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Rob Says:
February 19th, 2009 at 8:13 am
Three words….
NEEDLESS MASSIVE SUBNAV!!!!
There is big, and there is to big!
Kaj-Ivar Says:
February 19th, 2009 at 12:15 pm
@ Rob: I don’t agree with that! It’s just different, that makes it better than other sites! But that’s just my opinion.
GD Says:
February 19th, 2009 at 2:16 pm
i lurves this site! nice colors and big text yay
Jamie Says:
February 19th, 2009 at 4:20 pm
You lose part of then nav while in 1024×768… and yes, I do understand that this is pretty much a mac only blog, but come on. I agree with rob, the subnav is massive.
Doug Says:
February 19th, 2009 at 5:57 pm
The subnav is way too big.
Plus all of Envato’s products feel the same. They need to have some creativity and create a site that looks different than their Tut+ sites.
Dario Gutierrez Says:
February 19th, 2009 at 6:15 pm
For me is a great design, the big icons are cool.
dudedudeydude Says:
February 20th, 2009 at 2:24 am
Why is this even here? All of Envato’s designs look like cheap templates. They’re good at content, but design-wise, they’re all rubbish.
JohnONolan Says:
February 20th, 2009 at 9:15 am
There’s nothing wrong with the subnav, it’s easy to read, it’s clear, and it’s usable. Or are you saying that all the big corporate brands using the same style of navigation got it totally wrong after their $100k rounds of usability testing?
and dudedudeydude (very creative name btw) what’s with the attitude? All the Envato sites look amazing, I bet you that if they all looked different you would still be here accusing them of not knowing anything about branding by making their sites look too distant from one another.
As it stands I believe it’s a GREAT thing that when you visit one of their sites you can tell by looking at it that it’s an Envato site, what better way for your audience to recognise a network of websites all run by the same parent company?
Japh Says:
February 20th, 2009 at 9:29 am
I’m with John on this one. Surely strong brand recognition is a good thing? I mean the sites have their own individual character, while still representing the core brand / look ‘n’ feel, that’s what you want!
As an aside, I really like the big sub-nav on AppStorm, though maybe it is fractionally too big for me on my laptop with it’s fairly small screensize.
Ronald Lokers Says:
February 20th, 2009 at 9:47 am
I like the simplicity of the design.
Why should you have a graphical overloaded site if you can keep it simple and clean?
I also like the big subnav, you don’t see it much, but that doesn’t mean that it is bad to do!
Ben Says:
February 20th, 2009 at 9:52 am
Well said John. Keeping your collaterals and everything else consistent is vital for building a great brand. If you have good taste you should be able to tell between good and bad designs, Envato’s sites definitely falls under the well designed category.
Branden Silva Says:
February 20th, 2009 at 10:02 am
I think Collis and his team did a great job on this design. It keeps the consistent look of their brand and still provides a subtle taste of difference that is ripened to their brand.
I’m not promoting him or anything but I’ve been reading his Rock Star Freelancer book and it’s a pretty good read.
Rob Says:
February 20th, 2009 at 10:30 am
To be fair the sub nav is awful….I am not usually blunt or harsh with my comments but there is no reason at all for it to be that wide.
On a 1280 x 960 res monitor it throws up a side scroll bar when you hover over ‘How-to’ I don’t mind the visual, but a sub nav should adjust to your browser, not force you to scroll right. I agree with dudey, content is very nice, site design no so great.
mister.dymund Says:
February 20th, 2009 at 11:07 am
I completely agree with JohnONolan on the consistency helping with brand identification. If anything, Mac.AppStorm strays more from the brand than I would have designed it. But it’s still recognizable as an Envato product.
Having said that, on my 1680×1050 desktop screen the subnav is botheringly large. On my 1280×960 laptop screen, I could probably read the subnav from three blocks away! There’s no reason it needs to be as large as the main navigation: it’s quite jarring to behold.
James Says:
February 20th, 2009 at 11:13 am
I have no problem on any resolution. I believe the design and site are great, this one and all of envato’s sites. Similarities are fine between sites on networks, many do it, and its actually a good thing in my opinion. It creates a nice way for users to recognize and realize the sites and the quality they provide.
Don Says:
February 20th, 2009 at 12:03 pm
Loving the blue border on the Digg/Delicious and Score/Related Posts boxes at the bottom of most content pages.
I also agree that Envato has a strong brand with strong consistency. You always know when someone is ripping off Collis’s style.
Also, lol @ dudey for trying to stir shit with his negativity again (as was said in a previous comment, I can totally see him complaining if the site were too different as well!)
simon Says:
February 20th, 2009 at 3:24 pm
Now we have the usual envato fanboys here, welcome =)
dudedudeydude Says:
February 22nd, 2009 at 11:57 am
Me stir shit just for the sake of it? Please.
I have nothing against consistency. That is a cornerstone of branding.
Just because Envato’s sites are consistent doesn’t make them good. They are all consistently rubbish.
David Perel Says:
February 22nd, 2009 at 1:12 pm
I am fan of all Envato’s sites (except Fave Up.. which is getting redesign).
I appreciate their padding (acutally, I think its awesome) and the gradients are good.
I like and don’t like that you can spot Envato from far away. It is cool for consistency but there are other ways to achieve it.
What I always try and do with our company websites is try completely different styles but link them with the color selection. It is clearly working for me and also give us some credibility in the sense of design diversity.
Although lets be honest guys, if Collis Ta’eed puts his mind to it. he could design in almost any style. The guy is good no matter what our friend DDD says.
dudedudeydude Says:
February 23rd, 2009 at 12:55 am
@David
Again, as I said before, I’m fine with people disagreeing with me, but for the purpose of clarity, I will expound on what I said.
If one were to ask me for examples of sites which I thought had great design direction and consistent branding, I would first point out Adobe’s site: each of the individual product pages have, in essence, their own “look”, but maintaining the company “style”.
A few years ago (maybe 1 or 2, I can’t recall now), Ellislab’s sites did this, and did it properly. Although their design direction is now becoming commonplace (it wasn’t so much when they first released it), it still looks good today.
For those unfamiliar with the ellislab family:
(keep in mind that they were one of the early ones who adopted that style).
http://expressionengine.com/
http://www.enginehosting.com/
http://codeigniter.com/
Derek Says:
February 24th, 2009 at 10:35 am
Nav is a little horsey on a monitor, although GREATLY increases usability on iPhone. It seems appropriate considering the audience, but a desktop stylesheet would’ve helped.
Kola Says:
March 1st, 2009 at 9:51 pm
IMO, I think this site looks pretty okay.
@Jamie: you’re on 1024? LMAO
keidi Says:
July 23rd, 2009 at 5:10 am
collis’s job, great, easy to use.
cheap watches Says:
September 25th, 2009 at 2:33 am
The subnav is way too big.
Plus all of Envato’s products feel the same. They need to have some creativity and create a site that looks different than their Tut+ sites.