Updates - 03 April 2007

[Boredflak]

I purchased the latest version of Adobe Acrobat to enable editing of pdf forms within Adobe Reader.

You can now save changes made to my Character Record Sheet using the free Adobe Reader.

Amongst many other things, I've been working on a new interface for this site. Check out this mockup and let me know what you think. I haven't done any cross-browser testing yet, so please use Firefox 2. Please don't send me bug reports about his page. It's a work in progress.

Happy gaming,

[Angellis_ater]

Very VERY nice! I am quite impressed and love how you separated the header from the content. Looking forward to the NEW and IMPROVED D20SRD.org website and it's sister!

[Matjannan]

I like the icon menus at the top. I'm not so fond of the visual effect of the separation of header and text...it's kind of disorienting to me. Maybe less (or no) shadow between the two? Other than that, not bad.

[DeMyztikX]

I like the new look. It's a little weird to see the header up at the top but I'm sure I'll get used to it. It's a lot better than having to scroll all the way up to the top. I was just wishing for a search bar at the top of the screen on Friday too.

[Boredflak]

Maybe less (or no) shadow between the two?

I haven't viewed the design on various gammas. I'm using a Mac (with corrected gamma). It looks really subtle on my display. I'll test and tweak it...

[oestii]

I think that the new header is a great start!

The icon navigation on the left needs to have some text to go with the icons. Since this navigation is rather important, it should be more obvious in what they are. Remember, you have to plan for the least common user.

-Randy,
Web designer and
Design Manager at the University of Pittsburgh

[Avanesov]

I like it.

[Jayef]

Am I the only person that doesn't like the new header thing? It seems like there is a lot of wasted space on it..maybe if it included links to the various id=sections on the page itself for easy skipping? (or for large lists, to sections of the alphabet).

Jayef

[leviat]

I like it so far, I think it's just the right size and looks good in Gecko-based browsers. IE however doesn't seem to work for me, probably due to lack of alpha-PNGs? (not that I care, I'm a FF user).

Keep up the good work .

[Boredflak]

It seems like there is a lot of wasted space on it.

Well I certainly don't want to waste space. The fixed-position header is intended to be navigationally useful. It provides instant access to the following:

• home page
• parent index page
• top of the page
• search
• support pages (faq, change notes, ff goodies, etc.)
• d20 tools (dice bag, spell filter, encounter calculator, etc.)

I felt this was needed since so many pages are very long and there are so many links throughout the site that take you far down on a page.

There are many times that I've been using the site and wanted access to these things.

[Jayef]

I'm wondering about all the space between the d20srd logo/page links, and the search/ppp/d20 links, will that be used for something?

[oestii]

Don't be afraid of negative space. I like the space in the middle of the header.

-Randy

[Talmar]

I like it. I think it's a great addition.

In the empty section of the middle of the header what about placing a List Box containing the major sections of the SRD for super quick and easy jumping.

Not necessary, but just a thought.

[Murkatos]

can't wait for it to go live!

[Ainamacar]

I like the new functionally a lot, but I still perceive a potential downside. Namely, I suspect many people in addition to myself use the site for in-game reference on laptops, and will miss the extra vertical space.

My normal usage during a game involves multiple tabs to relevant pages, as well as other programs open for initiative tracking, game notes, etc. Between the browser header and tabs I've already lost a lot of vertical space. Running the browser in full-screen mode isn't really a convenient option in most situations, since I expect to switch back and forth quite often between many different tools. The new bar gives me even less content space.

Overall, the new outline should improve things. I realize making things smaller (especially without a redesigned logo) would make things really small on higher-resolution screens, such as the monitor I use on my desktop. I also find the amount of padding in your mock up to be be about right, and making those much smaller will make it feel cramped. So I don't really have a solution. And maybe it's not really a problem, I'm sure I'd quickly get used to the new space.

Anyway, thanks for all your hard work on the site.

[oestii]

A style switcher could be added to hide/show the bar at the top if Jans decides to go that route.

-Randy

[ra-punzel72]

VERY nice

I like it a lot!!

[ways]

It's nice and handy, like it .

[Amaril]

I purchased the latest version of Adobe Acrobat to enable editing of pdf forms within Adobe Reader.

You can now save changes made to my Character Record Sheet using the free Adobe Reader.

You might want to edit this line: To make good use of this character sheet, you'll need a copy of Adobe Acrobat that can save your changes.