December 2004

LawnCafe

http://www.lawncafe.com/




US-based LawnCafe describes itself as "the green industry's best landscape forum site on the web", where users can "connect with other landscape professionals, contractors, lawn maintenance, hardscaping professionals, all other professionals in the green industry". It is certainly a well used site - when Sapling visited, it claimed to have over 5,000 members, 13,000 threads and 150,000 posts. As well as lawns, other threads cover topics including fertilisers and pesticides, landscaping, trees, irrigation and hardscaping. With an attractive and intuitive interface, LawnCafe is without a doubt an excellent resource in its field. Awarded a Sapling Commendation. [GAS, 5 Mar 2006].



ENTRY NUMBER: lan-231004-04
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: United States
PRIMARY GATEWAY LISTING: Landscape » Resources
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November 2004

Acropolis of Athens - 360 Degree Virtual Tour

http://www.acropolis360.com/




Immersive360.com have created this inventive site, a full screen 360 degree virtual tour of the Athens Acropolis with Quicktime Panoramas, maps, 3D plans, text information, sounds and voice commentaries. Launching it in August 2004, they explain that "Acropolis360.com is the first of many sites to showcase the best of the world's historic and contemporary landmarks and events. It is our intention to create a free public archive of as many of the world's architectural, historic and cultural treasures as possible using this immersive imaging format. We will be constantly adding to this site and creating new sites in what we hope will be a lifelong project for us. Our aim is to create an educational resource that can be used by anyone, anywere". QuickTime and Flash plug-ins are needed to enjoy the tour, but it's worth the effort - the panoramas are wonderful, if rather giddying at times, such is the sensation of really being there and looking around. The quality of the graphics is superb, accompanied by useful and informative descriptive text and an attractive, intuitive user interface; only the proliferation of spelling mistakes throughout the site detracts from the overall positive impression. If this is to be the first of many such tours, we look forward to future additions - truly an excellent site. Awarded a Sapling Commendation. [GAS, 6 Nov 2005].



ENTRY NUMBER: her-101004-01
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: United Kingdom
PRIMARY GATEWAY LISTING: Heritage » Places
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October 2004

CASA - Centre for Advanced Spatial Analysis

http://www.casa.ucl.ac.uk/




This site describes CASA's research work in measuring, modelling and visualising the built environment. The Centre's background is in the use of computers and models in planning using contemporary techniques such as GIS, decision support systems, various kinds of mathematical models, geodemographics and visualisation. CASA's focus, and the purpose of its site, is to "make all this intelligible and communicable to less expert users than ourselves". Visually, the site gets off to an excellent start by presenting visitors with an attractive and logical interface; the home page offers up-to-date snippets of news, while clearly labelled sections provide more in depth material. An extensive 'Research' section allows users to browse by theme or project; 'People' provides informative profiles of all the CASA staff; and 'Publications' features over 70 freely downloadable (PDF format) working papers. The discussion forum, however, appears to no longer work, which is disappointing. Overall, however, CASA's site can be judged a resounding success - the Centre sets out to make its research "intelligible and communicable" and does just that, creating a site that is attractive to look at and a pleasure to navigate. Add in its rich, up-to-date content, and CASA's site is quite possibly the best university site Sapling has reviewed - truly an excellent resource. Awarded a Sapling Commendation. [GAS, 24 Aug 2005].



ENTRY NUMBER: pla-270804-05
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: United Kingdom
PRIMARY GATEWAY LISTING: Planning » Research
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September 2004

Housingnet.co.uk

http://www.housingnet.co.uk/




Housingnet calls itself "a social housing data collection and distribution website", and it is certainly a useful place to visit. The site is well organised, centred around the Blue Pages, a complete database of all known RSLs (Housing Associations) in the UK and the offshoot of this section, the Address Book, a downloadable desk top resource of all RSLs and Local Government Offices. Elsewhere, an extensive links directory provides access to many other housing and built environment-related sites. As a site independent of any big organisation, the breadth and quality of Housingnet's coverage is particularly impressive. Awarded a Sapling Commendation. [GAS, 4 Jul 2006].



ENTRY NUMBER: hou-230104-01
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: United Kingdom
PRIMARY GATEWAY LISTING: Housing » Resources
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August 2004

Newbridge Memorial Hall

http://www.newbridge-memo.net/




Runner-up in the 2004 series of the BBC's 'Restoration', Newbridge Memo is described as "the best surviving Art Deco theatre/cinema in Wales". Home of the Celynen Collieries Institute and Memorial Hall, it has been called a "remarkable testament to the men who gave their lives in the great war 1914 -18, [and] to the Miners of South Wales and their families who toiled to improve themselves through the social and education amenities that were to become world famous as the Miners' Institutes". However, following the decline of the mining industry, the Memo was forced to close in the 1980s and subsequently fell into disrepair. Today, however, the Memo is looking towards a future as a thriving community arts centre, though funding is needed to save the buildings. The campaign site for the Memo is an attractive and highly professional affair, while managing to evoke the project's evident 'rootedness' within the local community. Sections cover community action, the architectural importance of this "Jewel in the Valleys", and its appearance on the 'Restoration' show. Elsewhere, an excellent illustrated history traces the evolution of the building through various incarnations (live music venue, cinema) and its subsequent decline. Overall, this is an informative and engaging site, which can only help in the campaign to save the Newbridge Memo. Awarded a Sapling Commendation. [GAS, 5 Nov 2005].



ENTRY NUMBER: her-040804-01
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: United Kingdom
PRIMARY GATEWAY LISTING: Heritage » Places
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July 2004

CUBE: Centre for the Understanding of the Built Environment

http://www.cube.org.uk/




Based in Manchester and Liverpool, CUBE describes itself as one of the leading centres for contemporary architecture in Europe, "dedicated to broadcasting the ideas and issues that lie behind the buildings, spaces and environments that make up our built environment". The site's content is impressive, offering news on forthcoming exhibitions and seminars (with an archive of previous stories), plus a best practice directory, a useful education section, and a series of enjoyable and informative 'city tours' of Manchester. The design of the site is also excellent, with clear menus, beautiful images and effective use of colour coding. Awarded a Sapling Commendation. [GAS, 5 Mar 2006].



ENTRY NUMBER: arc-070604-05
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: United Kingdom
PRIMARY GATEWAY LISTING: Architecture » Organisations
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June 2004

Planning Resource

http://www.planningresource.co.uk/




Launched in January 2004, Planning Resource seeks to combine the strengthes of Planning magazine (replacing the previous Planning website), Regeneration & Renewal magazine, Axis magazine, Development Control Services Ltd (DCS) and the RTPI. It aims to become a one-stop shop for the planning community, and though some areas of the site are restricted to paying subscribers only (RTPI members get full access), there are also plenty of free areas to enjoy. An up-to-date 'News' section (subscribers only) brings together planning, regeneration and housing-related stories from the three different magazines, while the 'Jobs & Careers' section claims to be "the most comprehensive planning/regeneration jobs site available". Meanwhile, the excellent 'Documents' section pulls together good practice examples, documents referred to in Planning and Regeneration & Renewal, and links to planning policy and regional strategy documents, as well as providing a comprehensive annotated links directory. Elsewhere, the 'Online Community' part of the site renders Planning Resource as a place for interaction as well as information, with a well-used events diary and discussion forum. Visually, the site as a whole is neatly laid out and easy to navigate, if a little on the text-heavy side in parts. Awarded a Sapling Commendation. [GAS, 4 Jul 2006].



ENTRY NUMBER: pla-070604-02
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: United Kingdom
PRIMARY GATEWAY LISTING: Planning » Resources
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May 2004

Lighting Directory

http://www.lightingdirectory.com/




As its name implies, Lighting Directory is a comprehensive resource listing manufacturers and suppliers of lighting fixtures and related products. The site is attractively designed, well laid-out and easy to use - visitors can browse the directory by category, or search by keyword or company name; each entry then includes a company profile, contact information and web link. Elsewhere, new lighting product releases, an up-to-date news section, and current job vacancies add to the site's value as a resource. Awarded a Sapling Commendation. [GAS, 13 Dec 2005].



ENTRY NUMBER: con-240304-01
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: United Kingdom
PRIMARY GATEWAY LISTING: Construction » Resources
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March 2004

Earthartist Landscape Architecture

http://www.earthartist.com/




Earthartist is a landscape architecture firm based in Ontario, Canada and headed by Mike Salisbury. Recently overhauled, the Earthartist site features three distinct sections: 'Living Landscapes' covering design, planning and landsape marketing; 'Learning Landscapes' showcasing playground design; and 'Spiritual Landscapes', devoted to Earthartist's work in relation to 'green cemetery' planning and design. Each section is copiously illustrated with photos and graphics, with a helpful system of colour coding that enhances the site's legibility. Awarded a Sapling Commendation. [GAS, 21 Aug 2006].



ENTRY NUMBER: lan-251101-01
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: Canada
PRIMARY GATEWAY LISTING: Landscape » Services
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February 2004

The DiCamillo Companion to British & Irish Country Houses

http://www.dicamillocompanion.com/




The DiCamillo Companion is ambitious in its scope, describing itself as "a database that will list every British and Irish country house, standing or demolished". Amazingly, the site delivers - updated daily, its Database of Houses claims to contain records for more than 7,000 houses, with images for over 1,160 houses, and listings of over 230 houses where movie and TV filming has taken place; moreover, it is all the work of just one person, architectural historian Curt DiCamillo. A powerful search tool allows users to find the information they require, with each record featuring details (where available) about the architects, current condition, access, ownership, history and other references. The DiCamillo Companion also offers many features in addition to its Database of Houses. Highlights include a useful pronunciation guide to house names; access to Burke's Peerage & Gentry search; and an excellent section of more than 300 links to country house and related websites. The site itself is well-organised, and the effective use of colours, images and quotes gives it a classy, country house-inspired feel. Conversely, while the sheer number of graphics and extensive use of Java can make it a little slow to navigate, it seems a price worth paying in order to access its splendid content. Be in do doubt, the DiCamillo Companion is an incredible achievement, and an essential site for anyone interested in heritage. Awarded a Sapling Commendation. [GAS, 12 Nov 2007].



ENTRY NUMBER: her-250104-01
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: United States
PRIMARY GATEWAY LISTING: Heritage » Resources
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January 2004

Sustainable Cities Research Institute

http://www.sustainable-cities.org.uk/




Based at Northumbria University, the Sustainable Cities Research Institute "aims to develop and promote sustainable approaches to urban living". The site is attractive and well laid-out, featuring information about the Institute (such as staff details and a policy statement), an up-to-date news section, and comprehensive details of current projects and forthcoming events. An excellent publications page includes links to the full text of most documents. The links section is also good, with particular focus on partners and projects, governmental sites, and research institutions. Many of the university research sites reviewed by Sapling are poorly maintained or lacking in real content, so it is refreshing to see a site which is obviously well-maintained and packed with really useful information. Awarded a Sapling Commendation. [GAS, 23 Aug 2005].



ENTRY NUMBER: sus-241103-01
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: United Kingdom
PRIMARY GATEWAY LISTING: Sustainability » Research
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