Archive talk:The new look 3

Let's look at the reasons for the new look:

"Because it’s the right thing to do for the future of Wikia. We understand the caution of many of those who have commented on the blogs, but we also kept in mind that this is just one of the many groups or types of users on Wikia. We looked at feedback from the beta testers, from focus groups and direct measurements of activity on wikis, and listened to our in-house experts in web design and user interaction. We did our best to gather *all* the information we needed to make this the best look possible for Wikia, and we feel confident in our choices."

I'd like to point out that this never really answers why the new look is being implemented; it merely says that "it's the right thing for the future of Wikia" and never provides any reasons as to why this is. Also, I really doubt that beta testers and focus groups had different opinions than the majority of users that commented on blogs if they were chosen without bias (id est, Wikia staff didn't try to choose people that would like the new look). How exactly did you look at "direct measurements of activity on wikis" in such a way that you could tell how much people liked the new look? Furthermore, wouldn't "experts in web design and user interaction" be able to tell that the new design looks horrible and is almost universally hated by users? If someone is an expert in user interaction, they should, theoretically speaking, be able to tell that making a change despite such widespread opposition is a good way to alienate the community. Let's look at some more of the page:

"There are always some similarities among websites that have modern, frequently updated design. In other words, when companies use best practices for the web and adapt to what users demand, their websites tend to contain similar design elements and functionality."

I'd like to point out that Wikia is not "adapting to what users demand". In fact, they're doing the opposite, invalidating this reason for the similarities. Also, I'm thinking that saying "some similarities" is a bit of an understatement. Lastly, I'd like to ask that a member of wikia staff answer this and actually address each of the points individually. Non-wikia staff users, please don't respond, even to agree. If you do, they'll probably say that it's been responded to and ignore it. - Is drak  thül  03:40, September 26, 2010 (UTC)