I'm curious, Hackers, what do you think of the reddit redesign?
reddit.com
Bracing for flamewar...
reddit.com
We were very careful to not add elements superfluously. For instance, the [browse] button had long been a scourge of mine. It was almost never clicked on and hid a great sort option (controversy) that was woefully underused as a result. Adding [controversial] to the horiz nav made a great feature (unique to reddit) more accessible and removed a crappy one (the browse button).
That's just one example, but it's my favorite, because I really hated the browse button :)
I was talking more about how each article link is rendered. The links (in the new reddit) take up too much vertical space. The way HN does it (and the way reddit used to do) was much better. Here is the reason: It makes it easy for me to quickly scan the article. Basically have one-line per link. Instead of multiple lines.
Also I don't need to see the score in a larger font. Usually I don't pay attention to the score. The way I decide whether I want to read the article is: (a) the title, (b) where it is linked from (e.g. nytimes.com, etc). Almost everything else gets in the way.
As for the screwed up reddit subscriptions, we're aware of that problem and trying to hack things back together for affected users. In case someone from team reddit hasn't already told you - sorry about that.
I mocked up what it would look like if everything for an entry was vertically centered: http://skitch.com/rrwhite/cm3m/reddit-centered-mod
I'm not sure yet whether I think that's an improvement :)
I think you should put the arrows to the left side, use simpler arrow graphics, and indicate the arrows are linked to the points by making them the same color. Then, make the 1, 2, 3 a lighter color that is there, but more in the background, and delineated in function. You also need to center them between the points and the left edge of the screen. They are slightly too far to the right to my eyes. This would meet your informational requirements while clearing the clutter that is harshing my zen. I think you should keep the change in the screenshot too. The balance is just so much better.
I still think it could use more space between the header and the first links.. and you could do more with the arrows with out over doing it too...
over all though it's a solid upgrade!
It's great that you can compress the link display, however, without the ability to dispose of the Customize your reddit and other sidebar call-out boxes, reddit is now a pain to read on a mobile device.
For what its worth, that used to be my main means of browsing reddit.
Edit: This is not a threat or anything, but I stopped reading Digg back when their site redesign made it impossible to read on a mobile device. Please don't ignore the mobile device users, though we are a minority to consider when deciding on a layout.
No complains about the new layout after all then -- it looks great on desktop browsers.
I see no reason why you changed the design. The old one was fine.
Really?
Seriously?
But no, really though?
The arrows should not be above and below each number. That is horrible. Really.
Also, the domain of the link should be right of "submitted by" because there is space and that way, it would be in a consistent space instead of tacked on wherever the headline ends, and would be yield lines of consistent fonts what seem easier to read to me.
That's what stands out. Your website seems well thought out (besides those things that seem too clashing to me).
I felt pretty strongly about keeping the domain on the same line as the link (it was originally to be put just where you recommend). From a logical perspective, since it's information about the link and not meta information about the submission (who submitted it and to what 'category') it made sense to keep it on the link line. More importantly I felt that there was a natural tendency to read the link title and then immediately scan the domain as a final check before one clicks on the link. It felt much more natural to have that as one statement [link] [domain] than to involve scanning to another line [link] -scan-> [domain] even if it was consistently placed on that next line.
The way they look. Your assessment of the problem is good. You gotta connect the points with the arrows. BUT, the way you does it looks horrible. I don't know how else to say it. FSJ says "It harshes my zen" and that's about the best I can do. Like, in just this one little corner, I'm flashing back to AOL in 1995 or any of a million badly designed games from windows 95. You have a good grasp of your problem, you just need a cleaner looking solution.
I actually think having up and down arrows is too much, but I doubt that's the kind of feedback you are looking for.
If you keep the domain where it is you should make the fonts clash less. Make that look the same as the other stuff on the line. Then it flows nice. It doesn't flow nice when the font is the same as the metadata but you aren't treating it like metadata (I think).
It's obvious you've thought through the redesign. Is nice to see signs of intelligence!