What's with the boring design of modern websites?

[Hoofy]

They're all starting to look the same. See PH's own homepage.

And some are even doing massive scrollathons so everything's on one page.

Put the buttons back!!

[Hoofy]

I know that. But it's the font choices as well. It looks boring. Even on my phone.

[Hoofy]

[Hoofy]

But I'm not talking about functionality as such. It's more the dull design. Something that looked nice 5 years ago could still be quick.

[Hoofy]

durbster said:

My heart sunk when I saw this thread title. I'm a developer and have been complaining about this a lot with designers.

There are several good reasons:
- As above, websites now have to work on any screen size and shape, so complex design just isn't possible (technically it is, but the reality is that it's very expensive).
- Designing for infinite screens is also a new era, so new ideas are yet to surface.
- The decline of Flash. Whether you loved it or hate it, it allowed infinite creativity in user interface and design.
- Fashion. Clients no longer just want a website, they want a site that "looks like that one".

What's an infinite screen? Is that one that knackers my scrolling finger on my mouse?

It's not so much Flash or size/shape/complexity but every site is plain background with boring font making it look like an Apple site. Yawnathon.

[Hoofy]

durbster said:

Hoofy said:

What's an infinite screen? Is that one that knackers my scrolling finger on my mouse?

It's not so much Flash or size/shape/complexity but every site is plain background with boring font making it look like an Apple site. Yawnathon.

I meant an infinite number of screen sizes and shapes. Back in the day, everyone browsed the web on a desktop monitor with one of three resolutions, so you could design something extremely specific.

Now, a user can see your site on anything; a watch, small phone, big phone, phablet, mini-tablet, tablet, laptop, desktop, TV etc. They're all different sizes, resolutions and ratios. Nobody has really figured a way to design for that, other than stripping right back to basics.

Ah I see. It doesn't mean you have to use those skinny sans serif fonts for every bloody site.

[Hoofy]

lamboman100 said:

And let's not get started on the horrific cartoony graphics that are cropping up on websites everywhere. Awful.

Oh? Examples?

[Hoofy]

Ah. That's exactly the look that makes me roll my eyes. Which is a bit st if you want your consumer to think positively of you.

[Hoofy]

jammy_basturd said:

Hoofy said:

Ah. That's exactly the look that makes me roll my eyes. Which is a bit st if you want your consumer to think positively of you.

What look? Twitter bootstrap?

Yeah. Er, well Boostrap. Not sure why you say Twitter first.

[Hoofy]

[redacted]

[Hoofy]

Ah, I get ya. As you can see, I'm not a developer.

[Hoofy]

lestag said:

Fisher Price bought the internet on 01/04/2014

[Hoofy]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/special/2014/newsspec_90...

Responsive site? This is my response: FFS I can't be bothered to stand at the back of my office to read this.

[Hoofy]

jammy_basturd said:

Perfectly readable on my 17" laptop from a foot away. What size screen are you viewing the page on?

23" I think. The fonts are unnecessarily big. Hateful design. Feels like I'm reading a Ladybird book.

[Hoofy]

[redacted]

[Hoofy]

jammy_basturd said:

You have to think of the wide range of people that will be reading that article, with various amounts of visibility and accessibility.

Yes, they have to think that someone on an iPhone can do the double finger thing and it's a lot easier than me having to roll my chair back 2 feet.

[Hoofy]

grumbledoak said:

I don't mind the scrolling; far better to wait once then scroll through a document than to wait over and over and over again for each page. But the 'designers' want stabbing for that image crap.

But if the pages are designed well, they should be quick to load as you jump from page to page, roight?

[Hoofy]

This is what responsive sites remind me of:
http://www.info.trimdownclub.com/introduction1r.ht...
http://www.voodoodeprince.com/MasterSecretsofGambi...