Just a thought - are there plans to have each server gauge show what combo (track) is currently running there? The ultimate would then be a direct join in link to the server like with LFS World (don't know if that's possible though).
EDIT: DOH! :doh: - didn't have Join2LFS installed when I clicked on the gauges - sorry folks!
Yep, same here. I may yet float the DIVS to the centre. I just wanted to get away from the old page's design (because it wasn't designed! LOL!)
http://ctra.ukct.net although all the old subdomains work as well.. licence, license, stcclicence, stcclicense... just in case people have linked to their licences from other sites
New site is nice, but there are a couple of things I would like to see added. 1. The old site showed how many drivers had what type of license. 2. It would be nice if there was somewhere on the site that should how many points it took to get to the next license.
Your individual licence (http://ctra.ukct.net/licence.asp?lfsUser=Leadtail) shows your progression to the next licence both as a percentage and also graphically. The top-down view of the car on the track progresses towards the finish line as you progress to your next licence
I needed to set a target for Titanium racers, more than anything so that it didn't break the maths calculations on the site! LOL!
We're sort of in limbo at the moment, waiting for Patch X to come out. When that happens and we're able to move on with InSim, we'll be able to create new "missions" for racers. We plan to run parallel licences too, so you'll be able to keep your Titanium licence based on the STCC's TBO class while also going for your National/International/SuperLicence in single-seaters.. GTRs are coming too.. lots planned, but right now it's a case of "hurry up and wait".
The new layout is a huge step forward. Especially the new licence display is nice.
Still, some remarks:
- I would like to see how many points I need to the next licence. (I can see the percentage but if I gain, say, 50 points in the next race, is that a big step or a small step?)
- The main page uses too many fonts IMHO. Use less fonts and/or font-weights (bold/italic) and it will look cleaner.
- The 'Top 100' display pulls too much attention. Suggestions: use a smaller font, non-bold; use less visual fireworks to show titanium licences.
- The licence lookup form doesn't say what it is for.
- It's a nice idea to show details on server usage in a tooltip. But you can drop the driver names: a tooltip is far too small to show all names (on Firefox, at least). Instead, I'd rather see the car class or the required licence.
Hiya! Thanks for posting your observations! They are appreciated!
- I would like to see how many points I need to the next licence. (I can see the percentage but if I gain, say, 50 points in the next race, is that a big step or a small step?)
We've never wanted to show points as part of the progression, tbh. Once you get down to the business of totalling up points in relation to a goal, the focus moves from the goal to the points. We want this to be about racing more than earning points. The points are the means not the mission. It sounds like a dichotomy, but it's actually very deliberate
- The main page uses too many fonts IMHO. Use less fonts and/or font-weights (bold/italic) and it will look cleaner.
There are two fonts in use on the site. One is part of the brand (Computeam Racing Authority) and the other is Arial (Helvetica if you're on a Mac). There are font variants on Arial, for specific reasons - bold is uniformly coloured for headers, for example. That's all there is.
- The 'Top 100' display pulls too much attention. Suggestions: use a smaller font, non-bold; use less visual fireworks to show titanium licences.
The principle purpose for this page is to show/celebrate the Top 100, and to show the server usage. I put the Top 100 on the left because the page felt better framed that way. Everything else is sundry. The rules etc are on the front page because they're important but they're not the principle purpose of the page. [edit]: The Titanium eyecandy is very deliberate. Drivers who achieve Titanium have achieved a really significant goal, and I really wanted to add emphasis for that reason. It's unashamed eyecandy
- The licence lookup form doesn't say what it is for.
I took out the label because I decided it was obvious. Strict page design dictates that it should be labelled, but this page is only going to be visited by people who already know what they're looking for. I dropped it, but I may put it back in
- It's a nice idea to show details on server usage in a tooltip. But you can drop the driver names: a tooltip is far too small to show all names (on Firefox, at least). Instead, I'd rather see the car class or the required licence.
In IE7 it displays pretty nicely. I'm aware that Firefox doesn't do as good a job with tooltips, but I haven't got around to adding the browser switch. I'll reduce Firefox tooltips to something shorter and still informative in the next few hours
I spotted the Firefox issue on the tooltips too, I thought 'I must speak to Sam about that' infact I just tried another browser - Avante (which used to be my regular browser until it started winding me up 'deliberately') and it looks much better for 0.25seconds, whereupon the Avante picture hover panel displays itself over the tooltip ... Avante did this on purpose!
It does look a little strange on Opera though, because I get the join link in the tool tip with all the colour codes and licence type and everything. Surely to show the name of the server you use the strong brand names "New & Bronze" and "Silver and Gold" - these are brands that the CTRA have which have strong meanings in the sim racing public - they are your server names ... ?
Anyway moving on, I also agree on the titanium eyecandy - not necessarily that it's too much - just that it looks kinda like the leppers ugly sister. Maybe because it's overdone, or maybe because of the washy colours, but the titanium drivers on the top 100 list look like the family dark horse, the one we're all ashamed of...
Hm, i have the "Long Titles" add-on installed with my Firefox-Browser, but because of your browser switch I'm not able to read the driver list. May I suggest using one of the many tooltips-scripts available out there? Here's a list of 24 tooltip-scripts. The blog is in german, but the screenies are pretty obvious, I think.
what has happend to the idea of showing the national flag besides the
drivers name? and maybe his "online-racername" would be nice.. just
to know who is who...
I don't want to give the game away, so to speak, but we'll be able to make this a real possibility when we go live with the new Patch X software. In fact there are so many possibilities for the future that if this idea excites you...
I finished it about 5am this morning! LOL!
