I don't think there's any way to improve snipd.com. The fundamental problem is that it's hard to understand what exactly snipd does. I'm a computer expert and I still don't understand it.
How to build a front page
11–20 of 27 posts
Re: How to build a front page
#12Updated the front-page: http://snipd.com/
Thoughts?
Re: How to build a front page
#13Updated the front-page: http://snipd.com/ Thoughts?
Definitely better. I'm still not a fan of the color scheme, or of the little people-boxes, but this is cleaner and more concise.
Re: How to build a front page
#14His methodology is wrong. MySpace is very successful. It's a huge site, very profitable and used and loved by a great many people. So the frontpage obviously works. The opinions reflected there are completely subjective, there is not even an attempt at any type of objective comparison between two patterns, to show why one pattern works and one does not. "Could it be that Facebook is so popular because it constantly u…
Forgive me; this response may be something of a rant. His methodology is wrong. MySpace is very successful. It's a huge site, very profitable and used and loved by a great many people. So the frontpage obviously works. It's successful because when it got created, it offered a music service that nobody else did. People joined to revolve around bands. I joined because friends had joined. That said, MySpace had a near-m…
Alright, there's no need to repeat ourselves. I'm a numbers guy. For me, any argument needs either a straight logical step or some type of numbers to back it up. I respect your approach towards things, because I know it works also. (I just don't like it, because it needs experience.)
So I'll say you did make a good number of good points, and seen from the angle you are approaching it at, what you wrote is a good essay.
Re: How to build a front page
#15Updated the front-page: http://snipd.com/ Thoughts?
1. You should get rid of the newest link. It will be full of porn. Although, now, there is only one porn link.
2. Your service is difficult to communicate. (At least, I did not immediately understand its purpose.) I think you should automatically play a short, silent, unobtrusive screencast that demonstrates the unique features of your product.
3. On your front page, consider displaying only those users who have uploaded thumbnails. And you should probably pre-approve those images. Now, I'm looking at durbin licking a sharp piece of class. It is kind of freaking me out.
All in all, I think you are a tasteful designer: well done.
Good luck.
Re: How to build a front page
#16I think the author has done a good job of discussing how the functional elements of a good front page should work together to focus communication and create a favorable first impression.
However, there's a lot of art-design advice sprinkled in alongside the content-design advice that I think is of a fundamentally lower quality.
"Color variances should always be blatant rather than subtle."
This statement is SO wrong. Contrast can be very important in creating visual separation and hierarchy, but this is dangerously close to the implication that everything should be contrasty all the time. (Think about flourescent spandex from the 80s as an example of this idea brought to life.) Style needs harmony. Walk in to a banana republic and look at how all the subtle variations of earth tones can blend to make some very stylish outfits... visit barackobama.com or whitehouse.gov and notice how all the different hues of blue work together to create a great aesthetic.
Wish I had more time for this... There are some FANTASTIC ideas in here about content design; what companies should be trying to say to potential users... and what they're actually saying.
But take the color-related, art-design stuff with a grain of salt.
And please author, there's no reason to make the posts on your blog bold all the way through! Bold type is not designed to be legible in large blocks... it's hard to read... and anything you DO choose to specifically emphasize is lost in the visual noise of all the boldness.
Re: How to build a front page
#17Updated the front-page: http://snipd.com/ Thoughts?
You need to change copyright year from 2008 to 2009.
Re: How to build a front page
#18Updated the front-page: http://snipd.com/ Thoughts?
You need to change copyright year from 2008 to 2009.
Wrong advice. Copyright date should use the date of the oldest material, not the newest.
Why? The purpose of putting a date on copyrighted material is to help you know when the copyright will expire (althought it's not in your lifetime :-). If you have material that you created in 2008, but put a (c) 2009 on that page, technically you are trying to cheat and extend your copyright protection by a year.
I know, for web pages it doesn't make any sense, but you might as well know what the right thing to do (TRTTD) is.
Re: How to build a front page
#19Earlier quoted context omitted.
You need to change copyright year from 2008 to 2009.
Wrong advice. Copyright date should use the date of the oldest material, not the newest. Why? The purpose of putting a date on copyrighted material is to help you know when the copyright will expire (althought it's not in your lifetime :-). If you have material that you created in 2008, but put a (c) 2009 on that page, technically you are trying to cheat and extend your copyright protection by a year. I know, for web…
Does that apply to the individual document page, or to the whole site? That is, if I have one static page that's from 2008, and the rest of the pages are from 2009, can I only say (c) 2008 on the one page?
I ask because it always feels to me, when I see "(c) 2001" or something similar, that a site is rotting on the vine.
Re: How to build a front page
#20I think the author has done a good job of discussing how the functional elements of a good front page should work together to focus communication and create a favorable first impression. However, there's a lot of art-design advice sprinkled in alongside the content-design advice that I think is of a fundamentally lower quality. "Color variances should always be blatant rather than subtle." This statement is SO wrong.…
My blog's set in standard Helvetica. Nothing bold there, beyond the title. Do you have Helvetica installed? If so, is it actually Helvetica or a font using the name Helvetica? I've tested this theme on every major OS/browser.
This statement is SO wrong. Contrast can be very important in creating visual separation and hierarchy, but this is dangerously close to the implication that everything should be contrasty all the time. (Think about flourescent spandex from the 80s as an example of this idea brought to life.) Style needs harmony. Walk in to a banana republic and look at how all the subtle variations of earth tones can blend to make some very stylish outfits... visit barackobama.com or whitehouse.gov and notice how all the different hues of blue work together to create a great aesthetic.
There's probably a better way for me to say that, absolutely. It's not contrast per se, it's just making sure that your colors all look pretty. Gradient colors are very pretty when they're used well, as they are on all of Obama's page designs.