Ned Kelly’s Success In Cyberspace – Proving Australian History Does Not Have To Be Boring

Karen Carter

As online content continues to rapidly expand, Australian history web sites are to some extent, absent in cyberspace. However one Australian history web site is winning accolades and awards for its entertainment, educational and design value. This case study examines the Iron Outlaw web site and investigates what has contributed to the web sites success. The evolving relationship between entertainment and education within this web site is analysed and the technical and industrial aspects of this alliance are discussed.

Introduction

Much has been documented over the past 120 years about the life of one of Australia’s most historic figures, Ned Kelly. Libraries and Museums house much of the information, while specific rural locations mark the Kelly Gang’s trail. However until recently there was no singular location to source a complete range of information about the Australian legend. In 1995 a web designer aptly named Bradley Webb, unsatisfied with the lack of online information about the Kelly history, utilised the his design skills and the Internet to digitally document not only Ned and the Kelly gang’s story but to supply a global audience with any information or product remotely linked to the topic.

The Ned Kelly website, labelled Iron Outlaw is now a comprehensive Internet space, boasting 228 pages and averaging 300 hits a day. Yet little did the web designer know just how large and well received his personal project would become? The website is attracting attention both locally and internationally from educators, students publishers, authors, budding historians, critiques, television producers and anyone with an interest in the Australian legend.

Of particular interest, is the web sites success as an educational vehicle and its ability to tap into the education market, considering this was not its original purpose. And this is quite an achievement, as Internet users and learners become more demanding, their experiences with technology are more dynamic and sophisticated. Their expectations higher and their online choices more discerning.

Yet the Iron Outlaw web site is meeting the demands of Internet users and providing an award winning web site, and filling a gap in online Australian history reference. The fact that there exists such a gap in online Australian history web sites is perhaps another research question, however that is outside of this paper.

Subsequently what are the ingredients of the Iron Outlaw website that have led to its success in providing Internet users with an educational as well as entertaining experience?

Methodology

The research is qualitative and quantative, involving a process of investigation, analysis, synthesis and interpretation of data about this Australian history web site. This involved conducting an online survey, which was undertaken by 112 Internet users over a period of two months. The random sampling identified respondents demographic and disclosed their purpose for visiting the web site and assisted in determining whether users were satisfied with the navigation, design, usability and level of information provided on the site.

The Iron Outlaw web log files were analysed to document the amount of hits the site receives per-day. One thousand emails were examined in the web sites email vault, to assist in identifying users demographic and to document the general tone of the audience and their purpose of visiting the site.

An interview with the web master was conducted to determine the original and current purpose of the web site. While examining the web development principles and maintenance methods used.

While Secondary material such as magazine, web site reviews and testimonials were analysed and documented.

The Iron Outlaw web site

Currently the Iron outlaw web site is made up of 228 pages, 592 asset files (images), 20,342 links internal and external and is 185.5 MB and averages 300 hits a day. Technically speaking it is a very large web site.

Aside from the 300 hits a day and the numerous emails of appreciation the web master receives, the web site is winning awards and five star magazine reviews, and has been formally incorporated into the education environment, both in Australia and the US.

Internet.au magazine’s Web Doctor (April 2002) gave it a five star rating and web site of the month in April 2002. The Web Doctor regarded the web site as a thorough and comprehensive space that explained the legend, the myth, the man and the criminal in an extremely well constructed manner, and a level of information that is entertaining. And suggests the web site would be a great educational reference, yet is built in a way that is enjoyable and interesting for anyone simply surfing the Internet.

The web doctors technical comments suggest the web developer is following appropriate web design principles, which are essential in ensuring a web sites success, “The navigation system is intuitive and easy to follow, by using JavaScript menu, the links float up easily and are very click able. Some JavaScript can be messy and sluggish, slowing down the speed of a web page, making it a frustrating experience. However the Iron outlaw loads very fast and neatly, and its design has a clean, organised, well-planned structure. The multimedia and interactivity is excellent and while the use of JavaScript is clever and you can download screen-savers, you can also buy Ned Kelly merchandise and related gifts including books, T-shirts, posters and bookmarks. The sheer magnitude of the website is overwhelming. There is countless hours worth of diversion, and it’s easy to get wrapped up in the story of the man and the legend. But that is a good thing considering the site is fast loading. It’s very impressive stuff, and the verdict, historical genius,” Web Doctor (April 2002).

The Iron Outlaw web site has received two golden web awards, the first was for the Golden Web Award of the month in October 2001, by the International Association of Web Masters in the United States and the second award for the Best of the Web for MacOS Gold Award for Web Site Excellence and Best of the Web for MacOS Gold Award for Public Service in December 2001. Goldenwebaward (2001)

The following examples of recognition received during 2002 are further testimony to the web sites success:

Five brains awarded from Dr. Brain’s Laboratory. Ned Kelly: Australian Ironoutlaw has received a rating of 5 brains from Dr. Brain’s Laboratory. “This recognition is being given to outstanding educational websites for quality of information, ease of use, and enjoy ability, as well as design that takes advantage of the capabilities of the Web to create an exciting educational experience.” Doctorbrain.Tripod.com (2002)
Hitwise announced that the Ironoutlaw web site recently ranked No. 9 in the Entertainment – Personalities category. “We consider this a very strong achievement. The site’s ranking is based on the number of user visits it has received, which is measured in that category for the quarterly period 1 January – 31 March 2002. Each quarter, Hitwise ranks the Top10 websites according to user visits, across each of the 150+ categories and certifies the achievement of each site that has qualified with a Hitwise Top10 Award logo.” Hitwise.com.au (2002)
Bton.com gave the web site a WeB Pix Araward; “Ironoutlaw.com’s review score of 95 has earned it our WeB Pix Award! Congratulations! We found your reader-friendly site easy to navigate, attractive, full of great content, and a great service to the Internet community. Thank you for your commitment to Web excellence! This winning Web site is now listed on the winners’ page for March 2002.” Bton.com (2002)
During 2000, Channel nine’s Sixty Minutes referred to the Iron outlaw website in a Ned Kelly report, as the most comprehensive space for those who wanted to acquire information about Ned Kelly. www.Ninemsn.com.au (2000)
The other acknowledgments are too numerous mention in this paper, however the Internet environment is not the only area to acknowledge the web site. Education is bestowing the web site with recognition by officially counting it as a major Australian history reference in curriculum resources.
The Learning Technologies unit in the NSW Department of Education and Training, linked the Iron Outlaw web site to student Internet projects in 1999. Queensland University also included it in their History degree in 2001, as a required text.
Holt, Rinehart and Winston (HRW) publisher of educational materials for the secondary school market in the United States, created a web site containing activities for the social studies unit, which included the Iron outlaw web site on their list of frequent interest to teachers and students. www.hrw.com 2000

The email vault section on the Iron Outlaw web site contains one thousand email responses and queries for the web master. The vault stores only a small portion of emails received, as the web log files indicate the web master has received over twenty-six thousand emails in four years. However of the one thousand stored emails 40% of these emails are officially education related, while the other 60% are users simply interested in learning more about the Australian legend. 80% percent of responses are Australian, with 20% from nations, such as Denmark, Canada, America and the UK. According to the web log files the International audience is increasing by an average of 5% a year.

While the email vault and web log files, provide insight into audience perception, experience, behaviour, demographic and purpose for visiting the web site, the survey conducted over a two-month period examined the audience further.

Figure 1 – Survey conducted over two-month period: September – October 2002.

A great deal of the survey results reflected the existing acknowledgments and awards, such as the web sites overall rating and navigation (Figure 1).

The survey shows 60% of respondents were male, compared to 40% were female. 84% were Australian, 15% international, with all age groups evident, although thirty-two to fourty-one year olds being the largest age group to access the site. All respondents aged 12 and under to age 18 were education related. Overall 59% of respondents interest in the website was personal or a hobby, 40% were officially education related, such as teachers researching for curriculum and students studying Australian history. Only 2% of respondents disliked navigation and rated the site poor, while 97% of respondents rated the site excellent, with 100% claiming the site is educational and informative.

The survey results, the emails, the awards and numerous acknowledgements, demonstrate the web site is highly effective and successful, both as an educational vehicle, entertainment piece and an excellent example of good web site design.

The web master

Therefore what has attributed to the continued and growing success of this Australian history website? According to web master, Bradley Webb the first ingredient is his passion for Australian history in particular a long-term interest in Ned Kelly. When asked why Ned Kelly and not other Australian historical figures, Webb states that Ned Kelly is more well known and popular, more information exists and new information is continually being released about the Kelly Gang. However none of the information existed in one comprehensive space, and he wanted combine all of this information and create a dedicated interactive database for anyone of any age group or demographic interested in topic.

The second ingredient is his passion for good design. His aim in constructing the Iron outlaw website was not only to create a Ned Kelly database, but to expand his design skills from print to web, and establish himself as a web designer, while investigating and documenting a topic of great interest. He believes the best work comes from those who are devoted to their cause. And suggests many educational web sites produced by education institutions lack, aesthetic and entertainment value, rendering a web site ineffective.

Webb believes his web site is successful due to the fact that he continually strives to provide an instant, visually stimulating and informative experience. Over the life of the iron outlaw web site, Webb has spent an average of twelve hours a week maintaining and expanding the site, answering emails and adding information that flows in via various sources. He research’s, designs and maintains the site with technical efficiency in mind and states the issues of accessibility and usability are a priority in development and maintenance of a site, and spends half of this time is dedicated to improving the usability and aesthetic appeal. And continually runs checks on his web logs to determine users requirements and most popular choices, and alters the site according to the findings. He states, the web site has been an evolution; it has evolved with the technology and the Internet user.

Elements such as the web sites detailed searching capabilities, means that users can quickly and easily find the information they are interested in. Webb credits the manner in which the content is written to the sites broad appeal. He says it is written in layman terms and not academic terms, as he wanted the site to be easily understood by all.

A popular aspect of the web site is the email vault, as it has created a forum for discussion, amongst hobbyists, academics, students, supporters and non-supporters of Ned Kelly. He says it has given a voice to many people who have links to the Kelly history and are able to add valuable information to the site. The email vault also assists Webb in the maintenance of the web site, is it provides useful feedback on what users would like to see improved or added to the site.

Another popular aspect of the web site according to Webb is the e-store where Ned Kelly related items could be purchased. And states the free items such as the screen savers, and bookmarks are well received. (personal communication, September 13, 2002)

While the majority of feedback and acknowledgements are positive, there is one negative aspect to be found in the web site. And that is responses from the web master in the email vault are somewhat controversial. The email vault has certainly has created a forum for discussion and debate which is engaging and educational, yet there appears to be some negative feedback from the audience regarding some of the derogatory responses the emailers receive from the web master, should there be any an anti-Ned tones or questions that appear ridiculous.

The web master is perhaps hedonist in his approach, and states the subject of the Kelly gang is controversial and should be open to debate. One could argue had the web master not been so passionate about this topic would such an extensive and successful web site exist? The email vault is not vital in the foundation of this site, and does not seem to have deterred some educational institutions and Internet users from utilising the web site. However one cannot dismiss the possibility that should the web master take a different approach, perhaps the site would be further acknowledged by the education environment.

Conclusion

Although it was not the web masters intention, he has achieved what Australian education institutions or suppliers of educational material, seemingly have not to date, and that is provide a comprehensive online Australian history resource. A resource that appears to have overcome the challenge to package pedagogical information in a stimulating way. Which perhaps parallel the entertainment industry’s skills of presentation.

Donald Norman, believes much can be learned from the entertainment industry, where the practice of creating interest and excitement and developing the intense and devoted concentration required for learning, takes place. “We see children and how they relate to some of the better-designed video games, especially the energy and the enthusiasm they devote to completing the games that most interest them successfully. These are the exact behaviours we would like children to apply to schoolwork, and advanced students to university or other higher learning outcomes.” Norman (1993)

The challenge for web developers, let alone educators to capture and meet Internet users and learners expectations is increasing difficult, yet with the Iron Outlaw web sites use of multimedia, advanced java scripting, simple navigation, aesthetically pleasing and dynamic graphics, and a clean structure, have proven to offer a highly dynamic interactive experience for learners. This level of interactivity and control offered has inevitably provided instant gratification for the learner’s and Internet users curiosity. Jacob Neilson states, “the web is the ultimate in empowerment, and he or she who clicks the mouse decides everything.” Nielson (2000) Bonime & Pohlmann suggest “The more timely the arrival of information is to our highest level of curiosity, the more the information is likely to provide satisfaction as the entire process reaches what physiologists call “closure.” Bonime & Pohlmann (1999)

It is apparent web developers and educators of online curriculum could learn a great deal from this web site, as the challenge and pressure for contemporary educators to create stimulating online learning experiences, increases.

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