[wp-hackers] WP 2.7 menu sidebar

[Jen Simmons]

+1 on NOT changing "Design" to "Templates".

Remember, many, many people who use WordPress to post content have  
*no* idea how to install or configure WP. I build sites all the time  
for clients who have no idea how to do what they hired me to do. I  
teach them what they need to know to post and edit content.

My favorite thing about the WP 2.5 redesign was that it made the admin  
area much friendlier to people who are afraid of computer technology.  
Anyone can see the "design" button and know what it means.

"Templates" is very unfriendly. Most of my clients have no idea what a  
template is. They don't understand that the content goes into a  
database and that the pages are dynamically generated. They think the  
web is a brochure rack.... to them it's: What the heck is a template?  
Like a stencil for painting rocking horses on your baby's wall? What's  
that have to do with my website...... wha? OMG this is so hard! I'm  
going to break it!


Please don't go backwards by replacing the normal-people friendly  
things that Happy Cog (and their usability research) did with geek- 
centric concepts that scare most people.

Please, please, please remember that people who build sites from the  
command line and code in php have an entirely different experience of  
computing than 95% of people who use the web. And we want those  
massive of people using WordPress.

"Utilities"? SAME THING! Don't replace the simple-and-friendly with  
the technically-more-descriptive. I will be intensely disappointed  
with WordPress / Automattic if this happens.

I'd like to comment more on the proposed 2.7 design — but I can't.  
Why? Because I'm not a SVN/ command line geek. I install sites via  
drag and drop, so I haven't seen 2.7 (just read emails about it). Do  
realize all your initial feedback is coming from developers... not  
from designers.

Jen


Jen Simmons
http://jensimmons.com



On Aug 22, 2008, at 7:26 PM, Jeremy Clarke wrote:

> 'Templates' - I think this is an unnecessary change from the 'Design'
> label introduced in 2.5. There are all kinds of things that could be
> under this menu that aren't directly related to templates, and I don't
> think it adds anything that 'Design' Doesn't already get across (while
> the opposite is not true). I know that part of the idea is to move
> away from 'verbs' and towards 'nouns', but in this case I think Design
> really works both ways. You click the Design tab to work on 'your
> design', or 'the design' of the blog, which includes selecting theme
> as well as things like header images and custom css etc. Hell, even
> 'widgets' don't really make sense under the 'template' header, as they
> are core functionality. Alternately, 'Theme' would be another good
> candidate for a label. Templates is just really confusing, because
> it's synonymous with 'themes' but has never been used in WP land
> before.