Preserved Topic: Two new interfaces for the U of Minnesota (Page 1 of 1)

Here's two new interfaces that I'm working on. The first has the sub-page templates in place as well, the 2nd has only the front page. Neither one has the full roll-over functionality. Eventually the rollovers will also display descriptions of each category (can u guess where?). I'm wondering what you guys think of these, give me feedback, and don't spare me feelings. The interfaces are supposed to capture the feel of the buildings, but I doubt any of you probably are familiar with the student unions here.
http://www.coffman.umn.edu/Coffman/ http://www.coffman.umn.edu/SPSC/

Thanks!!!

They both look very nice! I prefer the yellow on with the globe though. It it an all around better design. You need to smooth out the edges though. They are a little choppy in some areas. I would also use the 'sphereize' filter on the globe and give it a small lens flare with a little bit of lighting effects to make it more 3D looking.


They green one is nice as well, but with the trees as the background, it makes the text a little hard to read.

You?re on the right track though. Can't wait to see the final product!


~Anything with wheels, chips or tits is going to cause you trouble sooner or later~

i'd have to say that the second one is my favorite of the two.

the first one is alright, but you've got serious problems with jaggies on the curves of the top bar... but you already know this, so i'll shut up. i'm not super excited with that layout or design though, but i think it could go somewhere neat with more work.

as for the second one, i like the green and wood texture together a lot. it seems more professional looking to me than the first one too. my only complaint is the mouseovers on the menu, the color is off and the shift is disorienting. i'd use the exact same boxes, but just make the text inside shift... see what i'm saying?

good work, have fun with it.

cheers.mikey.milker

I really like both of them. Both are nice ideas. I think on the first there are too many different light sources or something. the second's mouseovers are a little different but whatever floats your boat. Good job so far.

MinutRice

Well, I actually know both buildings, and I can see the architecture in them. The Coffman piece does something wrong for me, can't put my finger on it, but I'd say the 3D effect is too shallow, perhaps? Try working with a mask that has not been blurred quite so much, and the same height. The shape of the piece, especially the interior one, is noce, but the 3D needs work. Are we set on yellow, too?

The StPaul piece is nice, I like the colors, and the architectural plan, it works. Same problem with the lighting effects, and the mouseover IS kind of odd, doesn't feel right. I don't need to poke at the trees in the foreground, you're obviously still working on that. Maybe less contrast on the trees to increase readability. Good work overall!

Your pal, -doc-<P>

I like the second one more. The blend of the smooth plastic with the wood grain is nice. I know what bothers me about the first one... it's too constricted. It may be just a front splash screen, but it LOOKS like every page is supposed to have that same design, and you just don't have any room in that tiny space to fit a lot of words and pictures. The second one is an open interface.

The other part is that it's too shallow... it's supposed to look 3D, right? But it doesn't really. The shadows are the only thing that give it any sort of 3D feel. The bevel just isn't dark enough.

Of course the jagged lines make me shiver. The second interface looks great though! Don't want you to think I'm all negative. I like the strange angles and all in the second interface. One thing though.. the bottom wood design looks like it got pushed too far into the console... The shadows around it are a lot darker and deeper and it looks a little strange. But other than that, I like it!

The CMU one definately has a jaggies problem and, like someone else mentioned, the lighting is very uneven. Doc said something about using a mask which has less blur on it and I think he is right on.

The SPSC page has some nice shapes and inlays on it but the mouseover is definately strange. I might try just changing the text color and possibly giving it a glow(that might be tough in a confined such as the one you are working in) instead of the "pop-up" mouseover you've got right now.

I am more for subtlety than anything flashy. I'd much rather have a stellar design than pop-up windows and fart noises when clicking on licks. This paragraph really has nothing to do with your design but design in general. Sorry for the tangential fascism.

Later

myoclone a.k.a. doktor mescaline hypnobot


http://nifty.dsl.visi.com/

[This message has been edited by mjn (edited 30-06-2000).]

A couple more notes first of all... Both interfaces left bar is a space for more seasonal and changing links. So that part will not just be left empty. The 2 pages that you see are like the main splash screens and so they will not have LOT of information on them, just whatever tidbits happen to strike the union board's fancy at the time.

Did you try clicking on the Coffman links Human Shield? Because it sounds like you didn't. The sub-templates are in place and they offer an extendable format for extra text and graphics.

The globe on the Coffman interface will have a 2 step rollover where the gradient 'expands' outward to be more white with a text description appearing for each of the rollovers. (The St. Paul site will have similar rollover functionality in the blank window underneath the rollovers).

The reason that the 3d looks so weird on the Coffman site is that the shapes started with a basic gradient in them before I ran lighting effects. Using a less-blurred alpha channel was a good idea, but I have to explain that I was going for a more rounded, column-like look. Any ideas on how to achieve that more effectively?

Also, Doc, I used a significantly less-blurred mask for the St. Paul interface. Are you saying it would look cleaner with the blur only extending 2-3 pixels in from the edges and wood panels?

Oh, and when you say u like the shape of the interior piece, do you mean the sub-pages of Coffman or some element of the main interface?

Thanks fer the help guys. Look for the new versions coming soon.

You caught me... I didn't click on the links. Well, actually, what happened was I had clicked on the SPSC link first and the links on it led nowhere so I assumed it was the same for the other page and never bothered to click on them. But I did now, and so nevermind my comment on the whole "no space in the center".