Walter, since this thread is about “Responsive” design, and since one person mentioned my sites “look dated,” I am curious as to the layout concept behind FreewayTalk and ActionsForge.
Today, I viewed ActionsForge in Safari and on various iPhones using the Simulator. Here is a screenshot showing the Safari window horizontally shortened to minimum, and to the right you can see the iPhone 5S display:
http://cl.ly/0q1s3X1s1532/Image%202016-06-02%20at%209.52.04%20AM.png
As you can see, the Safari window content is a mess, with text overlapping text. And yet it compresses horizontally a bit better than the iPhone view, which doesn’t collapse the content in any “responsive” way at all that I can perceive. Safari gives the user a search bar, but on the iPhone its missing entirely.
And then there is FreewayTalk which doesn’t horizontally collapse at all in Safari or in the Simulator (i.e., not responsive). No screen shot of that, but just shrink your Safari browser window horizontally to see what I mean (nothing collapses in a “responsive” way).
Takeaways…
- My sites are no more “dated” than FreewayTalk or ActionsForge.
- If Responsive design in Freeway is supposed to be “easy” and a true “Forget about the code. Focus on design.” experience as the SoftPress site says, then one would logically expect ActionsForge and FreewayTalk to be fully Responsive too.
Yes, I am aware that Softpress.com is now a fully responsive site. And yes, I am aware that it takes time and monetary resources to convert FreewayTalk and ActionsForge into the same kind of truly responsive site that soft press.com is. But all I am saying is that if Freeway makes the Responsive magic happen “with ease,” then one would logically expect FreewayTalk and ActionsForge to be fully responsive by now (June 2016). I do not present this as a complaint against anyone. It is merely observation of fact. Furthermore, one could effectively argue that the visual appearance and functionality of FreewayTalk and ActionsForge preach volumes about Freeway, especially since Freeway users visit those sites far more than Softpress.com.
Don’t get me wrong. I am not trying to step on anyone’s toes, hurt feelings, or sound ungrateful for all the glorious things my beloved Freeway has done for me and all of you through the years. I still think Freeway is the greatest thing since sliced bread. And the support team and Softpress engineers are the cream of the crop. But it is clear to me that further work needs to be done to make Freeway faster and easier “for anyone” to design a responsive website without being forced to take college classes or read volumes on the subject. (I would encourage everyone to please re-read Paul Dunning’s recent post to this thread.)
Freeway should be as intuitive and natural and easy as it was (and still is) to table-based layouts, yet for Responsive layouts too. If Freeway Pro 7 was easier to kick out Responsive sites, I have little doubt that FreewayTalk and ActionsForge would both be fully responsive sites now. Again, I am not condemning people or the tool. This is constructive criticism with the aim of seeing Freeway blossom into what we all want it to be. Where there’s a will, there’s a way.
Best wishes,
James Wages
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