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bit-tech 2017 refresh feedback: General site and forum feedback

Discussion in 'Feedback & Suggestions' started by Dogbert666, 27 Jun 2017.

  1. wolfticket

    wolfticket Downwind from the bloodhounds

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    After a bit more time I still think it is the contrast and colour scheme that are the main areas where there is potential for improvement.

    I think the posts within a thread have a tendency to blend into one. For instance a quote is a much bolder divide than the actual divider between posts (a thin light grey line).
    Additionally the rest of the UI (the post reply box for instance) does not really stand out either.

    While I still think the current scheme is too stark, I think ideally rather than just adjusting the contrast in a uniform manner a big improvement would be to increase the contrast between elements.

    I think this is a good example from a scheme/contrast pov.
    http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewforum.php?f=40002
    It's a forum I frequent and currently find a bit easier on the eyes and more pleasantly legible than this one. In a lot of ways this forum is now better from a functionality POV, but:
    • Non-white background for posts and threads.
    • Subtle alternating background shades with threads and posts within threads, with slightly more distinct divider.
    • UI elements and background contrast with body of the thread.
    • More subtle difference in formatting and fonts between posts, quotes, threads and UI text.
    ...Make for a more pleasant reading and posting experience in my opinion.
     
  2. N17 dizzi

    N17 dizzi Multimodder

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    Bring back the old one! Who says we need change! grumble grumble :)
     
  3. MLyons

    MLyons 70% Dev, 30% Doge. DevDoge. Software Dev @ Corsair Lover of bit-tech Administrator Super Moderator Moderator

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    :rollingeyes::sad::miffed:
     
  4. MLyons

    MLyons 70% Dev, 30% Doge. DevDoge. Software Dev @ Corsair Lover of bit-tech Administrator Super Moderator Moderator

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    Just did some quick testing at home. How about something like this?
    [​IMG]
    It's not perfect but better.
     
  5. wolfticket

    wolfticket Downwind from the bloodhounds

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    I think the clearer dividers between posts is a definite improvement.

    I generally prefer light themes so that is what I am currently using.

    Regarding colour schemes schemes I had a play with this Firefox extension: https://addons.mozilla.org/en-GB/firefox/addon/color-that-site/

    Simply taking most of the white/light background for posts and threads (not text entry boxes) and changing them to a subtle light shade of bit-tech purple is a big improvement to my eyes. On brand too :)
     
  6. azrael-

    azrael- I'm special...

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    THIS!

    I was just about to write something similar but no point when it's already stated so clearly.
     
  7. Nexxo

    Nexxo * Prefab Sprout – The King of Rock 'n' Roll

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    Good idea, but avoid sharply contrasting colours! Also don't make it the same colour as the text; it needs to separate the posts but not compete with them for visual attention. The current colour is fine; the line just needs to be thicker.
     
  8. MLyons

    MLyons 70% Dev, 30% Doge. DevDoge. Software Dev @ Corsair Lover of bit-tech Administrator Super Moderator Moderator

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    Made a minor change to try and make this easier

    Also can everyone please go to this link and fill it in. It should only take a minute or so and is being used to improve our UI. https://usabilityhub.com/do/6c2934895f1d/548
     
  9. spolsh

    spolsh Multimodder

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    it's more difficult to distinguish "sticky" posts with the little graphic on the right and no header or colour difference for the threads. Is that somrthing that could be looked at ?
     
  10. MLyons

    MLyons 70% Dev, 30% Doge. DevDoge. Software Dev @ Corsair Lover of bit-tech Administrator Super Moderator Moderator

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    It's on the big ol list
     
  11. Guest-56605

    Guest-56605 Guest

    If you clicked on the reviews title on the old main site you used to get a sub category bar listing reviews by type i.e. CPU's, GPU's, Motherboards etc

    Is there any chance of doing something similar with the new site? It makes searching for things a lot easier :)
     
  12. SMIFFYDUDE

    SMIFFYDUDE Supermodders on my D

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    The site is too cluttered, just like other tech sites I used to visit, and the forum is way too harsh to look at for any period of time.
     
  13. MLyons

    MLyons 70% Dev, 30% Doge. DevDoge. Software Dev @ Corsair Lover of bit-tech Administrator Super Moderator Moderator

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    Tried the dark theme?
     
  14. Cheapskate

    Cheapskate Insane? or just stupid?

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    Usability test.
    "click start button to start test."
    The button said, "continue."
    I think I failed that test really badly.
     
  15. Fizzban

    Fizzban Man of Many Typos

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    Thank you for the dark theme, it helps SO much :) . Shame it means I gotta log in to not go blind, but then that isn't much different from other forums so I can't complain. Also pleased to see colours gradually appearing on the tags as that really helps to pick out the types of threads.

    Other than that I just wanted to congratulate and thank the team behind the forum change. It must have been a monumental pain in the butt to get it working!

    It is looking good so far and I have faith it will improve even further. :thumb:
     
  16. MLyons

    MLyons 70% Dev, 30% Doge. DevDoge. Software Dev @ Corsair Lover of bit-tech Administrator Super Moderator Moderator

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    The light theme will gradually get better. I've been working on backend stuff mainly today but tomorrow I think I should have some time to work on the front end a bit more.

    (◕‿◕) :rock:

    Yup
     
  17. alpha112

    alpha112 Modder

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    I spent half an hour playing around with the styles, here's the result*:

    [​IMG]

    *I'm no graphic designer...

    Most of what I did was align things, add a ton of white space (padding and margins), removed gradients, removed flairs like the arrows, simplified the 'New' tag and made some of the fonts bigger and changed the background colour to off white.
    I like the previous suggestion of making the background more bit-tech purple, but I didn't have the colour to hand. It's no work of art but I think the extra space goes a long way to making it more readable.

    I'd be happy to spend a bit more time on it/helping you out with it during my down time if that'd help.
     
    alfizzle, MLyons and wolfticket like this.
  18. Anakha

    Anakha Minimodder

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    I know a fair few people were complaining about the wasted space on the homepage, as the site is set to a fixed width. So, I put my CSS hat on and made it more responsive. Note: This works for Stylish for Firefox, it may need to be tweaked for other browsers..

    https://gist.github.com/Anaerin/36d59ac3e060870469dd9d25a27761ad

    The CSS can be tweaked (comments inline) to make it wider or narrower as necessary.

    Here's what it looks like:

    Homepage: (https://screenshots.firefox.com/GR4kLy9vU9LLfEON/bit-tech.net)[​IMG]
    Article: (https://screenshots.firefox.com/XZFl7H5XhEoVKGHa/bit-tech.net)[​IMG]

    I hope this helps some people..
     
    aramil likes this.
  19. wolfticket

    wolfticket Downwind from the bloodhounds

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    Really liking this. It's the same overall feel, just a bit less busy, a bit more delineated and a bit less contrasty.

    ---------------------

    By the way, regarding general feedback: I noticed someone had an animated gif in their signature: Maybe this is a good time to nip that in the bud before all hell breaks loose? :)
     
  20. MLyons

    MLyons 70% Dev, 30% Doge. DevDoge. Software Dev @ Corsair Lover of bit-tech Administrator Super Moderator Moderator

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    Can't see what could go wrong tbh :naughty:
     

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