Monday 23 October, 2006
Site re-design: your feedback needed
If you're reading this post, then I would love it if you could comment on it.
I'm currently going through a site re-design (with the help of my infinitely better-qualified friend Elise). This is in part because it's long overdue, and in part because the current design was a tactical change to the one I used when Stateside: its reference to New York's subway line numbering was no longer relevant now I'm living in London town, so the header has become somewhat bare.
So, I'd like to know:
- What you like about the current site
- What you don't like about the current site
- What you'd like to be changed/moved/removed
- What you'd like to see that's not there right now.
I'm afraid that I won't be able to address the drivel that appears in the posts, but hopefully I'll be able to address some of the looky and feely and positioningy issues.
Obviously, once the changes take effect, this post will be out of place, as the answers to 2, 3 and 4 will be null.
Please, comment away!
Things I like:
The simplicity / clean nature of the current site
The speed with which it downloads & renders
The font size (I'm rather fed up of tiny fonts for style's sake)
Things I don't like:
The fold on the top right corner. It's a little niggle but it always looks a bit mangy to me.
Things I'd change:
The comment form layout. The main box could do with being a little larger IMHO.
The search form. I don't think it needs to be that large to be honest.
Things I'd add:
Comment count and meta data at the foot of posts on the main page as well as the top. Duplication of effort but means readers can click straight in whether they are at the beginning or the end of a post.
Some kind of Copyright / CC licence. You post some good stuff (no really) and it would be useful for readers to know the legal status of it. I'm especially thinking of your Excel tips and such.
That's my lot. All in all I have to say the current design works pretty well.
I hope this is helpful.
Rob
Good: The drivel
Bad: Search box too big, Meebo to prominent (for my liking) and its width is out of line with the other graphics.
Ugly (found it when reviewing the site to answer the questions): The CV is from your US days.
Yikes.
Good: It's clear to read.
Bad:
The color scheme.
Corner fold:
Layout: The line length is too wide, there is an optimal line width before a wrap around occurs. Too long and the page is hard to read (I have a 20" widescreen monitor at home and your page is too super wide on that).
Suggestion: The meta-data thing. Tag your posts with more than one category if wordpress will allow.
Take a look at this guy: http://www.FrancisShanahan.com
He's really got the whole UI thing figured out. Just look at those fonts, freakin' beautiful.
I have to say I never click on anything on the right except maybe Meebo.
You could add a list of the last 10 items posted or something. Take a look at my Zeitgeist for an example.
To quote Disraeli, "There are three kinds of lies: lies, damn lies, and statistics.".
Clearly there are enough of the first two categories on your blog, so statistics is the way forward. Get rid of the countdown rubbish and replace with average posts per day, posts this month, posts last month, etc etc. I am sure you can come up with something visually stunning to back up the cold hard numbers. I want trends, pie charts and probabilities. I need this information!
Hope that helps. My pleasure as usual.
I had to put an adblock on Membo.
'nuff said?
Shut the f**k'n thing down.
I can't actually detect any change.
What is the differences?
No change yet, Dave. Currently gathering requirements to inform changes.
Watch this space; later in the year...
Thanks for reading!
