Site Redesign

[BlueTalon]

The color scheme as it is allows you to read easily and not get so much eye strain or blinded by contrast which is great considering how many sights use extreme color schemes and makes you want to get sunglasses or lazik surgery after going there, a more subtle scheme also allows for longer reading times since you are able to spend more time looking at threads without getting strained. I'm sure the MODS appreciate it as well.

At this stage in my life I need reading glasses. Speaking only for myself, this current color scheme strains my eyes. I need more contrast if I want less strain.

For example, it's a lot easier for me to read what's in the quote box than the rest of the post.

 

[RolandDeschain]

At this stage in my life I need reading glasses. Speaking only for myself, this current color scheme strains my eyes. I need more contrast if I want less strain.

Web browsers have high contrast modes and accessibility features for a reason. In Chrome, go to the menu bar on the upper right, then Settings, then click Show Advanced Settings on the bottom, then go to the Web Content category, and you can change the font that web pages use, or make the size larger. You can also install one of a number of high contrast extensions for Chrome; you can literally force a black & white version of this site, if you want. https://chrome.google.com/webstore/sear ... 20contrast

 

[razgriz737]

Well it sounds to me like the overall consensus is to keep the general look and feel but update the masthead graphic by adding feathers and other elements that speak to the current look of the team.

Sounds perfect, in my humble opinion. :th2thumbs:

I agree that the current colors are very soothing on the eyes.

 

[themunn]

i'd prefer something a lot lighter, the dark screen makes browsing at work a lot more obvious!

 

[MizzouHawkGal]

I would like to see all the reply/edit etc buttons be larger. I am Not a fan of the dark background scheme but I can ignore it especially if the green were muted a little. It's virtually unreadable via phone.

 

[RolandDeschain]

I would like to see all the reply/edit etc buttons be larger. I am Not a fan of the dark background scheme but I can ignore it especially if the green were muted a little. It's virtually unreadable via phone.

Buy the Tapatalk app. Worlds better than reading a forum on the actual website from a mobile device. https://play.google.com/store/apps/deta ... o.activity

 

[ivotuk]

I'd like to see a Northwestern/Northern Native American theme, like Robert Gallery had on his arms. That seems to be the theme behind the "feathers" on the team helmets.

A Totem Pole, head dress, totem lodge, etc

 

[ivotuk]

Well it sounds to me like the overall consensus is to keep the general look and feel but update the masthead graphic by adding feathers and other elements that speak to the current look of the team.

Booooo. Give me a day to look at some stuff. If you don't like it, then okay. But change is a good thing, I promise!

 

[hidn]

I would like to see all the reply/edit etc buttons be larger. I am Not a fan of the dark background scheme but I can ignore it especially if the green were muted a little. It's virtually unreadable via phone.

Buy the Tapatalk app. Worlds better than reading a forum on the actual website from a mobile device. https://play.google.com/store/apps/deta ... o.activity

Personally, I really don't like tapatalk. I have a feeling there are other people who have the same opinion as me. I wouldn't recommend buying it.

 

[Sports Hernia]

I'd just do some minor tweaking. This site is easy to navigate, which seems to be a rarity for message boards these days!

 

[RolandDeschain]

Personally, I really don't like tapatalk. I have a feeling there are other people who have the same opinion as me. I wouldn't recommend buying it.

Uh, why? Compared to regularly reading any forum on the internet through the actual web browser on a phone, it's infinitely better. Lay out some reasons, IMO.

 

[TwistedHusky]

Roland,

The reason is simple. There is no reason the user should have to do it.

It is not the responsibility of the user to understand the limitations of the framework/UI. It is the responsibility of the framework/UI to adjust itself to how the user might use it so it maximizes usability.

What people are saying is that in order to get a good user experience on mobile browsers (which account for over 60% of all internet traffic and climbing) you need to install a plugin or app that you might or might not know about. Of course when you navigate to a site, it gives you a warning that the site might be better if you install something you might or might not know about. The problem is that we are all conditioned to be wary of little things in websites that ask you install something.

So asking that users adapt themselves to consume your content is essentially saying that we are going to make it harder on 60% + of the future traffic we have for very little reason. You could write an interface in HTML5 and do some CSS code to adjust the website to scale correctly for mobile devices. You don't need 3rd party plugins to do this and you shouldn't need to ask users to.

What % of mobile users use tapatalk on sites like this? What % come here, find it difficult to use on mobile (esp phones) and only come back when they are on desktop? I guarantee you that based on what I have seen navigating the site with a Nook HD, Nexus 4 and Nexus 7 - it could be made easier on a tablet.

Is the site still worthwhile? Absolutely. But if I were going to prioritize anything on redesign I would make getting the site mobile and touch friendly, since the bulk of your internet traffic will eventually come from there.

The other thing that might get more engagement and make it easier to use is to streamline the site. There are a lot of extraneous links, buttons, lines etc that 90% of the users probably never use - if that. Making it cleaner and less cluttered makes things easier to read and easier to write on.

 

[Axx]

could you make the reply button add on in the same page? Some newer forums implement this and i like it a lot. Instead of going to a different page completely it simply makes a small box under neath the page for you to type in a reply then click submit and automatically adds in the reply without jumping through pages.
It's like magic except it's real.

Do you mean like this?

That's exactly what i was talking about lol

 

[sc85sis]

I wouldn't mind having other templates to choose between for the forum look. There's no reason the forum has to be locked into one specific look, PHPBB supports themes that every individual user can switch between. I think the banner's pretty good as-is, however. It could probably stand to be a little thinner/smaller as it takes up a pretty good chunk of space on my crappy 1280X1024 resolution monitors at work, though.

As some others have said, the current one is pretty easy on the eyes already; and I do like it. I do have to wonder, however, what a theme might look like with a black background, but a lot of Seahawks highlights?

Please don't go with black unless it IS an optional user theme. I can't read sites that are light on dark. My eyes can't handle it. The text starts to 'strobe'. I've actually been pleasantly surprised that this has not occurred with the current color scheme.

 

[Throwdown]

How about something like this?

This!

 

[sc85sis]

Twisted; this site has the Tapatalk plugin, that's better than any mobile site, really. Just sayin'.

Tapatalk is great. However, polls and animated .gifs don't show up. The poll simply doesn't appear at all. I can only see a static frame on .gifs.

 

[RolandDeschain]

TwistedHusky, your post makes me cringe. Just out of curiosity, have you ever tried to make a mobile version of a web forum site that works consistently well across the majority of mobile devices out there? The different resolutions of the original Kindle Fire tablet, QHD phones, 1080p phones, 720p phones, various browsers for varying mobile platforms like Safari, Chrome, Firefox, Opera, Maxthon, Miren, and the myriad other browsers out there?

It's a ton of work. Tapatalk is so many order of magnitudes simpler and easier to have people use than designing a good mobile site, it's not even funny. Who's going to pay for all that work on a free forum that doesn't use advertising, hmm? You want to make a $5,000 donation specifically for that purpose, perhaps?

 

[Throwdown]

I have no issue with the site on my phone, and I don't use tapatalk either. The hell does tapatalk do for you anyway?

 

[SeaTown81]

After reading this thread, I have come to a conclusion. Old people don't like change.

I think a slight redesign is in order. Something to freshen up the place a bit. I think a slightly darker background would be cool. Compare and contrast the color of the main forum as opposed to actual threads. I think the main forum background color would work just fine for threads. I don't really see a need for incorporating grey into the site. While it is a part of the color scheme now, it's not prominent. And grey on the whole isn't too flattering graphically. Mainly just drabs everything up. And as for the main header, I call for less green. And no the gunmetal or silver used in the mock up. Whoever called that 1997 was dead on. Gave me flashbacks to earlier versions of the site. Lol.

 

[HawkFan72]

How about something like this?

This!

I like this. Keeps it simple, keeps it similar to the current site, but also updates the look.