover colour and size.



And why oh why are book spines printed in such a way that you have to bend over at 90 degrees to read the titles? Bl00dy annoying as you can't see what's what!

now, that would be good! I particularly like green books!




I think the lengthways titles is because otherwise you'd need a microscope to read them! Some titles are quite long.

PasturesNew

OK, let's whine about recycling.

Every one has a different system, different bins, varying numbers of bins/bags, with different items that they take.

Fair enough - that's the way it is .... but then when you try to work out what goes into your bin you're left not really knowing.

A bit like those window envelopes - do you have to remove the window or not. Some websites might say "recycling: envelopes YES" - but fail to mention window envelopes.... and what about the gummy strip? I always tear off the gummy strip just in case ... and remove the window ... in case.

Mine says it takes envelopes, but not plastic film. Is a window envelope a plastic film?

It's all a bit too technical

Pyxis

Again, I think it varies.

My area used to say no envelope windows, then a few years ago it changed to 'you can leave them on now'.

I think gummy strips are absolutely fine. Lots of cardboard boxes have gluey bits.

I do still pull the bigger, thicker windows off packaging cartons, though.

My area never used to take milk/drink cartons; now it does.


What's a bit annoying, though, is a lot of people don't realise that even if a plastic bottle is made of a recyclable plastic, very often the cap is of a different, frequently non-recyclable plastic, so shouldn't be left on the bottle.

If the sign on a cap is non-existent or too small for me to read, I don't put it in the recycling.


It might be worth emailing your refuse department to find out what the position is re. any queries you might have.

PasturesNew

Pyxis wrote: »

... even if a plastic bottle is made of a recyclable plastic, very often the cap is of a different, frequently non-recyclable plastic, so shouldn't be left on the bottle.

Mine says to squash them and fit the cap.

It takes a special talent to be able to achieve that as when you squash the bottle you still have to ensure the cap will fit.

I do it by half fitting the cap, then standing on the bottle from the far end until it's flat as I can make it, then (still standing on it with one foot), I reach down and screw the cap tight.

Try that when you're 85!

Pyxis wrote: »

If the sign on a cap is non-existent or too small for me to read, I don't put it in the recycling.

There's a sign on a cap? Bugg4h that!

Pyxis wrote: »

It might be worth emailing your refuse department to find out what the position is re. any queries you might have.

That won't happen - and you get a pointless/vanilla answer ... and the next item in your hand for bin/recycling would mean another question/answer.

They should have a facebook page where people upload a photo/question and it's answered, so you can at least scan through people's photos and see the answer

Pyxis

PasturesNew wrote: »

Mine says to squash them and fit the cap.

It takes a special talent to be able to achieve that as when you squash the bottle you still have to ensure the cap will fit.

I do it by half fitting the cap, then standing on the bottle from the far end until it's flat as I can make it, then (still standing on it with one foot), I reach down and screw the cap tight.

Try that when you're 85!
No way I could do that, and I'm way off 85!

There's a sign on a cap? Bugg4h that!

Yup! In my experience, very, very few caps are the same plastic as the tub/bottle, and they are usually the non-recyclable sort!
That won't happen - and you get a pointless/vanilla answer ... and the next item in your hand for bin/recycling would mean another question/answer.

They should have a facebook page where people upload a photo/question and it's answered, so you can at least scan through people's photos and see the answer

i've telephoned mine in the past, and got a very intelligent and clear answer!