Web Designers! CB7tuner.com needs your help!

[deevergote]

CB7tuner.com needs a front page. The clean opening graphic that's been there in it's various incarnations since the beginning is great, but it's outlived it's purpose. Creating a front page will eliminate some of the clutter of the forum, and organize some of the more important information a bit better than it is now.

The only problem is that I am absolutely terrible when it comes to webpage design! I can do basic tables and stuff, but nothing fancy.

So, I need help! I'm asking anyone with some web deisgn skill to try their hand at a main page layout. I'm looking for something fairly clean and simple, not too complex. I want it to have the same feel as the board here, for the most part... perhaps a little more going on. I'll need a section for news and update anouncements, a small section for the Accord of the Month, a spot for important links (like engine swap options and stuff), and a spot for other random links (like the cb7tuner bookstore)

If you've got some time and skill, it would be greatly appreciated! I don't know how many ideas to expect... However, whoever's design I go with will be given full credit on the main page. If you have your own web design homepage, I will link to it below the main title graphic.

PM or email me if you have any questions. I'm not too sure exactly how I'm expecting things to look (which is why I can't just do it myself...) so the details are a little shaky. Ask me whatever you need, and try whatever you think works.

Thanks!

[palinix]

This is a good idea, even though it is somewhat different to what we have become accustomed to (for those of us who have been around a while). And yes, I also think that the opening graphic that links to the forum is pretty much outdated. I actually have the site bookmarked to the forum itself so I won't have to click on the image every single time I want to get onto the forums.

You may have already considered this, but IMO the easiest way to implement this would be to configure your forums package (vbulletin) to display the page you have described (news, announcements, link to the forums + other links) as the index page. I believe a setup like this is vbulletins default configuration.

You will be able to setup different modules on the page like a section for links, a section for news, a space for information and so on and ofcourse a link to the forum through some of vbulletins forum configuration menus.

In this way the index page will have the same feel as the forums and it'll all be part of one system. Also, there would be no need to create the starting page from scratch, which would be a little more work than just creating a layout... a system would have to be setup that allowed easy updates and posting of information.

here's a good example

vbulletin index page
http://www.vbulletin.com/

As I said before you may have considered all this already. Let me know what you think.

[DilutedImage]

Work is pretty hectic right now, but if you can wait until after the MLB All Star Game, then I'd be happy to build something for you. You can check out some of my work at colegrp.com (though the site is VERY outdated).

[Maple50175]

deev yeah I can help you. I mean I do have my associates in web design

Talk to me on aim and maybe I can come up with someone for you

[palinix]

Any word on this

[Phempa]

I'd say use a portal. I does everything you mentioned, plus it's 100% integrated with the forum (login, fonts, colors)

maybe check out MKPortal?

This is MK Portal with vBulletin
http://www.mkportal.it/mkportal/modules/docs/index.php

[ACCLUDE91]

yeah Phempa's got a good idea. Just get one or two people to help with graphics and basic integration. I'm willing to help any way I can, but I know there's many other members with a lot more knowledge and experience in this than me.

[sublime]

i'm looking for a side job, let me know!

[deevergote]

I like the Portal idea, Phempa, thanks! I'll have to play around with that and see what I can do...

[cp[mike]]

oy, forum portal i hate that on AT... but ill deal, ill just have to add the bypass link to my favs

i guess you guys dont like my opening graphic anymore, eh? hehehe

[deevergote]

I like the graphic, but I think we could make better use of that main page. The portal isn't set in stone, but that's the idea I want. Basically, a main page with:

Announcements
common swap lists
Accord of the month
the cb7tuner.com store (decals, shirts, books, keychains... we have enough to have a page, rather than a thread)
And a few other things

I want to keep the crisp, clean look that Steve started, but with more useful info. The graphic is nice, but there's better things to do with that space now!

[That1guyN8]

oy, forum portal i hate that on AT... but ill deal, ill just have to add the bypass link to my favs

i guess you guys dont like my opening graphic anymore, eh? hehehe

lol I can't remember the last time I saw it. I go straight to the forum board and skip the opening picture.

[deevergote]

Most people do bypass the main graphic. I usually do as well. My usercp is my homepage! I have my watched forums and subscribed threads at my fingertips in one click.

Still, if the main page had some useful info, people might actually go there. It'd be better to organize everything important on one main page, rather than strewn about various sticky threads in our maze of forums.

[Accord R33]

You dont need a pre-built portal to integrate the forum. its really not that hard to extract stuff out of the sql database.

[cp[mike]]

You dont need a pre-built portal to integrate the forum. its really not that hard to extract stuff out of the sql database.

id do it that way too, its as simple as a single query... but apparently manually coding things like that is becoming a thing of the past