Preview: Updated CNET News and Downloads

We are continuing our summer preview of the new CNET with revamped News and Downloads pages in addition to the redesigned Reviews and CNET.com home page introduced last month.

As with our first beta test, a small percent of random visitors to CNET sites will be presented with the new pages. We've had a lot of feedback (please keep it coming!), and we'll continue to make changes are we gather more info and head toward the official launch later this summer.

The CNET News colors change, but the high-quality content stays the same.

Download.com's updated look will make the site easier to navigate.

See also: CNET's new, improved look

[gerrrg]

Might there be a linux section in the near future? How about making that background gray slightly darker...instead of 15%, push it up to 30 or 40%?

[gsmiller88]

Nice to see a use of different colors. I mean it's cool and all that yellow, green, and red have became CNET's signature colors, but I think it's time to see a little change.

[madflacker]

Looks sharp. Easy / intuitive nav at top. Lots of separation between text chunks, and eyes train towards content instead of ad junk. Definitely will remain the best- executed web design of the IT news sites.

[johnericanderson]

Why would they do a Linux section? That would require a perceived demand of marketable items. The Linux community is adamantly free, as in "not paying for it."

[mhinnewyork]

News.com is better than news.
News is better without the reflection.

Search belongs at the top in the same section as the redball. It wastes vertical space where it is and there is a large patch of unused real estate there.

A horizontal set of links with a horizontal set of buttons underneath it is confusing. Why not one row in same visual style?

Most popular and Most discussed belong above the multimedia box not below it. And, that box needs to show more stories - or - at the least have a "more..." link that expands the box vertically.

I could go on but I'm wasting my time.

Michael Horowitz

[lil junior425]

I think you did a spelling error there CNET. it says "We've had a lot of feedback (please keep it coming!), and we'll continue to make changes are we gather more info and head toward the official launch later this summer." i think were are is at should be as. other then that its all good.

[The_Decider]

Random? I get it nearly every time.

It is not beta quality, it may look good but the idiots you hired didn't bother to get the view reply AJAX request to work at all.

Posting is more or less broken again, since it fails a lot.

What they did to the site is very, very trivial, yet those morons you hired couldn't get it close to correct. Beta? I would be embarrassed to call it an alpha.

Pull it down until it is truly beta.

[pkennedy]

ab-so-lude-lee HORRENDOUS.. the CBS downfall has now included CNET... what are they thinking ... the 'signature' CNET colors that distinguished itself from other sites is going going gone.. most knew this was coming... what a bummer...

all CNET is now is just another drab run of the mill looking website.. even with the 'pretty' black border at the top.. black.. the sign of mourning.. guess this is the downward spiral of Cnet as we all knew and loved it..... first CBS.. then Katie Couric.. now this... who woulda thunk it... condolences to those over at Cnet who have to put up with CBS's shennaigans ... my guess is that many of the regulars at Cnet will be gone pretty soon and replaced with some run of the pseudo-kewl wannabes that CBS will come up with... .......what a drab sad day!!!

[AngryCNETUser]

This beta version is a joke. I love the massive amount of freeware available on download.com, and spent many an hour browsing through tens of thousands of results, looking for that one program that would solve some obscure but irritating problem, and that, when downloaded, I would never be able to live without. And all without paying a cent.

Thanks to this new beta version (which, by the way, is visually repulsive), browsing through freeware is a joke:
1) I can no longer browse freeware in order of specific criteria, such as user reviews, editor reviews, number of downloads, etc.
2) I can no longer narrow my browsing using multiple criteria simultaneously: I can narrow my results to "Free" licenses only, but when I go to select "Windows XP" as my operating system, it still displays results for all operating systems.
3) Above every result, there's a little blue bar that says "Sponsored Match." What is that supposed to mean? I shudder to even speculate.
4) The nice, straightforward link at the top of the page for each category of freeware that allows you to "view all #### results" is gone.
5) The "view all freeware" link on the main download.com page is gone.
6) Did I mention this new format is UGLY? I trusted download.com because it looked professional, and was user-friendly. This new version looks so bad that I had to make sure that it wasn't some copycat that would trick me into downloading spyware.

Conclusion: Do us all a favor and take this new version of CNET down, and put two in the head and one in the heart. Or at the very least allow us regulars to have the option to switch back to the version we all know and love.

[AngryCNETUser]

On further review, I have to correct some portions of my previous statement. The following items need to be amended:

In reference to criteria-sorting, there is a small drop-down menu that allows you to select which criterion to search by.

In reference to narrowing browsing results, it appears that, despite only actually making note of the first piece of criteria to narrow by, subsequent selections are, in fact, recognized (although not visually).

I continue to stand by all other statements made in my original posting.

[syed908]

I suggested to you that you must provide us your download manager to download softwares faster and no disconnection from your server .....
best regard
Mahmood

[babszbyrne]

I can't even get search to work?

[pkennedy]

UPDATE... the more I use this NEW Cnet the worse it has gotten... terrible....

who thought of this new format..... shameful... you'd think a bunch of high schoolers devised this new setup... can't access any of the old articles that Cnet was known for... I could go on and on... but what's done is done... Cnet built a reputation of being the best of the best...the RISE and BIG FALL of Cnet... what a shame... so sad .. so very very sad :(

. Pleazzzzze.... how do I dump this Beta and get me back my old Cnet... I guess it's gone forever...

[Carsto]

The pages under Dan Farber's picture as editor of Outside the Lines look good. However; the navigation is as abysmal as ever. First, there was a questionnaire which disappeared behind this page. Ok, so let's look. Yes, the pages look good. Now comment. Trying to go back from this Comment to see detail of the beta site on the first page, dropped me out of this. I had to log in again. This page will also not go back to the questionnaire - it won't go back anywhere! Ten thousand feet up without a parachute! Wow!

[tylert120]

When is the new look finally coming? I really like what I see!

[lplayter]

First impressions Literally,before I have even started navagating the beta,I just really like the new look front page.You provide a great service(one of very few I trust) It is obvious that You all work hard on the site and it is appreciated by Me,as I say instinctive 1st impression

[fwpgreg]

Using Safari 3, story text way too small and difficult to read. Using the browser to bump up the size, screws up the alignment of some of the layout. When will people learn that using % in CSS just doesn't work! Use px and force MS to change their stupid philosophy of preventing that from being resized.

If the final version stays as it currently is, I'm 100% certain I'd stop reading the site--since I can't read it. I can't even read this comment that I am writing!

[cfmeier]

1. Pages (sometimes) take an abysmally long time to load, thanks to i.i.com.com. I have a fast broadband connection, there's NO REASON why I should be sitting here waiting, sometimes for over a minute, for CNet pages to load!

2. In Download.com, I used to be able to filter the results based on OS, Free, Date, etc, but that function is gone. All that's there is a box marked "Filter" but NO OPTIONS to filter ON! How worthless is that?

3. Also in Downloads, what happened to the little pop-up info-bubbles when you mouse over a file name? It's there in some categories, but not in all. How about a little consistency?

4. Why the color changes? The whole site just looks bland now.

5. Have you ever heard the expression "If it ain't broke, don't fix it!" ???

All in all, I'm very dissatisfied with the "new" CNet. I can only hope that saner minds will prevail, and you'll return the site to its glory days of several years ago. Every re-design you've come up with in recent years has made the site WORSE. Why make the color changes? And, having done that, why make changes to the layout? And where is the functionality that used to be there? Wake up, CNet!