Re: Revamped GNOME.org

[Curtis Hovey <sinzui is verizon net>]

On Tue, 2005-12-13 at 10:03 +0000, Thomas Wood wrote:
> > The problem is finding the point between irrelevant and empty. We need it
> > to
> > look like something is constantly going on at GNOME.org yet I don't want
> > the
> > home to be cluttered and unapproachable to a new user.
> > I will fiddle around with adding some news from gnomedesktop.org and try
> > to
> > fill up some space or maybe add the 'Buy a GNOME shirt' in there to give
> > the
> > page a sense of community.
> >
> 
> This is why I would suggest we had a couple of small boxes on the front
> page with the latest headlines from footnotes, the latest art from
> art.gnome.org or the latest software updates. This would help to give the
> site a sense of community and activity. However, this raises a very
> important point, as it will be difficult (although not impossible) to do
> this without any scripting on w.g.o.
> 
> What is the current sysadmin position with regards to the use of scripts
> on w.g.o?

We avoid scripting (server-side and client-side) for security and
compatibility concerns. A case can be made for scripting. cosmetics is
not a reason to introduce scripting. Visitors who exchange URLs, or are
reading instructions to access information are frustrated when each
person sees a different view of a page. Commerce and support sites risk
driving away the visitors they are trying to serve. The GNOME homepage
is difficult to design because it gateway to other sites that address
the needs of a diverse group of visitors.

I think we need to be asking what kinds of visitors are arriving at the
GNOME homepage?

What do these visitors need to accomplish?

What does the homepage need to communicate to help the visitors complete
their task?

What browsers or tools do the visitors during their sessions on the
website?

I have seen many efforts to revamp the homepage fail. I think they
failed because they did not focus on what GNOME has to do at it's
homepage. On a related matter, search engines and related content have
deep links into our sites. Visitors need to know the focus of the page,
the section, and the site from any page. The page must convey what can
be accomplished from the page, and provide links to related matters.  In
short, every page must establish a context so the visitor knows who
needs this information, and where to find more information.

Design is a lot easier when you have certainties you can test for. GTK
has supports themes to address usability and accessibility concerns as
well as aesthetics. So to address the scripting question, some users may
be better served by client-side or server-side scripting--how can we
know we need it?  How do know our solution satisfies the one visitor
without alienating another?

-- 

__C U R T I S  C.  H O V E Y____________________
sinzui is verizon net
Guilty of stealing everything I am.