Flathub.org front page layout update.

[BeverlyCode]

It now displays less items per category, whats up with that? I'm not so sure this is a good change. 😟

[razzeee]

The idea is to show less elements, so the page loads/renders faster.

It should also motivate users to scroll, as previously your whole screen could have been taken by the first category.

And it's kind of foreshadowing new additions to that page, so for us to add new stuff, we got rid of some old.

[BeverlyCode]

Sure I appreciate that the intention is to improve the experience, but I do think the main focus of the site is the recently added apps category, updated apps just updates too frequently to really have much value in the sense it could just be replaced with a "random apps category" which to be honest might not be a bad idea to add.

I think that it would be cool if a side scroller was added to the left and right of the recently added apps category at the top of the page, but only for that category, so that people could scroll through them without changing page preferably with ease, if they scroll left it will take them to the bottom of the list and right down from the top.

That way you reduce the size of the most important category for exposure of new apps but you don't impact the lack of visibility as much, this would just be like an AJAX request on scroll to grab the next 12 apps in that direction of the scroll.

Basically a Carousel is what I mean. A Carousel only for recently added apps.

A daily random apps category would be so cool to add, every day a new random selection of 12 apps to be displayed on the front page would be a really awesome way to give exposure to various apps. - and I think it would have way more value than the recently updated apps category, I would stick the daily random apps right blow recently added apps and then recently updated apps below daily random apps.

[razzeee]

That's all already prepared, but it's not random.

And the Ajax thingy is probably not a good idea or at least raises the question why you just won't click more on there.

[BeverlyCode]

That's all already prepared, but it's not random.

And the Ajax thingy is probably not a good idea or at least raises the question why you just won't click more on there.

Nice so it will be human curated? Well the more button causes a page change which is what you'd call a paper cut, it adds friction to the users experience, an ajax carousel would be more fluid and users would be more likely to use it than the more button.

At the moment I can guarantee that by reducing the size of the recently added apps list that it will impact the exposure of the apps that are pushed off the front page.

This is particularly bad currently because a full page of apps was added and then the amount of elements was reduced almost instantly giving them only a day or two of exposure maximum before being cut off into the more page, which is a button that is not well placed as users are likely to be confused between the upper and lower more buttons and there would be a high rate of users clicking the lower one accidentally. The timing of this formatting change to the front page will have done significant damage to the exposure of those recently added apps that where forcibly pushed into the more page.

I don't think the more button is really a very good solution. Although a divider could be added between sections to better illustrate the separation between more buttons, I know I myself have accidentally clicked the lower more button accidentally many times in the past.

[razzeee]

I've never clicked the wrong more button, but I am unhappy with it, as SEO wise it has no context.

We can not guarantee any app that's been newly added to be on the front page for however long. It's just too brittle, it depends on what and how new submissions get merged. So you might have had a L just to bad luck before.

Anyway most newly added apps do pass the app review, but are not really up to our metadata quality standard. So not showing them on the homepage might be a net good. I usually go through the new additions and try to get them better, but it takes time.