Author Topic: Let's talk about the front page!  (Read 10365 times)

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Offline mjn.mixael

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Re: Let's talk about the front page!
I agree that it's important that FS2 itself (and therefore the MediaVPs) need to be front-and-center, because FS2 is ultimately the reason all (or at the very least most) of us are here in the first place. However, it's also important that the free standalones also be given prominent placement because, unlike the MediaVPs, they don't require someone who's never heard of FreeSpace to spend any money to try it out for themselves.

In that vein, how hard would it be to make an FSO package out of the FS2 demo and put that front-and-center? That's what the guy who ported the FS2 engine to the OpenPandora did.

That is a really good idea. Any got the demo? Can't be that hard to make into an FSO package. I'll give it a go if no one else can.
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Offline niffiwan

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Re: Let's talk about the front page!
I was able to download a copy from here
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Offline jr2

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Re: Let's talk about the front page!
Wasn't the demo missions already ported to FS2?  Might have gotten lost though.  Ah, here we go, 5MB, I uploaded it to Google Drive:  link.  File creation date is November 2005.

 

Offline mjn.mixael

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Re: Let's talk about the front page!
Score.. let's see what we can do with this.
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Re: Let's talk about the front page!
Hmm, my idea would revolve around the global mods on offer and using the things we already have: We already have the HLP network tab, which sits above the page being rather invisible and also being very neat. Instead of having a small HLP network tab, have a bigger, image-assissted tab that has the following options:

Freespace 2 - The Babylon Project - Diaspora - Wing Commander Saga - Wings of Dawn

clicking on any of these produces a dropdown explenatory page. The very first thing an user should see when they visit a page should be a "Play now" button which instantly brings the user to the download page. The page should then further eleborate on what that thing they clicked on actually is.

Why only the total mods and "Freespace 2"? Because those options represent the shortest time-to-complete: Once the user knows how to use the FSOpenInstaller, for instance, they know how to get the good mods for that, too. And, obviously, having a Battlestar Galactica, a Babylon 5, a Wing Commander and ANIMÉ front and center is a huge thing to have.

Below the HLP network tab and the explenatory page (have it drop down with the dropdown page!) should be the regular news thing - However, I think the current highlights and news seperation is a bit silly. The monthly news articles are great, but a lot of the highlights that are currently on the frontpage are not really relavent. My advice would be to:

Drop *either* the highlight system or the news system entirely, in favour of a composite system that only highlights the newsletter itself and releases of trailers and stuff that is playable. RTS scripts and new modeels and the like are usefull for modders, but not for people looking to play the site's stuff, and as such can be reported in, say, the newsletter but not on the frontpage.

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Adapt as neccesary, but the shorter and clearer you can make the path to downloading and playing the better. The frontpage should, ideally, directly link to forum threads such as the one that Battuta created for Blue Planet.
« Last Edit: September 15, 2016, 08:44:50 am by -Joshua- »

 

Offline MP-Ryan

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Re: Let's talk about the front page!
I like a number of the ideas here, and I put together a refined layout that tries to capture them all.  It's not terribly pretty (because I was stuck using Powerpoint to quickly do this during a break) but it gives you the idea of where everything can go.  Features:
-HLP Logo and Short About Us blurb
- 3 large in-your-face tikes:  one to buy FS2, one to get FSOpen (and MediaVPs), and one to point to all the Total Conversions. Tiles can use screenshots or other visuals and backgrounds, overlayed with text to explain what you get when you click, the cost (Free emphasized), and the quick benefits.  The tiles should each point to a dedicated page WITH DOWNLOAD LINKS for whichever item they've clicked on.
-Tab-based content window below, defaulting to the Getting Started explanation, with a right tab for combined news and highlights, and a middle tab to memorialize Battuta's epic wall-o-text in a front-and-center explanation where it belongs.

Thoughts?

Someone make it pretty.

[attachment deleted by admin]
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Re: Let's talk about the front page!
I like that one hell of a lot

 

Offline mjn.mixael

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Re: Let's talk about the front page!
I'm going to advocate till I'm blue in the face that we move the WALL OF WORDS out of the way... The wall of words is fine.. but let the download links have some space to breathe, man! They want to be seen! They want to be pretty! They want to stand out!

Here's my version of that mock up. I fully realize that my image choices make some of the text unreadable. Just ignore that.. I wouldn't do that in the final version.


Let me back this up. Text is busy. It's distracting. It's not generally pretty. Let the download links and pretty pictures (bonus points for background silent video) be front and center without competition at all.

Just take a look at all these sites. None of them hit you with any sort of text in terms of what the game is about, who is selling it, or even what it really is. It's pictures, videos, and PLAY IT RIGHT NOW.

http://us.battle.net/sc2/en/
http://www.zelda.com/ - A sort of exception to the rule.. but not really. Look how little text is visible!
http://www.rollercoastertycoon.com/
https://www.elitedangerous.com/
https://robertsspaceindustries.com/
http://www.oddworld.com/
https://www.callofduty.com/

I could go on and on and on. People want to play games, they don't want to read about them.

EDIT: A few other things. I would change "Install" to "Play". I would remove any language about "standalone games" and "total conversions" because new people don't know what we mean by that. I would change those to buttons specifically for Diaspora, BSG, FOTG. Yeah yeah.. the list could get long, but it's not right now... so that can be a (good) problem for future-HLP.

The "Play/Install FSO" thing is tough. It should probably start with "Got FS2 Already?" and then say "Upgrade Now Free".

Then we have Buy FS2, Upgrade FS2, Play Diaspora, Play BSG, Play FOTG... etc.
« Last Edit: September 15, 2016, 11:28:10 am by mjn.mixael »
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Offline MP-Ryan

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Re: Let's talk about the front page!
I actually like spacing out the title bar, main buttons, and wall-o-texts.  I can also agree with switching "Install" to Play

Quibbles:
1. I think some text on the tiles IS important.  The Frontpage should sell people on the benefits of the FSO upgrade, and what the games are.
2. Individual buttons for all the TCs favours them above some of the stunning mods and campaigns that deserve equal billing.
3.  Re: 2, a better layout would be 4 tiles arranged in a square:  Buy FreeSpace 2, Upgrade to FreeSpace Open (Free!), Play FreeSpace 2 Mods/Campaigns (Free!), Play Standalone Games (Free!)
4.  "Standalone" is an important distinction that should probably be in the title, or some other word.  "Play Games" is too generic, and I don't support the idea of giving every TC its own button for reasons in 2.  All the other products on HLP require FS2, so the distinction of "standalone" is, I think, needed if the consensus is consolidation.
5.  If moving to the 4-tile format in a square, each tile could be larger and composed of a screenshot or multiple screenshots.


I also really happen to like the About Blurb you stuck in the banner.  That's very HLP.

EDIT:  Alternative if we want a button for each TC....

Divide the Tiles into two rows.
First row heading (small text):  FreeSpace 2 Source Code Project and Mods
First row tiles:  Buy FreeSpace 2 (Required for FS Upgrades and Mods), Upgrade to FreeSpace Open, Play FreeSpace Mods/Campaigns
Second Row heading (small text):  Free Games (Standalone Games / Total Conversion Mods)
Second Row tiles: FOTG, WC, B5, Diaspora, WoD, etc.

That would give a top row of three large tiles for all things FreeSpace, and a bottom row of ~6? slightly smaller ones for each TC project.  A small heading is unobstrusive, yet divides the two categories up so its clear what tile is for what kind of thing.
« Last Edit: September 15, 2016, 12:01:30 pm by MP-Ryan »
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Offline mjn.mixael

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Re: Let's talk about the front page!
I'm not saying get rid of all text.. just the bits where we are trying to force all the tabs and explanatory stuff to be just as "FIRST" as the playnow stuff on the front page when it shouldn't be.

Remember that this page is designed (as per how this discussion began) for someone who's new to HLP and probably even to Freespace. We can show that there are mods/campaigns to add-on.. but they need an FS2 purchase. Not only that, but to anyone who's new.. while they COULD start with BP2. They should probably start with FS2.. and thus all they need is a place to buy it and a place to upgrade it. After that, they are here.. in the community and we can point them in the right direction from there.

I'm still afraid that "standalone" is too technical. It leads to questions.. "why standalone?" "standalone from what?" "how is that different from FS2?" We want to either remove or not even allow those questions. Removing requires moar text to explain them. Just offering free games without stating a header/category doesn't even trigger the questions.

Are you here for free games? Great, here's five.
vs
Are you here for free games? Great, here's a list of standalones.
« Last Edit: September 15, 2016, 12:34:02 pm by mjn.mixael »
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Offline MP-Ryan

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Re: Let's talk about the front page!
OK, sold on the elimination of standlone, but then you still need headings between the FreeSpace tiles and the Free Games Tiles.

Think of it this way:  The FreeSpace section has dependencies.  They need to be visually clustered and distinct from the TC section, where those dependencies don't exist.

On your note about text.... thinking more about the frontpage, maybe it makes sense to feature the banner, blurb, sectioned-tiles, and then a big giant link below the tiles that simply says

"Want More?  Have Questions?  Visit the Forums" with an active link.

Thus, the main page fulfills its three primary functions:
- Gets people to the FreeSpace stuff
- gets people to the TC stuff
- Redirects everyone to the forums, where the actual content is.

This does, however, mean we need to update the forum entry points with a Getting Started post, Batts' Missions/Campaigns post, and a highlights post.  I know these things already basically exist, but they need to land in a more discrete entry area.
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Offline mjn.mixael

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Re: Let's talk about the front page!
Yes
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Offline DefCynodont119

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Re: Let's talk about the front page!
For the showcase, this Is what I made:  [SEE ATTACHMENT]

This works right? It matches what MP-Ryan and Mjn.mixael have been saying as far as the showcase goes; TCs and FS-mods separate but compact.

Also, I think this looks nice.

colors and fonts are WIP.    Anyone want to modify/work off this example? Start adding text around it maybe?

EDIT: Of course this would not be the entire webpage, just the "Showcase" part.
Tell me what you think!

[attachment deleted by admin]
« Last Edit: September 15, 2016, 06:41:51 pm by DefCynodont119 »
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Offline jr2

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Re: Let's talk about the front page!
Possibly make the word Java a link to https://java.com/download

It's pretty easy and obvious, however, some people (the toolbar people) will not have an official Java download come up on their first search (although, they did make it to HLP alright, so maybe..)

Just a thought.

 

Offline DefCynodont119

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Re: Let's talk about the front page!
Possibly make the word Java a link to https://java.com/download

It's pretty easy and obvious, however, some people (the toolbar people) will not have an official Java download come up on their first search (although, they did make it to HLP alright, so maybe..)

Just a thought.

That was the intention, but I forgot to underline It.  :p
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Offline Sandwich

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Re: Let's talk about the front page!
I like a lot of the ideas here, good job. It's 7am here and I need to get to sleep, so I'll keep this short and to the point.

1. No trapezoids, sorry! Can't be done easily with current browser support. :-/
2. Big, beautiful imagery is where it's at, but focus more on wireframe page designing during this brainstorming process. Also, as was mentioned, a silent background video could be superb to "sell" HLP to visitors.
3. Let's not be afraid to move content out of the forums and/or wiki - IF we create a better place for it.

P.S. HTML 5 and CSS 3 are definites. ;)
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Offline mjn.mixael

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Re: Let's talk about the front page!
I'd be very willing to create some sort of background video when we get there.
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Offline MP-Ryan

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Re: Let's talk about the front page!
Soundless background video, please.  There is nothing so irritating as auto-play videos with sound.

In fact, I wonder if a slideshow of compelling (and regularly updated) screenshots wouldn't be a better plan than a static video.
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Offline mjn.mixael

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Re: Let's talk about the front page!
We have said "silent" since the idea came up....
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Offline Spoon

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Re: Let's talk about the front page!
I really hope this silent background video won't have any sound!
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