does this design hurt your face?

[daedalus__]

got any ideas on how to spruce it up a little a bit? i've had a good response from friends though ive been told it looks dated.

opinions?

http://img442.imageshack.us/i/design2.jpg/

ive already put the markup together but i dont have web hosting atm.

[pickle]

- Make it narrower. Wide text like that is hard to read - about 2/3 that is the idea width for reading.
- Paragraphs are too long.
- The header & footer graphics - while they do look cool, are difficult to read.
- I'm not sure what the background graphic is, but it seems really out of place. Almost like you used a screenshot of your computer with a media player in the background.

[daedalus__]

it's bamboo. so it doesnt feel cohesive huh?

[AbraCadaver]

No, but it hurts my eyes!

Seriously, I don't like the large script text. It would be OK except for the splotchy effect that makes it hard to read. Also, something like verdana for the main text. Not times new roman (what it looks like).

[indian98476]

1. change your background
2. change the fone to verdana...
3. if you would want people to keep reading your site i suggest u get some better content...hehehe....jus jokin....yeh change the colour combination...its too striking for eyes.....

[daedalus__]

i wasw thinking about adding more contrast to the colors

[alex.barylski]

Light text on a dark background will always strain users eyes. Go with the opposite for anything that requires extensive reading.

[josh]

It's nice, maybe tone down the opacity of the backround and layer it ontop of a blank what bg so it is almost a watermarked background. And shell out like $50 on istockphoto for some cheesy photos, will help the text not be so wide and people are stupid and buy based on presentation and not based on what they are getting. Its a weird psychology thing.

[daedalus__]

...and people are stupid and buy based on presentation and not based on what they are getting. Its a weird psychology thing.

yeah i noticed that. a lot of pretty websites with terrible content get more traffic then websites rich in content but lacking in design.

its ridiculous

i might be going with another design until i have that one working the way i want it to. i need to integrate an audio player, hack together an ajax request handler, and use some mod rewrite to prevent people from downloading the mp3s. it would really drive me nuts to have my music stolen, it happens to a lot of people.

[daedalus__]

oh yeah but watch this page for likek 22.5 seconds

and tell me how you feel at the end of it.

http://redaedal.us/404.html

[omniuni]

Well, first daedalus, I have to appreciate your sense of humor. That 404 gave me a pretty good laugh.

Now, on to the design. Of course, you have to choose a design that matches the kind of work you usually do. People will expect that if they hire you, and your design has a certain look and feel to it, theirs will too. Personally, these are just some observations, but take them with a grain of salt. Or pepper. Or cumin...

When designing for the web, stick with your standard three font families: Serif, Sans-serif, monospace. You'd be surprised what a difference it makes to let the browser choose the idea font, since it takes much more into account than you can (screen resolution, hinting and smoothing settings, variation availability, etc.)

Avoid background images behind text aside from the most gentle of textures.

With a font that fancy, avoid other effects like shadows, at least any as obvious as that. Honestly, I'd find a more reserved font for your headlines.

Main navigation should always be on the left side or top.

Let the design be fluid. We now live in a world of netbooks, smartphones, and other odd screen sizes. If you can allow it to adapt, you increase your audience. Along the same lines, be sure you can scale vertically to fit your content.

Always play media through Flash. I hate that one, but it's the only way to reach 95% of people, unless you want to put a .wma for IE, a .mov/.mp3 for Safari, and a .ogg for Firefox.

I don't mind the light text on the dark background, but it is too busy right now.

[phptt]

Right. I'm speaking from a view which does not have an eye for design and I pretty much suck at design myself (that's why I started coding),

BUT

I really hate the font which you used for your title and at the bottom. I personally would never use it anywhere in my work and wouldn't even keep it on my computer, because I hate those splodgy-dripping-paint type fonts. Also, it really isn't easy to read.

So far is pretty much what was said before but..

I think you put too much stuff in a small space - it looks really cramped to me. That's why people say it hurts their eyes. You need to space things out more.

this comes from a design novice. wow I've overdone myself

[daedalus__]

yeah im working on something different now.

http://thats.redaedal.us
http://thats.redaedal.us
http://thats.redaedal.us
http://thats.redaedal.us
http://thats.redaedal.us

its dark still. but clearer.

terrible colors at the moment. i have to go picking through some design sites.

it has problems rendering on certain browsers and os.

[marshpixie]

I agree that the lines of text are too long. Because you've used a serif font (it's got spiky bits) the letters dance around the page especially for tired eyes, and people with dyslexia would find this particularly hard.

As well as changing to a san serif font I'd also expand your kerning a little; kerning means the distance between the letters. Basically expand the text a bit. A slight nudge can really help readability.

[samadamssmith]

good idea, but very very "heavy" for my eyes:)