New AS.org Layout - Have your say here.

[Jesse]

OK ladies and gents, we're thinking of changing the site's design. There are a number of reasons for it. This is your chance to have your say. At the moment our thoughts are as follows:

We're thinking of moving to a fixed width layout. We've done a bit of reading on the psychological and educational benefits of having fewer words per line, and examined leading developer sites around the world, and we're pretty much convinced.
We're hoping to integrate the section of the site more closely. This will include linking the latest five jobs posted in a little box on the tutorials pages, etc. That sort of thing.
We're not at this stage thinking of changing our color scheme.


You can speak your mind about the ideas above, add ideas, comment on what you like about the current layout and what you would like to keep, what you would like to see improved, etc. Your time starts now.

Please also vote on the above poll. Note that the widths proposed will not be totally content width. We're likely, based on our research, to limit the width of the content to about 600 pixels because that makes it the most 'readable' according to usability studies. So if you were viewing a tutorial, only the middle 600 pixels would have the tutorial text/body. The remaining space in the proposed fixed width layouts would be used for content integration. Possibly feeds from the employment section, press ection, etc. Possibly RSS integration from good external sources. And *gasp* advertising such as skyscrapers. What else is new?

[Flash Gordon]

i got to say out of all the others flash site and other forums i have seen, I honestly do like AS[org]'s layout the best of all of them. The site is very neat. The color scheme is very nice: nothing gets hidden and the text is very legible.

One thing about websites that i have always hated is when i have to scroll horizontally in addition to vertically, but i really hate the horizontal scroll. I'm afraid a fixed might give me and other users that dispickable thing.

Also, the tutorials layout is also much nicer that other site. Places where you can only read one paragraph and then have to go to the next page are so annoying. I would much rather go through four pages of nicely spaced, dense AS[org] tutorial than a 20 page tutorial at Flashkit that has the exact same tutorial, e.g. how to build your own mp3 controller.

If the sky scrapper add must be added, I would suggest (if not bottom ads) take a bit of room from the left or right of the forums as they are currently. If this is a thought, I would not mind (and maybe prefer although it mostly likely isn't an optition and I am totally okay with it) having the sky scrapper ads along the right hand side with a fixed width. Now if I get the dreaded horizontal scroll, it wont bother me.

Just a thought.
P.S. that you for the wonderful site and tutorials Jesse. :)

EDIT: I also voted no fixed width

[Jesse]

Hi Flash Jordan. Thanks for the feedback and compliments.

We’d make sure pages didn’t scroll sideways.

We hope to keep most tutorials to about the same number of pages. Obviously a fixed width would fit less text horizontally on the page - unless we moved to a small font which I'm not keen on. To work around this we would probably make each page longer (higher). We have no intention of moving to the 'very little content on each page' style. That annoys us too.

If the layout of the forums were to change to incorporate a skyscraper it would have to go on the left. We can't show it at the right because sideways scrolling pages - which sometimes do occur on the forums when people post code blocks - would mean the ads appeared off the side of the page. This is in breech of the Terms and Conditions we agreed to with the advertisers.

[Gibberish]

I personally really like that I can control the size of the screen. A lot of times there is a good amount of text in a post and having the ability to go full screen is great.

So I vote no fixed width. :)

[madgett]

actionscript.org's layout can't be beat!!!! So easy to navigate and it's clean cut :)

On the fixed layout...I like the dynamic capabilities it has right now, stretching to my screen size. I could always change my resolution...or text size, but the dynamism is awesome. If you are considering making it fixed, it possible to make it user configurable?? <- That would be tops.

[catbert303]

A small thing (overall AS.org looks great :)), but it'd be nice if the update could lose the white text on white/very light grey backgrounds. The worst case of this is the "Tutorial Support" heading on the forums index page, but there are a few other places where the contrast is a little low.

There is a good discussion of fixed vs fluid width in the comments here, http://www.456bereastreet.com/archive/200504/about_fluid_and_fixed_width_layouts/

[gromit]

Personally I'm very happy with AS.org. I agree with Flash Jordan about the whole Flashkit tutorial thing. That whole website is an overly cluttered, difficult to navigate, patience grinding ball of frustration....when you leave there and come to AS.org its like a breathe of fresh air. If it wasn't for that site's sheer amount of content, I'd never visit the place.

Please please please don't change the colour scheme here. I find it psychologically rewarding - especially when reading lengthy tutorials. Its nice to have no distractions if you know what I mean.

However I must admit, I *am* a fan of fixed widths. They tend to reduce clutter and distraction from content. If this site is to go fixed, I'd personally vote for it to be 1024. Lets face it, this site is for developers and if there are developers out there who are still using 800x600, they deserved to flogged and publicly humiliated ;)

Overall, please please please please please do very little with this place. Its as fresh today as it was the day I first visited (4/5 years ago?!! blimey has it been that long?!). You have a timeless design and a devoted following.

[Ricod]

I voted for 'no fixed width' as I like the way this site looks and feels as well.

It's fast, clean and reliable and I can look at the screen without sunglasses or having to use eyedrops after 5 minutes.

My screen resolution at the moment is 1024x786, so if a fixed width is going to be chosen, then my vote goes to 1024.

[Xeef]

Aaaaaaaaaa

PLS don't touch anything whit the design !!!

it's the only forum around which i like to watch all other are rubish !!!

there is no way to make this beter (it's already perfect) !!!

[cxn926]

not totally perfect. the new ads are in my way sometimes.

[Xeef]

yes that's true (it was perfect)

put them as last thread and not 2. !

or if it realy have to by as first !

but not betwean !!!!

[Jesse]

Hey all. This thread is getting a mixed up... I can only sift through so many threads when trying to see what you all want.

Feel free to talk about random stuff anywhere but we'll probably only see your suggestions (and action them) if you keep on topic in these few threads. So, if you have comments about:
AS Tags - http://www.actionscript.org/forums/showthread.php3?t=66248
AS Tag Color Scheme - http://www.actionscript.org/forums/showthread.php3?t=73074
New Ads - http://www.actionscript.org/forums/showthread.php3?t=73130
Site Design - This thread

Danke.

[Jesse]

PS - I have posted a new comment on the AS Tags page stating that I call this a feature, not a big. Check out the appropriate thread to see why. (Muhaha, see now I'm using a carrot to take you back to the right thread, not a stick. My brilliant plan reveals itself! ;) )

[Jesse]

It's pretty neck and neck as things go between fixed 1024 and leaving things as they are everyone...

While we're on the topic I'd like to point out to all of you that Strok is 99% responsible for th design which you are all praising so highly. When we divide the workload of the site, that falls squarely under his umbrella, so remember to credit him for it :)

[tris]

DO NOT REDESIGN THE SITE IT IS GREAT THE WAY IT IS@!!!!!

my only suggestions are:
- remove / move the google ads, i understand if you need to leave them where they are, no biggy
- allow me to HIDE the "Don't forget to use ActionScript Tags!" reminder, its a bit annoying

BUT THE SITE IS GREAT THE WAY IT IS!!!

[jaredly]

You could give the user a choice like seen here on simplebits.com (http://simplebits.com)

Are you going to be useing CSS and XHTML? I would really like to see an RSS feed.

Here is one of my favorite flash sites. emllabs.com (http://www.emllabs.com/)

[jjbilly]

Safari's got problems with that site - the text at the top past the first line is hidden by the three panels.

Or at least - it did the first time I went.

[tg]

maybe we should have had a what is your screen resolution poll at the same time... could be that most of the folks that want to keep it the way it is, won't lose out by fixed width, if their resolutions are already 1024x756.

[gromit]

I second the RSS feed motion. That would exceptionally tasty.

[Jesse]

RSS is an element of what we are considerring moving forward. Which sort of data would people like to syndicate though? New positions in the Employment section? (Excerpts from) new tutorial content?

[Jesse]

Thanks for the link to sumplebits jaredly, I think that's a cool layout concept; offering both with the click of a button.

[hangalot]

being able to subscribe to a certain forum new posts as RSS feeds. just the topics in the AS2 forum for example.
a fixed size design is better from a usability perspective, so switching to that is prefered (altough i have not had any problems with the site as yet)

also move the AS tags warning above the post button, rather (IMO)
the ads are here to stay, and i think they are good in general. i would love to see what has happened to your click through rate with the new add schema.

[Tink]

i against the fixed width. waste's a lot of space on my screen so i can't scan through posts so quick as i can't fit so many on.

if i only want so many words per line i can resize my browser, so using a fixed width would take control away from me.

[Jesse]

We're mainly talking about making the rest of the site fixed width at the moment. We're not decided on what to do about the forums.

[tvwonline]

Fixed width please... (@1024)

I have a wide screen monitor and it is annoying reading text 30cms wide!

However if the site does go Fixed Width, please ensure that the site is centred in the middle of the page. (So many sites left align, why??)

[mmm..pi..3.14..]

RSS
is an element of what we are considerring moving forward. Which sort of
data would people like to syndicate though? New positions in the
Employment section? (Excerpts from) new tutorial content?

tehehe, a start possibly... :rolleyes: Nothin fancy, it just lists the 25 newest posts in an "RSS" type format, though it's not exactly an RSS document...then again, all an RSS document is is an XML file that has a standard-ish format :p

http://67.166.34.5/ASORG/getThreads.asmx/getThreads

Eric

[CyanBlue]

Looking good, Eric... :)

But it all boils down whether the admins want that sort of service or not since that can actually increase the server load... I know I have tried something similar long time ago and I know Curly Brace did one as well, and both have been turned down by the admin... :(

[mmm..pi..3.14..]

yep, but I don't mind if they don't want it, didn't take me all that long to make it...but hey, if they don't want it I can still use it for myself :p

[baby_annie]

how about let users chose between Fixed and Flexible ? I see other VBB styles has this option.

[mmm..pi..3.14..]

what's Fixed and Flexible?

[baby_annie]

I want to say about fixed and liquid ;) :
http://www.vbstyles.com/forum/index.php?styleid=66

[Last Year]

This is my first time here, so pardon me if I seem to forward, but a few things:
1. Where is the link to create a profile (usually 'Register' or 'My <actionscript.org>'). I know that this is possible because I had to register in order to post.
2. The home page should not present it's information in linear (top down) fashion. This makes it easy for new visitors to overlook some of the important and relevant content 'below the fold'. Instead, you should give 'News', 'Recent Job Ads' and 'Recent posts' equal share of the top of the home page.
3. The links are to light, and on my mac power book, ther'es not enough contrast between the text and the white background - it's a little hard to read.

Just trying to be helpfull

Sholom.

[agraddy]

I have been a Flash developer for the past few years. I tend to find my favorite sites and stick with them. I have seen actionscript.org a few times, but I never really took the time to check the site out. I'm am finding out that there is a lot that I have been missing! I think one of the things that really kept me from exploring the site was the design. I don't know about anybody else, but whenever I look at the front page, everything just seems to blend together and nothing stands out. I think because I saw so much information with some ads, and nothing to grab my attention, I would just quickly gloss over the site, missing out on the features. I think a redesign will help people who need information formatted in an easy to see method. Oh well, I hope this helps.

[mmm..pi..3.14..]

Don't got any ads on this site :p

[Jesse]

I think the homepage linearity issue is a gem. We've been thinking it needs a bit of a reshuffle. Unfortunately three columns doesn't work so there will still have to be some precedence. But we love the Employment section - even though it's still growing slower than we'd hoped - so we'll likely push it up closer to the top. Maybe a two column layout or thereabouts. We're still looking into our options for CMSs because we've had some real problems with the one we chose... But all these comments will come in use either next week or in 6 months when the restructure and redesign is bound to take place. So keep 'em coming.

Thx.