New Page Design Featuring My New Portfolio [Archive]

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Jagella

01-11-2009, 10:58 AM

I decided to try killing two birds with one stone on this thread. While creating a new draft for my online portfolio, I decided to place the portfolio on a new page design (http://freeforalldesigns.com/portfolio_Draft3.html). I believe the new page design makes better use of screen real estate because it's more compact than the older design (http://freeforalldesigns.com/index.html), and I hope it's more in keeping with some of the Web design work that's in vogue these days. Please review and provide helpful feedback.

Jagellaa

vangogh

01-11-2009, 11:28 AM

Joe I think the new page design is definitely an improvement over the old design. You're right. It does make better use of screen real estate. I think you should switch the rest of your pages to the new design as well to keep things consistent.

A couple things:

The new page isn't centered. It might look centered at 1024x768, but as soon as you move to other resolutions it's no longer centered. If you want to center the page try this:

<body>
<div id="wrapper">
all of your page code here
</div>
</body>

and then use this for your css

div#wrapper {width:980px; margin:0 auto}

The width is up to you, but you do need to specifiy a width. The margin is saying to use a 0px margin for the top and bottom of the wrapper div and let the left and right margins be determined automatically which centers them. You can change the top and bottom part if you want, but the left and right needs to remain set to auto.

The above also requires the use of a proper doctype, which you're already using, but I wanted to point it out. IE6 and below won't center using the above without the doctype.

The second thing I wanted to mention is the graphic at the top right. What does it add to the design? It's really just a filler graphic and it doesn't complement the site. What's the connection between the starts and your businesses? I think either a different graphic or none at all would benefit the design more.

But again the new page design is definitely an improvement over the old design.

Steve B

01-11-2009, 11:59 AM

vangogh

01-11-2009, 12:24 PM

Yep, Steve. And all the small improvements end up making a big improvement in the site over time. Think of where your site was a couple of years ago as compared to where it is today.

Jagella

01-11-2009, 11:01 PM

I think you should switch the rest of your pages to the new design as well to keep things consistent.

Will do, Steve.

The new page isn't centered.

I tried your code. It centers the background image, but it won't center the CSS layout. Any ideas?

I'm admittedly rusty on my HTML and CSS. As you probably know, I use Dreamweaver for constructing and editing my pages including this portfolio. I was using version 8, but I recently installed CS3. It has support for Spry—another thing I want to learn.

The second thing I wanted to mention is the graphic at the top right. What does it add to the design? It's really just a filler graphic and it doesn't complement the site. What's the connection between the starts and your businesses? I think either a different graphic or none at all would benefit the design more.

Well, for one thing, I just think it looks cool! After all, I'm offering graphics, so I should use them to embellish my pages. Since you think it's not relevant, think of it as a placeholder for now. I could place seasonal images there. Valentine's Day is coming up, for instance, and I might wish people a happy Valentine's Day with a picture of Cupid there. If I get more negative feedback, or just begin to agree with you, then I'll trash it.

Thanks a lot for the advice.

Jagella

Jagella

01-11-2009, 11:08 PM

As long as I'm still first - I like it.

Actually, it does seem like an improvement over the first version. I never stop improving and changing my website - it's a work in progress. Isn't that right Vangogh!

I've found that not all the changes I've made are changes for the better, or so it seems, but my Web design does seem to have improved. You may wish to check my first Web site (http://web.archive.org/web/20020409010510/www.weteardownthewalls.org/) to see.

Jagella

vangogh

01-12-2009, 12:01 AM

It centers the background image, but it won't center the CSS layout. Any ideas?

My bad. I hadn't looked at all your source code before suggesting my code. The problem is you're using positioning on many elements of the design. Positioning seems like a good idea, but usually it just complicates things. You'll probably have to recode quite a bit of your page to center it.

Well, for one thing, I just think it looks cool!

That's never a good reason for adding something to a design. Design is about solving problems not looking cool. That doesn't mean you can't have things that look cool on your site (you do want your site to look good), but there has to be another reason for including something into your design.

I like astronomy and think images of stellar objects are some of the coolest images I've ever seen. They don't belong in the design of my since my site has nothing to do with astronomy. If I were to write a post that had something to do with astronomical objects then sure why not add that kind of image into the post. But not in the site design itself.

You should show off your graphic skills, but not by placing what's essentially a random graphic into your design. You could easily create a page that exists to show off any graphic you want. Create a page called 'Art' or "Experiments' or "Graphics" or many other words, but unless you can answer what problem that graphic is solving in your design it doesn't belong there.

SteveC

01-12-2009, 12:08 AM

Dan Furman

01-12-2009, 01:48 PM

in other words stop treating this as a hobby and get serious.

Blunt as this may be, I agree with it. I get that "doing this on the side" feeling from your site, Joe (both old and new.)

sorry, but I'd be doing you a disservice if I wasn't honest.

Jagella

01-13-2009, 10:50 PM

To me, the website is the same or very similar to your existing one... instead of rushing forward why don't you do this properly... plan out your website, scope your competition and make sure your new website is better than theirs (look and performance)... and determine the goals of your website... in other words stop treating this as a hobby and get serious.

That topic would be more appropriate for the business planning section. Currently I have so much I'm trying to do that I'm having a little bit of trouble deciding which direction to take. Stay tuned.

Jagella

Jagella

01-13-2009, 10:59 PM

Blunt as this may be, I agree with it. I get that "doing this on the side" feeling from your site, Joe (both old and new.)

At present I am working only part time on my business. I have so much else I need to do that it's hard to put my efforts fully into my business.

In any case, I'm confident that I can handle any client's project with aplomb. John Lennon said of the budding Beatles: “We're the best god-damned band in the world; it's just a matter of letting people know.” That's the way I feel about my business venture.

Arrogant, am I not? :D

Jagella

Jagella

01-14-2009, 01:53 PM

That's never a good reason for adding something to a design. Design is about solving problems not looking cool. That doesn't mean you can't have things that look cool on your site (you do want your site to look good), but there has to be another reason for including something into your design.

Ok, Steve, here's the new page design (http://freeforalldesigns.com/portfolio_Draft3.html) sans the extraneous graphic.

Thanks for the advice.

Jagella

vangogh

01-14-2009, 08:14 PM

Better. In fact if you look at the design now you'll see your eye moves more directly to the graphics in the portfolio you want to show.