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Used: May of 2006 through July of 2006
Made by: Stacee
Programs Used: Paintshop Pro
Comments:
Jeanna: This was the very FIRST layout we ever had. We used this before the site was even opened so very few people ever saw it. I really, really loved this layout. I thought it looked very classy. The photos that Stacee used are some of my favorites from the Nothing Is Sound Era. However, the header was a little too small, and since we had this up while we did a lot of work on the site, it no longer seemed fresh and new to us. We decided to change it before the site opened, but I still look back at this with fondness. This was before the site was coded in HTML, so we used a template layout and paired it with this banner. That really made the whole site look less professional.
Version 2.0 – Green Golden Layout
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Used: July of 2006 through December of 2006
Made by: Stacee
Programs Used: Paintshop Pro
Comments:
Jeanna: We had this one up a long, long, loooooong time. It was pretty, but there wasn’t a whole lot to it. I have to admit, I got bored with it after awhile. After we opened in September it got a lot of postive feedback, but soon the fans were ready for a change. However, I did like the overall design and the lyrics to ‘Golden’ down at the bottom. Very classy. Another template layout.
Version 3.0 – Blue/Gray Oh! Gravity Art Layout
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Used: January of 2007 through April of 2007
Made by: Stacee
Programs Used: Photoshop 7, Paintshop Pro
Comments:
Jeanna: I loved the look of this layout. It was a very different style then anything Stacee had done previously and it was a big favorite with the fans. I love the cut out photo of Tim jumping…it made the whole layout look very dynamic. The incorporated O!G art was a stroke of genius. The disadvantage was that the muted colors got a bit boring after awhile…and it was a template. Yech.
Version 4.0 – Four/Twelve Layout
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Used: May of 2007 through June of 2007
Made by: Stacee
Programs Used: Photoshop 7, Paintshop Pro
Comments:
Jeanna: The fans absolutely LOVED this layout and we received dozens of compliments it. The colors were gorgeous and the brightness was a nice change from the previous layout. People raved about this one for weeks. The photo of Chad yawning is one of my favorites. This layout wasn’t up very long because we switched over to a new look/coding…so no one had a chance to get tired of it! This was our last (hooray!) template layout.
Version 5.0 – Circles Layout
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Used: June 1st of 2007 through June 26th of 2007
Designed by: Jeanna
Coded by: Jeanna
Programs Used: Photoshop CS2
Comments:
Jeanna: One day I was checking out some stuff on the site when I noticed that we had let the site slide a little… some of the areas were very sloppy looking. So we quickly announced that we were going to give LOBH a BIG makeover. Here we reached a delima. I wanted the site to have a more professional looking layout but there was one problem with that…in order to have that, we would have to switch EVERYTHING over to HTML coding. On a scale of 1 to 10 of HTML knowledge, I was a one. Stacee was good with HTML, but she didn’t always have a lot of time for the site. I deliberated. Debated. Decided. We were going to do it. I would just have to learn HTML. I contacted Cassie, a good friend of mine who was also pretty good with code, and she kindly coded a very simple layout for me to learn on. I quickly began to study HTML, pouring over books, getting myself familiar with the code. Not to brag, but I learned quick. Within 3 days I had increased my knowledge to about a 3 or 4 on the scale. With this new knowledge in hand, I quickly went about designing my first layout. I’m insanely proud of the way this turned out. The colors were gorgeous. The fans LOVED it. The photos were amazing. Despite the popularity of this layout, it was up for a short amount of time. Why?
2 reasons.
1. It was summer. I felt like we needed something more vibrant
2. Variety is the spice of life. I like to change layouts often.
So it was with much sadness that I bid farewell to this lovely layout and moved on to other things.
Version 6.0 – Red is Black Layout
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Used: June 26th of 2007 through July 2nd of 2007
Designed by: Jeanna
Coded by: Jeanna
Programs Used: Photoshop CS2
Comments:
Jeanna: This layout was only up for 6 days. I had mixed feelings about it. While I was making it, I liked it. But once I put it up, I HATED it. Oddly enough, after I took it down, I started to really like it and wish that I hadn’t changed the layout so quickly. I guess it’s a webmisses prerogative to change her mind. But while the layout was up, I was just NOT happy with the look of the site. I cringed every time I viewed LOBH. That had a lot to do with my decision to change it so swiftly.
Also, since our last layout I had been trying to figure out how to get the navigation bar directly ON to the head banner. I had seen this on alot of other fan sites and I really liked the way it looked. It was surprisingly easy, but it took me over 2 weeks to figure out the correct coding. When I solved the problem, I was THRILLED and I wanted to implement this new feature right away. I thought about making a few changes to the existing banner so that the navigation bar would fit, but I disliked the layout so much that I just decided to design a whole new one.
I think I would of have liked it better if the rest of the layout had looked more professional (a problem that would be remedied with our next layout) or if I had given it more time to grow on me. However, my dislike for this layout aside, it was really popular with the fans and some people were upset when the layout was changed after only 6 days. The fans really liked the colors and photos that were used.
So, in hindsight, this was a pretty good layout, but I’m not sorry that we moved on so quickly.
Version 7.0 – Photographs
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Used: July 2nd of 2007 through July 17th of 2007
Designed by: Jeanna
Coded by: Jeanna
Programs Used: Photoshop CS2
Comments:
Jeanna: During our last layout, I learned two things that I really wanted to incorporate onto the site:
1. Roll over navigation (the navigation bar directly on the banner).
2. Headers (a great new way to organize the site).
But there was a problem… I was leaving for vacation in one day. So I pulled up photoshop and whipped out this layout in a few hours. It wasn’t very good, but it served our purpose… it featured roll over navigation and it was organized and user-friendly. In an attempt to make it more summer-y, I tried making it yellow, but that just didn’t fly, so it ended up being blue. People seemed to like this layout okay, but it wasn’t a favorite. After I got back, I asked Stacee to make a nice summery, surf layout. She did and this layout quickly went into the archives.
Version 8.0 – Summer Surf
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Used: July 17th of 2007 to August 31st of 2007
Designed by: Stacee
Coded by: Jeanna
Programs Used: Photoshop 7, Paintshop Pro
Comments:
This was probably one of our most popular layouts. The people LOVED it (though we did get some people who complained that Tim was prominently featured in our layouts too often… yeah. Go figure.). The photos were gorgeous and the colors were perfect! This was a perfect summer-y layout and it’s one of my favorites. This one stayed up for almost 2 months – a sure sign that we loved it!
Version 9.0 – LOBH Newspaper
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Used: September 1st of 2007 to October 27th of 2007
Designed by: Jeanna
Coded by: Jeanna
Programs Used: Photoshop CS2
Comments:
Jeanna: LOBH was about to turn one year old, and we need to give the site a new FRESH look. We wanted to do something really different, something that didn’t look a thing like our previous layouts. I had been noticing for sometime that the fansite layout trend was leaning towards a cleaner, understated look, so I decided to try that for this site. It turned out better then I could have imagined. I really liked the look and professional feel this layout brought to the site and photos (taken by the great Jeremy Cowart) were simply amazing. This layout was well liked by the fans, who enjoyed the departure from the previous style. When Fall came along and we decided we needed a new layout, I was sad to see this one go! It will always be one of my favorite layouts.
Version 10 – “Well that’s your call”
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Used: October 27th of 2007 to Janaury of 2008
Designed by: Stacee
Coded by: Jeanna
Programs Used: Photoshop
Comments:
Jeanna: Again, Stacee outdid herself and produce a stellar, absolutely gorgeous layout. I loved the photos she used and I loved the design! This layout was a huge favorite of the fans and they raved about it for weeks. One of my favorites parts of this layout were the words that Stacee put in the left hand corner, taken from the Nothing Is Sound Song Stories: “We are lonely souls in the land of broken hearts, far from home but this is where the story begins. And yes, you are the protagonist, you are the hero and the villain, the prince and the pauper and the clown all in one. So where do things head from here? Well, that’s your call.
On the coding side of things, I discovered a new way to code our side bar so that it allowed us greater flexibility and more space for more features. So this layout saw the addition of the Latest News, Submit News, Calendar, and the Current and Upcoming Projects sections. They really added to the quality of the site!
Version 11 – Yellow and Black
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Used: Janaury of 2008 to March 21st of 2008
Designed by: Stacee
Coded by: Jeanna
Programs Used: Photoshop
Comments:
Jeanna: Hands down, this was probably the fans favorite layout. Can you blame them? I’m so jealous of Stacee’s talent sometimes. I loved the photos that she used and the color scheme was really fun too. The over all design was just beautiful. This would definitely win the award for most popular layout if we were ever to take a vote!
Coding wise, nothing changed. We kept the exact same look from our past layout and just changed the colors. That made it easy for us! We probably could have left this layout up longer and no one would have complained, but it was a little too dark for the upcoming Spring season. Therefore, we bid a sad goodbye to “Version 11 – Yellow and Black” and moved on.
Version 12.1 & 12.2 – Layout ADHD
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(Click the photo to enlarge.)
Used: March 21st of 2008 to April 29th
Designed by: Jeanna
Coded by: Jeanna
Programs Used: Photoshop
Comments:
I have a problem. It’s called Layout ADHD. I pretty much have to change our layouts constantly. *shakes head sadly* These layouts reflect that issue.
Once again, I wanted something different for the site – a new look if you will. So I decided to go back to the look of Version 9.0 – the box-y, newspaper feel. Then to switch things up more, I made the photos scroll, and moved the sidebar (which features our tagboards, calendar, latest updates etc.) over to the RIGHT side of the page. But… that little side bar move? Yeah, didn’t go over so well. Some people were really upset. (Seriously!) But I kept it. I knew it would take some getting used to but I figured that, sooner or later, the fans would forget the side bar was ever even on the left side. They did simmer down eventually, but even so, the reaction to this layout was only about 60% positive. Most seemed sort of ho-hum on it.
Then Layout ADHD struck again. I didn’t want to change the whole look, so instead, I changed the photos and colors. The fans seemed to like those changes more – LOBH fans love red I’ve noticed – and were much more positive about the whole thing. The new photos, taken in Malaysia, were a big hit. Even so, I got bored with this layout pretty quickly… there wasn’t a whole lot to look at… so after a month with this layout, I changed it again.
Version 13 – Photos
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Used: April 29th to May 31st
Designed by: Jeanna
Coded by: Jeanna
Programs Used: Photoshop CS2
Comments: This was such a fun layout to make an it was perfect for spring! This one was a huge hit with the fans and I got a lot of e-mails of people telling me how much they loved the layout. That was cool!
As for the details of the layout, I love that shade of blue/green! The photos were taken at the Dove Awards by Luke and they were just gorgeous and perfect for a graphic.
All in all, a fun layout to make and popular one! However, once June and the Bro-Am rolled around, we decided we needed something more light and summery, so this one was sent into the archives.
Version 14 – Summer Sunset
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Used: May 31st to July 24th
Designed by: Stacee
Coded by: Jeanna
Programs Used: Photoshop CS2
Comments: For us, summer never REALLY starts until the Switchfoot Bro-Am begins. When the beginning of June rolls around, that’s our cue to break out a summer/surf layout! Stacee made this one, and again, she did a great job! This layout felt like a perfect summer evening, and I loved the photos she used.
The colors and scheme were really well liked by the fans who enjoyed a lighter “happier” look for Land of Broken Hearts. Another perfect layout for the hot summer months.
We loved this layout so much it stayed up for almost two months before it was retired!
Version 15 – Screaming Without Lungs
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Used: July 25th to September 2nd
Designed by: Jeanna
Coded by: Jeanna
Programs Used: Photoshop 7
Comments: This layout was good times. I had a good time making it and the fans just LOVED it. I’m not sure why, but our visitors seem to love red/black color schemes, so that might have contributed to the popularity of this layout.
This was really the first “concert” layout that we had done, and it was really dynamic looking! I love that photo of Jon in the middle… typical Jon pose right? Really though, all the photos (taken by our very talented friend Susie) we used were just great… they really showcased just how absolutely mind-blowing Switchfoot is in concert. Click that link and check out the rest of her photos, because she is AMAZING!
Coding wise, nothing changed. I like this code. We just might keep it for a long time!
Version 16 – More than oceans away…
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Used: September 2nd to September 30th
Designed by: Jeanna
Coded by: Jeanna
Programs Used: Photoshop 7
Comments: I was surfing the internet when I came across some amazing photos of Switchfoot taken at one of their soundchecks. Soundcheck photos are some of my favorites because the lighting is almost always better for photography.
The header graphic had lots of different looks before I settled on this one. The photo of Jon was always going to have that same position, but the photos of the other guys moved around a lot before I could make up my mind.
Our graphics must be improving because, again, this layout was a HUGE hit with the fans. Even though this layout was so popular, I got bored with it quickly… I think that is mostly because we had been using the same basic layout for the past 5 layouts, and I was tired of it. So…
Version 17 – Photo, photos, photos!
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Used: September 30th to November 11th
Designed by: Jeanna
Coded by: Jeanna
Programs Used: Photoshop 7
Comments: Hands down this was our best layout EVER. It was my favorite and the fans favorite. I loved the design and the organization. The colors were classy, and the photos! The photos! What was awesome about this layout was that the photo changed every time you visited the site or went to a new page. There were 25 possible photos that you could get, and the fans LOVED that. Many spent hours on the site, refreshing the page to see all the photos.
Coding wise, this one was a little time consuming to code, but it was definitely worth it. The new header with all the boxes gave us more room in the sidebar and more flexibility.
Frankly, I don’t know how I’m going to improve on this one.
Version 19 – Tim and the others
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Used: March 1st to May/June?
Designed by: Jeanna
Coded by: Jeanna
Programs Used: Photoshop 7
Comments: Okay here is where the layout archiving gets a little bit hazy. There was a transition layout in here somewhere… I believe I re-made layout 17 a few times using a few different colors and photos, just because I simply did not have the time to create a new one from scratch. In March of 2009, I also moved the site, for good, to a brand new host, so this layout was our “Welcome to the New LOBH!” look. Where the rest of the layouts are – that came between 17 and 19 – I’ll never know!… lost on the internet I suppose! That’s what I get for forgetting to screencap.
Anywho, this was a very popular layout. The fans loved the clean, neat look and the photos were also a big hit. I really liked the color scheme too – gold and grey. Very readable and classy looking!
Version 20 – It’s not purple, it’s puce!
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Used:May/June to August
Designed by: Jeanna
Coded by: Jeanna
Programs Used: Photoshop 7
Comments: The reception over this layout was very lukewarm. I guess the fans like things with more photos and not such… “girly” colors? Either way, I liked it! Big fan of the neat, tidy look. However, the fans did LOVE the photo I used. Though it’s so common and widespread now, it WASN’T then, and a lot of people had never seen it. The birds and trees that I added were a nice touch, I like to think.
Still, I don’t think any of us were too sad to see this one go!