[wp-ui] First steps

[Jane Wells]

Hi Chris. When I say the general layout and structure isn't up for  
being redesigned right now, I mean the basic framing of the left nav,  
modular elements, etc. Various sections will be "redesigned," such as  
Settings, Site Admin from MU, and the media uploader. Also, some  
screens will be redesigned, like Comments and Plugins. However, as  
long as they still live within the general WP UI, I don't consider  
that a major redesign. Matt declared last year that we would be  
sticking with the 2.7 design for at least the next few years, having  
undergone several backend redesigns in a short time period before. So  
*pieces* will be redesigned, but we're not "redesigning the admin,"  a  
phrase that will freak people out because it means changing  
everything, not just making what's there better.

And yes, there is a reason to restrict this project at first to the  
touchups... not only is this a new process for contributing to the  
design of the UI, but we're in the middle of merging two codebases.  
There are significant UI issues that need to be fixed as part of this  
process. Doing a "drastic rethink" of the backend UI just isn't on the  
table at this time. Just as the contributing developers work within a  
scope for each release, so will contributing designers.
j


On Jan 19, 2010, at 12:45 PM, Chris Garrett wrote:

> In honesty Jane, that's a bit disappointing. There are quite a few  
> areas of the WP UI that would benefit from a drastic rethink and I'd  
> imagine many people on the list would be more than happy to take up  
> that challenge, myself included, is there any real reason why we're  
> being restricted to simply "touching up" the areas which aren't yet  
> properly finished?
>
> I'd imagine, given a little freedom, we'd probably see some  
> enhancements to the general user-experience and aesthetic of  
> Wordpress, that reflect everyones needs a lot more than it does at  
> the moment.