drgwentzel
Pre-takeoff checklist
Flyers,
I was just wondering if others here have the same frustration as me with aviationweather.gov.
First, I want to say that I use this site almost everyday and recommend it to my students all the time. It has great information.
Unfortunately, this website is optimized for a computer. The government should understand by now that in modern times 95% or more of current pilots use their smart phones and tablets to access this site.
The problem is that many pieces of information, such as, GAIRMET pages used to provide important information, cannot display all the text written in the detail box if it beyond a certain number of words. On a smart phone or tablet, the information in the box cannot be scrolled, cannot stay enlarged to read, and when we let go of our zoom action, the box flys off to parts unknown on the screen. Lastly, when we attempt to zoom in on a pilot report or graphical METAR, etc., as soon as we let go, the map stays zoomed, but the boxed we needed to enlarge to read snaps right back to its original unreadable size! Clearly, the designers do not think pilots use anything but a computer to access their site and have no need to access the site away from home or the office.
My suggestion is that the site should be re-designed so phones and tablets have the same functionality, or just make a dedicated App version that we can download. This way the site isn't half-A$$ed for both computers AND tablets, but each app is designed to optimize function for the device intended.
Gene
I was just wondering if others here have the same frustration as me with aviationweather.gov.
First, I want to say that I use this site almost everyday and recommend it to my students all the time. It has great information.
Unfortunately, this website is optimized for a computer. The government should understand by now that in modern times 95% or more of current pilots use their smart phones and tablets to access this site.
The problem is that many pieces of information, such as, GAIRMET pages used to provide important information, cannot display all the text written in the detail box if it beyond a certain number of words. On a smart phone or tablet, the information in the box cannot be scrolled, cannot stay enlarged to read, and when we let go of our zoom action, the box flys off to parts unknown on the screen. Lastly, when we attempt to zoom in on a pilot report or graphical METAR, etc., as soon as we let go, the map stays zoomed, but the boxed we needed to enlarge to read snaps right back to its original unreadable size! Clearly, the designers do not think pilots use anything but a computer to access their site and have no need to access the site away from home or the office.
My suggestion is that the site should be re-designed so phones and tablets have the same functionality, or just make a dedicated App version that we can download. This way the site isn't half-A$$ed for both computers AND tablets, but each app is designed to optimize function for the device intended.
Gene
