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AlterNet's New Front Page

By Don Hazen, AlterNet. Posted December 12, 2007.


Check out our fun new design.

Dear reader,

You might have noticed that we've updated the look and feel of our front page. Nothing radical, but rather a reconfiguration that communicates more of what we are about at AlterNet:

  • Because political issues are a centerpiece of our work, we've moved our special coverage areas -- there are nine -- to the left top to make it easier to find the latest news and information on the issues you care about. Every time a new article is posted to an area, you'll see it at the top of the "Special Coverage" column on the left side of the page. Check out AlterNet's weekly special coverage newsletters.

  • We've moved our popular "blog of blogs," PEEK, which has 12 fresh items a day, up to the top right to give more emphasis to breaking news.

  • Do you know what a tag cloud is? I know now it's a gaggle of words of different sizes to help you track and find articles that represent the biggest trends and most-covered issues over the past 30 days. Ours is called "Hot Topics." Check it out on the lower right. It's fun.

I hope our new appearance works for you. Problems or questions? Send us some feedback@alternet.org.

Cheers,
Don Hazen, Executive Editor

P.S.:
And we added some brighter colors. We figured it was time ;-)

Digg!

See more stories tagged with: redesign, alternet

Don Hazen is the executive editor of AlterNet.

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View:
Rather scrunched...
Posted by: kwalla on Dec 12, 2007 12:21 AM   
Current rating: 2    [1 = poor; 5 = excellent]
There are two inches of blank space, one on each side of the scree and the rest of the page is scrunched. Fox 2.0.0.11 on Windows.

[« Reply to this comment] [Post a new comment »] [Rate this comment: 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5]

» RE: ather scrunched... Posted by: Deanna Zandt
» RE: ather scrunched... Posted by: nihilozero
» RE: ather scrunched... Posted by: Shawn Sutherland
» RE: ather scrunched... Posted by: kwalla
It wasn't broke...
Posted by: Nebris on Dec 12, 2007 5:50 AM   
Current rating: 3    [1 = poor; 5 = excellent]
...and it didn't need fixing.

[« Reply to this comment] [Post a new comment »] [Rate this comment: 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5]

rrsj
Posted by: rrsj on Dec 12, 2007 6:06 AM   
Current rating: 5    [1 = poor; 5 = excellent]
I thought you had eliminated the Huffington newswire - but I see you just pushed it down the page. Their celebrity-obsessed choice of news is beneath AlterNet - does Ethan Hawke's relationship with his nanny - or whatever that story is about - really rate the front page of this important progressive resource? There are times when every front page headlines from Huffington is about celebrities. Does that bring you traffic?

[« Reply to this comment] [Post a new comment »] [Rate this comment: 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5]

» RE: rrsj Posted by: wagadog
Well...
Posted by: JoshuaLudd on Dec 12, 2007 6:20 AM   
Current rating: 3    [1 = poor; 5 = excellent]
A. its too small for easy browsing or reading

B. you are repeating stories in two different places. That is either incredibly bad planning on your part, or an insult to the intelligence of your readers.

Its terrible.

[« Reply to this comment] [Post a new comment »] [Rate this comment: 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5]

Ouch from others! Best Wishes from Me
Posted by: drricklippin on Dec 12, 2007 7:02 AM   
Current rating: Not yet rated    [1 = poor; 5 = excellent]
Don Hazen-

Best Wishes with your new front page design.

(No I am not a "suck-up")

Dr. Rick Lippin
Southampton,Pa

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I like it
Posted by: chaoslegs on Dec 12, 2007 7:13 AM   
Current rating: Not yet rated    [1 = poor; 5 = excellent]
The prominence given to the special coverage sections is very welcome. It has been so sad to see so many good items in these sections with one or no comments, probably due to a lack of traffic.

[« Reply to this comment] [Post a new comment »] [Rate this comment: 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5]

I like the new layout, but where's the Wire Service?
Posted by: wagadog on Dec 12, 2007 8:15 AM   
Current rating: Not yet rated    [1 = poor; 5 = excellent]
Seems like the wire service has gone walkabout. Is that because of rights issues, or is this because it wasn't deemed terribly important? I liked it, for the breaking news.

[« Reply to this comment] [Post a new comment »] [Rate this comment: 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5]

more user feedback.
Posted by: wagadog on Dec 12, 2007 8:40 AM   
Current rating: 1    [1 = poor; 5 = excellent]
Really like the topical special collections having been moved to the top right -- Great layout and colors and functionality overall.

A Miro channel (it's like an RSS feed for videos -- like DN and C&L have) for your videos would be awesome.

http://www.getmiro.com/

http://www.democracynow.org/2007/12/12/stream

[« Reply to this comment] [Post a new comment »] [Rate this comment: 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5]

now it makes sense
Posted by: wildeyes on Dec 12, 2007 8:40 AM   
Current rating: Not yet rated    [1 = poor; 5 = excellent]
i was wondering why everything on alternet had been misaligned and on the fritz the past few days...

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» RE: now it makes sense Posted by: Deanna Zandt
Not Too Crazy About It
Posted by: SoCalLib on Dec 12, 2007 10:07 AM   
Current rating: 3    [1 = poor; 5 = excellent]
It seems a little too busy. I'm not a big fan of the Short Attention Span Newscast ~ the need to fill every space on the screen with bits of info.

And the Hot Topics section with the funky fonts and sizes? What the hell is that? Are you trying to snag the Tiger Beat audience?

My initial reaction is negative. What was wrong with the previous layout? It was easy to navigate, whereas this appears a little trickier. Of course, I'm checking in here a couple dozen times a day for breaking news, so I suppose I'll get used to it over time. I only hope for your sake that the 13-18 year old demographic that you're apparently now aiming for sticks around long enough and makes the change worth your while.

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» RE: Not Too Crazy About It Posted by: Shawn Sutherland
» RE: Not Too Crazy About It Posted by: SoCalLib
tiny icons
Posted by: JoshuaLudd on Dec 12, 2007 12:08 PM   
Current rating: 1    [1 = poor; 5 = excellent]
The tiny icons are WAY too small to see clearly.

[« Reply to this comment] [Post a new comment »] [Rate this comment: 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5]

Wheres Wiretap?
Posted by: Ayla87 on Dec 12, 2007 12:35 PM   
Current rating: Not yet rated    [1 = poor; 5 = excellent]
I can't find the link anywhere. It used to be with the other special coverage links. Thats what I come here for the most.

Other than that, I don't thinks its as bad as others are making it out to be. Pretty nice actually.

[« Reply to this comment] [Post a new comment »] [Rate this comment: 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5]

» RE: Wheres Wiretap? Posted by: Shawn Sutherland
I can't tell the difference
Posted by: nellie blogger on Dec 12, 2007 2:14 PM   
Current rating: 5    [1 = poor; 5 = excellent]
Right now I'm looking at a huge picture of someone's fat middle.

[« Reply to this comment] [Post a new comment »] [Rate this comment: 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5]

I like it
Posted by: opeluboy on Dec 12, 2007 2:44 PM   
Current rating: 5    [1 = poor; 5 = excellent]
But as someone who has done web and graphic design for a living, I can tell you that you will meet with tons of flack.

1. You changed something.
2. You have no control over how some people set their browsers or monitors, guaranteeing it will not look right.
3. You changed something.

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» RE: I like it Posted by: Shawn Sutherland
big monitors
Posted by: JohnTodd on Dec 12, 2007 4:59 PM   
Current rating: Not yet rated    [1 = poor; 5 = excellent]
Could you re-format it so that I can take advantage of my widescreen monitor? Widescreens are becoming more common, but Alternet insists on being all on the left side or center. Please allow a more free-flow based upon window size so that I can use my full 22" width.

Other than that, I love the new format.

[« Reply to this comment] [Post a new comment »] [Rate this comment: 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5]

Most Read? Most Emailed? Most Comments?
Posted by: casimmons23 on Dec 12, 2007 8:16 PM   
Current rating: Not yet rated    [1 = poor; 5 = excellent]
I value the judgment of Alternet readers, and always perused the "most read, most emailed, most comments" articles. Why did you discard this?

Off topic to the format issue, but your search engine sucks. I have often read great articles on Alternet, but if I don't download them or print them out, they are impossible to ever find again. Also, you rarely seem to follow up on issues. It's always "The Sky is Falling!," and everyone comments furiously, but your reporters never seem to follow up. It's just off to the next crisis or issue...

Thanks for the great reporting! Even though I think you could be better.

[« Reply to this comment] [Post a new comment »] [Rate this comment: 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5]

Feature Request
Posted by: NoPCZone on Dec 13, 2007 10:47 AM   
Current rating: Not yet rated    [1 = poor; 5 = excellent]
Could we

1-Have the option of collapsing comments down to their titles?

2-Set a preference for continuous, not paginated, stories? I have a large, hi-res display and prefer to scroll rather than click view as single page every time.

[« Reply to this comment] [Post a new comment »] [Rate this comment: 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5]

» RE: Feature Request Posted by: Shawn Sutherland
Left-Wing Illiteracy
Posted by: redbird30328 on Dec 13, 2007 2:35 PM   
Current rating: Not yet rated    [1 = poor; 5 = excellent]
Did anyone see the AlterNet email solicitation today? The first word of the second line of the second paragraph is "enflame." This is not a word in the Oxford American Dictionary (or should I say Oxford Amerikan Dictionary?). Maybe the Chick-filet Cows wrote the solicitation. It is gratifying to see that the poor spelling and tragic grammar appearing in many reader posts on AlterNet also exist among AlterNet management. This is no doubt generally attributable to years of neglect of public schools by Republican administrations, and a specific ramification of a Bush/Cheney conspiracy, conceived by their neo-con acolytes and ruthlessly implemented by Blackwatch goons, to prevent liberals from acquiring the educational skills necessary to prevail over the conservative agenda of global warming, aids proliferation, economic imperialism, and elimination of participation trophies in youth sports.

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What a mix.
Posted by: bshmr on Dec 14, 2007 6:46 AM   
Current rating: Not yet rated    [1 = poor; 5 = excellent]
"... Nothing radical, but rather a reconfiguration that communicates more of what we are about at AlterNet: ... Check out AlterNet's weekly special coverage newsletters .... 12 fresh items a day, up to the top right to give more emphasis to breaking news. ... Ours is called "Hot Topics." Check it out on the lower right. It's fun. Cheers, Don Hazen, Executive Editor P.S.: And we added some brighter colors. We figured it was time ;-) Digg!"

Much of that promo is aversive for me. Pure USAn executive deed and speak. ...

Let me suggest that you could attach sounds to hot-spots over topics, phrases, and words, which of course means that YOU should have someone do it. When that previews, everyone in your 'demo' will digg it. Imagine the rush from all the attention arising because of the richness of stimulation on YOUR newest page. ...

Yes, "The mix is the message". I value a mix of well organized, easily navigatible, meaningful content first and foremost. Your mix values 'fun', colors, over-whelming splash, ... .

BTW, I am removing Alternet from my habitual daily loop. That will improve your throughput as well as mine. See, win-win.

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