Welcome to MotoringFile 2.0

db Nov 7th, 2005 Link

Congrats on the upgrade! Looking good!

Kyle Nov 7th, 2005 Link

Everything looks good! Except…

change the font back to the old one!!

Gabe Nov 7th, 2005 Link

The font hasn’t changed except for the heads of each story. And even that should be pretty sublte.

Allan Nov 7th, 2005 Link

Wow, this really is a subtle change.

JaCe Nov 7th, 2005 Link

Wow good work… I don’t even notice the difference, except for the URL style… which I think changed?

Top work on making a layout/theme which looks exactly like before!

Edge Nov 7th, 2005 Link

Nice job!

Gabe – suggested edit: visable -> visible

Ian C. Nov 7th, 2005 Link

Gabe, have you set up forwarding from all the old URLs to the new – or are all the links into MF broken now?

Gabe Nov 7th, 2005 Link

Links should be fine.

David Bunting Nov 7th, 2005 Link

Nice work guys. As always MF sets a standard for clean website design that others would be wise to take note of.

bipto Nov 7th, 2005 Link

On my Mac using Firefox, the new headline font is noticeably different. More crowded and cramped feeling than before. I much prefer the last font (whatever it was).

Other then that, thanks for the awesome site. I never miss a day…

Gabe Nov 7th, 2005 Link

The font hasn’t changed. It’s just been kerned slightly.

Avitor Nov 7th, 2005 Link

The body text is too small, I’ve got really, really good eyesight and it gets to even me after a while, have you considered something slightly larger?

Josh Wardell Nov 7th, 2005 Link

Great job, Gabe. The fact that everything looks the same and works shows just how much work you had to do behind the scenes.

GSKChicago Nov 7th, 2005 Link

Nice job Gabe! It’s great to see that you are always striving to stay as cutting edge and fresh as possible. Too many sites out there, Blog and non-Blog, sit on designs for far too long and become stale. Kudos on the site as it is always my first stop in the morning.

Jon Nov 7th, 2005 Link

Avitor,

if the text is too small, you can simply change the text size in YOUR browser…

It doesn’t look any smaller to me. Gabe, as always, good job.

Ian C. Nov 7th, 2005 Link

When I click on “continued” from the main page, it used to take me to the top of the full story – today (for the GP analysis at least), it takes me part way down – to where it “continues”.

Is that deliberate? I realize that I should be reading the first bit on the main page, then continuing – but I have a habit of clicking “continue” then reading the whole story. Now I have to scroll up to get back to the top

Gabe Nov 7th, 2005 Link

Ian – this is the default way WP deals with the continued link. We’ll be changing it back soon.

db Nov 7th, 2005 Link

The body text is too small, I’ve got really, really good eyesight and it gets to even me after a while, have you considered something slightly larger?

In Firefox at least (all flavors) you can press [ctrl +] to make the text larger or [ctrl -] to make the text smaller. This will only work on sites that have good code and follow the rules, much like Gabe has done with MF.

Bad Burro Nov 7th, 2005 Link

Gabe -

Is the text color for your name (in the comments section) the same color of the new JCW GP???

Just wonderin…

GMINI Nov 7th, 2005 Link

i’m frightened. (just wanted to re-login)

Gabe Nov 7th, 2005 Link

Is the text color for your name (in the comments section) the same color of the new JCW GP???

That’s just the link colors we’ve always used. Your name is blue when you list a website within the registration. Since my name’s link is MotoringFile, it appears visited (lighter) since you’ve obviously visited it :)

Chris M Nov 7th, 2005 Link

Gabe,

For me, the old kerning on the headlines was better. It was a little more laid back, urbane, and smooth. One of the reasons I was attracted to the site was the headline typeface!

The new kerning is too hyper or too cute or something like that. Too 90s.

Just my opinion, of course.

• Chris M

Gabe Nov 7th, 2005 Link

For me, the old kerning on the headlines was better. It was a little more laid back, urbane, and smooth. One of the reasons I was attracted to the site was the headline typeface! The new kerning is too hyper or too cute or something like that. Too 90s. Just my opinion, of course.

LOL – i would say the exact opposite. The previous headlines were straight Arial (yes, the low rent Helvetica). Now the headlines are kerned (as little as is possible) and are a slightly larger version of Arial. If you follow web-trends (especially the design related sites), you’ll note that this is currently one of the most popular design trends out there.

And I have to say… I’ve been waiting to kern the hell out of this site for a long time :)

Chris M Nov 7th, 2005 Link

Funny how different our perceptions are. But it’s your website, Gabe, so kern to your heart’s content :-)

I remember visiting the UK for the first time in the 1970s, and noticing immediately that the typefaces on ads and public signs were much more kerned than their counterparts in the US. So perhaps this is fitting for a site devoted to an English icon like the Mini.

David Nov 8th, 2005 Link

Looks great. Loads lots faster in my browser. No complaints here. Nice job!

Ian C. Nov 8th, 2005 Link

Todays comments: Maybe now that the MINI event has gone, we can return to clicking anywhere on the banner to get back to the home page?

Also, the font today seems too big – it overflows untidily to the second line on todays top story “MINI Plant Construction to Cause Shortage?” (not on the main page, but in the individual page)

Gabe Nov 8th, 2005 Link

Maybe now that the MINI event has gone, we can return to clicking anywhere on the banner to get back to the home page?

Not quite yet.. :)

Also, the font today seems too big – it overflows untidily to the second line on todays top story “MINI Plant Construction to Cause Shortage?” (not on the main page, but in the individual page)

Yes, the title font has gotten bigger on each page. This is part of the new look all around the site. The titles will usually just wrap to a second line now due to the change.

DanC Nov 8th, 2005 Link

It was also nice to know who the author was for each entry. That seems to have been omitted with this update. But organizing the posts into the appropriate “sections” is nice.

Gabe Nov 8th, 2005 Link

It was also nice to know who the author was for each entry. That seems to have been omitted with this update. But organizing the posts into the appropriate “sections” is nice.

Dan – the author is listed at the end of the article on ach article page (instead of on the main page).

blalor Nov 8th, 2005 Link

Google ads in the RSS feeds, eh? Hrm.

I’m not trying to pick a fight here, but the fonts have definitely changed; I’m using Safari 2.0.2 on OS X 10.4.3 and I think the fonts are bigger across the board, most noticeably where each comment starts (“Gabe Nov 8th, 2005 Link”).

Is this what you’re seeing?

Oh, and a comment preview would be nice. ;-)

Gabe Nov 8th, 2005 Link

Comment previews are hopefully coming.

Yes that’s the correct size (that type looks pretty damn good on a Mac eh?). Call it MotoringFile eXtreme! if you like :) Again just trying to give the site a slightly more modern look. Larger headers, subheads, more kerning, more varied colors within the text, etc etc….

Angelo Nov 9th, 2005 Link

Gabe,

I ran into one minor problem. The Continued link no longer appears as a link on my BlackBerry. I have to scroll to the article title to see the rest of the article. Hope that can be fixed.

Angelo

Gabe Nov 9th, 2005 Link

Wow… that’s a strange one. I’ll look into it. Thanks Angelo.

Gabe Nov 9th, 2005 Link

For those that emailed me, yes the header image is no longer rotating. We hope to get it working soon.

Updated: Fixed

Zeke Nov 11th, 2005 Link

Congrats. Now you need to start installing some plug-ins (ie. gravatars)…

Just kidding.

(?)

MotoringFile » Archive » Welcome to MotoringFile 3.0 Nov 22nd, 2006 Link

[...] Welcome to the new MotoringFile.com. This new version of the site comes a little over one year since our big move to the Wordpress platform and is well over a year in the planning. In fact MF 3.0 represents the biggest visual changes to the site since the summer of 2004. [...]