WinCustomize 2K5 Update

Home page changes

from JoeUser Forums

We're in the process of doing another update today. The home page is different.  We haven't changed the color scheme or other image styles yet because that'll take quite a bit more time.  We do plan to make the whites a little bit less white and the tangerine of the home page is likely going to change to something else.  But we're getting there.

Let us know what you think of the new home page layout.

16,816 views 42 replies
Reply #1 from WinCustomize Forums Top
OK, Just my opinion but I'm sorry to say I prefered it as it was previously.

It will probably grow on me though.
Reply #2 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Personally I find the home page much cleaner and easier to look at. The thumbs of the featured/popular skins is good as well.
Start11 - Customize the Start Menu and Taskbar in Windows 10/11.
Reply #3 from WinCustomize Forums Top
I can live with the small column, wide column setup on the frontpage as it makes the site more uniform, but when you start getting into the site some areas don't always make sense to me. Example here is the gallery.

Gallery Tab when you first arrive you are presented with a two column format, library on the left, recent entries on the right. Nice clean format. If I click on any of the libraries via the left I go to the library sorted by "updated". If I go to any of the libraries via the right I go to the library sorted by "created". Maybe too similar. Maybe have the access from the right open up the library as it does now and the left open up the library with the advanced view showing.

Once in a library, we're back to three columns. The recent forum activity, could probably go away and the top authors and skins moved to the left column, bring it down to just two columns.

When you click on more details button or comments button you go to the skin (one without comments on with comments) this is redundant. I would just have 1 "view" or "details" button that should everything, including comments. Also while in "view" mode the left column should remain so that it is easy to get back to the library.

That's all I got time for right now...Patrick is fussing (my Patrick ) and I gotta get back to him. Thanks!!
Reply #4 from WinCustomize Forums Top
I like the two column layout, as well as the thumbnails for the popular skins is great. But I really miss seeing the newest additions on the front page. I realize there is a newest tab, but I liked it there on the front page as well. Interestingly, once I get off the front page there is the "This Just In" section on the left, but I am not seeing that on the front. I also think the "Updated" section is important so I can see if a skin I have downloaded has been updated recently. Those are the things I think are missing, but I like the direction the site is taking.
Reply #5 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Just tried to upload a wb. Said it is accepted and automatically approved as it should be. And it should be available in a minute. Still, after 10 min nothing yet. Apart from that: checks for shellstyles, animations and so on aren't available.
Reply #6 from WinCustomize Forums Top
~ The 2 column setup is nice. The combining of the Daily shot and featured skin looks much better also. The featured suite is ok but is it always going to be a suite that has to be bought? Isn't that what the WC Store basically shows? If you're going to have a featured suite, it should be something freely available within the site. Save the paid content for the WC Store section.

~ Now my biggest opinion...the colors. I like the fact that there isn't an actual site skin as the site loads much quicker but, and this is just my opinion, wouldn't it be nice to be able to customize WinCustomize? I truly think since the site is full of creative minds, let them be creative with the site. Enable us to change the colors as we see fit. Using Yahoo's homepage as an example, users can customize the colors, text header bars and links. They have preset color schemes and themes also. Is this something that could possibly be done with WC? Is there anyone else out there interested in something like this? IMO, what better option could one have for a customization site than being able to customize it? ...at least it's appearance.

~ Just my opinion, of course, but I'd be interested to see how many other members would like to be able to that.
Reply #7 from WinCustomize Forums Top
I really like the 2 column layout. And the new additions to the top of the front page look great. If all pages used the same style it would be much better
Reply #8 from WinCustomize Forums Top

Just tried to upload a wb. Said it is accepted and automatically approved as it should be. And it should be available in a minute. Still, after 10 min nothing yet. Apart from that: checks for shellstyles, animations and so on aren't available.

Yes, I knew about the AutoApprove bug but I was rushing to get the latest round of updates out and hoped to fix it a little bit later before anyone noticed.  Looks like you noticed. 

As far as the checks for ShellStyles and such, they are there.  Are you not seeing them?

Reply #9 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Besides other suggestions, I'd move the the watch list, my account, and logoff buttons over to the far right. They look a bit silly underneath the main tabs.
Reply #10 from WinCustomize Forums Top
The articles and forums sections are set up very well and easily navigated. Overall the more I move around the better I like the sections that are in the two-column format.

DoctorNick....not seeing those buttons underneath like you mentioned, they're still off to the right as before here. Also agree with the others...the thumbnails are nice and worth the little extra time it take for the page to load on dial-up
Reply #11 from WinCustomize Forums Top
I like the two column approach. As already stated, the re-arranged daily shot and featured skin is better IMO.
Reply #12 from WinCustomize Forums Top
TasT hates changes to his three columns but, he'll get used to it

I will be very happy when the white gets a little less white!
Reply #13 from WinCustomize Forums Top
I think I'd rather have two columns ... one on either side. Just saves me from haveing to scroll down so far.

On another note .... PLEASE keep the Mud theme, or at least the color scheme.
Reply #14 from WinCustomize Forums Top
As far as the checks for ShellStyles and such, they are there. Are you not seeing them?


Now I do see them.......
Reply #15 from WinCustomize Forums Top
It's getting better, better and for the third time very, very very nice!!!
Reply #16 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Personally I don't like the colors. The coloring doesent reach out and say wincustomize to me! Wish I could see more choices on each page that I look at.
Reply #17 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Hey!

This new home page is so much cleaner, looks so much better. I LOVE the previews of the top skins, much nicer then just a single "featured" skin. BYW, how do i get something "featured"?

Keep up the good work..

Just a suggestion, for the colors, you could try a sample page with color choices and have people vote for the one the like, or even give us the info we need to make our own colors?
Reply #18 from WinCustomize Forums Top
If the white/off white remains as the predominant background colour it will seriously curtail the time I can spend here. A light grey perhaps ?? http://www.udel.edu/ideacenter/howto/typography.html
Reply #19 from WinCustomize Forums Top
I really like the new two column layout... Much better -- loads faster too.

I too would suggest implementing a "color select" feature... But that's just a minor thing, I actually don't mind the colors much. (honestly, it does look a bit childish, though)

And Thank you for changing "Visual styles" back to "WindowBlinds" --- Visual Styles cheapens the WindowBlinds brand name that we've come to know and respect.

I really like how it's developing.... It's infinitely better than the "old" (can we call it that, yet? ) site. well I guess that's all I have to say for now... If I think of anything else I'll let you know.
Reply #20 from WinCustomize Forums Top
I like it.

The 2 column format with tabs across the top gives the best of all worlds.

The left column is a great idea but can you make that so I can customize it? I really dont like the gallery option and some other ones but I am sure someone likes it. So why not give me the ability to customize it.

The Tabs allow quick navigation. I like.

Keep up the good work.
Reply #21 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Would rather have newest on front page. By the time they are 'popular' I've either downloaded them or don't want to.
Other pages : more thumbnails and larger. What happened to the 'enhanced" view with larger preview pics? I find the current ones too small to review anything but the colour.
Will there be an option in user preference to show more than 5? 5 is too few. Mainly for these two reasons I keep going back and using the old site.
Reply #22 from WinCustomize Forums Top
I like better 3 coluns and i agree with DoctorNick about the watch list, my account, and logoff buttons they should be over to the far right.
Reply #23 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Nope,dont like the direction things are going,sorry.2 column layout is wasted space,lopsided and spread out.I used to be able to get to nearly any page on winc with 1 click from nearly any page.Now I have to click and click and click...then when I finally get there,I'm presented with a light view and have to click again and again.How is this easier and faster?Bandwidth usage will go up I think.
List used to be longer and I thought they wernt long enough,library pages dont show dl's today anymore,comments used to open their own window now you go to a new page.

Newest,popular and gallery tabs are unecessary...we knew what those were because we had right column list.(you know ,everything was on nearly every page...compact)Now we gotta go hunting for what we want.Takes 3 times as much clicking to get anywhere.

So far the only things I really like are the personal sites(thank you),and the thumbnailed top dl's.(tho they are also unecessary,you've either seen them already or were going to check them out anyway so its really just more bandwidth usage.

Sorry to be so negative,I just dont see how this is better...seems like people just are just attracted to NEW.

Any way you could leave the old site going?
Reply #24 from WinCustomize Forums Top
I like this site, so lets keep the colors of the brown site and transfer it here to this one.



Oh and, what's the deal with the old wincusto? can't access it at all.
Reply #25 from WinCustomize Forums Top
maybe a blue color or something...