Out with the old...

Hard as it is for us to believe, it's been nearly three years since our first post. And we gotta tell you, this site was feeling O-L-D.

It's time for a change, or a bunch of changes, but we're not sure what the final product will be. We'd like to showcase Dave's photos better, and to make EatingAsia more user-friendly. White background? Black background? Colors? Fewer sidebar items? Clean and simple over bright and colorful? At this point we don't know - today's new design and banner is just a little something to get the ball rolling - so don't be surprised if the look of EatingAsia changes regularly as we try new 'outfits' on for size. Dave's photography site was something like 6 months in the making and it's still a work in progress. We really hope the next version of EatingAsia it doesn't take that long.

In the meantime - what would you like to see on a new and improved EatingAsia?

Comments

[carpetblogger]

I love dave's photos, but I gotta tell you, they come out HUGE in my google reader -- taking up almost the whole screen. It makes the post really hard to read. I don't know if this is your problem or mine, but it doesn't seem to happen with other blogs.

anyway, that's just FYI. Can't wait to see the changes.

[Cathy]

Changes?! Don't scare me now! I love love love your blog and honestly wouldn't change anything (especially not the size of the pictures!). I read MANY food blogs but yours is definitely the one I enjoy the most: great writing and amazing photography is a rare and precious combination! Thanks for all your fantastic posts!

[Kitt]

Yes, just keep the words and pictures coming! Simple is best. Plain backgrounds, especially. Color is fine, but no patterns, please!

[Paul]

yup love the blog...don't need to change a thing....but I agree with carpetblogger...if theres anyway to drop the size of the picts a wee bit so they fit easier on my reader (in my case I use Outlook 2007) Otherwise eatingasia is still fabs for me!

[Cupcake]

Cat pics?

:-)

[Robyn]

Carpetblogger and Paul - noted. This has to dow the actual size of the photos that we upload and not with the design of the blog (photos to white space etc) I presume? We have had complaints abt how long it takes the site to load but it's fast for me, even at the dismal connection speeds here in KL.

Hi Cathy - thanks for your kind words. Don't worry, content won't really change, though I may try to force myself to include a few more recipes (not my forte). Upscale resto reviews really aren't our thing and luxury travel tidbits really aren't our thing!

Kitt, I tend to agree. Don't worry, no patterns in the offing.

Cupcake - Before or after they've been cooked? ;- (sorry!)

[Steve]

Yep, love the photos, just make them so they are faster to load and easier to read in a feed reader.

A white simple page like this seems to work well with your images.

Looking forward to seeing your finalised new look.

[Vanessa]

What Cathy said, as ever. If recipes don't come to you naturally then why do you feel you have to 'force yourself' to put them in? There are plenty of places to find recipes both on and offline and this just isn't a recipe blog.

A few cat pictures wouldn't go amiss though ;)

v

[Jennifer]

I wouldn't change a thing. I've come to associate the colors with your blog, and I would be sad to see the colors change. Play with the logo if you must, but honestly, everything's fine the way it is (perhaps slightly smaller images for faster loading, but I don't really mind the slight delay right now).

Can you tell I hate change? :)

[Robyn]

Thanks Jennifer! But orange is out, out, out now. I loved it when I chose it but after 3 yrs it was starting to wear. White does do the pics well but right now it looks very boring to me....

Steve and others - faster-loading photos. Got it, and thanks.

Vanessa - oh, this will never be a recipe blog. But there are occasionally recipes with good back stories that I'd like to share. It's a matter of laziness on my part and timing dishes so Dave's around with the camera...

[christopher hyde]

I hate to say it, but I'm on the side of those who hope you don't change much. Your blog is amazingly great the way it is and I look forward to every single update. But I won't squawk if there's a few more recipes and cat pics.

I think I'm trying the goat daube this weekend...

[Michelle B]

I am looking forward to color changes, though I like the present colors (though orange is used in fast food restos to get the clients to eat and vacate their places as soon as possible).

Change is good, especially if the talented blog owners feel that the situation has become somewhat stale decoratively (our environment, even if it is virtual, influences our motivational states, and I want these blog owners to continue to be motivated to produce one of the most excellent blogs that I have ever encountered).

Though the large pix are somewhat inconvenient, I work around that, because they are great photos and in this instance, big is better.

[wisdom goddess born]

love your blog, but I am greedy. I drool over most of it so if you find it in your heart to add a few more recipes I would love that.

[a]

how about smelly vision?

[pixeldose]

'Been a fun of your site for a while now but have not commented till now :).

'Love the travelogue feel of your blog and it gives me that sort of 'Anthony-Bourdain-No-Reservation' experience, haha.

I think 'Eating Asia 2.0' should jump the Web 2.0 bandwagon -- i.e., with richer and immersive user experience. You may want to consider adding embedded videos of some of your adventures (you can use Youtube to host them and that may even increase your audience). Most point-and-shoot digicams these days can take short and decent quality videos so you may want to invest in one. Uploading them to youtube is real straightforward, btw.

Dave's photos are awesome but he may want to consider modifying how his flash-driven site loads his images. They all get downloaded to the user's browser in one fell swoop when they first visit his site -- and this can take time. The images are cached though (i.e., saved on the user's temporary internet directory) for faster access during subsequent visits. But for first time visitors, the initial wait may turn them away. Perhaps a page with thumbnail size images (and therefore smaller file sizes and faster initial download) that open up to their larger version would give a better user experience. If he's comfortable tinkering with Flash, then he may want to look at slideshowpro.net or check out download.com for some slideshow programs that load images individually on the fly.

Also, dark text on a white background is always pleasing to the user's eyes, in my humble opinion.

At the end of the day though, "content will always be king" and you already won :).

[catherine]

I agree that video and/or podcasts would be very cool.

I'd also love it if you'd categorize your posts by country so it would be easy to do research when traveling, cooking, etc.

[Heidih]

Really love the blog as is. Videos and podcasts..not so much...time is limited and your photos are wonderfully evocative of the locations along with the writing. I have no issues with the photo size.

[lilian roby]

Yay, new design!

Maybe instead of faster loading photos you can just have fewer posts on each page - this will keep the loading time down, and the photo quality can remain as is.

I think that the format of your blog is a winner for you, and the design should reinforce that. For example, not detract from the beautiful images and interesting words.

Keep up the good work!

[Valisa]

Robyn,
Seriously.
I want a book - a luscious coffee table one with your words and Dave's photos. I want to take you with me in the bath and curl up with you in bed and on the sofa.
I love your blog but I can't take it into my bathtub!!!!

[Nate]

I miss the old orange scheme but if it must go, it must go. I find this white background too stark and makes this site look too much like other food / photo blogs. Please put some color back in!

[Robyn]

Thanks to everyone for your generous compliments. We weren't fishing for high-fives with this post, honest!

Christopher - I'd love to hear how the goat daube turns out. I think we've had maybe 3 or 4 pet posts in 3 years ... I don't forsee increasing the frequency.

Michelle B - yes, that's it, the orange was feeling a bit stale. We originally chose it bec it brought hot+spicy food and the tropics to mind. But then again the pics weren't as vivid when we started as they are now. Time for something fresh.

wgb- more recipes is a goal but only as part of a story. Luckily we have a lot of stories to tell!

a - good idea? I wonder if typepad offers smellyvision under the 'premium' plan...?

pixeldose and catherine - yes, we've wanted to add videos for a while. But only occasionally and very selectively and if they're as carefully done as the posts are ... if they tell a story. We're working on it.
catherine - posts are categorized by country. Check the cloud. :-)

Thanks Heidi.

Lilian - I've cut number of posts/page down to 2, we'll see how that works.

Valisa - we like to hear that! We've got something in the pipeline and if it ever becomes 'real' EA readers will be among the first to know .. Thanks!

[Lisa in Toronto]

Well I am a big fan of orange ... I am also a stick in the mud perhaps, as I like the mix of photos, words and recipes very very much as it was.
However I also understand that you may want to change the site.
I look forward to whatever you decide to share with your readers!

[Kori]

I confess I did like the orange, as it reminded me not just of the chilli oil floating on top of curries, but also of the saffron robes of the Mahayana Buddhist monks in Thailand.

I like the idea of dark text on a light background, but would like to suggest a background colour of something other than white. White glare can be a little wearing when one spends long hours at a computer screen.

Just my two cents.:P

[Richard]

Excellent new look.

- I see you've found out how to change the header picture - good idea, because Google finds something new each time. If you fill in the alt"" bit with a description and a small puff for Dave's photos, it can't do any harm, and possibly a lot of good. Google Images should cache the photos.

By the way, how do you do it?

- The bare white could be toned down a bit, and the sans serif font is not too easy for us oldies. You should be able to change these to suit in your Typepad (?) account.

- By the way, have you noticed that old fella who always turns up at your food find locales about a day later? That's because I'm stalking good food (don't worry - not you, or Dave) so I'm always a bit delayed, until I pick up the trail from your blogs.

The past couple of months on the trail have been hectic, but very enjoyable indeed.

[Richard]

Excellent new look.

- I see you've found out how to change the header picture - good idea, because Google finds something new each time. If you fill in the alt"" bit with a description and a small puff for Dave's photos, it can't do any harm, and possibly a lot of good. Google Images should cache the photos.

By the way, how do you do it?

- The bare white could be toned down a bit, and the sans serif font is not too easy for us oldies. You should be able to change these to suit in your Typepad (?) account.

- By the way, have you noticed that old fella who always turns up at your food find locales about a day later? That's because I'm stalking good food (don't worry - not you, or Dave) so I'm always a bit delayed, until I pick up the trail from your blogs.

The past couple of months on the trail have been hectic, but very enjoyable indeed.