Does Wincustomize need a make over?
Tuesday, July 19, 2005 by Bash2cool | Discussion: OS Customization
it's been i think three years since Wincustomize changed its website look so should it change it's look now? Well to me ... i think they should wait till Microsoft releases Longhorn cause longhorn will be different than windows. and there will be new styles.
So should it have a new make-over? please place comments on what you think.
So should it have a new make-over? please place comments on what you think.
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BX
Reply #2 Tuesday, July 19, 2005 10:35 AM
and this fellow wants a make-over ...
Reply #2 Tuesday, July 19, 2005 10:35 AM
| The current look hasn't even been in place for an entire year yet |
and this fellow wants a make-over ...
Tarkus
Reply #3 Tuesday, July 19, 2005 10:36 AM
Reply #3 Tuesday, July 19, 2005 10:36 AM
I think it needs a make-under. 
The look of the site should be the absolute least of their concerns at this point.
The look of the site should be the absolute least of their concerns at this point.
PurrBall
Reply #4 Tuesday, July 19, 2005 10:39 AM
Reply #4 Tuesday, July 19, 2005 10:39 AM
I don't care what thje look is. It needs to operate. If it doesn't operate, there is no look. 
Let's put it this way: The site does what we need it to do. The look is the least of concerns right now as there are bugs to be worked out.
Let's put it this way: The site does what we need it to do. The look is the least of concerns right now as there are bugs to be worked out.
fervc
Reply #5 Tuesday, July 19, 2005 10:45 AM
Reply #5 Tuesday, July 19, 2005 10:45 AM
I think they need to be more concerned about the technical issue plauging the site, before even worrying about what the site looks like.
Boss019
Reply #6 Tuesday, July 19, 2005 10:56 AM
It certainly hasn't this morning. It's been one error after another.
Reply #6 Tuesday, July 19, 2005 10:56 AM
| Let's put it this way: The site does what we need it to do |
It certainly hasn't this morning. It's been one error after another.
Boss019
Reply #7 Tuesday, July 19, 2005 10:59 AM
Reply #7 Tuesday, July 19, 2005 10:59 AM
Got that after I hit "submit"
The page cannot be displayed
The page you are looking for is currently unavailable. The Web site might be experiencing technical difficulties, or you may need to adjust your browser settings.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Please try the following:
Click the Refresh button, or try again later.
If you typed the page address in the Address bar, make sure that it is spelled correctly.
To check your connection settings, click the Tools menu, and then click Internet Options. On the Connections tab, click Settings. The settings should match those provided by your local area network (LAN) administrator or Internet service provider (ISP).
See if your Internet connection settings are being detected. You can set Microsoft Windows to examine your network and automatically discover network connection settings (if your network administrator has enabled this setting).
Click the Tools menu, and then click Internet Options.
On the Connections tab, click LAN Settings.
Select Automatically detect settings, and then click OK.
Some sites require 128-bit connection security. Click the Help menu and then click About Internet Explorer to determine what strength security you have installed.
If you are trying to reach a secure site, make sure your Security settings can support it. Click the Tools menu, and then click Internet Options. On the Advanced tab, scroll to the Security section and check settings for SSL 2.0, SSL 3.0, TLS 1.0, PCT 1.0.
Click the Back button to try another link.
Cannot find server or DNS Error
Internet Explorer
The page cannot be displayed
The page you are looking for is currently unavailable. The Web site might be experiencing technical difficulties, or you may need to adjust your browser settings.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Please try the following:
Click the Refresh button, or try again later.
If you typed the page address in the Address bar, make sure that it is spelled correctly.
To check your connection settings, click the Tools menu, and then click Internet Options. On the Connections tab, click Settings. The settings should match those provided by your local area network (LAN) administrator or Internet service provider (ISP).
See if your Internet connection settings are being detected. You can set Microsoft Windows to examine your network and automatically discover network connection settings (if your network administrator has enabled this setting).
Click the Tools menu, and then click Internet Options.
On the Connections tab, click LAN Settings.
Select Automatically detect settings, and then click OK.
Some sites require 128-bit connection security. Click the Help menu and then click About Internet Explorer to determine what strength security you have installed.
If you are trying to reach a secure site, make sure your Security settings can support it. Click the Tools menu, and then click Internet Options. On the Advanced tab, scroll to the Security section and check settings for SSL 2.0, SSL 3.0, TLS 1.0, PCT 1.0.
Click the Back button to try another link.
Cannot find server or DNS Error
Internet Explorer
buzzh58
Reply #8 Tuesday, July 19, 2005 11:19 AM
Reply #8 Tuesday, July 19, 2005 11:19 AM
This sites been nothing less than comical since its last "makeover". Even now as I look in the "this just in" column I see everything in triplicate. One cock up after another. Another makeover,,nah,,a complete demolition and rebuild.
SATYROBE
Reply #9 Tuesday, July 19, 2005 12:17 PM
Reply #9 Tuesday, July 19, 2005 12:17 PM
2 of 3 sub- or related webparts are heavily changed and crosslinked better this
very moment, the Stardock and JU forum are getting better login + look options,
bugs are being fixed, new menu items appeared in wc forums context today, and
most bloggers are not eving animating or skinning their blogs, making their articles
blah and thus their wc site looks blah.
Wait for the server to be doubled back up again, in the meantime, animate your
articles as well. Have also ordered more tools for this. Not expensive at all, and
fun.
Without changing much about the looks, causing new bugs and making professional
usage hard for inexperienced site creators, maybe they could just add a feature
one day allowing you to place a short animated skinned interactive Hello intro
without a flash that loads to slow on most peoples configs explaining how to
find and use what on your site, telling you to press refresh first like on
Annie Rebs site etc. That would help without generating crucial changing transitional issues. There will be time for that. They are working 24 hours a day,
thanks Draginol, Cordelia, Janitor T-Man, Frogboy, kharmagirl + more for not concentra-
ting on things that are more important for u personally instead and sweating off
body parts in the summer heat without sleep just after an exhausting move!
very moment, the Stardock and JU forum are getting better login + look options,
bugs are being fixed, new menu items appeared in wc forums context today, and
most bloggers are not eving animating or skinning their blogs, making their articles
blah and thus their wc site looks blah.
Wait for the server to be doubled back up again, in the meantime, animate your
articles as well. Have also ordered more tools for this. Not expensive at all, and
fun.
Without changing much about the looks, causing new bugs and making professional
usage hard for inexperienced site creators, maybe they could just add a feature
one day allowing you to place a short animated skinned interactive Hello intro
without a flash that loads to slow on most peoples configs explaining how to
find and use what on your site, telling you to press refresh first like on
Annie Rebs site etc. That would help without generating crucial changing transitional issues. There will be time for that. They are working 24 hours a day,
thanks Draginol, Cordelia, Janitor T-Man, Frogboy, kharmagirl + more for not concentra-
ting on things that are more important for u personally instead and sweating off
body parts in the summer heat without sleep just after an exhausting move!
Nail Z Bunny
Reply #10 Tuesday, July 19, 2005 12:28 PM
Reply #10 Tuesday, July 19, 2005 12:28 PM
I like the layout of the site, it's easy to navigate. But the frequent errors suck big time. 
Of all the websites that I frequently visit, Wincustomize is the only one that gives me lots of trouble.
Of all the websites that I frequently visit, Wincustomize is the only one that gives me lots of trouble.
StephanA
Reply #11 Tuesday, July 19, 2005 12:49 PM
Reply #11 Tuesday, July 19, 2005 12:49 PM
Bash, you are a sad child. Ask mama for some attention.
Frogboy
Reply #12 Tuesday, July 19, 2005 12:56 PM
Reply #12 Tuesday, July 19, 2005 12:56 PM
The new site look is only 6 months old. It was completely re-designed.
And before we start playing around with how the new site looks, we have to focus on getting it to run better.
Our problem is largely lack of $$$ to get the things/people we need. Less than 0.01% of people who visit this site bother to subscribe.
Bash2cool
Reply #13 Tuesday, July 19, 2005 12:59 PM
Reply #13 Tuesday, July 19, 2005 12:59 PM
Hey StephaneA, you better watch it and Frogboy i would love to subscribe but i'm to young to get a credit card and buy things online. Wish i could but I'M ONLY 14!! 
Tarkus
Reply #14 Tuesday, July 19, 2005 1:04 PM
So what happened to taking care of the subscribers first? I've been a subscriber since virtually the beginning, yet this site works horribly for me. How about cutting back on features for non-subscribers, if that's what it takes?
I think you need to decide whether this should be a (WC/OD) subscriber-driven site or a promotional site for Stardock. The hybrid you have now doesn't seem to be working.
Reply #14 Tuesday, July 19, 2005 1:04 PM
| Our problem is largely lack of $$$ to get the things/people we need. Less than 0.01% of people who visit this site bother to subscribe. |
So what happened to taking care of the subscribers first? I've been a subscriber since virtually the beginning, yet this site works horribly for me. How about cutting back on features for non-subscribers, if that's what it takes?
I think you need to decide whether this should be a (WC/OD) subscriber-driven site or a promotional site for Stardock. The hybrid you have now doesn't seem to be working.
Boss019
Reply #15 Tuesday, July 19, 2005 1:24 PM
Reply #15 Tuesday, July 19, 2005 1:24 PM
And how come everybody else's site's don't have nearly the problems? Are we going to hear the "Massive amount of traffic" stuff again I suppose?
Certainly not in the recent past.
| I think you need to decide whether this should be a (WC/OD) subscriber-driven site or a promotional site for Stardock. The hybrid you have now doesn't seem to be working. |
Certainly not in the recent past.
Frogboy
Reply #16 Tuesday, July 19, 2005 1:46 PM
Reply #16 Tuesday, July 19, 2005 1:46 PM
Tarkus - it's not like the system goes "Oh, subscriber, don't crash".
When WinCustomize.com launched, there were several different skin sites that were quite active. Today, there's WinCustomize and the skinning area on deviantART. The other sites that still exist don't receive the kind of traffic that WC/dA do. So we're having to absorb immense amounts of traffic.
But the # of subscribers we get is pitiful. We have plenty of bandwidth. What we don't have are enough IT people. An experience web programmer (especially ASP.net) or database administrator costs a lot of money. The subscriptions don't even pay for the bandwidth let alone the IT staff we need.
There is no solution other than for us to keep slogging through trying to resolve these issues. The current issue is database related, not website "Feature" based.
Do the math: There are typically thousands of people on the site at the same time. If this site got even 20% less traffic, these "problems" wouldn't crop up.
Boss019
Reply #17 Tuesday, July 19, 2005 1:53 PM
Reply #17 Tuesday, July 19, 2005 1:53 PM
There it is...I knew that was coming. Maybe there's too much traffic because everybody is trying over and over to get a page to load. Slogging through isn't going to get you a whole lot of new subscribers either. And excuses just go so far.
Slogging through isn't going to get you a whole lot of new subscribers either. And excuses just go so far.
Boss019
Reply #18 Tuesday, July 19, 2005 1:57 PM
Reply #18 Tuesday, July 19, 2005 1:57 PM
Is this the time yet for the "If you don't like it, go start your own site" comeback yet? That's just turning things around to take the focus off of the site problems here.
thomassen
Reply #19 Tuesday, July 19, 2005 2:13 PM
Reply #19 Tuesday, July 19, 2005 2:13 PM
May I point out that if the website separated the look into a CSS file and left the HTML semantic by using HTML 4.01 strict or XHTML instead of the current tagsoup it would save some bandwidth. As it is currently, this webstie rely heavily on tables, something that quickly adds excess code. Remember how much traffic this site attracts, it quickly adds up. If the look of the site where put into a CSS file it'd not only be less content in the HTML file, but the CSS file would in most cases be cached the first time a user visit the site. Resulting in even less bandwidth usage. I'd think that's be in the interest of both the owners and the users. And then when the appearance is separeted from the content it'd be esier to do makeovers.
SATYROBE
Reply #20 Tuesday, July 19, 2005 2:27 PM
Reply #20 Tuesday, July 19, 2005 2:27 PM
I know sites not working well either for various reasons outside of the stardock
world. I would be very glad if more would subscribe, and there may be a legal
paypal or other trick to get minors in, if that seems advisory. FROGBOY said
bandwidth is not the main problem, remember it doubles when the new network
recouples the new server better, which you dont want to do when fixing and im-
proving subsites anyway. Be patient, get your parents to subscribe and take
part as well. Still interesting what Thomassen said. Sorry I dont live there and
am not an IT specialist.
world. I would be very glad if more would subscribe, and there may be a legal
paypal or other trick to get minors in, if that seems advisory. FROGBOY said
bandwidth is not the main problem, remember it doubles when the new network
recouples the new server better, which you dont want to do when fixing and im-
proving subsites anyway. Be patient, get your parents to subscribe and take
part as well. Still interesting what Thomassen said. Sorry I dont live there and
am not an IT specialist.
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Reply #1 Tuesday, July 19, 2005 10:23 AM
The current look hasn't even been in place for an entire year yet.