New Nexus Mods design launched

[Jeir]

Probably the most important page for me as a mod user is the tracking centre. I don't use NMM/MO/Vortex/whatever, so it's how I keep track of the mods I'm using.

People have already covered what is good/bad about mod pages (the second most important page for me), and the browser addon linked on page 78 fixes a lot of the issues, so I'll just concur with the general theme of 'big images and lots of scrolling = bad'.

Good:

-'Updated'. The little blue indication stands out and makes it easier to see what's been updated since I last downloaded.

- I can stop tracking a mod without having to go into the 'Manage Tracked Files' section or going to the mod page.

Bad:

- Instead of seeing 18 mods without scrolling, I see 8.

- I remember mods by their names. The tiny thumbnails are unnecessary. Most of the time the thumbnails rarely have anything to do with the mod anyway.

- I only view tracked mods from the game site I'm on. The game name is unnecessary when you're on the site for that game. The column for it is also horizontally static - large game names (like SSE) just add more rows. With the space above/below the text, it makes each one take up 3x more rows than needed.

- The 'log' seems to link to the Activity log. Thus, it's just a huge list of who has endorsed, which doesn't matter in the slightest, with sporadic changes to the actual mod. Better would be for it to link to the Action Log (as it currently does) or Change Log (if the author utilises it).

- The giant 'Tracking Centre' title is pointless. I know where I am. It even says directly above it. This just wastes space.

Neutral:

- I don't really care about the author's name. I track the mod because I'm interested in it. I suppose it might be a useful way to easily kudos (or donate) the author.

- I don't care about the category. Not quite sure why this was added. To quickly go to the category itself and view other mods in the same category?

 

Also, for those that are going to whine at me for not liking extra scrolling; all I want is the same functionality and efficiency as the current site. I am not saying scrap the entire thing; I'm pointing out things that maybe should be reconsidered at some point and improved or given alternate options for. These extra-large tiles/text boxes/images are not something that has nor will ever appeal to me. I've maybe used my phone for viewing the Nexus/the internet in general a couple of times in the past year (since I got the phone, after half a decade without one); primarily I use PC for everything internet-related, thus big-everything's aren't needed. I'm not blind, nor am I using a tiny 5inch screen.

 

Here is an example of what I would like the Tracking Centre to look like, at least as an option. I used uBlock to remove pretty much everything that I class as 'bad' or 'neutral'. By removing all of it, I get the functionality and efficiency of the old site (including going from 8 back to 18 mods visible without scrolling), with the new site's skin, and the two 'good' things that I do like.

[TheSuperTonza]

Thank you for this! this new layout is much better!

[bigd4450]

In response to post #54895693. #54896418, #54898518, #54900213, #54900778, #54901488, #54902628, #54905558, #54916983, #54925898, #54925983, #54926948, #54948183, #54954538, #54955543 are all replies on the same post.

bigd4450 wrote: I felt so uncomfortable with the new Nexus. It just seems to be to "fiddly", push this button to push this button to push this button to find what your looking for. Old way, click here to see more and scroll, click to the next page when you get to the bottom. I'm kind of an old guy and I see the trend all over the place to get more info and more options out in front of "the people". But, that being said, I always tried to live my life the way I was taught, the KISS principle, Keep It Simple Stupid. And boy do we seem to be veering away from that idea.

fireundubh wrote: "push this button to push this button to push this button to find what your looking for"

What are you talking about? If anything, the navigation path is actually shorter than the old site.

bigd4450 wrote: What do I mean? Well I go into Skyrim SE want to see what's going on with mods. Well, this page just shows me todays mods. Wait a minute, I can see todays, this weeks, popular (30 days), popular (all time), trending, etc. I just want to see some mods, scroll to the top, okay a drop down, there's mods. What am I looking for, a ton of choices, there it is "Browse all mods". Oh wait, do I want to sort them by time, when they were published, or maybe description, nope, just want to look at some mods, losing interest, too much B.S. going on.

Old way, pull up Skyrim SE, oh, there's recent mods, do I want to see more, sure. Click here to see more, scroll to the bottom, page 2, continue, pretty easy.

I realize that what ever I say here will make no difference what so ever. It's just a trend that I see and really don't like, buttons cluttering up pages, spend more time messing with the buttons, (and half don't work) instead of just going where your trying to go. Just my humble opinion, and opinions are like ----- we've all got one.

Zaldiir wrote: Clicking the "Explore all mods" on the front page gives you the same list that you had in the old design. With the new design, the things that were hidden away are now more visible and easier to use, making life easier for those who want to get more refined results. Life for those who follow the KISS principle remains the same; press a button to see all recent mods, scroll down, page 2, continue.

fireundubh wrote:

Oh wait' date=' do I want to sort them by time, when they were published, or maybe description [...'] too much B.S. going on.

Sounds like a personal problem.

buttons cluttering up pages' date=' spend more time messing with the buttons, (and half don't work)[/quote']
Not really. On the new site, if you click "Mods" or "Browse all mods" at the top, you get a better layout of the old "Files" or "Browse files" page, which, by the way, has a sidebar with a long advanced search form, of which the most used options are now simple dropdowns in the new layout. Talk about buttons...

Compare:

- Browse all mods (New) vs. Browse files (Old)
- Recent activity (New) vs. New recently (Old)
- Top files (New) vs. Top files (Old)
- Mods of the month (New) vs. Files of the month (Old)
- View all images (New) vs. View images (Old)

Anyone objective can plainly see the new layouts are less cluttered, easier to navigate, and easier to read.

axonis wrote:

- Top files (New) vs. Top files (Old)

Anyone objective can plainly see the new layouts are less cluttered, easier to navigate, and easier to read.

Easier to read ?

I can read USSEP's description in the old design, but not so in the new design because most of the text is faded to make way for the image. This mod however, like many other mods, cannot be represented by an image.

fireundubh wrote:

I can read USSEP's description in the old design' date=' but not so in the new design because most of the text is faded to make way for the image.[/quote']
By easier to read, I was referring to the font size. On a 27" monitor at 1920x1080, I shouldn't feel like I have to squint.

And, personally, I don't need a wall of text to determine whether I want to learn more about a mod.

The faded text is a good thing and acts as an "effective" character limit, hopefully encouraging modders to be concise and not include extraneous details.

The fixed-size result tiles also prevent modders from abusing the length of the brief description text to expand the size of their tiles and unfairly draw your attention away from other mods. As a modder, I see this as something that helps level the playing field.

axonis wrote: Comparing a 54-word paragraph to a wall of text is exactly why mod authors have such a serious problem with users who refuse to read instructions.

Not every mod has a graphical function. I'd rather trade that huge thumbnail for text; losing the "oh no, wall of text" users would be a most welcome bonus.

fireundubh wrote:

Comparing a 54-word paragraph to a wall of text is exactly why mod authors have such a serious problem with users who refuse to read instructions.

You do realize who you're talking to' date=' right?

axonis wrote: No I don't and I don't see how this is relevant. There's nothing personal in my argument; I just think that your statement about mod descriptions is wrong and I argued against it.

fireundubh wrote: I am a mod author. I had around 60 mods on the Nexus until I moved over to GitHub last year or the year before then. You don't have to tell me about user reading problems. I fully understand the background of your argument, but I still disagree with you and would prefer even shorter short descriptions.

axonis wrote: Very well we can disagree on that, but asking mod authors to rewrite their descriptions is not simply a redesign but a reorganization. We already have this issue with the mod's background bar which has to be remade but this is acceptable as part of a redesign.

bigd4450 wrote: All right, spent the last couple of days giving the new version a chance. Still uncomfortable, though I was able to find the "Explore all Mods" button, thanks Zaldiir, I began to realize why it was so uncomfortable. As I said before. too fiddly, or, too busy. As I pushed my glasses up on my nose and moved my head around trying to take in the whole page, the buttons, the over sized tiles, the smaller tiles that run from edge to edge of the screen, trying to find things that were familiar to me and use them to see what they did, my eyes began to hurt, yep I know "personal problem". With in 5 minutes I began to get quite a headache, again I know, "personal problem". Being an older guy that has to wear glasses to enjoy my computer, and games. I have to move my eyes all over that oversized screen, the tiles, that do remind me of Bethesda rejects, looking for the buttons. Uncomfortable, yeah I know.... But, by reading a lot of the other comments I can see that I'm not the only one that has this problem.

Sorry but I don't understand why does this have to be redesigned for the phone? I've been using Nexus for a few years and at least 90% of the time it's been on my phone with no problems. I go through during the day and find things I'd like to look at later that night when I get home.

Will I still use Nexus? Sure, if I want to still use mods. Will I still spend as much time browsing around the site? No, the headaches suck.

slippyguy wrote:

Sorry but I don't understand why does this have to be redesigned for the phone?

It's not for phones, nor is it being redesigned exclusively because of a less-than-stellar mobile experience with the last layout. Mobile is just being taken seriously as a platform this time around.

fireundubh wrote: @bigd4450: Your browser has the ability to zoom in and out. Hold Ctrl and move your mouse wheel.

what, yours doesn't.

[bigd4450]

In response to post #54895693. #54896418, #54898518, #54900213, #54900778, #54901488, #54902628, #54905558, #54916983, #54925898, #54925983, #54926948, #54948183, #54954538, #54955543, #54965253 are all replies on the same post.

bigd4450 wrote: I felt so uncomfortable with the new Nexus. It just seems to be to "fiddly", push this button to push this button to push this button to find what your looking for. Old way, click here to see more and scroll, click to the next page when you get to the bottom. I'm kind of an old guy and I see the trend all over the place to get more info and more options out in front of "the people". But, that being said, I always tried to live my life the way I was taught, the KISS principle, Keep It Simple Stupid. And boy do we seem to be veering away from that idea.

fireundubh wrote: "push this button to push this button to push this button to find what your looking for"

What are you talking about? If anything, the navigation path is actually shorter than the old site.

bigd4450 wrote: What do I mean? Well I go into Skyrim SE want to see what's going on with mods. Well, this page just shows me todays mods. Wait a minute, I can see todays, this weeks, popular (30 days), popular (all time), trending, etc. I just want to see some mods, scroll to the top, okay a drop down, there's mods. What am I looking for, a ton of choices, there it is "Browse all mods". Oh wait, do I want to sort them by time, when they were published, or maybe description, nope, just want to look at some mods, losing interest, too much B.S. going on.

Old way, pull up Skyrim SE, oh, there's recent mods, do I want to see more, sure. Click here to see more, scroll to the bottom, page 2, continue, pretty easy.

I realize that what ever I say here will make no difference what so ever. It's just a trend that I see and really don't like, buttons cluttering up pages, spend more time messing with the buttons, (and half don't work) instead of just going where your trying to go. Just my humble opinion, and opinions are like ----- we've all got one.

Zaldiir wrote: Clicking the "Explore all mods" on the front page gives you the same list that you had in the old design. With the new design, the things that were hidden away are now more visible and easier to use, making life easier for those who want to get more refined results. Life for those who follow the KISS principle remains the same; press a button to see all recent mods, scroll down, page 2, continue.

fireundubh wrote:

Oh wait' date=' do I want to sort them by time, when they were published, or maybe description [...'] too much B.S. going on.

Sounds like a personal problem.

buttons cluttering up pages' date=' spend more time messing with the buttons, (and half don't work)[/quote']
Not really. On the new site, if you click "Mods" or "Browse all mods" at the top, you get a better layout of the old "Files" or "Browse files" page, which, by the way, has a sidebar with a long advanced search form, of which the most used options are now simple dropdowns in the new layout. Talk about buttons...

Compare:

- Browse all mods (New) vs. Browse files (Old)
- Recent activity (New) vs. New recently (Old)
- Top files (New) vs. Top files (Old)
- Mods of the month (New) vs. Files of the month (Old)
- View all images (New) vs. View images (Old)

Anyone objective can plainly see the new layouts are less cluttered, easier to navigate, and easier to read.

axonis wrote:

- Top files (New) vs. Top files (Old)

Anyone objective can plainly see the new layouts are less cluttered, easier to navigate, and easier to read.

Easier to read ?

I can read USSEP's description in the old design, but not so in the new design because most of the text is faded to make way for the image. This mod however, like many other mods, cannot be represented by an image.

fireundubh wrote:

I can read USSEP's description in the old design' date=' but not so in the new design because most of the text is faded to make way for the image.[/quote']
By easier to read, I was referring to the font size. On a 27" monitor at 1920x1080, I shouldn't feel like I have to squint.

And, personally, I don't need a wall of text to determine whether I want to learn more about a mod.

The faded text is a good thing and acts as an "effective" character limit, hopefully encouraging modders to be concise and not include extraneous details.

The fixed-size result tiles also prevent modders from abusing the length of the brief description text to expand the size of their tiles and unfairly draw your attention away from other mods. As a modder, I see this as something that helps level the playing field.

axonis wrote: Comparing a 54-word paragraph to a wall of text is exactly why mod authors have such a serious problem with users who refuse to read instructions.

Not every mod has a graphical function. I'd rather trade that huge thumbnail for text; losing the "oh no, wall of text" users would be a most welcome bonus.

fireundubh wrote:

Comparing a 54-word paragraph to a wall of text is exactly why mod authors have such a serious problem with users who refuse to read instructions.

You do realize who you're talking to' date=' right?

axonis wrote: No I don't and I don't see how this is relevant. There's nothing personal in my argument; I just think that your statement about mod descriptions is wrong and I argued against it.

fireundubh wrote: I am a mod author. I had around 60 mods on the Nexus until I moved over to GitHub last year or the year before then. You don't have to tell me about user reading problems. I fully understand the background of your argument, but I still disagree with you and would prefer even shorter short descriptions.

axonis wrote: Very well we can disagree on that, but asking mod authors to rewrite their descriptions is not simply a redesign but a reorganization. We already have this issue with the mod's background bar which has to be remade but this is acceptable as part of a redesign.

bigd4450 wrote: All right, spent the last couple of days giving the new version a chance. Still uncomfortable, though I was able to find the "Explore all Mods" button, thanks Zaldiir, I began to realize why it was so uncomfortable. As I said before. too fiddly, or, too busy. As I pushed my glasses up on my nose and moved my head around trying to take in the whole page, the buttons, the over sized tiles, the smaller tiles that run from edge to edge of the screen, trying to find things that were familiar to me and use them to see what they did, my eyes began to hurt, yep I know "personal problem". With in 5 minutes I began to get quite a headache, again I know, "personal problem". Being an older guy that has to wear glasses to enjoy my computer, and games. I have to move my eyes all over that oversized screen, the tiles, that do remind me of Bethesda rejects, looking for the buttons. Uncomfortable, yeah I know.... But, by reading a lot of the other comments I can see that I'm not the only one that has this problem.

Sorry but I don't understand why does this have to be redesigned for the phone? I've been using Nexus for a few years and at least 90% of the time it's been on my phone with no problems. I go through during the day and find things I'd like to look at later that night when I get home.

Will I still use Nexus? Sure, if I want to still use mods. Will I still spend as much time browsing around the site? No, the headaches suck.

slippyguy wrote:

Sorry but I don't understand why does this have to be redesigned for the phone?

It's not for phones, nor is it being redesigned exclusively because of a less-than-stellar mobile experience with the last layout. Mobile is just being taken seriously as a platform this time around.

fireundubh wrote: @bigd4450: Your browser has the ability to zoom in and out. Hold Ctrl and move your mouse wheel.

bigd4450 wrote: what, yours doesn't.

And you just proved my point, too fiddly. I can scroll down the page seeing everything I want in the middle and zooming in when I want. Or, I can scroll down the page constantly zooming in and out and scrolling left and right, Fiddling around with the page.

[ozzieuk]

"we will finally turn off the old design completely and everyone will be forced on to the new design"

 

Excuse my ignorance but the lay out is just a skin/theme pulling info from all the relevant files, is there no way a option can be given to select old theme or new theme.AS an example like it is now where user can opt for new or old via a click at the top of the page

Edited November 4, 2017 by ozzieuk

[MCsSpawn]

Will there be a translated page and/or a translated mod manager? If you need help...

[lued123]

In response to post #54933758. #54934208 is also a reply to the same post.

indycurt wrote: Sorry, I'm one of those "if it isn't broke don't fix it" kind of people. However, I'm always willing to try new things. But I just can't get over the feeling that it looks way too much like the layout over at Bethesda's mod pages. I've always hated their site, and actually don't go there because of it. I've been exclusively Nexus and have never downloaded a mod from Bethesda's site. Your old format was always cozy and compact, your new site is full of large pics, large boxes, and looks garish. The giant boxes take up so much space that it creates way more scrolling to see less.

And speaking of "seeing". . .today is a perfect example. As you go to todays page for "New Mods Today", you scroll down and BAM a giant picture of giant boobs slaps you in the face with the mod "Zarya Character Preset". I'm not prudish, but I just find this offensive. Sorry, but I do. I always think that if I were a parent with younger kids, this would really piss me off if I walked in to see them looking at this. At least with the old page, all you got was a title. And yes, I understand that if you click on the title it would take you to these pics anyway, but with the new site you "see" it whether you intended to or not.

Go on haters, have at it.

fireundubh wrote:

BAM a giant picture of giant boobs slaps you in the face

So, I take it you've never configured your blocked tag filters. Because I don't see what you see.

One of the problems with the tag filters is that you either block Inigo or you see low-effort followers with big boobs all the time. You can't just block the tits in that case. Edited November 4, 2017 by lued123

[ScrollTron1c]

In response to post #54935608. #54956038 is also a reply to the same post.

ScrollTron1c wrote: Since you're working on the site design right now - are you ever going to fix the following paradox of the Nexus structure:


Let's say i find out that a mod author has blocked me from his / her mods. Which might be confusing, since i never talked to this person, commented on their mods or had any other contact whatsoever besides silently giving endorsements.

Now the (old) page informs me to resolve this amicably via private message - however if that author has turned the messenger system off, there is no way to make contact.
So either mod authors might block someone by accident, which happens very easily on the old page. Or they just abuse their power - "because they can" ?

Either way this is obviously a paradox, you are giving instructions that can't be fulfilled currently.

Dark0ne wrote: Just to clarify, you can only be banned by a mod author if you actually comment on their file(s). There's no option to ban a user who only endorses mods. You HAVE to comment on their file in order to be banned.

Or on another person's mod where the user has moderation access, unless i'm completely mistaken. Edited November 5, 2017 by ScrollTron1c

[bchick1]

After viewing the new Nexus Site design, and having been with Nexus for a long time, I would like to compliment Blacktree Gaming.

First and foremost, the site is very professional looking. Many sites having to do with gaming mods and such do not put a lot of effort into the design or 'polish'. I like that Blacktree Gaming has indeed taken their role in the gaming world seriously and not only invested heavily in the IT infrastructure but also into how the product is presented. Since I do pay for premium services, I might be content to just not have advertisements. But the professionalism and presentation of Blacktree Gaming on the Nexus sites encourages me that my 'dues' are well invested. Keep up the great work!

[calscks]

In response to post #54959923.

Jeir wrote:

Probably the most important page for me as a mod user is the tracking centre. I don't use NMM/MO/Vortex/whatever, so it's how I keep track of the mods I'm using.

People have already covered what is good/bad about mod pages (the second most important page for me), and the browser addon linked on page 78 fixes a lot of the issues, so I'll just concur with the general theme of 'big images and lots of scrolling = bad'.

Good:

-'Updated'. The little blue indication stands out and makes it easier to see what's been updated since I last downloaded.

- I can stop tracking a mod without having to go into the 'Manage Tracked Files' section or going to the mod page.

Bad:

- Instead of seeing 18 mods without scrolling, I see 8.

- I remember mods by their names. The tiny thumbnails are unnecessary. Most of the time the thumbnails rarely have anything to do with the mod anyway.

- I only view tracked mods from the game site I'm on. The game name is unnecessary when you're on the site for that game. The column for it is also horizontally static - large game names (like SSE) just add more rows. With the space above/below the text, it makes each one take up 3x more rows than needed.

- The 'log' seems to link to the Activity log. Thus, it's just a huge list of who has endorsed, which doesn't matter in the slightest, with sporadic changes to the actual mod. Better would be for it to link to the Action Log (as it currently does) or Change Log (if the author utilises it).

- The giant 'Tracking Centre' title is pointless. I know where I am. It even says directly above it. This just wastes space.

Neutral:

- I don't really care about the author's name. I track the mod because I'm interested in it. I suppose it might be a useful way to easily kudos (or donate) the author.

- I don't care about the category. Not quite sure why this was added. To quickly go to the category itself and view other mods in the same category?

 

Also, for those that are going to whine at me for not liking extra scrolling; all I want is the same functionality and efficiency as the current site. I am not saying scrap the entire thing; I'm pointing out things that maybe should be reconsidered at some point and improved or given alternate options for. These extra-large tiles/text boxes/images are not something that has nor will ever appeal to me. I've maybe used my phone for viewing the Nexus/the internet in general a couple of times in the past year (since I got the phone, after half a decade without one); primarily I use PC for everything internet-related, thus big-everything's aren't needed. I'm not blind, nor am I using a tiny 5inch screen.

 

Here is an example of what I would like the Tracking Centre to look like, at least as an option. I used uBlock to remove pretty much everything that I class as 'bad' or 'neutral'. By removing all of it, I get the functionality and efficiency of the old site (including going from 8 back to 18 mods visible without scrolling), with the new site's skin, and the two 'good' things that I do like.

i think it really depends on personal preferences -- for instance your don't likes, don't cares and how you remember things as well, no? but i do have a suggestion for a *rather* win-win situation such as having an option to hide thumbnails in the tracking centre. but i could at least agree with the logs because i did expect it to show changelogs and is pretty disappointed.