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Comment by ChikkaChiChi | Hacker News Reader

I'd comment on this article on web design if I wasn't straining my eyes on that terrible website.

Glass houses = unreliable source.

Green on black is ugly. It is not unreadable. Compare this to the "professionals" at YouTube, for example, who actually think medium gray is readable over light gray.

In any case, "I don't like these colors" is not a complaint comparable to "I literally can't read your article without being sent to an app store."

As to why the design is that way, it's a visual reference to how old CRT terminals once looked.

Yah great. And maybe the annoying popup ads are an homage to Peter Max. The irony of reading this rant in green text on a black background is still inescapable.

What? Sure, green-on-black may not be your colours of choice, but that's a matter of taste, not of usability. It's not like a grey-on-grey low contrast choice.

I'm not so sure. I consider the colours used on a site to be a factor in how usable it is. I found his site difficult to read, how is that not a usability factor?

Green on black can use different type of green, rather than poisonous lime green on black. Nostalgic emulation of historic monochrome monitors can be fun, but not for reading text for a long time.

This. Complaining about how hard it is to read someone else's website when you use an awful green text on black background is reason enough for me to not take you seriously. It's a Wordpress site, for god's sake, and that is the template you came up with (or chose)? Glass houses, indeed.

It's a design intended to recall the look of the author's original webpage, which has been on the internet since before the word blog was coined.

The man was a pivotal figure in writing the first modern web browser, it wouldn't kill you to show some goddamn respect.

If Jamie's post had been about literally almost anything else web related, I would concur.

There is a difference, I think, between "I find green on black to be hard on my eyes" and "I can't read the content because it is obscured by ads and popovers."

Exactly my thought.

I am sure the author is an intelligent guy who knows his stuff - but I just can't be bothered to read for more than a few paragraphs something that looks so G-d-damn awful. It really is a pain to look at.

> I am sure the author is an intelligent guy who knows his stuff

jwz is a programmer. If you don't know the initials jwz, you should do some research.

On a side note, his site doesn't take away from he facts he presented.

That guy invented one of the most revolutionary ways of looking at things on the internet.

With a green and black blog without any css3, what right does he have to comment on design?!

That's precisely the point - his site is so beyond ugly, that it detracts from his message. He's not talking about programming here - but discussing presentation of visual information. His utter disregard for his readers makes me question his competence in this question.

It's like we had a genius color-blind guy critique a Rothko painting.

> his site is so beyond ugly, that it detracts from his message.

No, not really. It's fairly easy to read. And while it might not be a super design by some standards, it doesn't bother anyone unless you want to be bothered by it. Contrast that with the site he's reviewing, where you physically can't read the content because the site explicitly prevents you from reading it.

> It's like we had a genius color-blind guy critique a

…website.

That's something you should do.

I like the brevity of your last sentence. May I suggest saying "tu quoque" instead? It's even shorter.

Today I learned, thanks!

I had to use safari reader to get through it. This guy needs to take some of his own advice.

I completely agree. I find the color scheme very difficult to read. I used to read his blog, but stopped when I realized the green on black was giving me a headache.

What does the article have to do with design? It deals with usability and UX.

On the off-chance that you disagree, why do you think only designers can test the UX of a site?

Ugly personal site != nonfunctional commercial site.

maybe jwz's site is designed this way to keep "looking for ways to be offended" people away?

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