... and the page loads...
I'm thinkin'...
It's a tad too dark I think.... is flash loading right now?...... nice image no doubt........ what's this non-sense in the upper-right corner...?
And the status bar tells me that there shall be no more coming up on this page... and here I am... left moving my mouse around.... looking for.... *something*.
I know there is a menu in the upper right.... it tells me so.
But why do I have this page in front of me.... why am I here.
Ok.
Well.... ultimately the front page (though visually appealing) is all form and no function in my opinion. I'd complain about it being slightly too dark... but that may just be my monitor.... so I'll press on.
This is a trendy look... there's no doubt of that... and there is absolutely nothing wrong with that. I enjoy this style.
But with this style.... I guess I anticipate Flash accompanyment.... (is that a word?)
Like I said.... all form.... no function.
In a mind.... one can only now anticipate that rolling over this "menu" will bring up unseen treasures on this page..... but to my dismay... the first link opens a pop up window as a side dish, rather than any substance to the main course.
The second link wisps me away into never-never/never/never/lost land.
I don't think it's possible to get back to the main page once i've finished browsing through this "graphic design" section. I can get back to the main design page..... but not to that original page that this journey began on without the aid of 15 pushes of the ever-loving "back" button.
Perhaps there is a link somewhere lost in my furious mouse clicking fits.... but it evades me on this day.
The last of the links on the front page may be the most deviant of them all.
Where has it taken me?.... to an overloaded-ly white page....
5 small bars for navigation.....?
Where the other pages are somewhat "graphic-intensive"..... this is graphic-empty.
However... I DO realize this page is not for showing off design.
That isn't my point either.
........ so what is my point? .......
Where is the consistancy in all this?
The pages don't jive.
The front page has 3 links.
One is a pop up...
One takes me to a similar "style" page.... but does not link back....
And one takes me to a page with more white space and less content than an 404 error page.
(and did I mention that I can't get back to the front page from here either?)
And I think to myself....
..should i mention that Asylum is spelled wrong on more than one occassion in there... ?............. nah.... I think he'll figure it out.
When I think of a more "standardized" front page.... I'm thinking, content will load here..... content will load here........ content will load here...... this page sets the style for this website...... this is the style... the content is here.....
Or something like that.
However... I guess this isn't so much of a "front page"..... it's a "front door".
Front doors are far different than front pages.
(have I confused everyone yet?)
Front doors let people in so that they may explore very different rooms of a finely decorated house.
Front pages are the openers to a book that has more pages.... YET.... the pages all follow suit.
You trackin' me?
With the above said.
I think what you have created somehow slips into a state in-between these two things.... and I think the "site experience" falls apart because of it.
You only are working with two rooms. And you have sort of front door.
With "design" being one-room.... and "snowboarding" being the other.
I for one..... do not want to read an "about" page.... or a "bio" on multiple occassions about the same person on one website.
So why make us?
IF there's only two rooms... and one is design..... I think they could be consolidated to one room..... graphic-intensive, and showing off design capability..... all the while... the majority of the content of the site revolves around snowboarding.
I'm just spit-balling here...... but you could do something as simple as run a column down the left side of a page with all your various links in an organized fashion... snow-boarding links first...... graphic links next.. and you bio tossed in there as well.
You're creating a site that you wish to show what you've done/are doing in the snowboarding world....... and what you'd like to do with your passions for design....
However..... you insistantly have your BIO above all else.
I think people want more to see what you can do before they want know who you are.
It's the kind of philosophy that says.... "Dazzle me. Then we'll talk."
I have no doubts that you can create something far more appealing than what you have presented us here. I've seen you do better.
You've taking a liking to this style of graphics on your pages of the past... and I think you continue to get better with it.
But I don't think you should let the graphics stand alone for your site.
As I said.... all form... no function.
I think you can change that.
And who knows.... maybe you'll dazzle some people. =)
Cheers man.
edit: never was good with "left" and "right"
[This message has been edited by Michael (edited 02-28-2002).]
posted 02-28-2002 14:55
