BBC News redesign soon
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- timA
The highly regarded BBC News and sports site is changing it's design later this week:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/27…
Sounds like they're finally moving to 800*600...
Apparently this area they've done for the cricket world cup is pretty much what the whole site will be more like.
What do you think?
- timA0
Oops... here's the redesigned area link:
- stimuli0
The colour choice is awful.
- jevad0
And to think...I was almost a part of that!
It's bloody awful!
- CAJTBr0
i guess that colour will only be for sport.
i don't like it though, and they really haven't used the space well. skimming 2 columns of news is way harder than skimming one. and i also kind of liked the really narrow column of content in the article pages, easier to read.
hopefully this isn't what the new version will be like.
- timA0
Absolutely agree with the comments here... They've completely messed up here... The 2 column format is way harder to read. The single column narrow design was very very comfortable and easy to read.
It previously looked smart, and was very well weighted... The top 3 stories really sung out well with a lot of detail and that's all you needed.
Now they've completely overcooked it and made it immensely ugly to go with it.. At least that's judging by this sport design.
I seriously thought the next BBC News redesign would raise the bar for news sites. How wrong can you be?
- timA0
Actually on the first link I gave you can see a little preview of the actual new site behind the guy's head in the photo...and it doesn't look as bad as that awful cricket one.
The main story takes up the full centre of the page at the top, so I don't think they'll be using the double column as much...
But I bet down the page it's a nightmare...
And the main BBC site http://www.bbc.co.uk is a nightmare to use... You're just repelled by tonnes of links that look the same... Your eye just cannot make sense of it!
- jevad0
I was talking to the head of design there not so long ago - and from the way he was talking it sounded like it was going to lean towards the http://www.iht.com school of thinking - but with the bbc news style - and I was really excited about it....this is really disappointing as I used to rate the BBC news site as a design and usability classic...
- Vinney20
How much do yuo get paid to be head designer of BBC online?
- timA0
Personally I've always founf IHT to be a real pain. The whole visual structure is really painful on the eye.
The lack of images makes it hard to pick out stories at speed. Nothing is weighted differently which creates a very grey and awkward picture.
The stories themselves sit really oddly with about an inch of space down the left... It just feels unsettling.
The constant flickering of the bar at the top as you scroll does my head in.
IHT is the classic example of a site that sounds amazing on paper. I can imagine the meetings about it now. But it's a horribly unfocussed user experience IMO, and the current BBC news site is far better.
But they have improved IHT I think cos I remember it being worse.
- timA0
Personally I adore http://www.ananova.com
They don't use many pics either but the stylesheet is so clear and nice to read.
- jevad0
ananova's ok - a bit dull - nothing spicy - not that great blend of usability and techno know-how that iht has...(IMHO)
- timA0
Actually IHT is a lot better than it was. But it still lacks a vibrancy... You have to want to get the news... It doesn't wrap it up for you and dish it out on a plate.
Ananova is just colourful and very clear, though it's rubbish at showing you the important things in the news as they just keep adding the latest stories to the top of the list.