[Raharu]

Forum Aesthetics
Hello. I am Isaac Klavsky.
I am not a coder, I am not a script guy, I cannot give you HTML or CSS Sheets to help, and although these a talent I aspire to gain, I am only providing an article on how something should look - namely it should look good, slick, and overall, uber-sexy.
Uber-sexy is a term I use a lot. It is something that looks beautiful, appealing, and attractive, normally text, placement, graphics, and what-not. It’s a fact that, no matter what, choices need to be made early on in how the forum looks as a whole.
The nature of a board, along with its content, should be reflected in how it looks. It should look how you want it to feel, it should show off how the forum makes people feel.
Allow me to provide examples of what I mean, by demonstration. Assume, for a moment, that a community called XPV, the Ground-breaking Debate Board, wants a relaxed, mature, and vivacious community.
What do you think they need?
They need a mature skin and a more adult layout, one that shows they're filled with ideas, talent, and upstanding members.
Lite Skins can be divided into two categories: Adult and Children's. Adult skins, are light, with less harsh and smaller contrasts, showing softness, less spastic energy, and have soft colors. Adult skins maintain a consistent, smooth feel and display softer light.
However, more kiddy, Lite skins can have loads of color, with white (or any light color) backgrounds that show energy, liveliness, and a general air of fun. They offer little rest for your eyes, sharp contrasts, and a fun, entertaining feel. They will also have less mature aesthetics.
Darker skins are ones that that emphasize darks, black, and deep colors to show a higher level of maturity than those of kiddy skins. These skins are stereotypical of teenage boards and, through their warmer appearance, convey the ability of teenagers to have fun at a lower energy level.
Adult Lite skins convey the same emotion but through a higher level of sophistication.
So, in the end, a Lite skin would be the ideal choice for XPV, the skin in question, however, would have to be less spastic and softer than a kiddy Lite skin, but still appealing overall.
This brings me to an important point on colors. Colorful Skins convey an abundance of young members. Colorful skins are not, however, taboo in mature communities. Signature colors aid in determining how your banner and other images look, and can leave a lasting impression if you emphasize one color or color scheme. Manipulating colors is an effective way to set an appealing atmosphere for your forum.
To complement skins, a custom button set should be made in addition to other minor aesthetics, such as banners, logos, and advertisement signatures.


---- This article was written by Alex Richardson, under the pen-name of Isaac Klavsky, with editing advice and input from Lord-Adriel. This article may not be reproduced, distributed, or misused without express permission of its author.----

[Michael]

Very nice discussion and evaluation there. I often hold forum aethetics in extremely high regard because they are so influential in attracting members because they sometimes base their registration on forum designs and brand images; meaning they are absolutely critical.

[Raharu]

Thanks a lot Michael. Any more comments?