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Site Design

mezentius

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...your website has basically no aesthetic appeal whatsoever. Could you please hire somebody to do a redesign? It wouldn't cost more than a couple hundred dollars if you found somebody on a freelance programming site, and would even make the movement more appealing to people who are new to the issue. Currently the Brady Campaign website looks much nicer (I assume they have better funding), and makes our movement look like it's run by a bunch of backwood rednecks in comparison.

You could start by getting rid of animated gifs, centering the content on wider screens, adding a background color, and making better use of consistent styles and fonts, but there's always more to do.
 
B

Bikenut

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mezentius wrote:
...your website has basically no aesthetic appeal whatsoever. Could you please hire somebody to do a redesign? It wouldn't cost more than a couple hundred dollars if you found somebody on a freelance programming site, and would even make the movement more appealing to people who are new to the issue. Currently the Brady Campaign website looks much nicer (I assume they have better funding), and makes our movement look like it's run by a bunch of backwood rednecks in comparison.

You could start by getting rid of animated gifs, centering the content on wider screens, adding a background color, and making better use of consistent styles and fonts, but there's always more to do.
Are you volunteering? Please contact the site's owners.:D
 

GLOCK21GB

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Bikenut wrote:
mezentius wrote:
...your website has basically no aesthetic appeal whatsoever. Could you please hire somebody to do a redesign? It wouldn't cost more than a couple hundred dollars if you found somebody on a freelance programming site, and would even make the movement more appealing to people who are new to the issue. Currently the Brady Campaign website looks much nicer (I assume they have better funding), and makes our movement look like it's run by a bunch of backwood rednecks in comparison.

You could start by getting rid of animated gifs, centering the content on wider screens, adding a background color, and making better use of consistent styles and fonts, but there's always more to do.
Are you volunteering? Please contact the site's owners.:D
I think what he is saying is..that he would be willing to donate the money to do the redesign. That's awful nice of you:D
 

Dreamer

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mezentius,

It's awfully nice of you to volunteer to fund the redesgn of this site. I'm sure the owners appreciate your generosity... ;)

I'm a graphic designer with over 20 years experience. I've done everything from business cards to billboards, to federal websites, to multi-media training programs, so I think I have a little bit of "expert knowledge" when it comes to this sort of thing. So let me explain this situation to you...

There are two main reasons that the Brady Bunch's website looks a lot better than this this one:

1) The Brady Campaign has an annual budget of about $8 Million, and they get contributions from big "foundations", the super-rich, and other special interest groups.

OCDO is completely voluntary, and survives primarily on the small contributions of it's members, most of whom are just average citizens. It has a few corporate sponsors but they are mostly small companies, and contribute just enough money to keep things going, in combination with member contributions.

That in and of itself should explain a LOT when it comes to "slickness" of the two websites.


2) The Brady Campaign's website is a one-way information source--they post stuff, and visitors read stuff. There is no "member posting", no forums, no user-supplied information, data or input. They design the site to look REALLY slick and sexy, write the copy and "populate" the pages, and then walk away--coming back to update it every month or so, or as pertinent news stories break.

OCDO is primarily a user-driven forum. It is NOT a one-way push of info. It is NOT a centrally-controlled propaganda machine. It is NOT a monolithic organ of a special interest group with legions of writers, artists, copy editors and lawyers behind it. ODCO is a freaking FORUM, dude! It's a place where average citizens can gather online, exchange information, debate topics of interest, swap stories, plan social events, and organize political actions. There is no membership fee, the owners don't send out thousands of requests for donations every month, nor do they solicit big corporate or foundation contributions.

Comparing OCDO with Brady is like comparing a vintage VW Beetle with a Lotus Esprit. One (OCDO) is a rugged, low-tech, user-serviceable, EXTREMELY versatile machine that brings utility and enjoyment to millions of people worldwide.

Whereas the other (Brady) is a highly specialized luxury item, based on fundamentally flawed principles, targeted to a snobby elitist clientele that is more concerned with looks and perception than actual OUTCOMES or PERFORMANCE, which doesn't work very effectively or reliably, but MAN does it look good just sitting there.

I hope I've helped clear things up for you.

BTW, I call "SHENANIGANS" on the OP....
 

Overtaxed

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Dreamer wrote:
mezentius,

It's awfully nice of you to volunteer to fund the redesgn of this site....

BTW, I call "SHENANIGANS" on the OP....

Exactly... Perhaps this person was hoping for enough responses agreeing with his "design review" to prod the site's operators into hiring him to do a revamp?
 

Pace

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I think the site design does fine for what it is, informational site run by two guys part time while they try to get jobs/go through school. Damn good

Overtaxed wrote:
Dreamer wrote:
mezentius,

It's awfully nice of you to volunteer to fund the redesgn of this site....

BTW, I call "SHENANIGANS" on the OP....

Exactly... Perhaps this person was hoping for enough responses agreeing with his "design review" to prod the site's operators into hiring him to do a revamp?
 

Overtaxed

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Pace wrote:
I think the site design does fine for what it is, informational site run by two guys part time while they try to get jobs/go through school. Damn good

Overtaxed wrote:
Dreamer wrote:
mezentius,

It's awfully nice of you to volunteer to fund the redesgn of this site....

BTW, I call "SHENANIGANS" on the OP....

Exactly... Perhaps this person was hoping for enough responses agreeing with his "design review" to prod the site's operators into hiring him to do a revamp?

I agree, Pace - I was just chiming in about the motives of the original poster.
 

HankT

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Overtaxed wrote:
Dreamer wrote:
mezentius,

It's awfully nice of you to volunteer to fund the redesgn of this site....

BTW, I call "SHENANIGANS" on the OP....

Exactly... Perhaps this person was hoping for enough responses agreeing with his "design review" to prod the site's operators into hiring him to do a revamp?

yelohamr wrote:
Must be a friend of HankT. Or a Brady spy.
 

TFred

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Wow folks, if someone stopped you on the street to tell you your zipper was down, would you jump all over them like that?

Most of what the OP said is indispitably true, and the rest is only debatable because it has to do with personal preference and taste. One question I do have is whether they are talking mainly about the OCDO home site, or only the forum. The two are completely different web sites, and it is no secret that this forum software, while economical, is one of the poorest forum packages out there. Its list of weaknesses and failures is long and well known, and a constant irritation to advanced posters. For example, post a link with a small error and then go back and try to fix it. Impossible. Try posting a link with an embedded double quote in the URL. Also impossible.

We should always welcome constructive criticism, even if there isn't anything we can do right away to fix it, the OP is obviously trying to help here, not hurt.

New web visitors don't care about our circumstances. All they see is how we stack up against the big money sites like the Brady Bunch. It's not fair, but that is the ruler against which we are measured.

TFred
 

rodbender

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Fred, the guy was obviously a troll. Why else would he compare it to the Brady Bunch site instead of something even fancier like the Clinton News Network, or No Black Commentators (NBC) site.
 

mezentius

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rodbender wrote:
Fred, the guy was obviously a troll. Why else would he compare it to the Brady Bunch site instead of something even fancier like the Clinton News Network, or No Black Commentators (NBC) site.
Because they're the ones you're most directly up against. Sorry if I came off disingenuous, but I really was trying to help. Give me a few more years to get my degree(s) and I'd be glad to donate something.
 

TFred

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rodbender wrote:
Fred, the guy was obviously a troll. Why else would he compare it to the Brady Bunch site instead of something even fancier like the Clinton News Network, or No Black Commentators (NBC) site.
I don't know if he is/was a troll or not. He may look like one now, who would post a second time after being received like that for post #1?

It's obvious why you would compare this site to the Brady Bunch. Despite our strong feelings, most people ride somewhere in the middle, if they have any interest at all. When something sparks an interest, who else do you think they are going to look at?

Perhaps the NPS issue in the headlines drove some traffic here. Who's talking about it? OCDO is. The Brady Bunch is. Where else do you go for more information?

TFred
 

Task Force 16

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Those fancy web sites with their really cool graphics are nice to look at, but are a nightmare to load on a slow dialup connection.

There was a time when web designers needed to create web pages that loaded reasonably quick for slow conncetions. I remember reading that there was a 30 second rule about page load time. (if a visitor has to wait more than 30 seconds for the page toload, they'll lieve) Now most seem to assume that every one has highspeed braodband and they try to see just how much cool stuff they can crowd onto a page.

I think most of us here are more concerned with content and less on fancy graphics and gadgetry. The Brady web site has no (honest) content, therefore their fanciness is mute.
 

Scrub

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mezentius wrote:
...your website has basically no aesthetic appeal whatsoever. Could you please hire somebody to do a redesign? It wouldn't cost more than a couple hundred dollars if you found somebody on a freelance programming site, and would even make the movement more appealing to people who are new to the issue. Currently the Brady Campaign website looks much nicer (I assume they have better funding), and makes our movement look like it's run by a bunch of backwood rednecks in comparison.

You could start by getting rid of animated gifs, centering the content on wider screens, adding a background color, and making better use of consistent styles and fonts, but there's always more to do.

But I just love the dancing monkey ................. :monkey:monkey:monkey:monkey
 

GLOCK21GB

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Scrub wrote:
mezentius wrote:
...your website has basically no aesthetic appeal whatsoever. Could you please hire somebody to do a redesign? It wouldn't cost more than a couple hundred dollars if you found somebody on a freelance programming site, and would even make the movement more appealing to people who are new to the issue. Currently the Brady Campaign website looks much nicer (I assume they have better funding), and makes our movement look like it's run by a bunch of backwood rednecks in comparison.

You could start by getting rid of animated gifs, centering the content on wider screens, adding a background color, and making better use of consistent styles and fonts, but there's always more to do.

But I just love the dancing monkey ................. :monkey:monkey:monkey:monkey
I always liked the :celebrate more. :celebrate:celebrate:celebrate:celebrate:celebrate:celebrate:celebrate:celebrate:celebrate
 

Lurchiron

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Glock34 wrote:
Scrub wrote:
mezentius wrote:
...your website has basically no aesthetic appeal whatsoever. Could you please hire somebody to do a redesign? It wouldn't cost more than a couple hundred dollars if you found somebody on a freelance programming site, and would even make the movement more appealing to people who are new to the issue. Currently the Brady Campaign website looks much nicer (I assume they have better funding), and makes our movement look like it's run by a bunch of backwood rednecks in comparison.

You could start by getting rid of animated gifs, centering the content on wider screens, adding a background color, and making better use of consistent styles and fonts, but there's always more to do.

But I just love the dancing monkey ................. :monkey:monkey:monkey:monkey
I always liked the :celebrate more. :celebrate:celebrate:celebrate:celebrate:celebrate:celebrate:celebrate:celebrate:celebrate
So much movement...so little time!!! :monkey:celebrate:banghead::cuss::banghead::celebrate:monkey:celebrate:monkey:monkey:monkey:monkey:monkey:monkey:monkey:monkey:monkey:monkey:monkey:monkey
 

GLOCK21GB

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:uhoh::lol::what::banghead::cuss::quirky:monkey:celebrate:uhoh::what::lol::banghead::quirky:monkey:cuss::dude::lol::banghead::what:
These are the best things OCDO ever did...
 

Lurchiron

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Glock34 wrote:
:uhoh::lol::what::banghead::cuss::quirky:monkey:celebrate:uhoh::what::lol::banghead::quirky:monkey:cuss::dude::lol::banghead::what:
These are the best things OCDO ever did...
Stop...it's starting to look like "We are the World" video :p.
 

Pace

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I'm starting to realize maturity isn't part of the OC Movement! :)


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