Non-profit website redesign

[tZ]

I am currently in the process of redesigning the below website

www.amaranthfoundation.org

They are a non profit medical service and community driven orginization.

The below shows a sample layout of my design as yet.

http://pic5.picturetrail.com/VOL90/2128115/7155676/95817553.jpg

Any comments on the good, the bad, the ugly would be appreciated.

Thanks

[Ulysses]

I was just watching The Good The Bad & The Ugly just yesterday. I love watching those Clint Eastwood spaghetti westerns.

Anyways, the site is has a little too much drawing the eye for me. I'd remove the 'a' symbol from the bottom of the page, and the green right-angle you have at the top-right. I also think the contact button shouldn't be isolated at the bottom of the page like that, but rather up on the main menu or even higher (afterall, a charity will be seeking to gain alot of contact through the site - this is probably the most important part of the site, and shoul be considered as such in the design).

Before I give any other comments though ... is the main text of each page going to be crammed into the far-right section of tha page? Is there always goign to be such an overwhelming image to the left (the image with the green border around it), like on this page?

[tZ]

You are correct with the frames.

However, for all the other pages the text will load in the white area shown below. So it will be inverse the home page.

I took some of your suggestions and modified the page as well.

http://pic5.picturetrail.com/VOL90/2128115/7155676/95910601.jpg

[John G]

ack! no green on the right please! (or just not so much of it, wheew hurting my eyes)

Overall I agree with Ulysses. But your navigation bar starts of lined up with that grey bar over the white box and then continues on to float into nothingness (It looked like it was supported by the grey bar and then, weee we're floating in space!).

You might also play around with your grid a bit more and get more things lining up (i.e. "donate" button gets hacked in two by the vertical line below it) things like that.

Also, not sure if the body type should be serif as everything else is san-serif. You probably also have to make the text at least 12 pts. (it might be I just can't tell cause its a reduced picture) for the old people (sigh. ruining all the fun with small text).

Otherwise it's looking to be a really nice page layout.

[tZ]

Update

http://pic5.picturetrail.com/VOL90/2128115/7155676/96107284.jpg

This is were am i heading with the type layout design. The middle is going to be a frame and the type doc. page will load into the window. Any type that breaks the edge of bottom frame will be scrollable.

This would be an example of the layout for the programs page.

I also modified the banners somewhat. Since the page has been created at 800 x 600 pix the whole thing will be visable at once. There for, i figure the contact in bold at bottom sticks out quite well and works with the design.

The type is there for layout purposes only. There for many grammer errors exist which are irrelevent at this time.

[tZ]

http://pic5.picturetrail.com/VOL90/2128115/7155676/96251074.jpg

I think i have finally found the design i want to stick with

Every page will have the same layout and the ype will be in the exact same place. So the eyes do not need to wander each time. I also changed the font to vernada vs. times new roman.

[JPnyc]

Good look. I like it

[benjo]

I like the first design the best. Nice work!

[tZ]

http://pic5.picturetrail.com/VOL90/2128115/7155676/96302738.jpg

Home page design just about finished.

Here is one more for now.

http://pic5.picturetrail.com/VOL90/2128115/7155676/96303771.jpg

I might try to get the images in the banner to change per every different page. Have different images within the banner sqaures.

benjo wrote:
I like the first design the best. Nice work!

I like the first basic layout the most to. However, i do not feel the design is appropriate for the audience it intends to address. There for, I scraped it somewhat in search of a more user friendly and appropriate layout.

[tm_nootgroup]

Looks like your headed in the right direction. I like your life shots of the people, especially the young boy and being able to see his eyes...they tell a story. That type of imagery is very powerful.

[benjo]

Actually I really like your design. It's very orginal and really captures your eyes.

You have some great contrast working for you also the composition is excellent. Very good job man!

When you code it I want to see the code.

[tZ]

After learning dreamweaver is not to friendly - this project took a large turn. Anyway this is the layout i am looking at using now.

Everythning will stay constant in the design except for the text in the right frame.

The main goal i had in the beggining of this project was maintainability and ease of doing so. So everything in the right frame is loaded from a word web page. That way if the foundation needs to change information they can do so quickly and efficently without inturupting the design/layout presence.

comments welcome

http://pic5.picturetrail.com/VOL90/2128115/7155676/96941769.jpg

[Ulysses]

Definately looking better.

Being that this is an international foundation though (at a guess), I think web accessability should be the most important aspect of the site. Now, it does look better in your final design, but be sure your html is friendly, especially if you're outputting from Word.

[tZ]

I think web accessability should be the most important aspect of the site.

and... that would the other one,lol.

Along with ease of navigation and readability.

[Ulysses]

For sure. A site certainly wouldn't be accessibile with bad navigation and ilegible content.

[tZ]

http://studentpages.scad.edu/~tzmije20/site/frameset.htm

Comments welcome

This my first fully functioning web page - yippie,lol!

It is being hosted on my server space untill i gain access to the foundations web space.

thanks everyone for you comments and suggestions... its been quite a trip for that simple "ol" thang,lol.

The flash gallery is quite interesting if nothing else appears of interest.

[jacoby]

Great job tZ! I think it's good that you sticked to some of the ideas you had in the beginning. I must say I liked the green "a" and the big green space you put in one of your first designs, they were singular. I find it so bad when you just removed them when someone told you to do so. But your last design is the best one, no doubt! I just miss the "a" :(