New Skin
April 20th, 2006I’ve made some changes to the layout of the site. If it looks screwy, click your refresh button a lot.
Heather asked me a couple of weeks ago if she could take a crack at redesigning blurbomat. She did some awesome work to make the site three columns. I didn’t want to move too far away from the last iteration so this isn’t as much a redesign as it is an incremental design. Yes. I know. Very Web 2.0. Still, the fonts are larger and hopefully more readable. She’s an awesome designer and a blast to work with. Yes, I’m saying that to get in her pants, but that doesn’t make it any less true. Thank you, Heather!
I’m still working on some of the colors and spacing, so over the next few days you’ll probably see some minor tweaks here and there. The site is designed for at least a 1024×768 monitor resolution. Apologies if your screen size is below that.
I also took the opportunity to make some of the code a little more semantic. I’ve still got some work to do, so code nerds beware. I haven’t yet tried to validate, following a long tradition of seat of the pants live recoding. I’ll get to the archive pages after I publish this, so hopefully most of you won’t have to live through the pain of shite static pages.
As always, the site looks best in FIrefox and Safari, with IE 6 lagging in some of the CSS support.
This quick project was a welcome respite from awaiting news from plumbing contractors and wondering how in the hell we’re going to pay for a new sewer line without going into debt. More on the Sewer Nightmare™ later. o
April 21st, 2006 at 1:37 am
I noticed that one of the google ads blatently says “You will die broke.” There’s no question mark or anything, they seem to be demanding it. I was like pffft fuck you google, I have atleast $7 in my bank account.
I’m getting worried that this is off topic, uhh, I was meaning in relation to the pipe bussiness…
April 21st, 2006 at 2:44 am
Totally Nu Skin! I like it! Simple, clean–and love the three columns–ads all to the left. I can get to them if I want to, but doesn’t get in the way of enjoying the blurb.
The one thing you may want to look at again is the blurbomat logo–the drop down “L” makes me read it biurb or bjurb. Something to think about…..s/z
April 21st, 2006 at 3:08 am
The site looks great. I really like the little blurbs in the sidebar. And, well, yes, the paranoid section made me laugh.
April 21st, 2006 at 3:33 am
Hey looks good!
Hope all is going well with the sewer nightmare!
Chin up!!
April 21st, 2006 at 3:43 am
Love the new 3-columned look! Hope the sewer problem gets sorted soon and isn’t too expensive… It’s one of the drawbacks of being a home-owner I guess but I wouldn’t go back to renting!
April 21st, 2006 at 4:16 am
Love the layout! It’s clean and friendly while being easy on the eyes. I particularly like those little “blurb nodules” that break up the elements on the side bar, they sort of draw you along to investigate.
April 21st, 2006 at 5:40 am
The site looks good, Jon. Making your site validate should make the IE6 problems go away for the most part. Making the site Accessible also seems to help. Using Silktide’s SiteScore can really help out throughout the process. And besides, it really gets your OCD going, when you try to get the best possible score. Don’t believe me? Plug in the URL of my site into SiteScore for the proof. Anyway, like I said the site looks great, and keep up the good work.
April 21st, 2006 at 5:59 am
It’s very good.
April 21st, 2006 at 6:54 am
Heather really is dabomb and I don’t even want in her pants…love the new design!
April 21st, 2006 at 6:56 am
looks very cool - you two make a great team. good luck with the pipes, maybe you could auction off a weekend with chuck to raise money for the driveway excavation.
April 21st, 2006 at 7:16 am
I really like the three-column layout with the main text in the first column. It’s a very natural flow.
April 21st, 2006 at 7:37 am
Our last big repair was the replacement of our boiler in January of ‘03. We converted to natural gas at the same time - all in all it cost us about $5K. We used the HELOC route, and it’s been paid off for a while. It’s also nice to be able to deduct the interest you pay on the loan.
Three suggestions for financing repairs:
-Home equity line of credit (lower rate, esp if you can pay it off fairly quickly);
-Talk to your insurance company;
-Talk to your parents. They’re good for stuff like that. I am gleefully preparing to accept the gift of a repaired half-bath from my folks (they offered - first time for that in 12 years of homeownership) and I know they’re glad to help.
April 21st, 2006 at 7:38 am
Looks good. Lots of creamy white space goodness.
Best of luck with the sewer situation. That kind of thing makes me want to curl up in the fetal position.
April 21st, 2006 at 7:55 am
I like it, as well, but it does sort of look like biurbomat.
April 21st, 2006 at 8:03 am
I like.
But I have a question… people often say that things look better in Firefox and Safari, but other than a few subtleties, I don’t usually see much of a difference between Firefox and IE. Am I missing something?
April 21st, 2006 at 8:28 am
Well, it seemed to be a bit incongruous at the moment and since I have come to rely on you and heather to set the standard for all things cool and blogworthy than I have to say I am a bit surprised.
But it is easy to read, and sometimes you have to choose function over fashion.
Good luck with the sewer - we need an update!
April 21st, 2006 at 8:48 am
Lovin’ the new layout. Much easier to read with the bigger font. Thank you for not making me strain my already strained eyes!
April 21st, 2006 at 9:04 am
I like it. (as of now, i suppose…) I like that the ads are off to the right, so while i keep my bookmark tab open, i am not losing any content off the side of my screen. (not that i care at all about ads, dont misunderstand me. Add more if you want, i will still read!) I like the larger font.
Again- looks good!
April 21st, 2006 at 9:11 am
Heather did a great job Jon. I like the new design. I think the three columns are working. Way to go Heather.
April 21st, 2006 at 9:12 am
I like the new layout. I was wondering why the latest headlines weren’t showing up on “My Google”. Messing around with things is probably why. The old RSS feed wasn’t showing the last few updates but as of this morning everything is back to normal again.
Nice work Heather!
April 21st, 2006 at 9:16 am
I said everything was back to normal. That’s ALMOST true. In “My Google” (www.google.com/ig) this post shows and the next one that shows before this is “Not Looking Good”. “Worst Case Scenario” and “Sotto Voce” do not show.
April 21st, 2006 at 9:35 am
Not to offer up an unsolicited critique, but I personally could use a little bit more white space as it seems to be pretty thick and congested up top.
I appreciate the geriatric typefaces, but maybe they could come down a point or two?
I’ll shut up now.
April 21st, 2006 at 9:51 am
Patatomic, geriatric? Ouch. Bite me.
Donny, HTML is not allowed in comments.
April 21st, 2006 at 10:01 am
Yeah, dude! Pretty clean look. Being self- diagnosed OCPD, I personally would like to see more space between the ads and links on the right (perhaps a right- side border mirroring the left), and maybe a little more column breadth in the body, less on the right two, like a 2:1:1 ratio, if that makes sense. I’d like to see your better half adopt the same concept on her site as well. I just think that ads on left and right are a little distracting, and more “weight” on the body will make the site like a thick-ass slab o’ prime rib, with just a little fat on the outside.
And my heart goes out to your plumbing issues. I rented and old house in Fargo, ND (pronounced Farrr-goaah) where roots shattered the main going out to the street. Every time the toilet was flushed, raw sewage seeped up in the basement. Oh, yeah, AND everytime you used the shower, drained the dish water, etc… Being that it was spring, and the windows were usually open, I never really noticed any smell. When it got really hot one day, the reek hit me, and realized that about 3 days of sewage had produced a 2″ lake of sewage in the basement. Mind you, this was a small house, and being a bachelor, and not really needing to go downstairs to do laundry every day, I wasn’t really aware of this issue. So, the mattresses that the owner kept downstairs, along with empty cardboard boxes (he was a pack-rat recycle freak), old newspapers (did I mention he was a freak?), and anything else that had a tendency to sop up liquids of any nature, had to be cleaned up after the fact. Pretty nasty work. Financially, I was exempt from any obligation, but I did know the guy, and without question, aided in the nasty clean- up.
For what it is worth, God doesn’t bring us to it if he can’t bring us through it… or some thing like that…
April 21st, 2006 at 10:04 am
Works even in Opera9/Win32.
April 21st, 2006 at 10:10 am
I like the new look. It feels a bit off-center, which is cool.
Love the picture of you and Chuck snugglin’.
April 21st, 2006 at 10:10 am
Long time reader, first time commenter… Great update of the look. It looks similar enough to the old style that it’s not jarring, but it’s a fresh and really spiffy upgrade. Yes, I said spiffy.
I like the color palette a lot. Spiffy, as well.
April 21st, 2006 at 10:12 am
Duh, you have the 2:1:1 ratio… I’m a tool. I was really meaning a 2/3:1/6:1/6 ratio… kinda- like… know what I mean? Or maybe 3/5:1/5:1/5… something to that aspect… Hokey- Dokey (I really don’t talk like that, but…) I’ll shut up now…
April 21st, 2006 at 10:38 am
I like it.
My only complaint? I can’t see the ADS! I only come here (and to dooce.com) for the ADS!
Well, I come for the ads and to make goofy comments, of course.
April 21st, 2006 at 10:43 am
I really like the new skin. Very airy, very inviting.
One thing though (and I don’t mean to be une bitche), is that Blurbomat looks like “Bjurbomat” now.
Or maybe I’m weird.
April 21st, 2006 at 11:13 am
Site looks great. Don’t listen to the dropped-l baggers—your mark looks good now and always has.
April 21st, 2006 at 11:37 am
Jon, I think links might be broken in the comments. I tried to link to Silktide’s SiteScore in my earlier post and it got omitted for both the preview and the actual post.
(Link was: http://tinyurl.com/pnkwu)
April 21st, 2006 at 11:38 am
my 2ยข: I like it…the fonts are larger than I’m used to, but certainly not annoyingly large. I like that the ads are all on one side, instead of encroaching from all corners. And I like that it’s coded for Safari…but that’s the Apple Lover in me speaking. You guys are a great team
April 21st, 2006 at 11:38 am
OK, it’s there now, sorry for that. Earlier I tried using actual tags with A HREF etc…
April 21st, 2006 at 11:39 am
I agree, your “L” is fine. Very nice redesign!
April 21st, 2006 at 11:52 am
Geriatric typeface? What in the holy shitballs does that even mean?
Serif = Geriatric?
If patatomic hadn’t asked for more white space I’d have guessed he/she might just be one of my clients. But, generally speaking, clients don’t like white space.
Baffled.
April 21st, 2006 at 12:34 pm
It looks great and the font is BIG, HUGE, MASSIVE (i.e. GERIATRIC, YES!!) and now I want to start buying big-print books.
[no biting, please]
April 21st, 2006 at 12:40 pm
Jon, let me join the masses who say that they like it. Kudos to the two of you for making me laugh and think most every day.
April 21st, 2006 at 1:29 pm
Slick. I’m jealous.
April 21st, 2006 at 1:49 pm
I was just wondering why you hadn’t changed your template in a while and here you go.
Nice work … both of you.
April 21st, 2006 at 2:04 pm
mihow:
Geriatric meaning larger…as in old people don’t see so good and Jon isn’t really gettin’ any younger and you know, well, I just thought that it’d be fun to just, you know goof around and stuff. Jon calls me “young fogey” and I call him “old fogey” and this is how a couple of man friends show their affection…you know, by masking it in cutting humor.
But now you apparently think that I’m a complete moron so I’ll just go ahead and lay claim to the name “Geriatric” for a new typeface that I’ll be developing where the smallest size will be a robust 72 pt…or maybe I’ll call it “Shitballs” in honor of you…I dunno…either way.
So, stay cool and have a good weekend.
April 21st, 2006 at 2:36 pm
I don’t comment much, but thought I would let you know that I love the new look. Seeing the improvements makes me want to redo my own site. (Sadly, I have no Dooce to design for me…)
Anyway, nice jorb!
April 21st, 2006 at 2:39 pm
I dig the redesign. Well done.
April 21st, 2006 at 2:56 pm
Again, completely unsolicited feedback, but I agree with patatomic for the most part. Nice and clean and spacious everywhere except up top - a little tight according to my general rule, WWTD? (what would Tufte do?), and it’s because of the larger font size on the sidebar. If the larger size is what you’re going for and you still feel serify, maybe try a lighter serif typeface like Bembo that gives the impression of more space without sacrificing size. For some reason serif fonts move weirdly on MacBook Pro’s Safari, and your site is no different. But you’re in good company, I guess, since Tufte uses them.
Good luck getting your plumbing woes fixed.
April 21st, 2006 at 3:05 pm
Patatomic, my mistake. This is what happens on the Internet when you can’t see that two people actually know one another and are “taking the piss”.
I retract my earlier statement and walk away feeling a little shameful. My apologies.
Also, I don’t think you’re a moron. I was just a little confused. I am often confused by feedback received from clients. But you were just teasin and that, my friend, is funny.
April 21st, 2006 at 3:40 pm
mihow:
Thanks…you’re cool.
Blogging is weird.
I need some sleep.
April 21st, 2006 at 3:44 pm
blurb & heather,
I need some web advice. How do you know if your site is readable for everyone out there who are using all different kinds of computers, monitors, browsers, etc, etc, etc????
It looks good on my old iMac and my new Mac Mini with a flat screen in Firefox, Safari, IE, and Netscape, but who knows how it appears on a PC or on smaller screens? Is there any way to gauge that type of thing?
April 21st, 2006 at 4:31 pm
Very Nice! When I last updated mine, I unthinkingly formatted everything to look perfect at 1600 X 1200.
Of course, no one else enjoys putting a magnifying glass in front of their screen so I had to change it all around so it would look normal for everyone else in the free world. Then there is always the issue of are they viewing it full screen, or like sane people do, with an appropriate sized window?
From viewing my visitor stats it seems that over 50% of my readers use 1024 x 768 and the majority use that or above…
Once again, love the new format, now get the wifey working on a new banner for you!
April 21st, 2006 at 5:21 pm
It looks amazing, in my opinion.
April 21st, 2006 at 6:08 pm
Nice.
April 21st, 2006 at 7:39 pm
I like it. The colors are soothing.
Then again, the Blurbodoocery could scrawl its collective thoughts on the back of a napkin, in crayon, then scan it as a .jpg file - and I’d still devour every word.
April 21st, 2006 at 8:01 pm
The text is cleaner and easier to read. I’m not sold on not having the text in the middle column , but it’s not a big deal and and I’ll probably like it in the end.
April 21st, 2006 at 9:13 pm
patatomic: I’d like to add my vote for the “shitballs” typeface. After Horsepuke (Misprinted Type) I think the world could use a “shitballs.”
Perhaps I just like saying it. I won’t, don’t worry.
Regarding “geriatric…” Fellow Utahn Cameron Moll approaches this from a different direction, saying something to the effect of “nothing says children’s book like huge type.” I couldn’t agree more. Of course I say that as I, too, am working toward increasing the type size on my blog.
Whatevuh. We fogeys — young and old — could all use some lasik.
April 21st, 2006 at 9:15 pm
i like it. who cares? no one. but i still like it.
the burnt orange and green play nicely off each other. the logo flower/star/thing/shape is still very much cool. and i like seeing the info right under the title. sweet.
April 21st, 2006 at 9:38 pm
I love it. The only thing is- and this could be my sleep deprivation talking- the little flower thing above Blurbomat makes me think it says Biurbomat.
April 21st, 2006 at 9:50 pm
It’s actually pronounced “beyurbomat” as in “bjorn”.
Erat, beyurbomat is not for children. Just old farts with bad eyes.
April 21st, 2006 at 10:57 pm
Looking hot, Johnny Handsome!
April 22nd, 2006 at 7:14 am
I agree the logo looks like ‘Biurbomat’…and why does the ‘t’ drop down? I’m just trying to nose into your rationale here, as a fellow designer. Anyway it doesn’t detract from the super-duper-fantasticness of the site. I know, I made up words, cos that’s how great it is.
New skin is great, new layout is great - as always the Flickr photos are great. Nicely done Heather (& Jon)
April 22nd, 2006 at 2:17 pm
American political commentary now with a Scandinavian edge. Cool.
I’m going to go put on some ABBA.
Sebastian
April 22nd, 2006 at 3:55 pm
the L in blurbomat looks like a big ol’ dotted i or j. other than that it’s clean, crisp and easy on the eye.
April 23rd, 2006 at 3:22 pm
i’m diggin’ it. nice and clean.
April 24th, 2006 at 10:40 am
This is a lesson to wannabe designers like myself. If I’m not mistaken, that blurbomat logo was there before, it was just smaller (and with slightly different colors, maybe?). Make it bigger, then it gets noticed.
Either that or people were waiting for a redesign to mention it.
Anyway, rock on, Armstrongs. When I win the lotto, perhaps I could interest you in some freelance work to redesign a couple of my sites…
April 25th, 2006 at 5:57 pm
I like the new skin very much. Congrats to Heather! I wish I could get new skin…ah, no such luck.
April 27th, 2006 at 11:46 pm
i like the redesign, for the most part. except the font face. i think the font type in the comments is much easier to read than the one on the main blog. JMHO. the rest is cool.