Yesterday, when I was researching for the Excite post, I visited a great site regarding companies and people information. A good site that I often use when I want to find out things about a company, its competitors or revenue. This site is ZoomInfo.

Once there, I realized that the site was different. A redesign session was to blame for the new look. So, together we will analyze and see what are the pros and cons of this new look.

Pros
It is good to see the world wide movement regarding business image. And ZoomInfo is an important site with valuable information. From the design perspective, I want to say that the site looks … OK, with minor or major glitches. I like the fact that the site is quite simple and simple is good. But it takes more than that to pass to the great level, a great level that ZoomInfo will never achieve. The color scheme is good and the fact that are not many graphic elements is also a positive thing. And that’s all about the good side. Moving along!

Cons
At this section I have several things to say. First of all, I’m not among the 44 mil persons listed there - shame on them!
A general bad feeling is that although the site looks clean, unpolished elements are here to mess with the design. For example the two tabs in the first page were not exported properly and the corners are white on light gray background.

Another thing that I do not approve is the fact that multiple links are placed in the bottom side of the page. I know that those are for SEO purposes, but the designer could’ve made some kind of arrangement and a different color for that section to look more integrated. Also, the contrast between some elements is higher in some regions and nonexistent in others.

Conclusion
Overall the change was needed but the final result was not so spectacular.

User Interface Rating:
User Experience Rating:
Redesign Rating:
——————–
Graphic Rating:

A long time ago, when email was just a baby and when internet was nothing but a bunch of wires, Excite.com was born. That’s right, the event took place some time ago when people used to write letters instead of emails. At that time my mother used to made research on paper and from books. Now, she is lost without the World Wide Web.

Excite is just the term left from the early days of the internet. It is the only thing left from the early promoter of the customized web profiles. That’s right! The once big and important portal Excite.com is now a simple web page with less traffic each day. I wonder why?

Cons
As you can see the site has still many sections. But those are good for nothing if the information is not displayed in a positive way. Regarding the way of showing the information, it is quite hilarious. I mean, we know that the content is gathered from around 100 different sources, but after you gather the information, you try to give an uniform look to all content. Not here … there are different graphic elements from different sites using … different styles. A total mess.

There is no user interface logic in here. Also, the points of interest are not prioritized or emphasized. Even the news, that are vital for a portal, are placed in the bottom side of the portal. It is chaos.
The layout is fluid and because of the bad implementation it looks awful.

Pros
The only good thing in this portal, that doesn’t have great importance, because it is destroyed by the overall look is the logo. The logo after these years is still great. I like it a lot. And also there are several decent icons in the top side. But the rest is a mess.

Conclusion
This is sad because the portal is owned by IAC which also has Ask or CitySearch. With traffic around 1.5 mil / month and dropping, this site is the perfect reflection of bad management. Regarding the user interface, design and user experience, this site is zero.

User Interface Rating:
User Experience Rating:
Design Rating:
——————–
Graphic Rating:

As it is explained in the title - Zune design rocks. Zune website design rocks! And I must tell you that I’m not a fan. I don’t have a Zune or an iPod. I’m not into portable mp3 or whatever. I just like that design.

In the early days, Zune.net had a pretty good design also. But this one is even better. The pages are simple and clean with no additional or decorative graphics(frilly bits). I like the fact that the images are big and that every visitor can receive the proper message. Also, the headings or categories are wrapped-up in a box container with a strange big padding in the top area - which gives the section a light and at the same time filled air.

One of the things that I like most is the gray color used in this design. That is because from my point of view, gray is the most powerful visual element from the color spectrum. Used correctly it can boost your design but at the same time, gray can ruin the final composition. In this case, it was very clever used and the final effect is as you can see - pretty good one.

This is by far, in a world of “grunge hand-drawn” and web 2.0 designs, a fresh air of innovation. Kudos for the designers!

Style Rating:
User Experience Rating:
Design Rating:
——————–
Graphic Rating:

Twitter is maybe one of the most impressive company today. Not because it has a useful set of features, but because the media seems to care and write about everything related to Twitter. I remember that last year Michael Arrington had a crush on Twitter crashes.

Few days ago, a new Twitter design was unveiled to public eyes. I could say that it was more like a retouching session rather than redesign. That is because beside a right side menu and some placement arrangements, nothing was changed. Oh, sorry … now the Twitter interface has rounded corners. I guess that IE6 is not supported since the rounded corners are not available and the top menu is misplaced.

I honestly believe that the old interface was OK. For typing short messages and to view your followers it was quite decent. But sometimes a PR stunt is good for everybody … even for a “hot” service like Twitter.

So, this is the great redesign from Twitter.

Innovation Rating:
Layout Rating:
Design Rating:
——————–
Graphic Rating:

The Wall Street Journal, online version, one of the most important financial news site has a new look. After years when the only thing important was the content, now WSJ.com decided that any good content needs good presentation.

Well, from the beginning I want to tell you that I really like the new design. And it is also noticeable a boost in speed for Wall Street Journal Online beside the look.

The thing that I like the most in this new appearance, is that the designers highlighted the content and not the ads. It is annoying these days when you read websites and the designs are burden with heavy graphics from the commercial ads. That is not the case in this design, because the ad spots are not even together as a big block, instead there are several areas, small areas for this purpose.

Changing from blue/white color scheme to gray/white was a big win. Now the site has more contrast and can support better the content. Also the new design helps the user to stay focus on the article which is a good thing. There are other features like new improved video player, Ajax based controllers, the “Newsreel” component and many more.

Another thing that I see and is very important is placing the comments related to an article in a separate section. In this case the user can only see the article and if he clicks on the comments tab, he can visualize the comments. So, the time response is faster and the user experience better.

Overall I think this a true redesign. Kudos for all team members behind this move and I invite you to test the new WSJ.com

Layout Rating:
User Experience Rating:
Design Rating:
——————–
Graphic Rating:

I’m sure that by now, everyone knows about the famous deal between Microsoft and the one and only Jerry Seinfeld. A deal worth $10 millions with hope in gaining great reviews and a better view regarding Vista operating system.

The first commercial is called The Shoe Circus and it features Bill Gates and Jerry Seinfeld. Enjoy!

From my point a view, the commercial is a success. It has good messages and a very nice story. Also Jerry and Bill are quite good. They look like they don’t fit and that is the beauty. Although Bill is not the best actor, but watching the ad we can all approve that the man has charisma.

Let’s take a look at Jerry’s first line. “Quality shoes at discount prices, why pay more?”
In this line you can find a description to Microsoft Vista. The motto refers half at Microsoft Vista, half at Apple. Because we all know that Apple has big prices, and we also know that Vista is a competitor in the pc/mac market share. So, that motto is not randomly placed there.

During the whole length of the commercial, some dialog lines are targeted at Vista but not directly. The ad has nothing aggressive and it is an enjoyable clip. It does not look like a classic commercial, but that gives an edge, curiosity and acceptance to the viewers.

I highly recommend this ad, if not for the product but for the amazing opportunity of seeing Bill Gates shaking his booty. Cheers!

PS: Soon I will debate the second commercial or mini-film from Microsoft.

Acting Rating:
Originality Rating:
Bill Gates’ shaking Rating:
——————–
Graphic Rating:

My workflow for writing a blog post was composed of multiple previews and changes. So basically, I was busy 60% of the time writing, and around 40% editing and placing the pictures and other additional tasks. That was up until today.

I want to introduce an awesome product for blogging. This is a new thing for me, and I want to share this nice piece of software that is helping me write this post. The application that I’m talking about is Windows Live Writer - made by Microsoft.  It is a simple desktop software that is does the writing activity more pleasant.

The first question that pops in readers’ mind is: why do you need something like that?
There is no standard answer for this question, but I will try to give my reasons. One of the most important fact is that in this way, by using an external and independent editor, my stats regarding visits will be more accurate. This is helpful when you are trying to see what type of content is more popular and other user behaviors. Other reason will be that I’m no longer forced to use a browser that will sometimes crash due to extensions (Firefox) or lack of stability (others).’

Regarding the program, Windows Live Writer is easy to install. But one nice part is that the configuration is painless - just 2 clicks away. And the benefits are much more than accurate stats - you can see the preview while typing your post, nice and clean interface. You can easily insert video files, pictures, tables (which is painful in Wordpress) and not to mention the Insert Map function.

Also you can add multiple plug-ins from Microsoft’s web site and you can extend this application. But you don’t need me to tell you this - you can find out for yourself. Anyway - Kudos for Windows Live Writer team for this productive piece of software.

User Interface Rating:
User Experience Rating:
Features Rating:
——————–
Graphic Rating:

Not many words about the new Mashable website. It is good that now the site looks more integrated but the visual styles are still low. But first let’s define the pros and then the cons.

The pros
It is a good thing that Pete Cashmore thought of doing a redesign session. The previous version had many flaws and this version tends to fix them. For example I like the fact that the advertising is not displayed randomly. That is because Mashable has a simple layout with left side for content and the right sidebar for ads, links and any dynamic elements.

A new and quite interesting feature is the Ribbon. It is a hidden section with different actions, links and articles. But that’s about it. No more good stuff. Except for the small improvement in speed.

The cons
First of all the design is not sensational. Some will say that it is simple, but I say that it even simple layouts can look awesome. This one doesn’t.

There are few contrasts in the layout and also too much blue or whatever that color is. I really don’t like it because it is too homogeneous.

It has no typography and also a strange placement of the blog post elements. And, like all of these were minor issues, the site features a big and annoying “Keep reading”, that has the same color. Also, the menu has the weirdest mouse over effect.

Conclusion
I can’t say that the overall feeling was OK cause it wasn’t. The site is underdeveloped and I think the image that Mashable has should in the blogosphere should be reflected in the site’s interface. C’mon guys - you can do more.

First of all, this is not porn. Actually, I see it as art. It is very hard to represent beauty. Well, it seems that for Dior Addict this thing was a challenge.

I wanna tell you that the next image is not new. I saw it a couple of years ago in a store. And the nice thing was that the image was a big print with great details. I’m talking about a print ad for Dior Addict perfume. It is flawless - the execution, the attitude, the feeling. I honestly believe that this is, from my point of view obviously, the sexiest print ever. Don’t get me wrong, I like Kim Kardashian, Kate Beckinsale and Adriana Lima. But this image is the sexiest I’ve ever seen.

If you don’t agree, please reply with some example. The image is big in order to see the details. Enjoy!

Expression Rating:
Sexuality Rating:
Attitude Rating:
——————–
Sexiest Rating:

Berkshire Hathaway is one of the most powerful company names worldwide. It has many subsidiary companies and covers a wide range of services. Owned (38%) by the richest man in the world - Warren Buffet, Berkshire Hathaway is one of the most attractive stock choices. That is because it is a stable company and also because a single share is over $110,000. The funny part is that the CEO’s annual salary is $100,000, which is less than a share and one of the smallest CEO salaries.

Anyway, the reason for this post is not to make you save money and become an investor. The reason was the “beautiful” design for Berkshire Hathaway website. For a company with a market value around $130 billions, you might expect something decent. Well it is decent … for 1996 style. Actually it has no style. Then again, you can call this website, the most minimal design ever.

I understand that Mr. Buffet is not attracted to the IT domain. But for a top company the image must be a priority. I offer my services in exchange for one share. Is that to much to ask? I hope not and I’m waiting for Mr. Buffet’s call. Cheers!

User Interface Rating:
User Experience Rating:
Design Rating:
——————–
Graphic Rating: