User blog comment:Rupert Giles/Prototype for a new article layout/@comment-4738639-20150111140436

First off, thank you to the user who found out the skin name and posted "?useskin=venus" for the rest of us to test out what some pages may look like on our wikis and not just the test wikis.

Second, before I go into issues I just want to say what I thought which was "Wow, this is a lot worse for our wiki than I originally thought. Almost everything will need to be redone or adjusted."

Just to clarify I tried it on the Main Page, various article pages, a user page, a user contribution page, a blog, Special:WikiActivity, Special:RecentChanges, and a couple of the wiki forums.

So here are some issues I ran across:
 * Special:WikiActivity does not exist with the skin (we already knew that though)
 * Check and select boxes such choosing which types of pages (article, blog, etc.) get stacked and run behind the other content on the page like on the Special:RecentChanges.
 * The Recent Activity Box is a lot larger and distracting from the content.
 * The font is too big compared to what is needed and used to (we already knew this though)
 * The top navigation font size is oddly small in comparison to the rest of the font sizes on the pages


 * Content pages are aesthetically a mess to put it lightly
 * Pages with banners at the top (images with widths that go across the entire width of the page) get pushed down below the Recent Activity Box
 * Our custom infoboxes which span the width or around 90% of the page have their right side go under the Recent Activity Box
 * Barely any comments appear (maybe three) before having to select the option to view more comments.
 * The Recommended Content at the bottom above the footer has images which are too large and distracting compared the the page content on a different color background than the wiki background color.
 * The Wikia Footer is oversized and could definitely be seen at half that height.


 * The Forums are stretched out with all options and information stacked in a list on the right so it goes "User Name, Kudos, Post, Date, Edit, History, Remove..."
 * It makes it unsightly and uneasy to read the posts.


 * Blogs and sandboxes respond the same way as the article page issues I mentioned above


 * Tabbers don't appear to work in this new skin.

Also, the page widths are somewhere between the old Oasis before the fluid change where the side bars are completely viewable, but not as wide because the middle bar overlaps it a little bit.

I know this is just a prototype and changes are likely to be made, but there is no way in its current state that this could work for the wiki.