huskeraddict
New member
I like where you're going with this Blackshirt. OrangePower has a good "model", if you will.
Board redesign - provide your input
- Thread starter Blackshirt
- Start date
Blackshirt
Team HuskerBoard
Hey guys, sorry for the delay here.. too many things I'm juggling at the moment 
I just sent the company a follow-up asking for an update - they're pretty slow so far.
Heres what I like about OP:
-Navigation buttons on top. Our nav structure is greatly lacking & not prominent enough.
-Countdown clock in easy to see location
-Ad placement. It may not be popular, but for the site to run we need sponsors. our current ad structure is very poor & not very easy to manage or attractive to sponsors.
I'll let you know the update I get.
I just sent the company a follow-up asking for an update - they're pretty slow so far.Heres what I like about OP:
-Navigation buttons on top. Our nav structure is greatly lacking & not prominent enough.
-Countdown clock in easy to see location
-Ad placement. It may not be popular, but for the site to run we need sponsors. our current ad structure is very poor & not very easy to manage or attractive to sponsors.
I'll let you know the update I get.
zoogs
New member
I do like their horizontal navigation bar (NOT the one on top though - RSS/facebook/twitter - that belong on the bottom of the page, IMO). Some of it is puzzling and some of it is interesting. We do not have as much content as they do, which is why our equivalent of that bar consists only of "Members", "Calendar", and "Forums". For example, we don't have a subscription, or a chat, or an 'About Us.' Breaking it down:
--'Home' - not a bad idea to have this even though the forum header image also links back to this
--'Forums' - extremely puzzling why they have this as it's the same link as 'Home'
--'Subscribe' - not an option for us
--'Recruiting' - it links to the ESPN page for their team. That's a nice touch. I wonder if they get paid by ESPN for t his? Probably not but worth an inquiry...
--'Chat' - Something we don't have at the moment. We could add it. Personally I've always wondered why a message board would need a live chat feature. But I think the members could enjoy it. I wonder if it's compatible with status updates. If we get rid of status updates, I think this could be a good substitute. I just don't know if we need to get rid of those, as I think they are working out quite well for now.
--'Photos' - I don't really dig the dropdown menu here. That's a little overkill on the links; too many ways to get the user off the actual message board. I think if we have add links, we should not have too many. I think photos wouldn't be a bad idea depending on how it's implemented. Maybe add a single static 'Photos' page where users can upload their own photos and there are some links to online galleries (like Flickr (query=huskers)) on the side. Although this is currently not a functionality that we have.
--'Links' - Cool idea. Especially for link sharing. Haven't we gotten some link sharing requests? Whatever happens with those, I can't find the links we share with other sites anywhere. So this would be just like what they do, a static page with a long list of links.
--'Shop' - Definitely, we have a shop and it deserves a spot up there. Maybe it could mean the end of the animated gif advertising HuskerNation. I think that would be a step up for HN: from an advertising spot to being treated as an integrated part of the forum.
--'Pick Em' - Don't see the point of this. Also, on a related note, I think these links on top should not require logins for the most part. It's an annoyance. But to play devil's advocate, maybe the reverse is true. Maybe it's a good way to draw in members by having functionality you need to sign up for. I just don't want to overdo it. The Scout forums, for example, you can't even read threads without being logged in. That made me sign up, but I gave up on it long ago.
--'Tell a Friend' - Don't see the point of this either. I can't access the feature without being logged in, but if it's like most things, I can't imagine it being very useful. When's the last time anyone got an automated email message from a friend - "Hi, your friend ____ just checked out ______.COM and thinks you should too! Here is their personal message: _______" - and actually paid attention to it? We are the first google hit when searching for "Husker Forum", and that's the best 'getting new visitors' tool we have, IMO.
- 'About Us' - a very cool idea. Here's one instance where the dropdown menu is not bad and maybe even necessary. You could incorporate the 'Advertise with us' as part of the 'About us' static page though; I think most people know that's the place to look if they are thinking of advertising.
Ad placement : I can't argue with that. Sounds like something unavoidable. Also sounds like something the status messages and top posters are currently getting in the way of. Ad placement is something to talk about though. I almost think that having horizontal graphic ads where our current slew of images (Big 10, Husker Nation, etc) would be better than vertical ones like OrangePower. But I'm not really sure. There's no clear cut advantage to either that I can see. Huskerboard as it is now feels pretty much ad-free, so if that changes it'll be a pill to swallow either way. Unavoidable, though.
In summary, I think we can add some good new things to the board with a redesign. However, I see the redesign as sort of the last piece to the puzzle. It sounds like we are talking about introducing some new functionality first. I think we should consider these and roll these out one by one - more 'content' pages such as "About Us" and "Photos"; forum reorganization, chat, ad placement - before we start introducing a forum theme change. A gradual morphing rather than a sudden, comprehensive revamp. Especially with the recent cosmetic facelift, I think the next stages (if they are to come) ought to be more drawn out and content-driven in the beginning. JMO on this
--'Home' - not a bad idea to have this even though the forum header image also links back to this
--'Forums' - extremely puzzling why they have this as it's the same link as 'Home'
--'Subscribe' - not an option for us
--'Recruiting' - it links to the ESPN page for their team. That's a nice touch. I wonder if they get paid by ESPN for t his? Probably not but worth an inquiry...
--'Chat' - Something we don't have at the moment. We could add it. Personally I've always wondered why a message board would need a live chat feature. But I think the members could enjoy it. I wonder if it's compatible with status updates. If we get rid of status updates, I think this could be a good substitute. I just don't know if we need to get rid of those, as I think they are working out quite well for now.
--'Photos' - I don't really dig the dropdown menu here. That's a little overkill on the links; too many ways to get the user off the actual message board. I think if we have add links, we should not have too many. I think photos wouldn't be a bad idea depending on how it's implemented. Maybe add a single static 'Photos' page where users can upload their own photos and there are some links to online galleries (like Flickr (query=huskers)) on the side. Although this is currently not a functionality that we have.
--'Links' - Cool idea. Especially for link sharing. Haven't we gotten some link sharing requests? Whatever happens with those, I can't find the links we share with other sites anywhere. So this would be just like what they do, a static page with a long list of links.
--'Shop' - Definitely, we have a shop and it deserves a spot up there. Maybe it could mean the end of the animated gif advertising HuskerNation. I think that would be a step up for HN: from an advertising spot to being treated as an integrated part of the forum.
--'Pick Em' - Don't see the point of this. Also, on a related note, I think these links on top should not require logins for the most part. It's an annoyance. But to play devil's advocate, maybe the reverse is true. Maybe it's a good way to draw in members by having functionality you need to sign up for. I just don't want to overdo it. The Scout forums, for example, you can't even read threads without being logged in. That made me sign up, but I gave up on it long ago.
--'Tell a Friend' - Don't see the point of this either. I can't access the feature without being logged in, but if it's like most things, I can't imagine it being very useful. When's the last time anyone got an automated email message from a friend - "Hi, your friend ____ just checked out ______.COM and thinks you should too! Here is their personal message: _______" - and actually paid attention to it? We are the first google hit when searching for "Husker Forum", and that's the best 'getting new visitors' tool we have, IMO.
- 'About Us' - a very cool idea. Here's one instance where the dropdown menu is not bad and maybe even necessary. You could incorporate the 'Advertise with us' as part of the 'About us' static page though; I think most people know that's the place to look if they are thinking of advertising.
I sort of disagree about the countdown clock. That's kind of an annoyance to be displayed so prominently. We generally know when the next game is, and while it's cool to know exactly how much longer it'll be, big huge changing numbers right next to the logo doesn't do much for the visual element of the page. Just my 2 cents. I think it could be a nice touch if moved elsewhere, since I don't know if it's too useful sitting at the very bottom of the page. I just never pay attention to it, though, and IMHO it should remain more subtle than it is on OrangePower.
Ad placement : I can't argue with that. Sounds like something unavoidable. Also sounds like something the status messages and top posters are currently getting in the way of. Ad placement is something to talk about though. I almost think that having horizontal graphic ads where our current slew of images (Big 10, Husker Nation, etc) would be better than vertical ones like OrangePower. But I'm not really sure. There's no clear cut advantage to either that I can see. Huskerboard as it is now feels pretty much ad-free, so if that changes it'll be a pill to swallow either way. Unavoidable, though.
Last note on this: if we consolidate the forums, I think it'll help out our nav structure greatly. I don't know if we've reached any decisions but knapp/AR had some improved lists if I recall. I hope we can get this done before the season starts.
In summary, I think we can add some good new things to the board with a redesign. However, I see the redesign as sort of the last piece to the puzzle. It sounds like we are talking about introducing some new functionality first. I think we should consider these and roll these out one by one - more 'content' pages such as "About Us" and "Photos"; forum reorganization, chat, ad placement - before we start introducing a forum theme change. A gradual morphing rather than a sudden, comprehensive revamp. Especially with the recent cosmetic facelift, I think the next stages (if they are to come) ought to be more drawn out and content-driven in the beginning. JMO on this
Eric the Red
Team HuskerBoard
Should have the trial up and running in the next day or two.
AR Husker Fan
Team HuskerBoard
Hint: You can still shell out to the command prompt.I'm screwed, still trying to learn Win 3.1
Eric the Red
Team HuskerBoard
Ok...so I lied. Actually I didn't. The board did come back but Chad decided not to post the link because there were a few obvious corrections that needed to be made. We knew it was just a scratch attempt. Hopefully within a day or two we get the updated version.
AR Husker Fan
Team HuskerBoard
Promises, promises, promises...
Blackshirt
Team HuskerBoard
Ok thanks everyone for the feedback. Zoogies those were some very good suggestions we'll take into consideration.
To answer a point you made now -- by all means if you guys have ideas for consolidating the forums, we're open to it. Can you please send a link to the thread to admin@huskerboard.com and we'll review.
Please realize this is only a draft. I've given them our requested completion date of this Friday - I think they can still hit it if we don't have a tremendous amount of change requests. Perhaps we can do this in phases.
Also keep in mind I told him we wanted to keep the same overall feel we currently have. so if you're wondering what is actually different, that's hopefully a good thing.
http://dev.solidaredesign.com/huskerboard/
Some obvious areas I've noticed need changing:
-The top seems a little busy. perhaps the big 10 helmets can go at the bottom.
-The "Welcome by admin" in the right margin is supposed to be the area we send broadcasts to the board. it doesn't seem very effective where it is now.
-The horizontal scroll bar under the forum needs to go.
-I realize all the buttons on top aren't relevant - these can easily change
-The red shade is a bit deeper than the current red we use - do you guys think this should be a brighter red?
-We still need the live scoreboard from around the big-12/10 -- suggestions for where to put this?
Let me know what you think!
To answer a point you made now -- by all means if you guys have ideas for consolidating the forums, we're open to it. Can you please send a link to the thread to admin@huskerboard.com and we'll review.
Please realize this is only a draft. I've given them our requested completion date of this Friday - I think they can still hit it if we don't have a tremendous amount of change requests. Perhaps we can do this in phases.
Also keep in mind I told him we wanted to keep the same overall feel we currently have. so if you're wondering what is actually different, that's hopefully a good thing.
http://dev.solidaredesign.com/huskerboard/
Some obvious areas I've noticed need changing:
-The top seems a little busy. perhaps the big 10 helmets can go at the bottom.
-The "Welcome by admin" in the right margin is supposed to be the area we send broadcasts to the board. it doesn't seem very effective where it is now.
-The horizontal scroll bar under the forum needs to go.
-I realize all the buttons on top aren't relevant - these can easily change
-The red shade is a bit deeper than the current red we use - do you guys think this should be a brighter red?
-We still need the live scoreboard from around the big-12/10 -- suggestions for where to put this?
Let me know what you think!
Blackshirt
Team HuskerBoard
Also just realized the "next game" in the right margin is redundant. and the Previous Game could be presented a little better.
knapplc
Active member
OK, I take back my concern. This will be just fine. I thought we were going to copypasta the Orange Power board, and that was not appealing at all. This design will definitely work. :thumbs
EDIT - I very much like what you did with the Big 10 icons up top. That's a much better integration than what we have now.
EDIT #2 - I see a chat link up there. Are we going to implement a chat, or will that be disabled?
EDIT - I very much like what you did with the Big 10 icons up top. That's a much better integration than what we have now.
EDIT #2 - I see a chat link up there. Are we going to implement a chat, or will that be disabled?
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