Bit-tech Needs Forumites Help!

Bump - Ok Staff -

I have some more time to work on this, but I want some feedback first...

should we stick with the purple/white thing?

I'll put together a consolidated list later today of the ones that are already done in this style. (Note - I will hotlink fod's and constructacon's images unless they ask me not too.)

 

Ok - Here's the recent list of just the purple/white ones. (Some have been excluded where there where more than one. Also, some of them should probably be re-worked a little, but that's simple)

Announcement
Apple
Audio
Beer
Bits
Blu-ray
Bulletin
Camcorder
Cameras
Case Mod
Column
Competition
Computers
Cooling
Deals
Displays
DVDs
Education
Electronics
Flame
Food
FS UK
FS US
GameCube
Gaming
Graphics
Handheld
Hardware
HD DVD
Help
How-to
HTPC
Humour
Internets
Laptops
Link
Linux
Modding
Motors
Movies
MP3
Music
n00b/Newbie - -
Networking
News
Old School
Oops!
Overclocking
PC Gaming
Photos
Photoshop
Politics
Poll
Portable
POTM
Price Check
PS2
PS3
Question
Rant
Request
Scratch Build
Serious
SFF
Software
Tech
Tubes
TV
UK Trade
US Trade
w00t!
Wii
Windows
WTD UK
WTD US
Xbox
Xbox 360
YouTube


PIC
WEB

 

you got my vote. also no issues on my part with hotlinking - they're hosted on imageshack anyway

 

I prefer the purple ones, creates a much more unified theme and doesn't look like ****.

 

I'm with Ramble on the purple theme.

 

What about using the colours at the top of the page: blue = Hardware, purple = modding, red = gaming, etc.?

Edit: although I see we have 3 shades of blue and two of purple

I'm thinking keep the style but switch up the colours

 

the nvidia logo is the only thing that seemed to easily fit without looking strange.

I can't neaten it up without ruining it... any photoshop wizards care to wave the magic wand on it? (all I have is fireworks, which doesn't like me and I can't use very well)

 

Hotlink away. Ditto what Fod said - mine are on imageshack too.

 

Sorry to ruin the party guys, having a common theme won't work, and here is why: you need to be able to quickly find a tag/image that you recognise. Think of it like avatars - you don't really look (all that often) at the username, you pretty much just recognise the avatar.
Since there will be up to, perhaps, 20 (take a look at SA) in any given forum, having a sea of white and purple is going to make it quite hard to pick the one you want. When i'm browsing SA I know when i want to read threads about code I just go *straight* for the 'black button', and it sticks out nicely.

Take a look at any menu-bar on a website - even on your browser - and you'll see that buttons have different colors and styles for different things and this is precisely why!

A varied approach is necessary here. I had a play with the white/purple only buttons in the test forum and it wasn't a good experience at all

(DTE: sorry buddy, i really, really appreciate the effort and i really don't want to piss on your bonfire )

 

I'll have to agree with RTT here - Unfortunately, limiting our colours will make it just about bloody impossible to tell one thing from another. I love the idea of a uniform look, but once you pass about 4-5 tags it gets too difficult. Trust me - 45 different tags that are all the same colour will get hard on the eyes really fast.

It's a great idea, but maybe we can implement it another way. Think theme, but not colour - maybe we can have a set shape for certain types of threads (like site content, ie hardware) but different colours to differentiate whether they're articles, news, or questions?

Keep up the great ideas, guys.

 

No worries - I didn't have anything emotionally invested. I just saw the ones Fod did and thought they looked great, but I can totally see your point.

Now I'm back to liking my aqua apple button.

 

Would it work having the purple/white ones for the main forum? That would keep it all uniform and the sub-forums can have varied themes for the threads, as there isn't as much of a need for differentiation between the forums themselves.

Or as Brett said, the same shape but different colours...that would work.

 

Or keep the "Icons" that are allready made, but just change the colours?

 

There are a bunch already made that I listed on page 4 (20pp) http://forums.bit-tech.net/showthread.php?p=1466743#post1466743

 

Might be a problem with certain avatars though

 

I was waiting for someone to point that out

 

3 more, will do a load soon, so busy now

Gaming
Potm
Extreme Cooling/ Overclocking

 

Ah well. And I had a bunch of purple/white ones I was about to upload. If we're going the style of the icons on page 4 could I suggest we make them similar to the Bits, Column or Graphics buttons with the glow behind the font. Buttons like the Hardware are really hard to read without it.

I think it is necessary to have the font (and readable) for all the new traffic we get. As this forum is constantly getting new members, we can't rely on the "we all know what that picture means" attitude.

Admin: What to you think? Anyone want to come up with a new template for all to use?

EDIT: I've come up with a template if anyone wants to host it. Also here are some I've thrown together. I think the larger font in the 1st one looks better - what do you think?

Do I need to say what this is?

Edited Tubes icon

 

Constructacon - drop it in my email (tim.smalley@bit-tech.net) and I'll put it on bit-tech's servers. I like your ideas and I agree that we need a template.

 

Tim: YGM

Ok. I've been busy last night and this morning. Here's the latest batch......





With and without text. I like it without but did it with for uniformity.















More to come later.