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Finally completed community/resource site for childfree folks
Whew,
It’s been almost 6 months since my girlfriend and I came up with this idea, and it’s been very tough going, but WE’RE FINALLY DONE. She designed the logo, came up with the idea, wrote a lot of the copy, and helped in more ways than imaginable. I did mainly all the coding, the site runs on Textpattern, and the forums are courtesy of PunBB. All in all it was one of the biggest personal projects I ‘ve completed in a long time.
I’m looking for a complete review of all aspects of the site:
-Bugs/browser issues/layout issues
-Overall design and usability
-Navigation usability
-Forum Integration
Known Issues:
-NOT CSS or XHTML Valid yet
-Logo gets cut off on safari, sometimes. :)
And anything else you find. The design is pretty much set, so even though I’m looking for complete reviews, there would have to be a pretty compelling reason for me to make a major change.
As always, thanks to all of you who helped me with my other site , and thanks to anyone who replies to this one as well. You guys are awesome.
Chris
Last edited by wazzupflow (2007-01-02 03:31:31)
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Re: Finally completed community/resource site for childfree folks
Nicely designed site. I like the grey on black pattern that fades out at the top of the content section.
Kinda over the top, though, IMO. I mean, my gf and I have lived together for a long while now and don’t want kids but we certainly aren’t worried about needing to find a community of like-minded thinkers on the internet.
Last edited by Walker (2007-01-02 04:07:08)
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Re: Finally completed community/resource site for childfree folks
Yeah, well to each his own, it’s not necessarily like we needed it in the first place, it was first and foremost an excercise in web design, and i’ve learned a ton from it. It’s true most couples who have made that decision might not need it , but they might find it interesting, and everyone knows how specific some websites can be as far as communities.
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Re: Finally completed community/resource site for childfree folks
Hi Chris,
Comments, well I have 3 kids, or should I say adults now. You could say before I gave it thought, they were upon me. It’s been a long road and I’ve given up a lot but have gained immeasurably. I admire your conviction and respect your choice.
On to the site, I like your selection of apps and their integration. On the forum, maybe center the google ad by the footer with a div? You can see how I’ve done it on one of my forums, just a quick hack. The ads on the main site, do you think they’d look better without a border?
Overall, very clean and simple design. The copy is well written and the fonts are very legible. It’s not easy doing a site with a dark background but my eyes like it. The only thing I find missing is an about page, like meet Chris and Josie.
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Re: Finally completed community/resource site for childfree folks
ah yes, the about page, we actually had a section for one, but it was blank and i had to remove the link for launch. I think I’m going to try to implement author pages, that include a short bio/profile as well as that author’s latest entries (blogs, articles, forum posts). The about page, will be upcoming though, just another item on our post-launch list.
And Bert, thanks for the support. We were both really worried about the type of impression we would leave with people, as far as those with kids who felt strongly they were a big part of their lives. I didn’t want the site to be an anti-family, or anti-kids thing, only a resource, and community for folks who didn’t want them. I was hoping it would not only appeal to people who didn’t want kids, but be a positive representation of them as well. We have plenty of friends who do have kids, who do really enjoy the experience, and its great, for them, and theres nothing wrong with it.
Oh and the google ad on the forums page, good eye. Will be fixed soon :)
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Re: Finally completed community/resource site for childfree folks
Very nice … and very readable … very clean …
the few small things for me- is that the main headers is the same color as links and not clickable “blog, archives, etc…” …
- the contact form just wreaks of ugliness and takes away from what is a very elegant site.
- main nav i think could come down a font size
feel free to ignore any and all of my comments :)
nuff-respec ::: dannyb
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Re: Finally completed community/resource site for childfree folks
yeah, that the headers are the same color and not clickable is gettin to me to. it seemed like a good idea in the beginning, i dunno, ill just have to think about it.
what about the contact form do you not like? its pretty standard, and probably the least visited part of the site so far.
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Re: Finally completed community/resource site for childfree folks
wazzup … nothing wrong per se … they are just very let’s say vanilla … and with everything else so elegantly designed, i thought it could be spruced up a tad…
my site, the comment input is only slightly styled to blend more into the design, versus using the good ole defaults. that said i realize my comment may have sounded harsh but it was meant to be a compliment. i looked around and quite a few people use default form styling so maybe it’s the spacing between the fields that are not catching my eyes. mezzoblue uses default form styling and it seems to work .. veerle is a dark page …
this is only a personal preference though…
nuff-respec ::: dannyb
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Re: Finally completed community/resource site for childfree folks
yeah, i actually styled the comments input form, but not the contact form. i might end up doin it the same way, i didnt want to make it to crazy and present anyone with something too out of the ordinary
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Re: Finally completed community/resource site for childfree folks
Wow, I think that your site is very well done. I really like the layout and your blog section is probably one of the nicest that I have viewed in a while. I see a few things that could be tweaked but have already mentioned for the most part.
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#11 2007-01-07 12:22:58
- Ace of Dubs
- Member
- Registered: 2006-04-17
- Posts: 446
Re: Finally completed community/resource site for childfree folks
What is interesting to me is that 4 years ago I probably would have been a member of your community. All my life I have been set against parenthood. Then I met my wife and wanted to knock her up like immediately, I cant explain why, she just inspired my paternal instinct I reckon. Either way, I have to agree that more people should really take the whole reproduction thing seriously, overpopulation is a global concern, not to mention that there are a lot of BAD parents out there.
Kudos on the site.. tight design as usual
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#12 2007-01-10 15:11:51
- stef25
- Member
- Registered: 2005-12-26
- Posts: 88
Re: Finally completed community/resource site for childfree folks
very nice design. i like the livesearch too, but would maybe make the font in the box that appears a bit larger. good job!
I need someone to protect me from all the measures they take in order to protect me
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