Registered: Dec 1999
Location: Kuala Lumpur
Posts: 247

Hey Eeverybody!

I just checked out www.handspring.com this morning and guess what? They've got this new Macromedia Flash-enabled website.

Love the new tagline. Check it out for yourselves!

Interesting feature - the website changes depending on what colour Visor you click. If you click on a Blue Visor, the main page of the site will have a Blue Visor theme and if you click on Ice, and Ice theme and so on. Cool!

Registered: Mar 2000
Location: McLean, VA USA
Posts: 216

Yeah, it's pretty cool. I love the new tag line. Don't get too excited though, the content hasn't changed.

Liked the new tag line so much, that I decided to change my VC sig.

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What the Heck! It's what I want!

Registered: Jan 2000
Location:
Posts: 28

Due to the FLASH page, I can no longer access their site!!!

I'm going thru a corporate firewall and need a non-flash version. I now get a completely BLANK page.

Registered: Oct 1999
Location: I'm not sure, but I see lots of lights everywhere.
Posts: 1287

The flash intro looks very nice, but I don't like the top header graphic at all on the main homepage. The colors don't correspond well with the rest of the sites overall look and feel.

Registered: Sep 1999
Location: Sydney Australia
Posts: 1883

I like the new intro too!

Too bad they only updated the intro and not the content....

I guess they did it for the PC Expo....

Registered: Nov 1999
Location:
Posts: 24

When I went to Handspring's site from my RS/6000 which does not have flash, I was automatically transferred to http://www.handspring.com/nonflash.htm so the updated site works with browsers that don't have the flash plugin.

Ed

Registered: Jan 2000
Location: Twin Cities, MN
Posts: 1683

I just hate saying "heck"...it's so...cheesy.

Registered: May 2000
Location: St. Paul, MN
Posts: 1429

When U see the flash, do you notice that only the TOP half of the visor changes color?, the other stay's ice. And don't the buttuns look a bit different. Could this be the Visor II ? ?
Oh what would they name a second visor?

Registered: Feb 2000
Location:
Posts: 21

Oh, how utterly annoying.

Repeat after me boys and girls: If you're going to use anything other an pure HTML in your website, *do not* do it on the front page, and *do* provide a link to an HTML-only version, so that your site can be accessed by people who are using anything other than your personal favorite browser and plugins.

That flash yields confusing lossage in Mozilla M16, and a full pageful of spam in Lynx before two unlabeled links... god knows where they end up...

#ifdef SARCASM
Good thing I installed the Flash plugin in Netscape.
#endif

And I bet the person who thrust this utter rubbish upon us had the gall to call himself a "web designer".

What a bloody waste.

Bad move, Handspring.

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"The tree of liberty must occasionally be watered by the blood of patriots and tyrants." - Thomas Jefferson

Registered: Dec 1999
Location: Connecticut USA
Posts: 2682

quote:

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Originally posted by miradu2000:
do you notice that only the TOP half of the visor changes color?, the other stay's ice.

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Registered: Jan 2000
Location:
Posts: 241

For everyone who wants to get to the main page, but doesn't have flash installed (aka me @ work today behind a firewall) go to:
http://www.handspring.com/index.asp?visorcolor=blue2

(I chose the blue one because I like blue )

Registered: Jun 2000
Location:
Posts: 18

No Graphite??!

Registered: Nov 1999
Location:
Posts: 2

Bad move - Flash CAN be vital and can be used innovatively, in this case it is really too bad the the site designers don't follow Jeff's advice about PDAs: Keep it Simple Stupid.

Worse still, the opening implies that choosing a color will take you to something unique to that color when all they give you is the same header/picture in a different color... why bother?

Registered: Sep 1999
Location:
Posts: 81

It seems to me that you all missed the point of the new intro. They did it so they can have a flashy look like many other major sites, something that could show up on a newscast or as a screenshot in a writeup from PC Expo. While plain sites with no glitter and lots of info can be helpful, they won't get you recognized by the media. Also, many people associate the technology used in creating a web page with the product that the company is trying to sell. Using new technology (Macromedia Flash) associates with Handspring's product being new and innovative. I don't agree with all of this, but that's just the way it is!

Registered: Feb 2000
Location:
Posts: 21

quote:

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Originally posted by LuckyChuck:
It seems to me that you all missed the point of the new intro. They did it so they can have a flashy look like many other major sites

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Registered: Mar 2000
Location: Richmond, VA, USA
Posts: 151

I think we MAY finally be beyond the point where web pages must be made to run optimally for text-only browsers. I don't think the web should be "dumbed-down" to the least common denominator--WAP browsers/text-only browsers. The WWW is an inherently visual medium. To not take advantage of it (and of great design products like Flash) would be a poor business decision. Like it or not, most people browsing the web can view Flash animations (compatible with IE 4 and later, and non-beta Netscape Navigator). Very few are navigating the web with text browsers. Why would they?

Registered: Jan 2000
Location:
Posts: 241

I wrote handspring, and they said that they're having trouble with the site. It should automatically tell whether you have flash or not, and direct you accordingly. They're working on the problem now.

Until then, just go to http://www.handspring.com/index.asp

Registered: Oct 1999
Location: Baltimore MD, USA
Posts: 717

quote:

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Originally posted by na2rboy:
Very few are navigating the web with text browsers. Why would they?

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Registered: Jan 2000
Location:
Posts: 241

It's fixed!!!

Handspring fixed the site! It now works if you don't have flash!!! (and it still looks pretty cool!)

Way to go Handspring!!
-Petro

Registered: Sep 1999
Location:
Posts: 81

Just a few rational questions/statements:

1. How many people actually browse the web on a WAP phone? I tried it 1 time on a friend's phone and vowed never to do it again. I though a PDA's screen size was bad, but come on, a phone has like 3-5 lines of display space. Who in their right mind would go through the trouble and expense to actually browse the web this way?

2. As na2rboy pointed out, why should we continue to "dumb down" the web when we have all of these great tools available to develop with? I myself am a fairly experienced Web developer and don't use Frontpage or other bloatware products, but Flash is a very quality product.

3. Handspring only added a single simple introduction to their site, not even changing their navigation, only a single page changed, and yet so many of you have a problem with it. Even people who know little about the web, who are most likely surfing with IE (preinstalled in Win 95/98), would be able to see the new intro due to a very simple ActiveX control that sees that you don't have Flash 3/4 and installs it for you in about 5-10 seconds. Those of you with Netscape obviously know enough to install your own browser and should be able to handle the 30 second download and 30 second install of the Flash player, which would give you access to a lot of great animation and web sites out there!

For those of you who don't agree with me, that's ok too, you can just play with your 8 pack of crayons while I pop open my new 500 crayon box!

[This message has been edited by LuckyChuck (edited 06-30-2000).]