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Community Manager
May 30, 2013
Question

Thoughts on the site re-design from the Kuler team

  • May 30, 2013
  • 47 replies
  • 40262 views

Today we're launching the new site and making Kuler available on the App Store for iOS.  We've worked really hard to make Kuler easier to work with and accessible on all your devices.  And, we have a lot more planned.  So, let us know what you think. 

If you are an active Kuler user, you may notice a few pages and features missing from the new Kuler website.  I’m writing to explain what’s missing, why it’s missing, and what you can expect to see in the coming weeks and months. Here's an overview of what you won't find on the new site:

Create a theme from an image: We know many users really like the “Create from an Image” feature.  Unfortunately, this feature was not ready for the new site launch.  So, rather than launching a buggy or half-baked feature, we decided to take a bit more time to get it right.

We intend to add this feature to the site as soon as it’s ready.  Until then, you can use the free iPhone app to create themes from images.

Color space “slider” controls: We talked to a lot of Kuler users about the slider controls.  Some users like them and others don’t.  The main complaint we heard was that the sliders add unnecessary complexity and take up too much space.

So, we opted to not add the sliders and err on the side of making the creation experience simple.  Though, we decided to keep the “brightness” slider control since some colors spaces don’t have a brightness variable.   We'd love to know what you think.  You can voice your opinion here on the forum.

Change the order of colors: In our research, we found most users did not know you could re-order colors on the old Kuler site.  And, it’s actually quite a bit of work to build this feature.  So, rather than re-building a feature many users don’t know about or use, we wanted to hear from you first.  I created an idea for this feature on the forum.  Please add your vote if you think this feature should be worked on immediately.

Avatar:  Most of the users we talked with about Kuler avatars were indifferent.  In fact, they asked us to focus on other features first.  So, that’s what we’re doing--we're focusing on some of the most requested features first. 

Community spotlight and Pulse:  The Community Spotlight and Pulse were beta features that never really gained any traction.  So, we opted to not continue with these features.

API: We're working to rebuild the Kuler API to offer more robust capababilities.  Until then, we're no longer issuing new API keys.  If you already have a key and are using the API, your service will not be interupted (your key will continue to work).

We’re always looking for feedback and would love to hear what you think about any of these topics—please join the discussion here on the forum.

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    47 replies

    Participant
    June 3, 2013

    PLEASE PLEASE go back to the old Kuler. So dissapointed. I use this site VERY often in the design work that I do. The text on the site itself is horrible. Very hard to read. Not sure what's up with that, I am currently using Chrome to view the site.

    Participant
    June 12, 2013

    I too used the old site VERY often. It looks cool, but not half as useful.

    Participant
    June 2, 2013

    I strongly agree with other commenter's -Please remove the color wheel/theme overlap or if you need to be trendy as opposed to practical maybe just a tiny overlap?!

    Also, when returning to themes after commenting or rating you have to start all the way back at the top and can't remember where you were. Something like Google's image search page perhaps?

    Otherwise I'm lovin' it!!

    Participant
    June 1, 2013

    I am really dissapointed in the new site- I find it even harder to use, more confusing and quite frustrating. I use Kuler quite often and I study at a design college. There are many of us students that are Kuler fans! But soon to be dissappearing elsewhere!!! Please bring back the old site?

    Participating Frequently
    June 1, 2013

    HELP!!! I need the "create a theme from an image feature"!  Is there a way to do this?  Some other source?? anything???

    I'm new to this world of color (currently in school) and I was introduced to Kuler by my instructor several months ago.  I use it for every project and the most important feature to me is missing....and I'm in the middle of a project where I need this feature.

    Participant
    June 1, 2013

    Hi Brad, if you have access to a computer with Adobe Photoshop you can use that to choose colors from an image.  It's as simple as using the eyedropper tool.  I can give you step by step directions just let me know.

    Participating Frequently
    June 1, 2013

    Great!  I can use the eye dropper.  If there is a way to make themes I'd appreciate instructions?

    I consider myself anti-artistic.  I liked the 'create a theme from an image' tool because it did all of the creative work for me.  I don't believe that creativity is something that you can learn...and I wasn't born with it so I need help.

    Participant
    May 31, 2013

    http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3653/3390182310_f86c82cb95.jpg

    PECourtejoie
    Community Expert
    Community Expert
    May 31, 2013

    Hello, Dave! It was nice meeting you in real life at Adobe MAX, thanks for reaching out to the community!

    The kuler faq does not state anymore that the kuler panel is not available in the french versions of Photoshop, did the situation evolue in that matter?

    http://www.adobe.com/products/kuler/faq/

    Dave ECommunity ManagerAuthor
    Community Manager
    May 31, 2013

    @PECourtejoie: great meeting you as well!  No, the panel is still not available in French.  Sorry. 

    PECourtejoie
    Community Expert
    Community Expert
    June 1, 2013

    That's what

    I thought, maybe should it then be re-written in the FAQ, unless I missed it?

    May 31, 2013

    I understand the reasoning behind making the color wheel bigger for accuracy, but placing it on top of the swatch squares is not the solution. Can we at least have the ability to resize it? Can it only cover the swatches when you are manipulating it then shrink down? Can I have a button to click to downsize it so I can view the swatches unbostructed? Please reconsider this.

    Also, how exactly are we suppose to edit and save new swatche sets made from previously saved swatch sets without losing the original swatch set? When I edit a saved swatch set and rename it, I lost the original swatch set I started from. I'd like to keep both the original saved swatch set and the new edited one. Can we at least make a duplicate? I thought I could rename the saved swatch set I was editing and that it would save both the original and newlery renamed. I was wrong and lost the original swatches I started with.

    Why did the sliders need to be taken out? Couldn't they still be there hidden and then shown via a drop down? Why completely remove a feature that many did use just because some didn't use them?

    Dave ECommunity ManagerAuthor
    Community Manager
    May 31, 2013

    @benmp: thanks for the feedback. I'm taking note. 

    There is a workaround for creating a duplicate theme.  It's not as easy as before (I'll see if we can fix that).  But, it works.  Here's how:

    (1) Click edit on an existing theme.

    (2) Make your edits on the color wheel.  (note, all your edits are recorded in the URL)

    (3) Copy the URL and paste into a new window.

    (4) rename the theme to whatever you prefer. 

    (5) save. 

    Participating Frequently
    May 31, 2013

    Aha,

    Thanks ! This was the problem I meant before (post 9), I'm glad there's a workaround.

    Participant
    May 31, 2013

    I feel like the new color wheel and swatches are so huge...  I can't get a feel for how the colors work together because it's so in my face - I'm literally backing away from my monitor to get a better sense.  I like how they're bigger than the previous site but I'm thinking this is a bit too much... Like others, I also don't like the color wheel blocking the pallet.  The whole purpose of design is... visual, so things need to be visable so we can see them in their entirety and plan our work accordinlgy.

    I'm also missing the "from photo" feature and look forward to its return (along with the options to choose muted, bright, etc.). 

    Reordering the swatches is a nice option and I think the reason people didn't know it was there is because the interface didn't make it clear (I discovered this feature within my first few hours of using the old site but only because I played outside the obvious boundaries). I think the fact that people aren't aware of the feature is more indicative of gaps in the interface than it is of the usefulness/interest in the feature.

    I do like how it feels a bit cleaner and easier to find buttons and options so, overall, I like the new layout - just some tweaks and enhancements needed, I think.

    Participant
    May 30, 2013

    I appreciate that you are actively working on Kuler.  Here are a couple things I noticed with the new design.  When you are browsing themes and find one you like and click it there is no easy way to get back to where you were.   It would be nice to have an X in the corner so you can close and keep browsing where you left off.  The second thing I noticed was that you can't rate a theme unless you go into it.  Combined with the fact that you can't close and resume browsing it discourages people from leaving feedback and ratings.   Hope that helps.

    Dave ECommunity ManagerAuthor
    Community Manager
    May 30, 2013

    @RogerAasheim

    Thanks for posting.  Great feedback about maintianing browsing context.  We're looking into that one. 

    Regarding ratings, this is an interesting topic--with many different points of view.  I'll share my view:  We heard from many users that ratings were not ideal because they introduced some negative feedback.  Some users, for instance, give themes 1 star just to be malicious.  While favorites, on the other hand, allow you to express positive feedback.  And, if you don't like something, you simply don't favorite it. 

    So, for this reason, we opted not to add ratings on the explore page. Instead, we added the ability to favorite themes.

    Hope that makes sense.

    Participating Frequently
    May 30, 2013

    Wow - alot of comments - as a regular kuler user (dianesteinberg) I was shocked at the new look. As I am resistant to change, I feel we need to "play" with the new look for at least a week or two to get used to the new possibilities. However, the huge color wheel is definitely in the way, and I personally think this should be a major change to make it smaller as soon as possible.

    Dave ECommunity ManagerAuthor
    Community Manager
    May 30, 2013

    @Diane, Pratthomer, Jonna, and anyone else I've missed. 

    I hear your feedback on the color wheel being in the way.  And, I also hope you will give yourself some time to get used to it. 

    Though, one point of feedback is not clear to me.  A few of you have mentioned the color wheel being too large. And, I'm not sure whether you have a problem with that, or whether your problem is just that the theme is obscured. 

    Let me explain our thinking on the size of the color wheel.  We heard from users that pecision--when selcting color--was important. And, that a easy to use (and larger than the old wheel) would allow for greater precision.  So, that's what we tried to do. 

    So, my question is this: is your concern the color wheel size?  Or, just the fact that it obscures the theme colors?

    Participating Frequently
    May 30, 2013

    My concern is not the size - that makes it only better to adjust. It covers the theme colors too much.

    Maybe it is possible to enlarge the colorwheel only when you use it? Aka when you click on it. Then it is possible to adjust the colors careful ànd to view the theme properly.