I found an article criticizing Linux Mint website appearance

[witzel]

I was looking for Linux Mint related articles in Google, Bing, Duckduckgo to see if there's something interesting and I found an article, as it seems, from a Brazilian website criticizing Linux Mint website and saying it's a meme in the community due to its ugliness.

https://diolinux.com.br/linux/linux-min ... press.html
(Yeah, unfortunately, it's not written in English but it can easily be translated)

Is it just me or I care more about the content rather the appearance? Ok, I agree Linux Mint website is not the most beautiful site, but to be honest, it's not something that annoy me.

What are you thoughts about the subject?

[DAMIEN1307]

a Brazilian website criticizing Linux Mint website and saying it's a meme in the community due to its ugliness.

What are you thoughts about the subject?

Hi witzel,

My thoughts are the same as yours...I like it just the way it is...I dont need or want the "Bling" or "Pizazz" appearance that others are advocating for...I like it useful, easy to navigate, etc.

There was a post here, also from Brasil, on March 31st 2021, that apparantly, was either from the author of that ariticle you saw, or was read by an individual and that, he/she, decided to be a "Parrot" and denigrated the "appearance" of our forum format based on what they had read in the Brasilian article...lol...DAMIEN

viewtopic.php?f=29&t=346308

[JoeFootball]

What are you thoughts about the subject?

It works and it's intuitive to use, so I couldn't care less if its visual design hasn't been updated.

Edit: "If I was stranded on an island and the only way to get off the island was to make a pretty UI, I’d die there."
-- Linus Torvalds

[t42]

Isn't it strange that those who can paint trying to dominate those who into system programming and computers...

[Mick-Cork]

There'll be those who question why this topic keeps getting repeated, but the fact that it does is a clue that something's not quite right.

I'm on the record as saying the LM website (not the forum) needs a refresh. Contrary to some opinions, the navigation is not good and there are other areas that would benefit with improvement. Summary here: viewtopic.php?p=1914477#p1914477

The LM blog doesn't seem to provoke any negatives, so in my mind that probably wouldn't be a bad colour palette that could be replicated on the website (and on the forum) thereby consolidating a single identity across all three.

Edit: I see in the comments in the blog, March Monthly News article (https://blog.linuxmint.com/?p=4049/#comment-194514), that Clem still has it on the agenda to implement a web redesign. That's a positive IMO.

Edit 2: With the addition of the poll on this thread, I've just voted yes. I think the poll question is wrong though. The appearance is less important than the navigation and content. The only proviso to that though is that whatever the appearance it should be broadly consistent across the forum, blog and website. Here's some mockups just to demonstrate my thoughts:

[cliffcoggin]

What are you thoughts about the subject?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H4GUuSS2qDg

[witzel]

a Brazilian website criticizing Linux Mint website and saying it's a meme in the community due to its ugliness.

What are you thoughts about the subject?

Hi witzel,

My thoughts are the same as yours...I like it just the way it is...I dont need or want the "Bling" or "Pizazz" appearance that others are advocating for...I like it useful, easy to navigate, etc.

There was a post here, also from Brasil, on March 31st 2021, that apparantly, was either from the author of that ariticle you saw, or was read by an individual and that, he/she, decided to be a "Parrot" and denigrated the "appearance" of our forum format based on what they had read in the Brasilian article...lol...DAMIEN

viewtopic.php?f=29&t=346308

Wow I wasn't aware of that, but from what I've seen, the article about Mint is just the tip of the iceberg, there's a whole video about it and also they've a forum as well where they criticize it more deeply as you can see from here and here. I've never seen so much criticism about such subject.

Interesting or not, I saw people criticizing Mint for many reasons over the years, but the website or forum (as you have said) it's completely new stuff for me. People do often criticize Mint because of the snap episode, like this video or because the DE being similar to Windows in some way. All the rest is kinda new to me.

[Neil Edmond]

I don't care about how the website looks. It's functional, and easy to read. That's all that matters to me.
I often visit other OS and hardware forums, and many of them are not nearly as easy to read and use as this Mint forum. The users of those forums may like them, and think they look good. And, I don't know, they may look pretty and/or colorful, or whatever. But, give me an easy to read and navigate forum every time, and I'll be happy.

[marlene]

By the time that the website works as it should do, there is no need to change it.
Who says that the modern cms work after all??!

Wordpress is a mess of a cms. I used to have my own website on wordpress and I switched to Classic Press that is a fork of Wordpress. due to the problems that WP had. And I explain the reasons here:


https://www.marialenasarris.com/migrati ... press-cms/

[majpooper]

This again ? . . . . . . boring

[Mick-Cork]

By the time that the website works as it should do, there is no need to change it.
Who says that the modern cms work after all??!

Wordpress is a mess of a cms. I used to have my own website on wordpress and I switched to Classic Press that is a fork of Wordpress. due to the problems that WP had. And I explain the reasons here:


https://www.marialenasarris.com/migrati ... press-cms/

That Gutenberg editor is a nightmare. There's a plugin that allows you to revert to the classic editor, however that really doesn't let WP off the hook. I think it's been downloaded in excess of 5m times which tells you what developers think about it!

Having said that, I think this thread is about the LM website look and feel, not necessarily the architecture used to deliver it.

[Mick-Cork]

This again ? . . . . . . boring

There's only one way to make it go away

[marlene]

This again ? . . . . . . boring

Hold on. Do you really think that I bothered to read all the posts of this thread? I just replied to the OP.

[marlene]

That Gutenberg editor is a nightmare. There's a plugin that allows you to revert to the classic editor, however that really doesn't let WP off the hook. I think it's been downloaded in excess of 5m times which tells you what developers think about it!

Having said that, I think this thread is about the LM website look and feel, not necessarily the architecture used to deliver it.

Excuse me but the OP gave link to an article that mentions WP as an alternative to the current CMS, ( whatever that is). It is not and the migration from any other cms to wordpress is a pain in ... you know were!

I personally consider WP as the worst of options.

The plugin will be supported until the end of 2021. The big fun will start after this date

[majpooper]

This again ? . . . . . . boring

Hold on. Do you really think that I bothered to read all the posts of this thread? I just replied to the OP.

Well now we are even - I've read the two that quoted me - two to two.

Seriously though . . . . If folks hate the LM web site so much then why don't they volunteer to create a new one ? Then we could vote on the new web site proposals.

[marlene]

Well now we are even - I've read the two that quoted me - two to two.

Seriously though . . . . If folks hate the LM web site so much then why don't they volunteer to create a new one ? Then we could vote on the new web site proposals.

In Wordpress??!!!

It is obvious that these kids are interested more about the looks and not the functionality. And Wordpress is now all about this of course. Blocks and appearances ( widgets and flashy things) but if you have to publish a serious amount of content... that's is ...you are done..! WP has become the ultimate counter productivity platform because its team mixed up the page builder with the text editor.

Wait to see what is going to happen when the anti Gunteberg plugin will stop being supported!

[AZgl1800]

I could give a Rat's Behind about what that idjit thinks.

this forum is perfect, just like it is.

[Mick-Cork]

There's an interesting aspect to all this in that whenever someone mentions a LM website redesign, some automatically think it's a reference to the forum. In a sense this shows how far off the radar the actual main website is, especially for existing LM users.

I totally get this. In terms of engagement I visit the forum far more frequently than the blog, and the blog far more frequently than the main LM website. This is probably the most natural evolution for LM users. It's also probably why the subject is seen as boring in that it has little relevance here. There is very little information on the main site that would be useful for those already using the OS.

In essence, the main website should be looked at as if you landed on it accidentally. You're not an existing user, you might not even be a Linux user, and you might not even be thinking about becoming a Linux user. Now ask what the main site should communicate and what it should provide?

Then think about what it should look like!

[karlchen]

Hello, Mick-Cork.

I really like and agree to the request to keep all Mint related websites stylistically together: Linux Mint homepage, Linux Mint blog, Linux Mint community page, Linux Mint forum. This is why I like your mockups .

Basically I also agree with what you stated about the Linux Mint homepage and its content.

Perhaps in future, when users come up and tell that the Linux Mint websites need revamping, instead of simply turning the idea as such, we should ask
+ which areas they have in mind: homepage, blog, community page, forum
+ what precisely it is that needs revamping

Nonetheless, it will never be possible to come to an agreement on any design change here in the forum:
+ we are forum users, we do not own or manage the various Linux Mint websites
+ we will never be able to agree on one specific design. There will always be as many different points of view as there are participants in any design discussion.

Cheers,
Karl

[lsemmens]

Maybe we should start a thread saying "I found an article Praising Linux Mint appearance". For the record critizing (sic.) is spelt "criticising".

I'm not criticising, I'm just criticising.