4 ms·

Ask HN: Critique My Blog Design

1 points by jstanley 4y ago

I wondered if the people of HN could critique my blog design. It's here: https://incoherency.co.uk/blog2/ The version it is meant to replace is at https://incoherency.co.uk/blog/ - the new version is meant to be less cluttered and less ugly, and honour a dark mode preference. I'd like to know whether the new version is actually an improvement, whether you think it looks ugly, whether you think it is too hard to read, and what improvements you would suggest. Cheers!

MilnerRoute 4y ago
I really like it. So clean. Lots of whitespace. Even non-serif fonts (for maximum clarity?) :) Also - nice choice of colors. They're pleasing, and readable.
- jstanley 4y ago
  Thank you!
jstanley 4y ago
Clickable link: https://incoherency.co.uk/blog2/ https://incoherency.co.uk/blog2/
slater 4y ago
Looks fine. I'd make the content area less wide; on my MBP (2017, 2880x1800 resolution) it's a bit of a tedious reading experience.
- jstanley 4y ago
  Hmm, it's meant to be max-width: 900px - is that too wide?
eimrine 4y ago
The former version has tags and your name and a great photo of yours. The latter version has color which suits better for the content (just opinion, no arguing) Both versions has ugly "read more" button which goes to the same place as header of every article. I do not give any recommendations of how to do it better but I do not want make so much clicks on your website to read all the articles which fits my interest. Most of articles fits, because you like programming and metals.
- jstanley 4y ago
  Thanks for looking. I'll probably put the name and photo back, as well as the list of tags on the home page. The reason for the "Read more" button is that a long time ago I showed someone my blog and they didn't recognise the headings as hyperlinks & assumed that every article consisted of only a single paragraph. I'm not sure whether the headings are clearer now, or the "Read more" button is still useful.
  - Lex-2008 4y ago
    re: whether the new version is actually an improvement - yes, I like new version more than the old one :) While I agree that in new design headers are more recognizable as clickable links, I still find "Read more" link being useful (after reading the article paragraph). Regarding adding name and photo - I think it's a personal taste :) Personally I don't feel a need to have them on the main blog page, but if you like it - please do, to give the blog a bit of personality. With name and photo the blog will probably feel more personal - written for those people who know you (either IRL or online). And without - the blog feels more like designed to be a thing by itself. Although note that it's my personal opinion, which might change tomorrow morning :) Regarding tags - note that you can see "main page with tags" at https://incoherency.co.uk/blog2/tags/all.html https://incoherency.co.uk/blog2/tags/all.html :) Wonder how much heavier it makes the page look. Maybe hide it behind some "show tags" link? Also check the <title> tag of the main page - I'm not sure if it was your intention to name the page "incoherency - ", but for me it looks kinda broken (something's missing on the right side of "-"), so maybe call it something like "incoherency - all posts"?
    - jstanley 4y ago
      Cheers. A couple of others have also said the name and photo makes it feel more personal. I thought it might be a bit self-indulgent, but apparently not. Oops, you're right! Yes the title tag is broken on the home page because the page has an empty title (as far as the static site generator is concerned).

1 points by jstanley 4y ago

MilnerRoute 4y ago

I really like it. So clean. Lots of whitespace. Even non-serif fonts (for maximum clarity?) :) Also - nice choice of colors. They're pleasing, and readable.

jstanley 4y ago
Thank you!

jstanley 4y ago

Clickable link: https://incoherency.co.uk/blog2/ https://incoherency.co.uk/blog2/

slater 4y ago

Looks fine. I'd make the content area less wide; on my MBP (2017, 2880x1800 resolution) it's a bit of a tedious reading experience.

jstanley 4y ago
Hmm, it's meant to be max-width: 900px - is that too wide?

eimrine 4y ago

The former version has tags and your name and a great photo of yours. The latter version has color which suits better for the content (just opinion, no arguing) Both versions has ugly "read more" button which goes to the same place as header of every article. I do not give any recommendations of how to do it better but I do not want make so much clicks on your website to read all the articles which fits my interest. Most of articles fits, because you like programming and metals.

jstanley 4y ago
Thanks for looking. I'll probably put the name and photo back, as well as the list of tags on the home page. The reason for the "Read more" button is that a long time ago I showed someone my blog and they didn't recognise the headings as hyperlinks & assumed that every article consisted of only a single paragraph. I'm not sure whether the headings are clearer now, or the "Read more" button is still useful.
- Lex-2008 4y ago
  re: whether the new version is actually an improvement - yes, I like new version more than the old one :) While I agree that in new design headers are more recognizable as clickable links, I still find "Read more" link being useful (after reading the article paragraph). Regarding adding name and photo - I think it's a personal taste :) Personally I don't feel a need to have them on the main blog page, but if you like it - please do, to give the blog a bit of personality. With name and photo the blog will probably feel more personal - written for those people who know you (either IRL or online). And without - the blog feels more like designed to be a thing by itself. Although note that it's my personal opinion, which might change tomorrow morning :) Regarding tags - note that you can see "main page with tags" at https://incoherency.co.uk/blog2/tags/all.html https://incoherency.co.uk/blog2/tags/all.html :) Wonder how much heavier it makes the page look. Maybe hide it behind some "show tags" link? Also check the <title> tag of the main page - I'm not sure if it was your intention to name the page "incoherency - ", but for me it looks kinda broken (something's missing on the right side of "-"), so maybe call it something like "incoherency - all posts"?
  - jstanley 4y ago
    Cheers. A couple of others have also said the name and photo makes it feel more personal. I thought it might be a bit self-indulgent, but apparently not. Oops, you're right! Yes the title tag is broken on the home page because the page has an empty title (as far as the static site generator is concerned).