http://www.rapture.co.uk/
Rapture TV, the newly-launched cable-only teenage lifestyle channel, has produced a website which is frustrating to use mainly because it does not fulfil its potential.
The site looks good and, although I have never watched Rapture, I would imagine the design and “feel” of the web pages accurately reflects the Rapture “brand”. It is also easy to navigate around, with the main sections of the site always accessible from a horizontal bar at the top of the page.
Obviously aimed at 12-20 year olds, features of the site include a programme and schedule run-down, sound clips from programmes, a lively chat-room and an interactive section where users can submit bands and clubs for reviews and feature-pieces. One can also vote on whether England will win the World Cup (currently 58% saying rather hopefully “yes”).
There is also a very useful revision section for all the school kids currently studying for GCSEs and ‘A’-Levels.
The problem with the site is that the parts which truly capture the spirit of the internet (ie the interactive bits) just don’t work. The “Sounds” section should presumably offer audio clips but nothing is clickable so it is effectively a blank page.
The part where comments on TV programmes can be made crashed my browser every time I tried to enter it, bringing up “Dr What’s On”‘s ugly mug and the “Offline” section, where games and 3D simulators are available, proved to have an ironically apt title since the required plug-ins could not be found.
According to my technical sources however this is not Rapture’s fault but one of the more annoying “features” of the web – it will be a time for celebration if a browser is ever invented which does not require plug-ins.
If Rapture sort out these technical difficulties then I would imagine this to prove a very popular site with the channel’s key audience. Until this happens, however, Rapture remains one of the legions of websites where style triumphs over content.
Reviewer: Phill Knightley
