Strategy – Page 2

Don’t Lose Your Visitors: Better 404 Pages

March 4, 2007 By Devlounge

Error pages control a lot more of our destiny than you may think. If a visitor has the unfortunate coincidence of reaching an error page on your site, chances of them attempting to access the page again are slim to none, especially if they were referred to the page from a direct link. How can you prevent this? Don’t let your error pages, especially 404, go un-noticed.

A lonely 404 leads to a lonely site

Every site is going to face a 404 at some point. No matter how well you manage your links, you can not control how outside sources will link in to your site, and what visitors will attempt to access. Unfortunately, with every time a visitor reaches an error on your site, it makes you look bad, even if the visitor was referred to the page by another person or site who was wrong with their linking.

For example, I manage all the Devlounge links as best as possible, but for the month of February 2007 alone, I had 12,279 hits to just 404 pages! Upon further inspection, many of this bad links came from people trying to go directly to pages on Devlounge, like the prebuilt page, simply by going to www.devlounge.net/prebuilt. Luckily for myself, my 404 page contained links back to the homepage, articles, and interview indexes. And that brings up the whole point of custom 404 pages – keeping your traffic.

Don’t let that traffic escape

If you leave your error pages alone, visitors are going to leave by the flock-full every time they run into the dead end that is an error page. The easiest and simplest way of keeping people from hitting that back button or closing the tab is to put together informative and helpful error pages that lead visitors back into the site, and not away from it.

The route you take to do this depends entirely on how you want to go about your error pages. You may want to take a sarcastic approach to error pages, to give visitors something to laugh at while redirecting them back to your homepage. Or you may want to take a more straightforward approach, like we’ve done, in which case you point out all the most important / significant sections of your site.

Some things to keep in mind when creating error pages:

Users don’t give a shit that they’re on an error page, so simply saying “404” isn’t going to cut it, because at this point they’ve already figured out they’re not on the page they wanted to get to. Lead them back to the site with an automatic redirect after a few sections or a link.
Just automatic redirects don’t work either. If you are redirecting all your visitors back to your homepage when they access a missing page, good for you. But if you’re not telling them they reached a 404 or some other kind of error, how are they supposed to know why the page just redirected to your homepage? Many visitors would then just go back and try the page again, so make sure some how or another you give them a heads up that they hit an error!
Keep advertisements out! If your error page is not styled to match your site design, than do not include ads. Visitors already annoyed with a missing page, don’t make it seem like you’re trying to capitalize on their misfortunes now.

And some good things to include in error pages that don’t automatically redirect:

Archives – If you’re running a blog or any kind of site with a large collection of posts / news, include an archives list for visitors to browse.
Search box – If you’re in the same situation as above, include a search so visitors can maybe find the page / post they were looking for to begin with.
Site logo – If you are not styling the error pages to match the site design, be sure to include a logo or something so visitors know they are indeed on the right site.
Small site description – Let visitors know what’s up. Also helps if search engines grab a wrong url for a few days that may be leading new visitors in for the first time, only to discover that what they were hoping to see isn’t there.

Tying the site and error pages together

When designing error pages, there are really two ways in which you can display them without annoying the visitor. Either (A) incorporate the error pages into the current sites design or (B) use a blank slate (for example, plain white background) with an error message or graphic and required links. Doing something “in between” can just become rather annoying.

Most of us do not need clinics on how to setup custom error pages. It can be done in Cpanel or just by using a few extra lines in the htaccess and creating the pages themselves. There are plenty of tutorials on the subject out there, so I don’t really believe it bears repeating. It’s not that we don’t know how to setup error pages, it’s just that many times the importance of error pages goes un-noticed.

A Quick(er) Error Fix for WP

If your using WP, you can use the Dunstan Error Page plugin to quickly turn your 404 error page into a much more informational and convenient page for visitors when they run into it. The Dunstan Error plugin allows visitors to submit an error report, send feedback, and view the latest 5 posts. This adds news functionality quickly and easily and requires little work to get up and running.

Simple steps for keeping your misplaced visitors

So in the end, it’s up to you whether or not you want to take a few moments to customize your error pages or if you’d rather have host and browser default messages displayed to visitors instead. Believe me when I say this, custom error pages are a lot more beneficial than they may seem, and they can be extremely helpful in keeping visitors on your site.

Now it’s your turn. Have you seen a really informational or fun error page? Leave the link in the comments, and some of them will be attached and featured in this article later in the week.

Devlounge Year in Review

December 22, 2006 By Devlounge

This past year was a long one for us, and we went threw many changes a long the way. As we near the end of 2006 and the beginning of 2007, we reflect on how Devlounge started and got to the point we’re at today, as well as what you can expect from us in the future. Not only that, but we also want your thoughts on how we can improve Devlounge in the upcoming year.

The beginning

It was almost a year ago when Prash first came to me with the need to start a new project. We contemplated for a while what field we should try to enter, and thought about various options for different projects we had in mind. In the end we settled on building a designer and developer resource filled with a collection of articles and interviews written in-house and by guest contributors.

It was in January that we purchased the domain you’ve all come to know as devlounge.net. With a “coming soon” splash and newsletter signup form up for a few months (very web 2.0ish) we worked on the first Devlounge release, which officially went live in April 2006.

Our very first article was a guest contributed article by Paul Stamatiou on April 3rd. The article was a modification of one of his own previously published on his blog, but it provided the spark that would lead to an overall very successful year in Devlounge land.

The Year

In the six months we’ve been around, we expanded fairly rapidly and built up a strong collection of articles. I can’t thank my staff team enough, which, only about a month ago, went through a significant revamp adding some talented individuals who are sure to provide some great articles in the year to come.

We also went through 3 different redesigns in the short 6 month period, and many of the changes came fairly quickly. Only a month after Devlounge 1 was released, an updated version hit screens everywhere, eventually giving way to the design you see here now which took over in September / October. Work is never done though, as I’ve been tweaking things here and there week in and week out, hoping to improve usability and organization with every change / update.

But it wasn’t just about giving you something to read, but also giving you something to play with. Over 2006 we released a total of 3 WordPress themes; Prebuilt, Wave, and Iceburgg, all of which can be picked up here. Staff members also did their share, which Ronalfy releasing Custom Reading Width, a unique script that you’ll only find here.

The Year Ahead

We have a lot of plans for 2007, but much of it depends upon you, the readers. We want to know what you want to see more of, less of, and just general things we can do to make Devlounge a better place. Please leave your thoughts in the comments are reading this article, because all your feedback would be greatly appreciated!

Some of the things we already have planned:

More Interviews – While our articles database grew fairly well, we really lacked in the interviews category. We really plan on stepping this up in 2007, so designers beware – you could be getting interview invites in your inbox from us. We already have a few planned for the first few months of ’07, and we’ll try to get as many as we can out each month throughout the year.

More Code Related Topics – We also intend to find a few more staff members to up the contributions to the code related topics such as php, ruby on rails, and javascript. We’ll try to have this straightened out within the next month so we can really expand our article coverage in 2007.

Contests that Work – Believe it or not, we did a few contests this past year, but with ~~not much~~ no success. That will all change in ’07. We’ll start with small scale prices that have high values, such as advertising here on Devlounge, Mint licenses, flickr pro accounts, etc, and than hopefully we’ll expand to much more valuable prize packs. If you have any ideas about what kind of contests you’d like to see, let us know below.

More for the community – And as always, you can expect an array of new articles and community givebacks, including more wordpress themes, psds, fonts, etc.

Now it’s your turn

Leave your feedback below. It really helps!

Killing the Pattern Maker

November 23, 2006 By Devlounge

Recently I was hit with a comment I found hard to swallow: “All your designs look the same”. I re-read the comment a few times while I thought of a witty response, before closing the browser and telling myself to forget about it, and then deciding it’d make for one hell of a hot topic issue to bring up in an article. So here it is, the question designers have to ask themselves over and over again when creating new pieces – “Is this too similar to…”

Who is the pattern maker?

First you have to realize who the “pattern maker” is. The pattern maker is ourselves. Each one of us does things a certain way, and one we begin to do things one way, we tend to stick too it if it works and start fresh if it doesn’t. This is evident in design (finding one style or niche and sticking with it), music (a band tries to reinvent itself after a flopping album), sports (the ones your surrounded by as a kid tend to be the ones you pick up on as you grow), and etc, etc. “Patterns” literally control our lives, and many times it’s hard to break away from them.

So patterns + design equals?

As a designer, many times you fall into “ruts” or a consistent way of making sites. A lot of times, this happens after one design really gets high praise from the design community. Because it turns out well, you tend to pull and re-pull elements from that one design and re-use them in multiple instances and all different designs.

It’s not just a select few people who reuse specific elements on multiple designs either. Many times, those who browse the web frequently can spot designs and the people behind them without and knowing, simply by picking up similar tendencies that a design may show. Even such small things as how gradients are used, fonts, colors, etc can hint at who designed a specific site. For example, when I first saw the Flock site design, without knowing Brian Veloso designed it, I instantly picked up that it was done in “his style”. Does that mean he doesn’t show variety in his designs? Absolutely not. It just meant that I could pick out minor things here and there that I personally could attribute to him.

Stop comparing

So how do we stop ourselves from reusing some of those design elements over and over again? Many times, it’s just too hard to stop. Like trained dogs, some things are just stuck with us. Every time I bust open photoshop and put together a design, any time it has two columns are start saying to myself “It looks to similar to Devlounge”, and I end up forming a design with the same type of structure; logo, header, nav, two columns, footer. But that’s how I’ve been designing for ages; even before I knew anything about web standards and all the new “trends” of today, I was always setting sites up the same way since that days of Homestead WYSIWYG site builders.

And sometimes, even when you want to try to break out of that pattern, you get the clients who want you to design their project because it was your style that got them interested in the first place. I’d really love to be able to put together grunge style sites for bands again, but every requests I’ve got recently is a request for a design with the same “style” as Devlounge. Your hands get tied behind your back, and your forced to reuse some things here and there to give them that effect.

Let the pattern maker live, but let him rest too

The best bet is to limit what design elements you reuse and try to find available work that will allow you the space to experiment and try something new. I myself have to face the fact that anytime I put together a two column layout I’m going to see some reference to Devlounge, even it’s it’s the slightest bit, because I look at Devlounge every day and the setup is now burned in my head. But there’s millions of two column designs out there, so why should I compare myself to myself all the design. You’re going to find yourself adapting to a certain style and reusing it, but don’t let it phase you too much. If you designs are different, don’t let an odd comment bring you down.

The Evolution of Design

October 29, 2006 By Devlounge

Much like everything else in the world, web design and development evolves a lot more frequently then you think. Yes, I’m sure all you keep hearing is the emergence of xhtml and use of css, but in fact the evolution is much more than that. Throughout this article will be hitting up some old versions of two popular sites – Neowin and Sitepoint. We’ll compare their old designs and coding to their current day states, and how exactly they’ve changed with the times.

Let’s Start at the Core

In order to survive on the net, it’s important to update your strategies and techniques to modern day versions of the same thing. If not, chances are you’ll start to lose visitors as your site ages and you stay trapped in the past. Don’t believe that design and development really evolve? Think again.

Using the lovely Internet Wayback Machine, we’ll travel back in time to 2001 and explore some of the most successful and well known design and tech related sites.

Neowin – 2001

Neowin has long been known as an excellent portal destination containing all types of tech related news and exclusive features. In 2001 Neowin only covered tech news with portal articles and a forum. The site design was simple and bland, but was right in line with many of the other forum based portals on the net. Let’s take a look at the Neowin design in 2001:

Neowin - Circa 2001

Note: Some images are missing due to IWBM not having them on file.

A look at the source reveals tables.

Sitepoint – 2001

Sitepoint has been around for a good 5+ years as well. As a designer and developer resource, it’s always been important for them to be setting the tone for fellow designer and developers. Here’s what sitepoint looked like in 2001:

Sitepoint - Circa 2001

Their source code also includes tables as far as the eye can see.

Sitepoint looked pretty good, but did you notice the code for both Sitepoint and Neowin? Tables! And the problem is – well, there is no problem, because at the time, putting together complex layout sites using tables were leading the way for up and coming developers.

On the next page we’ll show you Neowin and Sitepoint today, and how they’ve changed their ways to keep up with today’s standards.

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What Inspires Design?

October 8, 2006 By Devlounge

Design inspiration comes from all around us: nature, music, personal and public events, and the lives around us. Everyone of us takes our design experience and builds it from the multitude of different places we gain inspiration from.

A connection of life on screens

It always seems to me that I can be sitting in various places and just envisioning things by looking around. As it is at this very moment I’m typing this, the sun is setting behind a few trees, causing a minor glare on my screen. It seems as if as the sun fades away, the upcoming winter fades into view – yet, all I can think about is months and two seasons from now when it will be June.

Life on Screens - The true inspiration source

When you think about, design is nothing more than what we each envision, and many times, it’s our own lives and personal characteristics spilled onto a digital canvas. Those of us that like simplicity and a clean, organized, order to life will output the same in site and graphic design.

True tendencies tend to show up, like someone having disorganized and messy code probably can say and see the same about their workspace.

Habits

Habits come out on graphics and in code. Once you do something one way and you have success at it, you tend to continue doing into the same way into you run into a problem.

For me, this includes starting every design with a few photoshop mocks, then going right into code. Before, I would spend countless amount of time in photoshop trying to perfect the ultimate layout before even trying the code, because coding intimidated me. Now? Exactly the opposite. I spend little time in photoshop, and head right into code a lot sooner, because I know I can continue to work things out and make changes without having to represent it graphically.

Habits are used even when we don't know it

Will it ever change? I’m not sure. Since I made my own changeover from being a photoshop dominated designer to dealing mostly with the code itself, I learned more about coding than I had ever known, and I quickly improved my coding time, therefore I’ve eliminated the use for photoshop as often as I had previously used it.

Habits mold a designer a lot, because one they settle in, they seem to stay that way.

Pulling elements from nature

If you’ve ever seen any of my designs besides Devlounge, especially most of the Astereo designs over the past year, you probably noticed a recurring theme in all of them, being ocean and a “summer-like” lifestyle.

Even though my location gives me only three truly warm months (June-August), I tend to convey a summery feeling in most of my designs, even if it’s the middle of January. With the summer being my favorite season, for reasons from being out of school to just having the ability to get out every day and enjoy life, I seem to be unable from stopping myself from including some kind of warm weather element in personal design.

Nature provides daily inspiration all around us.

Nature can do a lot more than inspire graphics themselves. By simply looking at things around you, you can pull inspiration for layouts of sites, natural color schemes, and much more. Looking outside is a good place to start if you’re lacking inspiration.

Music and sounds

I myself seem to be able to pull plenty of inspiration out of music. I could probably count the amount of times I haven’t had music playing while sketching, design, and coding all on one hand. For me, it’s just a must. This is because, no matter what kind of music you may like, their always seems to be songs that can match your mood or situation you happen to be in. It’s like music is the connector between life moods & events and design. By simply hearing thoughts expressed in sound, you can turn it into a piece of digital or canvas art.

Sound + Music + Emotion

Inspiration built from the ground up

So, where does all this leave you? It leaves you back at square one – you. If you’re struggling to create something new and unique, try focusing on yourself more and what everyone else says is good design. Inspiration is built individual, based on many factors, because everyone sees inspiration in something else. Sit back, play some music, and take a good look around, and find something to get your creativity going again.

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