GuyWeb – design update

I’m in the process of upgrading the design of guyweb.co.uk. Unlike Zeldman, I’ll be doing it behind closed doors until it’s ready. However, I’d quite like to discuss a few ideas with you before I try them out.

Firstly, I’ll be moving to a fixed width design. The reason for this is that my browser stats show that the majority of people are viewing the site at 1024 by 800 pixel resolution. I can’t tell whether or not you’re viewing the site at full window size or at a reduced size on your desktop. Just in case you’re viewing it at full size, the new fixed width should mean that the lines of text don’t flow so wide. The new fixed width will be around 700 pixels, thus ensuring that those with 800 by 600 dpi will still see all of the content. The right coloum will still be 195 pixels so only the main content column will be changing.

The layout will be entirely using CSS-P. This means that Nescape 4 users will be left with a fairly simple design. Rather than going for the horrible A List Apart NS4 design, I’ll opt for a more usable degradation similar to the one on Stop Design. This will irritate my good buddy Matt Sapiano as he uses NS4 on Unix and wants to see the design as he does when using IE on his other Wintel machine. However, the site will load slightly faster and will be easier to update.

The background will change slightly, giving more emphasis to the nav at the top. The sunglasses pic will move elsewhere and the headers of each post will be more prominent. Now that Movable Type is to power the backend, I might decide to include a calender for the posts as well as easier access to the archives. There are a fair few Movable Type templates to play with so we’ll have to wait and see.

The new look wont be drastically different, just subtle. I think this is the best way. The colour scheme will not change. I like it and think you do too. More interaction will be encouraged and the site will be better organised.

I’ll make a start tonight.

Tags: Web design