77 replies to this topic

[MacroMan!]

Hi all,

I have done a mock up of what I think the new site should look like.
It's not functional at the moment - It's just the homepage.

I would very much like comments and feedback on the current design before I do any more work on it.

EDIT: someone has told me the link doesn't work for them, here is an alternative:
<!-- m -->http://www.wakelin.co.cc/ahk/<!-- m -->

The original which may not work
~link broken~

David

Edit2: Have made the background a little lighter as it was very dark.

Edit3: I have made a sample documents page so you can see how it will look. If people really aren't happy about the way it looks, I can keep it very similar to the way it is now: <!-- m -->http://www.wakelin.co.cc/ahk/docs.php<!-- m -->

[Frankie]

Wow! So much of an improvement over the current site it's unbelievable.
Are the docs going to be redone to fit this style? They don't really fit with it.

[MacroMan!]

Yes, the whole site (apart from the forum and wiki), including the documentation, will be in the chosen style. I will make a skin for the new forum which I will be working on at a later date. I'm not too sure about a skin for the wiki, but I'm sure it will be possible.

David

[SoLong&Thx4AllTheFish]

Question: where is the (new) big fat link to the forum :?:

Some comments (take no offense):

- My initial impression that is is indeed quite dark - I would like to suggest to at least change the content area to be actually while rather then the very light grey you have chosen. Perhaps also move the logo to the left so it starts on the same vertical lines as the box or create a full width "logo bar" the same width as the box/content area
Adding the "Software License: GNU General Public License" on the homepage would be useful

- You mentioned the documentation. I actually kind of like the documentation (the actual commands, functions pages) like <!-- m -->http://www.autohotke...ds/AutoTrim.htm<!-- m --> the way they are. Fitting them into the design shown above (with the fixed width) would not work for me. Note that the doc pages have a lot of PRE tags which will mess up your current design due to its width and the long(er) lines/comments in the examples (although this can probably be fixed with CSS)

Note that I wouldn't mind seeing the new white logo at the top of the command & functions pages with a nice home, download, forum type of bar but keep the part below as it is. For reference: something like this <!-- m -->http://www.autohotkey.net/~hugov/<!-- m -->

Good luck with the work.

[MacroMan!]

Thanks for your comments. Forgot to point out that this is just to get the design right, the content i have placed there is just so it has some content and doesn't look empty.

The menu items and text on the page are to be decided at a later stage because it will run on a custom content management system.

Some comments (take no offense):

None taken.

My initial impression that is is indeed quite dark

I have been told this already, so I will definitely look at that.

I actually kind of like the documentation the way they are

The new design doesn't necessarily have to be fixed width or could be variable width just for the documentation etc.

new white logo at the top of the command & functions pages

That's something I can look at and put together.

David

[jaco0646]

All in all, I like it a lot. Huge improvement. I agree the background should be lighter (says the guy who uses black on his own site ). I would also replace the blue in the sub-title bar with AutoHotkey's signature green, and the blue in the logo with the same, or else blend it into the background of the page.

[MacroMan!]

Is green really the signiture colour of AHK? I mean, the whole current website it blue (including the logo), the only thing that's green is the file icon, which I won't be changing unless Lexikos want's to. So if the new website is blue, is the colour scheme any different from what we already have?

David

[MacroMan!]

I've made the body of the page white as opposed to light grey and also the surrounding border ia now a lot lighter.

David

[Frankie]

I don't care blue or green. Both will look fine but should be consistent between the site and forum (I know you've already said you are going to do that).

I like the new docs. What is thought about making a list of commands in a column on the (left) side? Similar to how the CHM viewer on windows is set up. This makes it easier to find commands without going back and forth pages.

BTW, looks great on my droid. Not a lot of sites do.

[codybear]

What is thought about making a list of commands in a column on the (left) side?

+1

I hate having to keep going back to click on another command. It'd make me much more efficient (when using the online docs) if there was an easier way to switch from one command to the next.

[jaco0646]

For some reason I strongly associate AHK with the color green. When I ask myself, "What color is AutoHotkey?" green is just a knee-jerk reaction.

[Frankie]

dont like the dark gray on the bar for Home, Download, etc

I like it, got a better idea for a color?

i think the current documentation is very good and easy

I've noticed a lot of 'if it's not broken, don't fix it' attitudes. Nothing wrong with that, but there is room for improvement. I like the way the new docs are coming out, except I would change the cyan color to something different.

[MacroMan!]

What is thought about making a list of commands in a column on the (left) side?

I did think about it but decided against it. Not everyone has the capability to have a high resolution, so it would be very squashed for those people. Thinking about it now, I could use a pull out menu similar to what I have on my own webpage ( <!-- w -->www.wakelin.co.cc<!-- w --> ), but from the left instead of from the top. What do people think of that?

dont like the dark gray on the bar for Home, Download, etc

Light grey? Another colour? One thing with this design is to keep the colours either soft or soft-dark because the of the striking black border. It looks quite odd with bright/striking colours in there.

I like the way the new docs are coming out, except I would change the cyan color to something different.

Any suggestions on colour? One train of thought was along the lines of user selected colour schemes/skins. It is possible (I've done it before), but I haven't put much thought into it.

David