My First vBulletin Site - Need Feedback

[pixelperfect]

Hello everyone,

I just completed and install of vBulletin along with PhotoPost, vbPortal, and a ExtemePixels skin. I've been very happy with how easy things have been to integrate using vb's template system. I'd appreciate any feedback others could give me on the overall design and usability. I've also added some Adsense adverts on various pages (including the archive). I've tried to place the ads where they are easily seen, but not overpowering to the visitor. Let me know what you think.

URL: www.photosharingforum.com (http://www.photosharingforum.com)

Appreciate it!

[FLMom]

Well, I am not a pro or anything, but I really like it a lot! Great job :D

[smacklan]

very nice! good job :)

[Lea Verou]

Very nice! Please don't make the poll question blink, it's no good.

[pixelperfect]

Thanks for the positive feedback! That's very encouraging :D

Michelle,

I didn't even realize the poll question was blinking. That does look bad. How do I disable that? I'll double check the poll settings in cpadmin now....

Thanks!

[Lea Verou]

Perhaps you have HTML set to on? It's the only thing I can think of :confused:

[pixelperfect]

Found the answer over at phpportals.com (official vbPortal site)

the blinking is a css property and its in the P_polloption template, wrapping the polls question

text-decoration:blink

(fyi it doesn't blink in inernet exploder)

I didn't even know there was a "blink" option available :confused:
O well, it's off now!

Thanks again for catching that :)

[Lea Verou]

Oh, haven't noticed it was vbPortal. I thought it was vbadvanced :)

Something else:
1. You should either write a preloader for the rollover menu images or make the rollover via CSS. Currently the image loads at the time that you firstly hover over the button and when it loads then it changes instantly on mouseover. This is not right.
2. You'd better change the profile a little to match the site's purpose. Eg recent photos that the member has uploaded, highest rated photos of the member etc ;)
3. Keep in mind that the site is about photos and stock photo sharing, not a regular forum! Put in a visible place the total number of photos you host at the moment. Visit stock photo sites to get ideas.
4. What do you mostly use on stock photo sites? Search! So focus on photopost search and make it move eye-catching and attractive (change that "go" button).
5. The sidebar on/off thing does nothing while in gallery.
6. More photos in the gallery index!
7. Ensure that keywords are used. I searched for "flower" and I got no results whereas I had seen images of flowers in the gallery.

[pixelperfect]

Thanks for taking the time to give me so many good suggestions. I'll address all these issues and let you know when they are fixed so you can take another look.

Appreciate it!

OK Michelle,

I've made the following changes:

1. Added a preloader for rollover menu buttons. Also scaled the buttons down a bit to improve load time.

2. I added a image search box under the "Recent Uploads" section on the homepage. I also added quick links to display recent uploads for the past 24hours, 7 days and 14 days.

3. Removed the sidebar on/off option from the menu.

4, My image inventory is low right now. As a result, searching will bring back very limited results. I'm adding keywords now. The search function itself seems to be working ok.

I also added:

5. Syndication buttons for my news, links, and content sections ( lower left side of homepage).

6. Recent referers block on lower left. Nice way to link back to those folks who send me traffic :)

I plan to add several other features once I have a decent number of images in the gallery, but I think this is a good start.

Let me know what you think about the changes...

[pixelperfect]

Michelle,

Did you have a chance to check out the changes? Does it look better now?

[Lea Verou]

1. Added a preloader for rollover menu buttons. Also scaled the buttons down a bit to improve load time.

Good.

2. I added a image search box under the "Recent Uploads" section on the homepage. I also added quick links to display recent uploads for the past 24hours, 7 days and 14 days.

Good. Now make that search box more visually appealing. Now it's quite plain. Remember that it's one of the key features of your site. It's should be eye-catching and attractive. Make it to match the rest of the site. Add CSS to the editbox and button.

3. Removed the sidebar on/off option from the menu.

Good. You could keep it though in just the pages that actually had a sidebar with a conditional. Anyway, no harm done, it was pretty useless IMHO.

4, My image inventory is low right now. As a result, searching will bring back very limited results. I'm adding keywords now. The search function itself seems to be working ok.

I didn't doubt the search function. I just wanted to make you realise the importance of keywords. Make keywords obligatory.

5. Syndication buttons for my news, links, and content sections ( lower left side of homepage).

Nice. Now make them a little nicer. You're a web designer, remember? (I saw that in your profile).

6. Recent referers block on lower left. Nice way to link back to those folks who send me traffic :)

Quite useless imho but nice thought.

I plan to add several other features once I have a decent number of images in the gallery, but I think this is a good start.

It is ;)

[Paul M]

I only had a quick look but one thing immediately bugs me - it's a personal gripe of mine that many share - I hate fixed width forums - it just about fills the middle 50% of my screen, with great bands of wasted space at the sides.

[Lea Verou]

I LOVE fixed width!! :D
I will eventually make my second site fixed width as soon as I find time...

[pixelperfect]

Regarding fixed vs. fluid designs....

Both have advantages and disadvantages. I've heard good arguments from both sides of the camp. Most of the time I personally prefer fixed because it seems more readable at 760px wide. More like a standard A4 printed page. When fluid designs flex beyound 760px, it looks odd to me unless you have multiple columns. Probably the best example of a fluid width design I can think of is www.sitepoint.com. It's fluid and very readable.

In the case of PhotoSharingForum.com, I couldn't find a way to make all the pages look nice with a fluid template. Maybe I'm not skilled enough as a designer, or maybe I'm just lazy :D

I appreciate all the feedback you guys have given me. It has been very helpful!