Hi guys how about u redesign this flash-kit in flash this will be fun.
views invited--- :) :)
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Hi guys how about u redesign this flash-kit in flash this will be fun.
views invited--- :) :)
a re-design of Flash kit _in Flash_ would pretty much be an awful idea.
99% of the time, Flash is not the correct technology to build an entire website, however, a re-design (or least bit of a spring clean) of Flashkit would be most welcome.
I'm sure it's all about budgets etc, but it would be great to have a nice fast / ajax-ey new feeling forum. Also I get the idea these days that the other sections (sound-FX, demo movies) are being left alone and are generally gathering dust when they could be a massively useful resource to coders and designers of all levels.
Chris
1)need good of ajax side improvement, it seems this site is made on joomla environment so now it could be ajax supportable.
2)there is iframes used which usually not good a impression
3)improvement on template side of this site.
4) go advanced users can choose there own template.
fool -ish.
Easy, just pay the owners more than all of their advertisers combined and I'm pretty sure you'll be able to dictate look, feel and functionality too.
Messy as some of layout may seem, there's not a pixel that thought hasn't gone into. Much of what you see is a result of usage, fees and exploits. Love it or leave it.
Why not use a GreaseMonkey script, publish it and it will change the way the site looks instead? That's possibly the path of least resistance.
soundFX had over 6000 unique pages views daily all week long, movies almost 3000 daily with dozens of new items added to each of those resources every month. Some months are stronger then others but while those numbers may not be stellar, those sections are far from dead. If you really want to do something to help out the site, submit your own custom resources today. :thumbsup:Quote:
Originally Posted by chriserrorplain
New resources are reviewed and updated almost every day of the week.
Just wanted to mention, even though I highly doubt this website will be redesigned; it is worth mentioning that when you go to the main homepage of flashkit, the <title> is "Flashkit, A Flash Developer Resource for Macromedia Flash MX Tutorials SWF FLA images clipart Sounds WAVS Animations Help and Support," quite a long and dated title no? To add to that the submissions page's title is "Flashkit, A Flash Developer Resource for Macromedia Flash 8 and MX Tutorials SWF FLA images clipart Sounds WAVS Animations Help and Support." Just thought it was worth mentioning.
Thanks Chase, that was of course updated years ago, but it looks like the page was rebuilt or repaired at some point using the old title.
I post something like this at least once a year :)
I completely disagree. I think that there's been a lot of though about where can they place another ad.Quote:
Originally Posted by jAQUAN
The site is not user friendly, it's very hard to navigate, and it's just baaaad, really bad. I've said that many times over the years.
Check this out: it's a map of the homepage. Red areas are ads, yellow areas are sort of ads (links to partners, or partner related announcements). Green areas are flashkit (flash) related content
http://static.zooomr.com/images/6220...a1dd5139_o.jpg
more or less, would you say 50% of the home area is actual content, and 50% is ads? (I think they redesigned the page, cause I think I did the same thing a couple of years ago and content was just 10 to 20%). Is a site that has so many ads really user friendly?????
Also, you see the white areas? They are blank areas, they have nothing, NOTHING...no thought put into all those pixels...you see, they could at least ad some 20 more ads there.
They have a search bar at the very bottom of the page...really, why? what's its purpose? I guess people use it?
The code is html code is terrible. And I don't think that just because this is a resource for designers, full of designers, it could probably make a good impression...but good code doesn't only looks good, it can also save in bandwith (specially with a site with huge traffic) and improve seo.
That's for the homepage only. I'm just guessing that other pages have similar issues.
I stopped using fk years ago, and stay mostly in the coffee lounge. Whenever I need to research something about flash related issues, I go to google, and get my answers from blogs, and fk is the last resource I think of. From a design point of view, I think it's not successful if it doesn't incentivate its users to use and explore the site. I don't see a reason to look around fk to see what's new, because it's not interesting, or if it is, it's hard to find interesting things easily. The forums are great and still a nice resource, but I don't have the same opinion of the rest of the site.
Continuing with design....when was the last time fk got a real, really real redesign? I can't think of an answer. They've done a lot of work to improve some sections, or some parts of the site like the header, but still, can you tell me when was the last time you looked at fk and said 'wow, everything changed'? Maybe I'm mistaken, so let me know if I am (and I'm not talking about the forum new version that was installed a while ago). I don't think you have to redesign a site just because, but again, can you tell me of a single site on the internet that hasn't redesigned completelly to improve usability, and even to just start from scratch? (yahoo, amazon, even google do it).
I think fk has serious issues, and design is just one of them. The community is not as good as it used to be. It seems (maybe I'm wrong) that there's no interest in improving the site and community, as long as it's alive, is good enough. I might be mistaken again, because I'm active only on one tiny part of the site (the coffee lounge).
In my opinion, fk is simply not as relevant as it used to be, and it's not actively trying to keep the community interested...can you tell me, for example, where's the flash cs4 forum? I guess we don't need one, right? why would we, if we didn't need a flash cs3 forum, but it's absolutely necessary to have a flash mx and flash 8 forum...
Can you tell me where can I find the flex and air tutorials? I mean, I just went to the tutorials page, and there wasn't a category for them...maybe it's under the actionscript category, it kind of makes sense, except that the first thing I see on that page is tutorials from 2000! How usable is that? You have to go to page 24 to get the latest tutorial for actionscript...and I still can't find the flex and air tutorials....maybe people do submit them, but where are they? Is the site really usable? Maybe I can go to the header and click on "animations"? oh wait, that link is completely different than the others on the header...it takes me to another site...uhhh...tricky...I got punked!
I think that the site admins and people working on fk are doing as much as they can, and for the most part they do a great job with what they can work with. Maintaining a site like this is hard, really hard. Redesigning a site like this is not an easy task, and is not cheap either. And, fk is not here to help us...it's a business, they make money, it's as simple as that. So, maybe they don't have the budget, or maybe they don't see the need to invest in a redesign. Maybe they just think that if the site still has traffic, there's no need for a redesign, which is also a valid reason.
I think a redesign is one of many things necessary, but I don't think it'll ever happen.
the sites needs to be supported somehow to make it free for everyone to use...
also you thinking FK is the LAST resource to use is, in my opinion, a terrible mistake.. if its flash related I dont know of a better one.. the database of knowledge her is HUGE..
your opinion comes from the coffee lounge, where you have the SAME HANDFUL of people who post regularly... thats it.. there may be one or more stragglers that come in and out..but the majority of the content comes form only a select few.. the other parts have many posts daily..
and I cant even imagine how many people just come here to search for answer..and not post.
for myself..the FORUM is a huge (key) part of what Flashkit.com is
and I cant really see how the set-up/navigation is NOT easy to use..
Yes, of course. I don't think ads are evil. They make the whole internet possible, not only fk. I don't think fk should be ad free either. Even more, fk is here to make money, as simple as that...it's not run by some angelical soul that wants to help us all learn and know about the wonders of flash. It is here to make money, and I'm not against that...in the end we all win, they make money, people here get a nice forum and lots of resources.Quote:
Originally Posted by whispers
However, ads do have an impact on the site's usability. Visit fk using a small screen, and let me know how much real content you see on the top of the pages. Tell me how easy it is to find information without being distracted by all ads around the content.
Again, I don't think they should be removed forever, though I think there's always ways to place ads better, in all sites, in every page, not just here, and to do that, you need time, and money.
I'm not criticizing the use of ads, but the usability, and design. As I mentioned, the homepage has so much unused space, which could easily be used for more ads. You can as well not put more ads, and accomodate the homepage better to make a better use of the space, with or without ads.
Yes, it's MY last resource. And fk isn't the best place to get all flash info and tutorials anymore. And you can't blame fk for that. The internet has changed a lot in the last few years, and there's more people with blogs posting tutorials, sourcefiles, and giving using information. Do a search in google for any topic, and most likely you'll find the top 10 results are blogs.Quote:
also you thinking FK is the LAST resource to use is, in my opinion, a terrible mistake.. if its flash related I dont know of a better one..
Information nowadays has changed. It's not centered in big resource sites like fk, there are so many places you can find good info, it's unbelievable. You can get info directly from the source. The guys creating products like flash and flex have their own sites, and they also broadcast what they know and learn for everyone to see.
Again, it's MY last resource, not THE last resource for everyone. My opinion is very subjective, and I know not everyone, or maybe noone, uses or sees fk as I do. I think fk is a great place to learn about flash, if you have no idea about flash. But once you know more, or go more advanced, it just isn't enough. For the record, I learned flash here by downloading tons and tons of movieclips and lurking in the forums.
yes, fk is like its own internet. But that might also be a problem. There's so much information, and so much of it is outdated, that it becomes a problem as well to find what you want. It's a problem here and on any big site. And fk's design (not the graphic, but the logic) isn't too helpful...I put a clear example in the other post...go to tutorials, and the first tutorials you see are from 8 years ago. With so many information, do you think it's the best idea to put the oldest information first?Quote:
the database of knowledge her is HUGE..
Yes, fk is useful, but there's a difference between being useful and being usable.
That's kind of obvious, don't you think? I'm stating MY opinion, and on a site like this, I bet each of us sees the site very different. I bet there's people that only go to the sound effects section and don't even care that there's a forum here.Quote:
your opinion comes from the coffee lounge, where you have the SAME HANDFUL of people who post regularly... thats it.. there may be one or more stragglers that come in and out..but the majority of the content comes form only a select few.. the other parts have many posts daily..
I spend most of my time in the coffee lounge, yes, but I've also tried to visit other sections without success (and the reason, at least for non-forum sections is actually its usability). Actually, when I got here few years ago, I started at the Art and animation forum (art, animation and illustration now) until it completely died. I don't want to discuss about the forum, because it could easily be the topic for another discussion. But I never questioned how useful it is, or that people aren't using it. I actually think the forum and its community is what keep flashkit alive.
I agree. I don't think fk is useless, at all. I don't think fk doesn't have tons of good info, or tons of good guys willing to help, or a hardworking team (of mods and people working for flashkit) doing their best to try to offer the best of them.Quote:
and I cant even imagine how many people just come here to search for answer..and not post.
for myself..the FORUM is a huge (key) part of what Flashkit.com is
and I guess that's a very subjective opinion, what you think, and what I think, and what anyone else thinks.Quote:
and I cant really see how the set-up/navigation is NOT easy to use..
I could also say that I can find my way on fk, because I've been here so many years that I know where and how things are laid out. I think you can also say that. I don't know what would be the impression of someone that visits the site for the first time.
I still think flashkit has problems in several areas, usability, navigation, structure, content. I also think that in part it's because fk is such a huge monster that it's hard to maintain each aspect of it. I think that people working here are doing a great work, and that this site is not an easy task, and just say for a moment that the site is great and easy to use, should it stay like is, just because it already works, or is there always more room for improvement?
Why would people say that redesigning fk is crazy, because fk works just fine? I don't understand that, specially because there are a ton of other reasons, the main one being that a redesign is a huge task, and there's probably not enough money, resources or interest.
I know that I'm not actively trying to improve the site either, I just come and go, haven't ever posted a tutorial (maybe a flex tutorial, as I ask for one so much :) ), and I don't think people here are doing a bad job, quite the opposite. But I simply think that there's a ton of things that can change, some things might be good, others might be dumb (like using ajax just because it's so web2.0 or doing a flash forum because this is a site about flash, without considering if it's good or bad). I've been a follower, not a leader, but still, all my critics here and on any other post is because I'd just like a better fk, even if it was perfect already, I'd still like a better fk. I think conformism isn't that good, or useful (though it's usable).
I think fk is like an ugly friend with a good sense of humor. I love hanging out with her, she makes me laugh, she's also intelligent and teaches me a lot, but I'd never say she's pretty, no matter how many yellow beers you offer me.
The flashkit homepage looks like a junkyard. It's a total mess.
Um, a clear seperation of content with the least detail descriptions could aid usability.
I point to news.google.com as an example of where they concisely just bold out the links within their individual categories. At that page, you practically know what 'category' you're looking at, and what the links lead you to.
- - -
I just went to the hompage (Flashkit's) again, and I couldn't disagree on the junkyard thingy. Urrgh.
i've been a long time member and the site definitely has gone downhill because of the ads. it's just an ugly site, and it wasn't always like this.
mostly, i really wish i can visit the forums without all the bizarre links at the top, and the 300x250 banner. it was a lot cleaner before these were added.
Do you now of any free developer resource sites with a million+ visits per month that doesn't have ads running on the site?
the ad stuff goes in one ear and out the other for me..
some of them are ugly..and some are little obtrusive...
but the reality of it is.. the bill for FK cant be too cheap...
with this many members.... and how long its been on line with all the resources, images, links, files...etc..etc..etc..
I expect a little common sense to play into any suggestions on a 're-design' comment.
^ A re-design suggestion list would be a great idea. It would provide a perfect place to start putting together a re-design plan.
total agreement there Whispers :)Quote:
Originally Posted by whispers
@Planet
Love the new additions to the forum (especially the user CP) after the last update. :thumbsup:
heeeeeyyyyy... look what the cat dragged in?! Hey Chris-- how ya been?
Still old as dirt and still farting dust :)
Great to see you man. Hope all is well with you and yours!