New Horizon on 10/3/2009 at 19:50
Atchoo. Judging by what you have posted so far, I think it's safe to trust your instincts. Oh, and I think you're right about gradients...don't use one.
Chade on 11/3/2009 at 02:52
About the robot: while it's great to find something that hasn't been used much elsewhere, I think it's more important to find something iconic.
I'm not sure if you'll be able to satisfy both criteria.
SubJeff on 12/3/2009 at 09:24
I like the paint splat one that Dave posted. I agree that the content area is a little narrow but there is that big space at the top soooo...
Suggestions:
Move the Community portal bit up there but change the style a little so that it's not just another block of text. I've always liked The Circle's round graphic with the circling links. I'm not suggesting a copy of that just a more, er, curvy placement of the forum shortcuts.
This would free up space on the right (and the Friends and Neighbors and forum meta bit can be utilised as well) for the content to be expanded horizontally. Staff information and site legalise goes in a footer.
Is there a PSD version of this design out there somewhere?
akka on 12/3/2009 at 19:29
I think this is a good proposal. Two positive things: more space, and (my favorite), rounded shape. Uglov should be avoided. :thumb:
Nab on 13/3/2009 at 13:19
I guess the last two posters above me are refering to this post:
Quote Posted by David
[...]
While I agree that (most of) these are beautifully designed, I do not think they are adequate to the operation of this site. Just by changing the appearance of the page, its usage will not change. Once the redesign is done, there will be a great news item "new design". Judging from the current activity level on the news, it would stay up for another 2 or 3 years.
All of the current proposals only change the eye candy. But they do not appreciate that TTLG in practice works different than your average news+forum+links site.
I am starting to repeat myself here, but it is an important point to me:
Periodical news imply the need for a large news area.
You can't just invert the statement. Having a large news area does not conjure up periodical news.
The promise "When the new design is up, everything will be different and we will use all the features" has been void in each and every site redesign I have seen. Corporate and private.
If there is need for a feature, include it. Including a feature does not create a need for it.
I guess you could have just read every second paragraph of what I just wrote. Sorry for that
Nameless Voice on 13/3/2009 at 13:46
David has already said, in this thread and others, that there are plans to revive the hub and that he's currently working on building a new content management system for it.
addink on 13/3/2009 at 15:35
Yeah, but that doesn't change Nab's point.
For any kind of feature to make sense, it has to have a reason / serve a function. The current lack of activity on the hub can only partially (if indeed at all) be explained by the dated design.
What at this stage would be a good thing to do is to identify all possible and useful features that could make up the hub. Designing them is of a later concern, once the key elements have been decided.
For instance
* News items* summarized?* linking to offsite articles* linking to in house articles* other..?
* A Looking Glass Legacy panel* explaining the origin of TTLG* linking to pages describing LG games* 'Where are they now' link(s)* other..?
* A games that don't suck* list/reference
*as forms the basis of the forums right now
* existing titles* anticipated titles* linking to in house news pages* linking to their forum* how is this list composed, nominations by forum members? other?
* Forum headlines* most active threads* most active forums* preset selection* selection as nominated by forum members* other..?
* Links to affiliated sites* Just links?* Recent news items* other..?
* List of LG game's Mod projects
* Links to FAQs on how to get the LG classics running
* Tiny print stuff / Colophon* legal
* advert space (?)
* Search functions
* Help requests for FM / Mod projects (seeking testers, modelers, texture artists, etc)
* Donate* Just a link* or as in earlier designs: a prominent feature?
* Other.. / There's gotta be more ideas out there..
For each and every item on this list, there has to be a viable way of providing content. Even for something as obvious as 'news items' there has to be someone (or something) that actually updates it, regularly.
jay pettitt on 13/3/2009 at 23:18
It's not just current lack of activity. Ever since I've been vaguely aware of TTLG - which has got to be getting on 10 years the front page has been kinda useless - kind of like a strange version of a 'click here to enter our website' page,only with lots of writing on and that needs maintaining. Now that's not to say that all that can't change, but it's a kind of an I'll believe it when I see it thing.
Along with trying to understand what purpose a front page may serve and how it might be designed to benefit visitors I think you gotta try and understand the competition and what TTLG is doing with itself these days. If you want interesting game discussion and news you head over to Rock Paper Shotgun and the Escapist. TTLG on the other hand is where you went if you were after picking up scraps and leftovers from the ground breaking spectacular that was Bioshock.
Talking of being cynical... Anyone think Deus Ex 3 is going to be a super awesome thing abound in depth, freedom and innovation? Me neither. I can't much say I'm looking forward to TTLG prostituting itself to Eidos montreal hoping to get a minor exclusive screenshot or press release in return for a sordid unintimate act in the public loos. I know I'm getting old and jaded and crotchety, but I just don't think mainstream publishing is where interesting video games are getting made at the moment. I'm not sure TTLG really knows where it's focus and identity lies now (a list of nearly 20 mostly half abandoned games that 'don't suck' and bioshock) that the remnants of LGS have dispersed and aren't making big immersive games any more - I'm not sure why TTLG would want to be getting tarted up just to whore itself out to Eidos if that's what we're doing here - I don't think they deserve us or have much to offer, just saying. But that might just be me. Darkmod and Southquater are genuinely interesting, but they've gone and all growned themselves up and fled the nest. ps - don't get me wrong TTLG is still awesome.
One of those community network analysis diagram things that look like a bad spiders web charting members and how they use TTLG might be funky to look at.
Otherwise I think Atchoos design is all pleasing and nice (I also liked the typography in redface's). The only thing that jumps out as being wrong is that the row of images that I guess are intended to link to the satellite sites just looks like a row of images and don't really invite you to click on them - they don't look like links or tell you what to do if you're not familiar with TTLG.
Also Atchoo hasn't left space for any bloody GoogleAds, which is inspired brilliance. I approve this feature.
Wille on 14/3/2009 at 21:28
Quote Posted by jay pettitt
Also Atchoo hasn't left space for any bloody GoogleAds, which is inspired brilliance. I approve this feature.
About Google ads, aren't they somewhat useless now that TTLG uses community funding :cheeky:? AFAIK the ads generate only a tiny sum each month.
Nab on 15/3/2009 at 00:14
Quote Posted by Wille
[...] AFAIK the ads generate only a tiny sum each month.
I don't know about the revenue scheme of google, but I suspect this is because most people bypass the hub entirely.
This entire redesign isn't about making google ads more profitable, is it?
