Website Redesign Proposal : Big Menu

[gagolthegreat]

The original logo files are in the hands of "i" who is in vacation at the moment... We will have to wait 10 days before he returns and send me the files. I suggest for the future to have a GIT repository for our original marketing files such as logos and banners...

Do not be alarmed, I do not intent to change the logo, it is awesome! The only corrections I wish to make to it is some kerning (the space between each letters) to correct for visual cues and make the bezel effect vector native (SVG). The minor corrections will be vetted by community through a forum poll before being officially adopted.

signed The-Evil-Marketing-Guy AKA gagolthegreat AKA Jimbo Rinfrette

[Nard]

you may find useful things there:

https://github.com/themanaworld/themana ... ter/images
logo is in header.png

Nard

[gagolthegreat]

you may find useful things there:

https://github.com/themanaworld/themana ... ter/images
logo is in header.png

Nard

Thank you Nard, your contribution is very appreciated.

I already downloaded the website GIT and integrated it to a local test server with success (news feed excepted, but that is to be expected... if someone have access to current one, please forward so I can integrate to my test server...).

What I need is the source file that "i" and only "i" have in hand (SVG format)... I do not want use ready-for-web pictures in the meantime to avoid people just looking at it and criticizing non-final work since that picture is already flattened with a white background and would look quite awful in anything but the current website.

On another topic,

New mockup!
I understood your demands... and yes a map BG would serves us better that a woods photographic picture would.

I woke up and could not get back to sleep so I tested ways to integrate game maps as background...

First I want to publicly thanks o11c who helped me by pointing out it was possible to export maps as images from tiled. I was about to do gameplay screenshots and erase myself and creatures by hand and that would have taken my a lot of time! Note that homepage content is not featured at the moment, but it gives a good idea of what it could look like with that kind of background. Tandy1000 purple for comment purpose only... The blur effect serves two purposes:

1. To keep user attention on the content
2. To make the picture less than 100kb instead of more than 1mb (not acceptable, platyna would probably use plane ticket and beat me hard if I did...)
3. The background would be on random selection from a bank of 4 (Thulimshar, Hurnscald, Nivalis and Graveyard)

If you think of other interesting locations let me know!

Since you are all eager to discuss the look, lets do it here!!!
I will continue with the assumption that most people like the big menu and I will also integrate existing menu as links on the right sidebar to keep "backward compatibility". Since many people are already used to it it would be stupid to ignore the issue...

Home page design online before tomorrow night Eastern standard time (greenwich - 5 hours...) maybe sooner.

-gagolthegreat

[Milla]

the background image can be changed with ease... I will work on more mock-ups tomorrow. I would like if possible, for you to elaborate what you dont like and how you think it can be improved.

The actual design of http://themanaworld.org/ is good. The links on the left sidebar have clear key words, except maybe for the wiki links, it could be more understandable for new players as "documentation"

Changing menus of a website is touchy and should be done only if it's real necessary. I dont see the point doing this.
If there is something to do to improve it, I'd rather would make the pages html/css valid wich is not the case:
http://validator.w3.org/unicorn/check?u ... nformance#

I would also find totally neat to add some little css3 fancy improvment to the actual layout such as mobile compliance with some media query sections. Stuff like that.

[gagolthegreat]

the background image can be changed with ease... I will work on more mock-ups tomorrow. I would like if possible, for you to elaborate what you dont like and how you think it can be improved.

The actual design of http://themanaworld.org/ is good. The links on the left sidebar have clear key words, except maybe for the wiki links, it could be more understandable for new players as "documentation"

Changing menus of a website is touchy and should be done only if it's real necessary. I dont see the point doing this.
If there is something to do to improve it, I'd rather would make the pages html/css valid wich is not the case:
http://validator.w3.org/unicorn/check?u ... nformance#

I would also find totally neat to add some little css3 fancy improvment to the actual layout such as mobile compliance with some media query sections. Stuff like that.

Agreed for mobile... lets make it a project for when this one is settled. Compliance too when implemented. Following the comments I intent to keep existing menus at the same place and make the big menu an addition to make more content easily accessible... any thoughts on map backgrounds?

POSITIVE CRITICISM HERE : My first thoughts when I came across the website was : "Is this a 3 lonely teens in mothers basement project???" and that is the kind of first impression I try to change with redesign.

[Nard]

I don't agree totally with Milla:
The actual design is simple thus good (I agree too with BC's criterions).
Now it could be more attractive. I am impatient to see your propositions.
I think though that you menu order (with mods I already suggested) is better because it makes information less flat and points the most important things first

[Milla]

POSITIVE CRITICISM HERE : My first thoughts when I came across the website was : "Is this a 3 lonely teens in mothers basement project???" and that is the kind of first impression I try to change with redesign.

Then, do a proper professionnal work, keep the first design and just improve it.
"unbox" it,
(http://www.smashingmagazine.com/2008/09 ... f-the-box/),
use better proportions for the layout,
(http://www.smashingmagazine.com/2008/05 ... eb-design/),
add some css3 transparences, borders, gradient, a cool web font,
(http://www.google.com/webfonts#)
a Sprited animated gif for the header?
(a bit like the lemmings http://blog.zanorg.com/)

improve the Style guides, dont blow it.

[gagolthegreat]

I don't agree totally with Milla:
The actual design is simple thus good (I agree too with BC's criterions).
Now it could be more attractive. I am impatient to see your propositions.
I think though that you menu order (with mods I already suggested) is better because it makes information less flat and points the most important things first

I think having a new "BIG MENU" in addition to current menus is the best.That way newcomers can find info easily and existing users can keep theirs habits too.

[gagolthegreat]

Then, do a proper professionnal work, keep the first design and just improve it.
"unbox" it,
(http://www.smashingmagazine.com/2008/09 ... f-the-box/),
use better proportions for the layout,
(http://www.smashingmagazine.com/2008/05 ... eb-design/),
add some css3 transparences, borders, gradient, a cool web font,
(http://www.google.com/webfonts#)
a Sprited animated gif for the header?
(a bit like the lemmings http://blog.zanorg.com/)

improve the Style guides, dont blow it.

Then read my post then... this a preliminary work to discuss MENU ACCESSIBILITY. Design will be discussed in length in coming thread when ergonomics are sorted out. Gimp cannot work with webfonts so no previews on that side is possible... sorry. The kind of menu I propose are already touchy to implement, I will NOT do elastic design using them, feel free to help if you know better than me. Design requires compromise and I highly value content accessibility. To mark my work as unprofessional do NOT make me want to pursue this project... but I know better and will continue my work. I will accept constructive criticism with arms opened, but personal attacks will simply be ignored.

[Milla]

Then read my post then... this a preliminary work to discuss MENU ACCESSIBILITY.

Ok. Let's test menu accessibility.

Ha, it's not bad at all. Menu in first, browsable with tab. A "go to the content" link could be added.

[Milla]

I don't agree totally with Milla:
The actual design is simple thus good (I agree too with BC's criterions).
Now it could be more attractive. I am impatient to see your propositions.
I think though that you menu order (with mods I already suggested) is better because it makes information less flat and points the most important things first

I dont think duplicate the existant menu is a good idea. Talking about ergonomy, 5 main links per pages is a good rule.

[gagolthegreat]

Then read my post then... this a preliminary work to discuss MENU ACCESSIBILITY.

Ok. Let's test menu accessibility.

Ha, it's not bad at all. Menu in first, browsable with tab. A "go to the content" link could be added.

OK I get it, YOU think the current website is great AND you browse the web using text based browsers... maybe you missed the point of text based sitemap making MORE content accessible to the 0,00001% of people using text browsers nowadays (not official but I am pretty sure its close enough). We try to gather more players and more developers who actually use the internet using graphical browsers... text based browsing will not be affected by the changes.

BTW I have more interesting to do... If you want to be in charge, please do.

Lets look at the forest, not the tree.

-gagolthegreat

[gagolthegreat]

I dont think duplicate the existant menu is a good idea. Talking about ergonomy, 5 main links per pages is a good rule.

Please provide study reference or explain why current website have more than 5 links and you like it. I try to make content more available in 4 sections with new menu AND keep backward compatibility... your arguments are non-existing.

[Milla]

OK I get it, YOU think the current website is great AND you browse the web using text based browsers.

Using a text link browser is a quick and efficient way to test accessibility. Of course i use a graphic Web browser. And yes, i dont find the actual design this ugly, even if it could be refresh.

maybe you missed the point of text based sitemap making MORE content accessible to the 0,00001% of people using text browsers nowadays (not official but I am pretty sure its close enough).

A sitemap is cool for SEO but i dont think it's what would help new people to join there.

BTW I have more interesting to do... If you want to be in charge, please do.

Lol, well, no, thank you.

[gagolthegreat]

A sitemap is cool for SEO but i dont think it's what would help new people to join there.

Not only is it good for SEO, it is also good for visual impaired... Not that I know how they could play ManaWorld... but still. The plan so far would bring them on the right side bar to not break habits of current users.

I was simply referencing to your usage of text based browsers... Much better and comprehensive tools I use to test pages compliance and referencability. Glad to see the tone is down a notch

-gagolthegreat