PDA

View Full Version : Have You Seen Google's New Design?



vangogh
06-28-2011, 06:24 PM
Anyone notice Google has a new design? It's nothing radical, but it is different. They made a few small changes that I think adds up to a nicer results page. Here's a short post from Google about the changes (http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2011/06/evolving-google-design-and-experience.html).

1. The links at the top to other things Google now has a dark gray background and the page you're on has a red bar above it to indicate you're there
2. The search button has a light blue color behind it
3. The area with the logo, search box, and button has a light gray color behind it.
4. The sidebar is now using red headers and light gray links

Here's a small image of what the results page looks like when I search for hardware.

120

I like the changes. I think it helps separate different parts of the page from other parts and even though the content on the page itself hasn't change there's a cleaner feel to everything.

The red in the sidebar should help draw people's attention to the extra links, which some people don't seem to currently use or be aware of.

The results are the same so if you didn't like Google's results before you still won't like them today, but that's not the point of this thread. Let's keep the conversation focused on the design.

Do you like Google's new look? Hate it? Somewhere in between maybe? What could Google do to make the design of the results page better?

vangogh
06-29-2011, 12:27 AM
I think I know why I like the new aesthetic. It seems to be the work of software artist Andy Herzfeld who use to work for Apple and was influential in early designs of the Mac. Makes sense give I like Apple's aesthetic and also because here's someone who gets design, which Google hasn't previously shown much interest in.

tylerhutchinson
06-29-2011, 08:01 PM
Yeah, not big changes in functionality or anything, but does look a little nicer.

I did notice when you start to type letters in the box it not only brought the suggestions down (like it always has) but it also loaded the sites as well making it a little quicker to get results.

vangogh
06-29-2011, 10:32 PM
The site loading thing has been around for awhile. It's called Google Instant. Google tries to give you results based on each letter. Personally I don't like it so I turned Google Instant off. Some people do like it. I usually don't find what I want till after the first 10 results so I have the results page set to show 100 results per page. Unfortunately you can get more than 10 per page with Google Instant, which is the main reason I turn it off.

The design changes aren't a lot, but it shows that even a few small changes can make a difference.

KristineS
07-01-2011, 12:49 PM
I noticed the change and I like it. Haven't so much noticed the functionality, but I think the design is nice. It looks a little more pulled together.

vangogh
07-01-2011, 05:51 PM
I don't think any functionality has changed other than the usual algorithmic changes that happen all the time. I'm still getting used to the design in the sense that I have to remind myself I'm looking at Google. I do like it and think it's a big improvement.

technowonder
02-02-2012, 10:45 AM
I really like the improvements. They are also bringing all their apps and products into a common design theme, YouTube now has that black, dark slate grey feel, it gives you a slick feel as you move through a variety of their services as being one service with lots of parts, YouTube, Google Webmaster tools, Analytics, Reporting. Nice.

vangogh
02-02-2012, 05:23 PM
I still like the improvements too. They've had a few missteps here and there, but overall I like the new look and like how it's getting easier to move from one Google product to another. They still have plenty of work to do, but they're getting there.