Forum:Proposal for a new skin

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File:Game of Thrones War is Coming.jpg

Season 2 poster

War is Coming! Season 2 is not far behind it. Scott (User:XD1) kindly offered to help us with a redesign and has done loads of work on the front page already but now he has had some time with the season 2 poster and has come up with some concept ideas for new skins to fit in with the marketing of the second season. The skin is the image that sits behind all of our content, currently a rocky landscape of the north on either side of the page. I thought we had better canvas opinion before implementing anything. First, here are the concepts:

1. Example 1 featuring the hand and crown in close to their original orientation with a bit of nifty transparency
2. Example 2 featuring the hand and crown rotated 90 degrees right and cropped to fit on either side of the screen
3. Example 3 featuring the top of the crown rotated on both sides
4. Example 4 featuring the top of the crown on the right and the iron throne on the left
5. Example 5 featuring the top of the crown on the right and a hatching dragon egg on the left

Please let us know what you think in the poll below:

--Opark 77 23:31, March 12, 2012 (UTC)

I really like the first option, but I'm not much a fan of the all-black appearance of the site. It's too massive: all elements blend into one another. I would go for various shades of grey. - regards, KarinS 22:42, March 21, 2012 (UTC)

Uhm. I'm not at all sure about this. The black makes the site look massive and lumpish. Plus, there has not been a decision, just a minor vote in which merely *seven* people responded.... - KarinS 19:53, March 30, 2012 (UTC)

What would you consider a sufficient number of responses to change things? I think we should operate on the basis of consensus. If more people say they want a different option then we can change. A small consensus is sufficient for a small wiki like this with few active editors. Nothing on a wiki is ever finalized - we can constantly adjust to reflect the consensus. Perhaps contact User:XD1 about adjusting from black to grey as they are the local expert on skins. I have no objection to grey.--Opark 77 20:32, April 1, 2012 (UTC)

I think there should at least be a discussion amongst the admins about a major change like this. - KarinS 12:27, April 2, 2012 (UTC)

Sorry Karin. I did make an announcement about the potential change on the main page and in community messages so that every single user who visited the site from any source would be aware of it. I could have also posted on the admins talk pages but thought I had done enough.--Opark 77 17:01, April 2, 2012 (UTC)

I dislike the new wordmark quite a lot, but the skin I'm overall happy with. It's more dynamic and dramatic. I agree that white-on-black is not the best idea though. It's hard to read for some people (it can leave streak or strobing effects on people's eyes, particularly if like me you are short-sighted!). White-on-grey works better.--Werthead 16:34, April 2, 2012 (UTC)

Changed to white on grey. Better?--Opark 77 17:01, April 2, 2012 (UTC)

No, it's worse. The top is now so light grey that the text becomes difficult to read. Plus, I'm a fan of the black plus gold/red/orange. The contrast is far too harsh and it makes the pages too crowded - everything is clamoring for attention. It's too much. - Karin, KarinS 17:16, April 2, 2012 (UTC)

I have to agree about the wordmark. I am also having trouble some times writing with the gray font over the transparent background- it clashes with the gold and I can't see what I am typing. --QueenBuffy 16:38, April 2, 2012 (UTC)

I'm a bit confused here. Are you talking about the background or the image in the top left under the wikia logo? The latter is the wordmark.--Opark 77 17:01, April 2, 2012 (UTC)