But before we get to the good stuff, here's a quick recap on how it all began: In 2012, I created a Google+ page under the #googleplusupdate monikor, to fill the niche of early adopters clamouring for the latest news on updates big and small, all in one place. By January of 2013, I had assembled a small team of web designers, developers and marketers to create a fun and recognisable brand, and thus Google Plus Daily was born.
Since then, we've strived to be your daily source for Google+, whether you want to get the scoop on the latest news, swat up on our how-tos or read up on opinion and culture pieces. During this time, we've brought you exclusive interviews with +Vic Gundotra (http://goo.gl/MwSIwJ), +Bradley Horowitz (http://goo.gl/1mQQdC) and even +Mr. Jingles (http://goo.gl/SPXAnH).
We're now in 2015 and although time has flown by quicker than I can say "Google+ desktop redesign please!", googleplusdaily.com as far as design goes has remained largely unchanged, that is until now.
Keeping It Simple
Rather than completely changing up our brand and site design to something that is hardly recognisable, we opted to stick with the old - "if it ain't broke, don't fix it!" mantra, changing only the elements that don't work and keeping the stuff that does.
We've refreshed our branding assets to be brighter as well as conforming to Google's Material Design guidelines, picking colours from the Material palette.
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| A brighter brand |
We like big images, so we've increased the width of the frame our posts go in, so you can get a better look at our visual content.
Navigating GPD2
Gone goes the bold, distracting navigation bar of the past. We've trimmed the fat of the old one, put it through a monochrome filter and added icons so it's easier to see what's what at a glance. |
| A less distracting navigation bar |
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| Hit the hamburger menu for our site categories |
We've added some slick animations too, which you'll see when rolling your cursor over our logo, navigation menu and Popular Posts section on the sidebar (and other places too!). As you can see, we've designed the site to draw the eye to the content which I think really pops, and the chrome just gets out of the way.
Google Plus Daily is now fully responsive, so whether you're reading from your computer, mobile or tablet, your experience will be stellar, with no more panning or zooming needed. To see it work in action on your desktop, simply resize your window and watch the elements move around to fit the page. Magic!
Our revamped website is supported on all major modern browsers, so you can always rely on us to keep you up-to-date on the latest Plus goodness.
A Responsive Design
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| Works like a charm on many screen sizes |
Our revamped website is supported on all major modern browsers, so you can always rely on us to keep you up-to-date on the latest Plus goodness.
What to Expect Going Forward
Google+ news and product updates has slowed down dramatically in the past year, which is unfortunate. Even so, the community at large remains as active as ever, and we're committing ourselves to posting more content related to the wonderful, diverse culture on Google+ from here on out. So if you own an original, active community, please reach out to us as we are looking to feature the best that G+ has to offer.
Interaction with our readers is a big priority for us, so we'll be posting more polls on our Google+ page (+Google Plus Daily) and other fun titbits too.
The Team and Our Community
I'd like to thank the man behind the curtain - +Simon Janssens de Varebeke, our Web Designer and Developer who has been working hard on making the changes you're seeing today, happen.
And of course, Google Plus Daily wouldn't be here today if it wasn't for all the amazing current and past developers, designers and writers. I can't express enough how grateful I am to those listed (and others I forgot to list) below:
I'd also like to give a tip of the hat to the moderators of our own 130,000+ member strong Google+ Updates community who work hard to remove spam 24/7, and to those who have given me moral support, tips or just like to read our posts. Thank you.
Giving Feedback
Nothing's perfect, so if you've spotted a bug on our site or would like to make a suggestion, please don't hesitate to mention myself (+Lee Jarratt), +Simon Janssens de Varebeke or +Google Plus Daily with your OS and browser version so we can make your future visits better.