Tag Archives: Redesign

Meet Webmaster-Source 6.0

May 20, 2012 by Matt | Posted in Design, Featured 7 Comments

It’s been about four years since this site last had a design refresh, and it’s high time it did! Version five really hasn’t changed much over the four years since its launch, and it’s looking a little stale. So today I bring you, the sixth major revision of Webmaster-Source.

The new design makes use of fun new CSS3 features, like linear gradients, box shadows, and variable opacities. I also worked a bit to improve the legibility of the main content, which really stands out when you compare the two revisions. I think I achieved a greater level of polish overall, though there’s still room for improvement.

Let’s take a look at some of the new features added in the redesign.

Continue reading →

Twitter Launches “New New Twitter” and Ruins iOS App

Dec 9, 2011 by Matt | Posted in Social Media 2 Comments

Starting Thursday, Twitter began rolling out their latest redesign, dubbed “New New Twitter” by users. The new design looks okay, albeit a bit heavy on the boxes, but some of the changes it brings aren’t so welcome. It seems to me as if Twitter is slowly strangling the brilliant simplicity that made it unique and successful, and making the service more and more like Facebook.

The first change that irks me is the new Connect screen, which replaces the Mentions tab. Instead of getting a listing of replies or tweets mentioning your username, you get something closer to a Facebook feed. The stream is cluttered with messages along the lines of “Mr. Follower and 6 others are now following you. Isn’t that great?” Oh, and anytime someone retweets one of your updates, it goes in there too. You can still get to the Mentions timeline, but it requires a second click. I imagine it’s even more “useful” if you have a half million followers.

Continue reading →

Design Spotlight: New Twitter

Oct 8, 2010 by Matt | Posted in Design, Featured 4 Comments

Twitter is slowly rolling out their new, more application-like interface. Some of you may already have had a chance to give it a test drive, but there are still plenty of tweets along the lines of “I want New Twitter! Why does everyone have it but me?” It seems like now is a good time to take a look at New Twitter, before everyone has it.

The bar floating at the top is statically positioned, so it’s visible as you scroll. This is handy, as you always have a button to post a new tweet within easy reach. Clicking it launches a pseudo-window overlay. It’s nice to have when you’re off looking at someone’s profile or putting together a List.

Continue reading →

Envato Redesigns Tuts+ Sites Again

Mar 11, 2010 by Matt | Posted in Design No Comments

Once again, Envato has redesigned their Tuts+ blogs. The changes are primarily evolutionary, though there is a big difference. The new layout features a wider content area and a stronger focus on larger screen sizes.

One of the first things I noticed was that the sites’ advertisement strategy seems to have been rethought. There are no more large leaderboard or 250×250 banners; instead, there are only 125×125 banners. They sit at the top of the narrow sidebar and run down the side of the page in a single column. It actually looks pretty good. They’re out of the way, yet still visible enough to be sought after by potential advertisers.

Continue reading →

Smashing Magazine Redesigns and Launches a Network

Nov 5, 2009 by Matt | Posted in Design No Comments

Smashing Magazine has redesigned again, further evolving their visual style rather than throwing away the old completely, but still bringing some new and interesting features into play.

Smashing Magazine November 2009 Redesign

It’s still as ad-heavy as before, but that can be expected. At a glance, the navigational header present in the previous incarnation is bigger and more pronounced, and the search box has been moved there to be more prominent.

The classic “We smash you with the information that will make your life easier. Really,” line has  been removed from under the logo. I’m not sure if there is any significance to this other than making things look a little cleaner, but it will be missed.

Now one of the biggest changes in the redesign is the front page. Smashing Mag’s posts aren’t the only ones displayed there now. “What?” you may ask. Let the folks at Smashing explain it for you:

Continue reading →

Design Spotlight: Envato Marketplace Redesign

Oct 1, 2009 by Matt | Posted in Design No Comments

Envato launched the redesigns for their marketplace sites last Sunday. They all look pretty much the same, save for some color and logo differences, so I’ll just focus on ThemeForest here.

ThemeForest Redesign

Continue reading →

Design Spotlight: Pro Blog Design (Again)

Aug 6, 2009 by Matt | Posted in Design 4 Comments

I’ve reviewed Pro Blog Design‘s theme at least once before, probably twice. Now that Michael Martin’s design blog is entering its third year, it has received yet another redesign.

Pro Blog Design 2009 Redesign

Continue reading →

Design Spotlight: The New Twitter Homepage

Aug 3, 2009 by Matt | Posted in Design No Comments

Last Tuesday Twitter unveiled their redesign of their homepage. The change is intended to help remedy peoples’ inability to grasp the concept of Twitter, putting trending topics and a search field front-and-center. Instead of promoting to new users the ability to say what they’re doing, they’re pushing the idea that they use Twitter to “share and discover what’s happening right now, anywhere in the world.”

Defining a “tweet” for the uninitiated and explaining how to create an account doesn’t resonate with everyone. “Why would I want to do that?” is a common reaction. However, demonstrating the power of Twitter as a discovery engine for what is happening right now through our Search and Trends often awakens a sense of wonder which inevitably leads to a much more compelling question, “How do I get involved?”

New Twitter Homepage

Continue reading →

Design Spotlight: Usability Post

Dec 26, 2008 by Matt | Posted in Design No Comments

Usability Post has undergone its first major redesign. The new theme looks good, having a somewhat more unique look than the old one.

Continue reading →

Welcome to Webmaster-Source 5.0

Dec 13, 2008 by Matt | Posted in Design, Featured 9 Comments

Welcome to the fifth iteration of Webmaster-Source.com! As you may have noticed, the latest redesign has been completed and is now up for everyone to see.

The new design is a lot less…bland than the previous. At the same time, though, it’s a lot cleaner, or so I’ve tried to make it. The goal was to cut out the clutter and make things look less plain, and I think I’ve done a decent job at it. You can decide for yourself what you think, though.

Continue reading →