After several modifications, feature tweaks, and revisions, please feel free to beta test our revision of OSNews.com version 4. Recently introduced to the site? Amongst many other things: Themes! Read on for a more complete changelog!
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Member since:
2005-07-06
The themes solved my primary gripe. The new functionality works as expected, and I especially like the threaded view now. Since you added the themes support, I've been using www4.osnews.com as my bookmark to OSNews instead of the "old" www.osnews.com address.
As a subscriber, thanks!
Edited 2007-04-02 22:23 UTC
Member since:2005-07-08
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2006-06-30
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Member since:
2005-07-24
Just present interesting news in a readable format and I can't imagine wanting much more. I find that the features that even the current site has do more to get in the way than to enhance the experience.
Dump moderation completely.
And I believe that there is a special place in Hell for people who want "Ignore Lists". If you don't care about a topic, you can just ignore those posts. And if you do care, you need to be keeping an eye on what the trolls are up to, anyway; Do you really want to be so out of band WRT what people are saying around here?
And it's so easy to ignore the truly useless stuff.
Just use your eye muscles to deflect your eyeballs down the page a tad. That's the most flexible filtering system imaginable.
Private messaging sounds nice for those private conversations that people can't have in public without Thom showing up to impose his "authority".
Other than that, the *current* site is impressively serviceable, as long as you have AdBlock+.
That's my honest opinion, and please take it as such.
Edited 2007-04-02 22:47
Member since:2005-12-15
Member since:
2005-09-21
Well the default theme is a lot better than it used to be. Well-delineated comments instead of everything flowing into one.
One thing I miss is the blue highlight of scores that are high, so either the user's average score, or their comment score. It makes it easy to see which comments are modded up at a glance. Please add this to the default theme.
Member since:2005-06-29
Member since:2005-09-10
I agree with the blue high scores.
However, I am a little pissed that the two best looking new themes in my mind "ColonSlashSlash" and "Orange Platinum" are for subscribers only. They definately look much simpler to the eyes than the other ones. I like the v3 look better than the "Classic" in v4 for this reason as well, the latter has too many sharp contrasting lines between boxes.
Other than that, good job! You're getting there :-)
Member since:
2005-07-08
OSNews v3 is like the Windows "classic" UI: perfect. I love the site as it is right now. It simply couldn't be better. It's perfect (at least to the end-user).
The new site is looking too much like a generic web 2.0 community site (I hate that!). Seriously, the web is becoming too generic. It's becoming so dull.
That said, I've no problem with the new site as long as you keep the current one going (maybe http://www.osnews.com/classic ?). Please :|
Member since:2005-07-17
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Taking it down would be painfull for those who developed it but I think alot of readers agree with the fact that OSNews v3 is *perfect*.
It happens sometimes...
Member since:2005-04-01
I don't think a week goes by that I don't get email from someone who is tired of page loads for moderation, or upset that they can't toggle things inline, or requesting a new feature. Believe you me, though some of you may exist, I think there are LOTS of people who think v3 is far from "perfect." People said the exact same things about version 3 when we were using version 2. And after user feedback, we introduced threading, themes and more: http://www.osnews.com/story.php/11684/OSNews++/page3/
People are creatures of habit and adjusting to change is hard. But don't think that since you're comfortable in v3 and that several people are pining for the theme means that there is a large group of people who aren't clamoring for changes.
Edited 2007-04-03 15:39 UTC
Member since:2007-04-03
What are the v4 features good for? I use OSnews for more than five years and registered today to put my words to this debate. Good things should not be changed, many good technological webs ended after image remake - good authors left and the visual change was meant primarily to cover it, is't there similar problem with OSnews?
Member since:2006-05-14
That said, I've no problem with the new site as long as you keep the current one going (maybe http://www.osnews.com/classic ?). Please :|
Hence the Classic theme choice, which is pretty close.
I for one like the changes, especially the theme option. The issues I had with the last test were definetly resolved. Great job.
Member since:2006-10-13
The old site is beautiful, and normally I hate when people just change things around for no apparent reason. However, in this case, I'm psyched about how this site is looking. I love the pale green color scheme, and so far it seems less cluttered and easier to navigate.
Good job!
Member since:2005-12-15
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2005-07-13
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Member since:2005-10-09
Likely any "slowdown" people experience is related to the browser needing to do more work, not the actual size of the page being transmitted.
I don't know how to describe it (as per usual...), but on slower machines I utilize from time to time, sometimes loading slick/css heavy/etc sites seems to "pause", while the page is being rendered out. Plain HTML sites - even with lots of "cruft" - (in other words, pages that sparingly use CSS/javascript/etc) tend to load faster.
That said, I actually (after the theme changes) am starting to appreciate v4 over v3. I don't have to gouge my eyes out, and the new functionality is nice. 
Also, I don't browse on a slow machine, so page rendering speed isn't an issue - and I know the ease of maintaining the page/bandwidth/etc benefits of the new design have got to be respectable.
Member since:2006-03-17
Agreed, i Very much prefer the old site, the new one just sucks imho, too hard to read, everything is to the left ... what exactly is wrong with the current design, well sorry theme, i userstand the tech implications of the change .. Also bloody adverts, fair enough if your putting them top/bottom/left/right but in a thread reply then thats just bollox, orig site does not do this as i have seen ......
Member since:
2005-07-07
Member since:
2006-01-04
I'm not against v4, but since you're offering themes for the new version, is it possible to keep the v3 exactly as it is right now instead or together with the "new" classic?
Also this would be excellent to illustrate the choice for new optional themes, which I think it is great for everybody.
Please, pretty please, it's so cool!
I also want to add that the new themes are not so nice because they tend to get close to web 2.0 websites and we already have plenty of those. The v3 layout works very well because it makes OSNews distinctive in a way that it resembles old OSs - certainly cool for some OS enthusiasts - like said in the previous comments.
And the logo, I'm not sure if it is the best replacement, I think the actual one is nice and already with established recognition. The new is a relative departure from the actual's language so I suggest that if you feel you need a cleaner logo, maybe only eliminating the O and S shading and filling with a solid color could do the trick.
Edited 2007-04-03 00:01
Member since:2005-09-10
I also want to add that the new themes are not so nice because they tend to get close to web 2.0 websites and we already have plenty of those. The v3 layout works very well because it makes OSNews distinctive in a way that it resembles old OSs - certainly cool for some OS enthusiasts - like said in the previous comments.
Bingo! :-D
I think most of us appreciate the features, coding efforts and thought behind v4, but also love the v3 theme with the thin "sunken" lines and subtle greyish shades. It makes OSnews special compared to most other sites. Heck, I could even use it as a desktop theme :-)
The new classic theme has too "fat" lines everywhere that distracts from the contents of the text fields.
Member since:
2006-01-02
YOU NEED TO PADD THE NEWS BLOCKS OUT.
Seriously, the news listings just look like a glump of text with an icon on it, which makes my eyes bleed.
http://www4.osnews.com/
Put some basic padding-bottom, or line-height css attributes to space the 'Title' from the 'written by' from the 'content' and then some more padding around the icon ffs.
If you want an example of how to make news listing entries look a bit better, look @ http://digg.com/
Member since:2007-04-03
Much betters would be to wipe all the css out making the web readable and usable even on systems that the site is about... I find it absurd: making simple good thing about, in many cases old and in many ways limited, all oses usable only on small part. Somebody has fallen onto head from a strawberry
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2005-06-29
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2005-08-19
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2005-11-13
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2005-07-06
I don't mind change, when it's for the better. A proverbial new coat of paint every now and then is nice. But I honestly don't think the new design is better. I think it's a step backwards.
The main thing I don't like about it (personally), is how every other story appears to be sitting on the background. With the existing theme, every story appears in a block. It's a lot more clear the way it is now.
Also, the new version is way too cluttered with ads. There are google ads in between some articles! Too pushy.
Member since:
2005-10-12
I realize that ads keep costs down, but wow does this new version go overboard!!! Ads between comments?!!
Also, the new logo is an abomination. The "O" looks like an eyeball, and the outline around the logo is simply unnecessary and adds complexity. See where that outline gets pinched between the letters? UGLY. Add to it a very unattractive color scheme that doesn't do anything for the rest of the site. Maybe you guys could hold a logo contest, cuz this is craptastic.
I've been a constant reader for years, but this has got to be the worst facelift I've seen.
Member since:2005-06-29
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2005-10-17
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2005-07-10
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2005-10-12
A few more things. I appreciate the hard work, but I think it's time to really step back and look at your work critically. Is it actually accomplishing anything better than the old version? Are things different just for the sake of being different?
I think the thing that really throws off this new layout is the disgusting use of spacing (or lack thereof). The story titles really crowd the bylines and the summaries. This is where the old layout excelled: everything is compartmentalized, making it easier to read. This one is just chaotic and not reader-friendly. Very erratic flow.
I'm looking at this on Firefox, and it just looks sloppy (looking at the classic theme). The left bar doesn't quite line up with the top links bar, the margin between the two is the same width as the links bar, etc. Were these intentional? It looks like the margins and layouts of all of the themes were done haphazardly.
Member since:2006-09-14
Member since:
2005-09-28
Member since:
2005-07-12
The logo could use a little work. Otherwise, I switched the theme to "classic" and all seems as good as before look and feel wise. The new features are definitely an evolution keeping them inline with some of their competitors. Just my two cents.
Good job, keep up the good work!
Member since:
2005-07-07
I am especially fond of the current system, and I dislike changes in interface. It is similar to when you get a good thing going, and then they want to change it on you. I almost feel like what an older person might say about changing something they have always been used to.
This is similar. V4 is definitely 'disruptive', and in its current state i definitely do not like the looks of it - it just *feels* wrong.
Member since:
2007-02-22
Member since:2005-08-07
Agreed.
If this trend continues I'll go elsewhere. The main reason I've always liked OSnews was because it was always the cleanest and most readable news site out there--these changes seem to require we all pay for the privilege of being able to read without eyestrain.
I've left other communities for money grabs like this, so it wouldn't be the first time, but I sincerely hope it doesn't come to that...
--bornagainpenguin
Member since:
2007-02-22
There's a big problem with the layout that I can see: There's no link to 'OS Resources!'
Personally, as a student studying operating system design and would-be hobbyist (and hopefully professional) OS designer, I use that page two or three times per week.
I really hope that that page is retained...
Edited 2007-04-03 03:38
Member since:2005-06-28
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2006-09-14
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2006-04-25
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Member since:
2006-04-25
Bookmarked links are broken.
Example. Here is a permalinked url for a comment on the old site:
http://www.osnews.com/permalink.php?news_id=17609&comment_id=22...
So it should work the same on the new site:
http://www4.osnews.com/permalink.php?news_id=17609&comment_id=2...
Whoops.
Member since:2005-04-01
Member since:
2005-06-29
Member since:
2007-04-03
I am all for osnews improving there site visually however this v4 design looks like a programmer pulled out there photoshop paint brushes and hacked up a terrible interface.
- The osnews logo is a complete joke.
- The use of gradients is an unthought of contribution.
- More negative space is needed between the articles to separate them for easier/quicker reading.
I strongly advise you to send the design to /dev/null and hire a real designer to do the job, perhaps you can get some inspiration about whats good from a site like this; http://cssmania.com
On the matter of the improved functionality I have no gripes there.
I also regularly read the articles from my mobile phone (640x480 res), I notice that the new interface is not available on that yet, I surely hope that doesn't get stuffed up!
Member since:
2005-07-10
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2006-04-25
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2006-01-03
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2005-11-13
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Because its a worthless number. The date someone signed up is better, I think, since it actually indicates something - like how long they've been contributing. The average score is 5 if you have one post of 5, which doesn't mean you're a better commenter than someone whose average score is actually 2.5, which is really high for someone who comments regularly.
The more someone posts the more likely they are to even out their score back to 1, which is misleading, because a troll with a few high comments might appear to be a really good commenter.
Member since:2005-10-09
There's a few ways to handle this, the easiest being simply not displaying a score for a new member (less than 50 posts or something like this.) Display score for people over the threshold. Scores are very useful, now I'm clicking on user names to get info on users.
Another option would be displaying "score/postcount". This starts to get cluttered, however.
Third option, create an algorithm to balance score against post count.
Or, if you are dead set on not displaying score, still keep it internally, and users who break the 2.00 barrier and have more than X number of posts (100 or whatever you want) have their names change blue to signify they are (generally) "good" posters by popular opinion.
Now, imagine if all the people who can't read would stop modding people down because they disagree with their opinions, we'd be all set! :p You should add an IQ check to the new v4.
Member since:2005-04-01
Member since:2005-10-09
Sounds good! If you get stuck/need some ideas, I'm always happy to help.
On a side note, log out of your account, then click "reply" to this comment. It'll bring you to a login screen. Even if you type in the correct info, it once again brings you to a different login screen. Then, when you type in the correct info, it doesn't redirect you back to the "reply" page like it (logically) should.
Member since:
2006-05-18
Please make the default theme look the same as the current site. The padding is wrong, the borders are wrong, (+) / (-) button placement is wrong, highly modded comments are not blue or bold, and I could go on.
Also - the biggest annoyance that it's not theme related is that when I post a comment I'm taken to a new page. What's up with that?
Otherwise, great work on the new features.
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2005-08-09
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2005-08-18
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2005-06-29