New look front page & improved functionality

[Richard]

Anyone who regularly visits the front page of this site will know that over the months since this version of the site was introduced in April, the layout has slowly been revised and changed (I believe for the better) as new and improved functionality has been put into place. A complete rehaul of how articles display was the first major change made, basing the layout of articles on major news and newspaper websites. With this came a vastly improved article submission system. Most recently I have redesigned the "Other News" section of the index page to make it far more graphically oriented. With this came a redesign of the News Archive page. A graphical navigation system has also been introduced for our Gallery system (example here) which displays the entire gallery with tiny thumbnails at the bottom of the page so you know where you are and what's on other pages of the gallery. I hope to expand on and refine this system as times goes on. I'd really appreciate any comments or suggestions regarding the site's design. I strongly believe it's currently among the best looking theme park websites in the world and is worlds easier to navigate than most, but I also know there's plenty of room for improvement and if anyone has anything they'd like to see or not see then let me know.

[Dylaan]

I really like the changes you've been making, especially the ones to the front page! They make it look just that bit more attractive. Keep up the good work!

[Gazza]

For some reason the new "other news" bit of the front page looks like this:

[Gold Coaster]

What a nova l design idea.

[Spotty]

That error that Gazza pointed out has since been fixed. I did notice it too earlier today.

[Richard]

Yeah those errors should only have been temporary. If you're still getting the size/alignment issue try refreshing.

[Adam]

Great job Richard. The site is looking really good. I'm not a huge fan of the current "Park/Ride Database" landing page though (as seen here). The page follows no logical structure and it looks really tacky. If you could bring that single page up to the high standard the rest of the site is, then I'd be forever grateful. EDIT: I don't like the thing at the bottom where it repeats "Whitewater World Construction Update" five times. It would look uber cooler if you adopted a flickr-style navigation system where the page numbers are listed horizontally and the current page is highlighted. The next and previous buttons intact. Thanks!

Edited September 24, 2006 by Adam

[Richard]

Agreed on the database page, it's sorely needing some TLC. I hope to completely redo the landing page and the "view all" pages. I definitely want to create better linkage to the Opinions and the Counter (checkboxes to completely add and edit your park counter in one hit from the same page). I realised when I added the thumbnail navigator that the text "Page x: " system is pretty redundant (and always has been). Back in the old days each gallery page was a separate gallery entry so quite often a gallery would comprise of three or four different topics (such as major construction of a new ride + minor updates from around the park). It doesn't work like this anymore so it's not really serving any meaningful purpose. While I'm here, if anyone is interested in the recent downtime, it was a network issue that was totally out of the control of us or even our service providers at the datacentre where we lease space.

[Gazza]

I personally dont mind the database page that much, its simple to use.

[DaptoFunlandGuy]

Seriously - Ipecac Syrup? A poison.... that makes you vomit? And... in a 6 year old thread.... geezus - at least post in something more regularly used!

[Reanimated35]

[pin142]

Could see that being posted reanimated!

[gmb]

I was just commenting to a friend how nice the new site looks...