GRADUATE CREATES INNOVATIVE APPROACH TO SEARCHING THE WEB BY ATTRACTING INTERNET USERS TO WATCH FLYING ADVERTS.

(PRLEAP.COM) Paul Koronka, a recent MSc graduate, has launched a new website for searching and advertising on the internet. By using images that move across the computer screen, the website delivers an alternative form of internet advertising for websites. Watchingthewebflyby.com is built on the idea that people will want to visit the website in order to look for specific or random websites.

Up to twenty advertising images travel across the screen from right to left, at different speeds and different screen heights. Each image represents a link to a website.

The pattern of flowing images changes constantly. When an image reaches the left edge of the screen a new image is selected at random from the database and starts moving from a variable position on the right of the screen.

When the viewer holds the mouse over an image which catches their attention, that image will stop moving and a description of the site represented by the logo will appear. If this image and description prove of interest to the user then one click on the mouse will open up the relevant website.

Paul explains – “In this way, using the advertisements becomes an exciting feature in itself, both practical and interactive. Advertisements are no longer simply a means to an end or an intrusive feature of internet use.”

If the user is looking for something specific, they will find that they can choose a category of interest (clothes, cars, handbags, books, for example) which will filter out all images except those related to the particular category chosen. Alternatively, they can opt for the default setting where an unfiltered stream of images will be selected to cross the screen.

For the advertiser, watchingthewebflyby.com offers a cheap and effective way to give exposure to a website. Prices range from £4 for a block of 20x20 pixels (400 pixels) up to £800 for a block of 400x200 (80,000 pixels).

The images fly by at random but the advertiser can choose to use a large or small image, or to buy more than one image, either of which would give their site greater exposure. Whichever they choose, they get continual advertising for their site. The advertiser can upload their own design for the image used on the moving screen. This could be an animated image, a company logo, a flyer or just a name.

The watchingthewebflyby.com website can be used as a screensaver so that it can be accessed quickly and easily, during a coffee-break or relaxation period, for example. The set-up can be personalised to suit the individual user: the background can be themed by choosing one of the options from a series of background images; the speed at which the images travel can be changed; the number of images on the screen at any one time can be altered.

Both the visitor to the site and the advertiser can find out which are the most popular sites. There is a stat page which shows (and compares) the number of hits on the images/ websites. The user can check out for himself the sites which have proved to be most popular and the advertiser can see how effective his site image or logo is at attracting attention.

Paul has created a website that approaches marketing from a different angle. He is hoping that watchingthewebflyby.com will provide the perfect launching site for new internet ventures. Paul has two other websites currently under development.