New Muppet Central Site Design

[Phillip]

In the next hour or so, we'll be rolling out a total site relaunch with a new look and simplified site organization. This has been in the works since the beginning of the year and we're thrilled to finally be able to bring these updates to you.

One of the goals of this new site design is to keep the original "Muppet Show" vision and theme of the original site and expand upon those design elements. There will be some small flash menus at the top of each page. Jamie painstakingly designed these and he did a fabulous job. Many months of work went into these menus.

Also, currently on the front page there are 12 categories. With our new design there will be 8 categories. Reviews and Tributes have moved into Articles. For Sale has moved into Collectibles. Links and FAQ have moved into the new Help section. These changes will hopefully make more sense after you see the rollout.

Just wanted to give everyone a heads up as it's likely some of you will see the "old site" and the "new site" at the same time while I'm updating the entire site (more than 1200 pages).

We're looking forward to hearing your feedback on this exciting day!

 

[Skeeter Muppet]

I'm trying to get into the site, and right now all I'm getting is the Flash introduction. Is that just a temporary thing (I hope)?

 

[Phillip]

Yes it's just temporary until the updates are done in a few minutes.

 

[Luke]

Phillip, Jamie

Wow - it looks excellent. The new design is top notch - i was never expecting themed displays for every area - they are all so fantastic (Electric Mayhem, Sesame, Pigs In Space and MTM ones are all breathtaking). That is just way cool and the graphics are top notch. Load time is pretty good too - i'm on a slow modem and although it took a few seconds for the individual characters to load in, the majority of it was there instantly.

Also more or less every page has been re-edited for the new style with new colors and a much more beefy design. That must have taken masses of work. It's cool you are now done with those frames so people can bookmark individual pages easier.

Anyway congrats all - very spoovy. Golden Muffins all round !

 

[matleo]

Hey Phil/Jamie

Love the new design!!! Way cool!!! Haven't looked at all of it yet, but I will.

Phil, I had just sent you an e-mail regarding what Skeeter brought up whilst you and she were typing i here. You can disregard it. I didn't realise it was just an intriduction. realy nice work though gang.

--Matt

 

[BlueFrackle]

Jamie,

Its Fantastic !

I love it, and so many Muppet Show Refrences !

You done a great job!

Congrats!

see ya

 

[Sunshineboz]

WOW,
Jamie you rock! You need to be in the web design biz!!
You sure have a great creative nitch and talent to make it come alive!
Awesome and thanks for the "face lift"!
-Michele

 

[Cantus Rock]

Very nice indeed...a bit scary for me though, not knowing it was about to be that way.

I had just posted another message when all of a sudden the characters start popping up. I thought I was going nuts! I think my exact words were "Holy christ what the h*ll is that?!?!"

But now that I've seen it, and my heart rate is slowing back to normal, I must say, nice job!!!

-Matt

 

[Phillip]

Everything should now be on-line. Continue to give us feedback. There are lots of hidden extras if you look around.

 

[frogboy4]

Dear Muppet Central Members-

Work began on the site last winter and I am proud of the new look of Muppet Central. Phillip and I have been very careful to maintain the spirit of the site we know and love while bringing it up to date. We were also mindful to keep the feel of it very familiar for longtime users.

Each section is an environment inspired by a variety of Muppet projects and composed in a collage effect that is more than mere scanned imagery. Each piece was painstakingly painted in Photoshop and drafted in Flash. We went through many different variations over the past several months and I think we have gotten it about right. Much thought and consideration went into maintaining the integrity of the source material while keeping it fresh and interesting. This was a rather daunting task.

Though the site has been launched the work is not over. There will be some improvements made here and there. Expect some future upgrades and additional material as well. I intend for things to evolve and change - to keep things fun for all the members of Muppet Central!

Sincerely,

James V. Carroll