At The Hog’s Head, dust is sort of the norm. That’s just how Aberforth rolls. But over here at Hogwarts Professor, you’re going to see some temporary “dust” for a bit, while my Hog’s Head tech-elf crew (which consists mostly of me and two elves who I think quit so won’t be around) remake the site.
You’re seeing, right now, the very first phase, which is to get the bare bones structure up. You’ll see changes over the coming week or so. Suggestions welcome!
I stumbled upon Harry Potter’s Bookshelf while browsing online in Oregon’s Digital Library Consortium. What a marvelous serendipity! I have seen the movies – now I know I must read the books. I enjoyed your revelations of the four levels of meaning in Rowling’s books. Thank you!
A new look! Wow, the old look was just fine, IMHO. But a little polyjuice potion and voila!
I can actually make this particular theme look almost exactly like the old site, if there’s an overwhelming preference for that! The key was to get this new structure up. The look of it can change based on ideas from John and others.
Maybe a good subject index would help.
Any possibility of a running calendar that would show where and when any of the Howarts Professor folks are scheduled to speak (libararies, schools, etc.)? Maybe I missed it, but I don’t see an obvious one. I’m in VA, so I’m sure there’s bound to be an event somewhat nearby at some point.
D.V, the subject index is in the category menu, which is now in drop-down form on the sidebar. The drop-down works better than the whole list, because I can fit more items in the sidebar now.
KBHagen, great idea! Though I don’t yet know an easy way to do it. I’ll give it some thought. We could probably just put up a “schedule” page that the HogPro writers can update whenever they’ve got a new event.
Keep the suggestions coming!
Great new design! I did love the old theme, though. But the new font for the title in particularly catchy. Looking forward to seeing more!
Also, I’ll chime in and second the request for a calendar. 🙂
I think shrinking the banner text and putting some book covers back up there in the header will brighten the place up a bit. And maybe I’ll do a lighter color along the border.
Maybe it’s just my old eyes, but the contrast between the letters and the white background is so faint it is much more difficult for me to read. Can that be altered at all or is it a function of the font? thanks
You mean just the regular text and the white background? I’m guessing your eyes just don’t like this font. I can try a few different fonts to see if there’s another that’s easier on the eyes!
Its been a while since I have visited here (too long in fact), sorry for the absence.
Travis, I like the regular text on the white backround. The banner header needs some extra color though……….like maybe a backround of the Great Hall in Hogwarts or one of the classrooms of Hogwarts with a bottom bar displaying John’s books similar to the old banner in that way, but with the larger overall style you have up there now.
yes, the regular text- the letters are not as dark as the old website or other sites, for that matter. They are skinnier as well. The white background is fine. I wouuld be open to other fonts or even the old one. 🙂 I don’t like to be critical of people’s hard work, but I have been reading this edifying and educational site for years and don’t want to give it up! It’s a nice dose of sanity (or escapism) in a fractured world.
Kathleen, I did put on a new font and increased the size. Any better?
I can try some others.
If you develop a speaking schedule/calendar page for the HogPro authors, would you consider adding a list of links to sites where we can download or listen to previously recorded talks or radio interviews? Thanks!
Travis, I think the font is marginally better than it was. The size isn’t an issue-it’s more the skinniness of the letters and the (new/original) white gaps in each letter. If you are only hearing from one person regarding the contrast then don’t sweat it.
I second the request for a speaking schedule calender.
thank you
Hi Kathleen! I definitely want to make the site as readable as possible for everyone, so I’ll keep working on this. The best thing I can do is keep trying different fonts. The last theme I used to build the old HogPro was the Tarski theme, and if you click here, you can see what the font used to look like. I’m nothing even close to a pro when it comes to site design, so when I used that theme and built HogPro around it, I just kept that font in place.
I’ll try to figure out what that font is and see if it can be incorporated into this theme. I’m wondering – what browser are you using? Because to my eyes, the font on the current theme looks thicker and bolder than the old font. So I’m wondering if your browser just doesn’t like the font I’m currently using and is rendering it differently.
Like Kathleen, I get white gaps in many letters too–most often in the headlines and summaries where they are particularly distracting.
I have Mozilla as my browser. I tried Control plus to make the font darker and fatter and while it did that, it also exaggerated the white spaces/gaps in every letter which made it worse. I think, like Susan, that the mind’s eye works to fill in those gaps while reading, kind of like we add in words or letters that should be there when proofing something, and that makes more work for the brain! Is it possible to have the font back from the original website while retaining the lovely features in the new one?
The old font looks like Arial or Arial narrow to me. I don’t know much about web design, but I do know that the current font is serif, while the old was sans serif. Maybe the serifs in this font are producing the white spaces? While I love this new font and don’t have any issues reading it, I think I’ve heard that sans serif fonts tend to work better on the web.
Looks good! I had no idea this was coming and got an update of the Hunger Game post on my FB. Had to do a double take, but its great!
I think it is funny, being the visual leaner person that I am, that each new article kicks the previous ones over a notch so I have to think about where it is on the page should I want to see if there are new comments. Also, the font is not bothering me as much as it first did, so either you tweaked it fantastically and infinitesimally or I just had to get used to it!