by kateray on 9/13/12, 5:57 PM with 82 comments
by mnicole on 9/13/12, 7:29 PM
- Thought I was saving the page from the Settings drop-down where it shows me the URL to my site and says "Update", rather than the "Done" button to the top right.
- Expected to be able to drag-and-drop the images to the canvas so I could do it en mass instead of click them, then have the clipart stick to my cursor until I dropped it/resized it before going back into the images panel.
- Not being able to see that the elements have styles attributed to them without clicking into them is kind of rough.
- Outlining an object by a bounding-box instead of the shape of the object can get confusing when you have multiple layers.
- In the layers drop-down, everything is listed as a "Text" element. Some without any description (shape preview would be nice). Should be able to delete the object after selecting it from within this panel too.
- I think the layout would be easier/more familiar for people if the top bar options were vertically-aligned to be a toolbar, and if the user actions bar at the bottom was up at the top right. Have a separate floating box or one that comes in from the right side for when you select an object that has attributes/FX to fiddle with.
- You can see the code but not edit it?
- Just realized where the background editor was. That should be a part of the primary toolbar.
Otherwise really interesting, would be great for creating quick instruction manuals and simple product pages. Like someone else mentioned, I am waiting on ReadyMag for this kind of publishing tool, but I like where things are headed here moreso than some other editors I've come across.
by jcromartie on 9/13/12, 7:32 PM
And then you say "use our stuff instead".
by rbellio on 9/13/12, 7:27 PM
For one, the technology that allows this coupling of design and copy has been slowly maturing and at times has been very cumbersome. In the past, sites that tried to break the tabular, "only text" mold were often slow to load and broke without third party libraries.
As internet speeds improved so did third party support and the design process for this new technical media. The interoperability of the technologies could still lead to a lot of pain when developing for everyone and doing so in a fashionable way.
Now, we're at that fork where everything has matured enough that it's opened up the ability to infuse more character and creativity into our designs and the technology allows the feasibility. However, I think there's still a gap. There's a gap between the idea and the effort required in order to achieve it. There is still transition between the idea, the design and the realization and often we see a loss of inspiration as it comes to that fruition.
I think there is still headway to make on the fluidity and experience of the digital domain. That visceral reaction that many of us enjoy when rifling through the pages of a book or glancing through the glossy pages of a magazine have yet to be duplicated, even if this site makes a great stab at it. To remove the consciousness of the square portal of emitted light is going to be the next frontier though.
by ktsmith on 9/13/12, 6:24 PM
by MatthewPhillips on 9/13/12, 7:23 PM
I wonder how advertising would work on the web if you didn't have omni-present ads but instead sometimes the viewport contained no ads, sometimes it contains big huge ads that take up the entire viewport (like a full-page ad in a magazine). Would that make up for them not being visible at all times? Anyone tried this?
by petercooper on 9/13/12, 11:18 PM
by anigbrowl on 9/13/12, 7:41 PM
by reaktivo on 9/13/12, 6:52 PM
by splatcollision on 9/13/12, 7:19 PM
by jval on 9/14/12, 4:37 AM
Isn't HN meant to be the kind of place to share this stuff? I love the philosophy behind it, I feel like these guys are having a serious crack at building something that ordinary designers can use to make really beautiful pages without needing to know how to code.
The design of that page is really compelling and tasteful. Neatly showcases what the platform can do while retaining your attention.
And as for the haters, all I can say is - if you made it to the bottom of the page then they are definitely doing something right. I'm sure if you were part of their target market the final flourish would work too and you would be keen to sign up.
by nollidge on 9/13/12, 7:47 PM
by sequoia on 9/13/12, 8:55 PM
Throw me a bone: show me a bit -at least a video- of what you're offering before asking me to sign up.
by seangransee on 9/13/12, 6:41 PM
by cgil on 9/13/12, 7:53 PM
by markshead on 9/13/12, 6:59 PM
There were probably similar things said about the shift from hand copied books to using printing presses.
by ggreiner on 9/13/12, 7:13 PM
Relying on the user scrolling I don't believe is a good idea, but the rest of it I definitely agree with.
by cws on 9/13/12, 8:09 PM
by Swizec on 9/13/12, 6:53 PM
Then again, I am very much at fault for talking too much and too quickly on twitter.
However, I'm not actually certain what your product does.
by d0m on 9/13/12, 7:26 PM
by digitalengineer on 9/13/12, 7:33 PM
by jff on 9/14/12, 3:06 AM
by evanlivingston on 9/13/12, 10:46 PM