Post by KeithI wouldn't mind some more feedback on how the threads are displayed on
this web forum.
For me, it's just the layout. Perhaps it's the new times roman, or something,
but it just seems kinda... I dunno... "jumbly" is the best way I can put it.
I think you should swap the position of "poster" & "replies". I'm not sure
you need the "Thread" column. I don't know if anyone would use it other than
perhaps you guys. (Keep in mind I'm trying to think like a HTTP-only user...
someone that's not hip to newsreaders, the more "AOL-ish" user perhaps.)
The colorizing of the cells helps clean it up a lot. I think you should
change the date layout to all digits. When you get into months like
"November", the longer month name will make it look more "jumbly". I think
just "05/19/03 - 09:22pm" would be cleaner. (Leaving off the seconds will
clean it too.)
If you removed the "Thread" and condensed the date, this would probably allow
the "latest reply" to be all on one line, which would also make for a more
clean appearance.
I would also "buttonize" (using form controls) some of the commands. This
will make them pop out to the users, make them more "Here I am!" and obvious
without sacrificing load times by using graphics. If not this, then perhaps
using background or text colors to make them pop would work. Though when
thinking like someone that's only used to "click, click, click" all over the
web, folks expect buttons or radio controls, and since you've said this is
more for those that only do HTTP (which will usually be those with less
"experience" shall I say?), they're used to seeing those usual old buttons,
and will be looking for them. (It's what I call the "AOL-izing of the
internet, a general dumbing down to make the internet less scary for those
that are overwhelmed when it comes technology as complicated as setting the
clock on a VCR... and won't read the manual to find out how.)
These are just my meager ideas I'm tossing out to you. I've done a lot of web
designs over the years (for commercial sites, not just personal or the like),
and I've always been seriously into clean, simple lines with fast load times.
You have the fast & simple down (especially since there's no graphics), I just
wanted to toss out some ideas to perhaps make it more... I guess streamlined.
Simple doesn't have to mean barren, and things really can be too simple, to
where people have to search to see what's in front of their faces to pick it
out of all the other similar looking text on a page.
I hope you don't think I'm dogging out the design or acting like I know it
all, these are just my ideas to help make things better, at least IMHO. I
know what it's like doing a site. It's sometimes hard to see what you're
doing because you're so into it, almost too close to it.
Anyhoo... hope I've helped in some small way, or at least triggered some ideas
you might not have considered already. :-)
~~R.Banks