Critique Request:

[JayX]

Hi all, rules state it's OK to use the forum to request critiques so hoping this is fine. I'm nearly at the end of design of my site (taken a little break off to clear head out etc) but not done all the bells and whistles so can still make some changes.

http://unstoppablevoltron.com

Was originally a generic WordPress template, but I decided to write the backend and frontend from scratch in the end. A few snippets of code from elsewhere (the JS that changes the site based on how wide your browser window is etc). I generally test with Safari on 10.6, but should be fine cross platform with recent browsers too.

Need to finish the footer, make the background (the brown if you're using a browser with more than ~1100px of width) a bit more pleasant and add things like social media links.

Any feedback much appreciated, thanks!

 

[Darth.Titan]

As far as appearance, I like it.

As far as how it's done, not so much. The site completely goes to hell if a visitor has javascript disabled, and even with javascript the right-side menu gets covered when viewing in a smaller browser window. (I'm using the latest Firefox in Vista BTW) No scroll bars, it just disappears!

 

[JayX]

I'll check the Analytics on javascript usage on one of my busier sites as that's something I hadn't considered... it seems to be rendering the site in the right mode at least (you'd have brown bars if not). How wide is your browser window in that screen shot? The site is geared towards having a width of at least 960px available... I'm guessing from proportions you might be running on a netbook? My friends Eee PC displayed it fine, but I'm not up to speed on what specs ultraportables are rocking. I might stick in a CSS that will treat anything that isn't an iPhone (as it renders 960px fine) but is smaller than 960px as a mobile based device and move the menu around in that particular view. Thanks for the feedback!

 

[Darth.Titan]

The Javascript mention was really just a nitpick as most people do run it, but the design should have a more graceful fallback layout just in case.

No I'm not running on a netbook. I'm actually on a dual monitor system, 21" and 19". Yes I could have my window maximized, but I don't like my app windows to take up the entire screen. I feel that multitasking is less productive when one adopts the predominant Windows mindset of maximizing every App.

Yes my monitor is 1050px wide, but my browser windows are usually about 800-900px max. I have other windows and the Desktop I want to be able to see. Sites that break on non-huge monitors annoy me, and I suspect others feel the same.

Sorry to sound preachy, just something to think about when deciding appropriate minimum widths.

 

[JayX]

No, I can understand... it's always interesting to see what setups people have and it's why a lot of analytics fail. I too run my browser windowed on both my 15" MBP and 27" iMac... websites maxed out on that look crazy! Instead, the JS polls the browser width not the resolution to prepare the style sheet.

As the site is a personal site, rather than for a paying client, it puts me in the rare position where I can decide what gets 'left behind'. No worrying about IE6 compatibility, and one of the things I'm going with is the standard 960px width. I'm all about progression, and I think the web can get tied down in old standards too easily. It's risky, because not everyone likes it but I don't want to design pages that look the same as they would have five years ago.

Hence I'll be building in a mobile based stylesheet, which I'll probably use for old browser detection too. It'll increase compatibility across as many screens as possible then, delivering an alternative if the systems don't meet what I need for the canvas.

Completely agree on the lack of maximisation... left that behind when I left Windows.