Okay, so the chat on profiles made me get off my lazy bum and ask:
Is Draconus' second page reader-friendly? You can see the exact page in question here. Thoughts on other pages will, unfortunately, be disregarded because I am not worried about those momentarily.
Here's some concerns of my own I specifically would like to see addressed:
I've already tried purging some information, but the reason it has become so heavy over time is because (A ) Draconus is a very old character, OoCly speaking and (B ) it's all information I consider important to him because he has a lot of prestige and history that tends to follow in his wake. I've done my best to arrange it so the "glancing at" information comes first, and the secondary stuff one might get from hearsay or more extensive interactions and observation further down the page.
May 23rd The entire profile got a bit of an overhaul. If you want to critique, I suppose now an overall/general one would suffice! My apologies for the cluttered mess as construction happens on and off!
Is Draconus' second page reader-friendly? You can see the exact page in question here. Thoughts on other pages will, unfortunately, be disregarded because I am not worried about those momentarily.
Here's some concerns of my own I specifically would like to see addressed:
- Is the information you think you would need easy to find (perhaps from a quick glance)?
- Is the information easy to read?
- Are you being overwhelmed by information? Underwhelmed? Neither? Other?
- Does the information presented give a good basic idea of the character without having to go look at the other pages?
- Other thoughts, questions? I'll happily answer or discuss them.
I've already tried purging some information, but the reason it has become so heavy over time is because (A ) Draconus is a very old character, OoCly speaking and (B ) it's all information I consider important to him because he has a lot of prestige and history that tends to follow in his wake. I've done my best to arrange it so the "glancing at" information comes first, and the secondary stuff one might get from hearsay or more extensive interactions and observation further down the page.
May 23rd The entire profile got a bit of an overhaul. If you want to critique, I suppose now an overall/general one would suffice! My apologies for the cluttered mess as construction happens on and off!
Heya, RPRians. Thread necromancy is on the loose!
Even though it's been about a month since I posted this (and a wee bit of tweaking on my end has been had), I would still appreciate some input into Drac's site, if anyone's interested in giving some.
Even though it's been about a month since I posted this (and a wee bit of tweaking on my end has been had), I would still appreciate some input into Drac's site, if anyone's interested in giving some.
I'd like to begin by saying: You are a terrible writer.
This is the worst page I have ever read in my entire life and I hope you feel really bad about it and maybe cry and get a drink and sit by your window tonight and look at the moon and let a single tear go down your cheek as you harden, take up your sword, resolve to become a better man and go to avenge your father in a bloody and arduous journey of epic proportions which leaves you either a.) missing a limb or at the very least b.) with like five excellent scars.
I'd like to continue by saying: Just kidding. I love you, cheetahbutt. And I bet you'd love some concrit too, wouldn't you? So let's do that:
1.) Page Titles - I'll admit I have trouble judging what's on each page by the title. I have no idea what information is supposed to be on the pages until I go there, which is a little daunting given how much information is on each page. Lengthiness isn't a bad thing as long as you have clear navigation, but without a 'table of contents' so-to-speak, it gets a little bit muddy.
This is purely personal choice/style, by the way.
2.) What Goes Together? - Looking at the page you're talking about, the second one called 'The House of Forest', I'm a bit confused about what the focus of the page is supposed to be. You extensively detail his physical attributes, but then you go on to give a list of other people he knows on the same page.
You may be better served by placing his physical stats somewhere on your front page with his general back story, as that page is specifically about him, and not about the things he does now or about other people. The pages (in my mind) are meant to divide large swaths of information into smaller bites that the reader can digest as they choose.
ie: I want to know what I am dealing with when fighting Draconus. I will check out his Gear/Combat/Strengths page.
3.) A Place For Everything - When crafting a profile, I always try to group like information together but be sure to give everything its own space. For example, closely-related information like physical appearance and basic bio might be put together whereas physical appearance and inter-character connections should probably not be on the same page (unless it's a forum profile. Those things are short as heck).
You should be looking at your site from the perspective of a roleplayer. Most of the time, your site is being viewed for a specific reason; they want to elaborate on an aspect of your character that pertains to the current RP. Though there are some people who read profiles for enjoyment and understanding, they are typically a character handbook and referencing point for details like height, weight, limitations, abilities, and obvious details.
Because of this, you should attempt to hash out what the focus is for each page and then stick to it as much as you can. In my opinion, your second page for Draconus should be about him and his resume and MAYBE his strengths and weaknesses. That page is all about him, if you ask me. The information about allies and other characters should be somewhere else.
--
And that about sums it up. It's not a very concise page, but it's clean and formatted, and if your target audience is 'people who are curious and want to read more', then it's fine. However, I find it a bit cluttered and long-winded from an RP standpoint.
This is the worst page I have ever read in my entire life and I hope you feel really bad about it and maybe cry and get a drink and sit by your window tonight and look at the moon and let a single tear go down your cheek as you harden, take up your sword, resolve to become a better man and go to avenge your father in a bloody and arduous journey of epic proportions which leaves you either a.) missing a limb or at the very least b.) with like five excellent scars.
I'd like to continue by saying: Just kidding. I love you, cheetahbutt. And I bet you'd love some concrit too, wouldn't you? So let's do that:
1.) Page Titles - I'll admit I have trouble judging what's on each page by the title. I have no idea what information is supposed to be on the pages until I go there, which is a little daunting given how much information is on each page. Lengthiness isn't a bad thing as long as you have clear navigation, but without a 'table of contents' so-to-speak, it gets a little bit muddy.
This is purely personal choice/style, by the way.
2.) What Goes Together? - Looking at the page you're talking about, the second one called 'The House of Forest', I'm a bit confused about what the focus of the page is supposed to be. You extensively detail his physical attributes, but then you go on to give a list of other people he knows on the same page.
You may be better served by placing his physical stats somewhere on your front page with his general back story, as that page is specifically about him, and not about the things he does now or about other people. The pages (in my mind) are meant to divide large swaths of information into smaller bites that the reader can digest as they choose.
ie: I want to know what I am dealing with when fighting Draconus. I will check out his Gear/Combat/Strengths page.
3.) A Place For Everything - When crafting a profile, I always try to group like information together but be sure to give everything its own space. For example, closely-related information like physical appearance and basic bio might be put together whereas physical appearance and inter-character connections should probably not be on the same page (unless it's a forum profile. Those things are short as heck).
You should be looking at your site from the perspective of a roleplayer. Most of the time, your site is being viewed for a specific reason; they want to elaborate on an aspect of your character that pertains to the current RP. Though there are some people who read profiles for enjoyment and understanding, they are typically a character handbook and referencing point for details like height, weight, limitations, abilities, and obvious details.
Because of this, you should attempt to hash out what the focus is for each page and then stick to it as much as you can. In my opinion, your second page for Draconus should be about him and his resume and MAYBE his strengths and weaknesses. That page is all about him, if you ask me. The information about allies and other characters should be somewhere else.
--
And that about sums it up. It's not a very concise page, but it's clean and formatted, and if your target audience is 'people who are curious and want to read more', then it's fine. However, I find it a bit cluttered and long-winded from an RP standpoint.
Dude, you know I love me some badly written crit. *shot* Does that make us even? 
But nah, seriously thanks for the critiques, Geeman. I'm takin' 'em to heart.
About how info-packed the profile is, I'm distinctly aware of how terribly long winded everything is. I'm not exactly good with 'less is more'. Regardless, I've just attempted to rearrange some of the info and the pages overall. I'm not sure if it helps, but to me it does look less cluttered (also I got rid of that darned 2-point font! I hadn't realized how much it's been bugging me)
Whew. As for the title pages vs a table of contents, I can't really get either one the way I like it. A Table of Contents looks ugly no matter where I stick it, and I find page titles like "Basic Info" or "Stats" to be just plain boring--s'probably why I titled them in fancy-speak that vaguely alludes to what's what. *chin stroke* Ah well. This profile's been a WIP since Day One, I guess I just need to put more work into it! Thanks for the critiques, man--feel free to keep 'em coming if you feel like it & feel it necessary.
*shot* Does that make us even? But nah, seriously thanks for the critiques, Geeman. I'm takin' 'em to heart.
About how info-packed the profile is, I'm distinctly aware of how terribly long winded everything is. I'm not exactly good with 'less is more'. Regardless, I've just attempted to rearrange some of the info and the pages overall. I'm not sure if it helps, but to me it does look less cluttered (also I got rid of that darned 2-point font! I hadn't realized how much it's been bugging me)
Whew. As for the title pages vs a table of contents, I can't really get either one the way I like it. A Table of Contents looks ugly no matter where I stick it, and I find page titles like "Basic Info" or "Stats" to be just plain boring--s'probably why I titled them in fancy-speak that vaguely alludes to what's what. *chin stroke* Ah well. This profile's been a WIP since Day One, I guess I just need to put more work into it!
Thanks for the critiques, man--feel free to keep 'em coming if you feel like it & feel it necessary.
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