UnRaid looks so old :(

[speeding_ant]

It's a NAS device.  You set it up in a closet or basement.  Once in a while you check in to see everything looks ok.  You use it via network shares.  You have some peace of mind that if something does blow up you won't lose everything.  How sexy does it need to be?

But I understand the sentiment.

 

It needs to be sexy, dead sexy.

 

That is all 

[AndrewT]

Once in a while you check in to see everything looks ok.

I would love to only check on my unraid array once a month (as a reasonable goal), and I think automatic emails when drives fail is a major essential component missing to the stock unraid OS to give users the piece of mind.

 

I think the 64-bit unraid OS is an excellent opportunity to poll the user community what should be added. Certainly those with 64-bit processors would have increased hardware performance to handle a few added packages and draw in some new users with attractive features.

 

All that being said, I am very happy with the current v5 unraid OS as-is. Without the knowledgeable and helpful community though, I'm not sure I would've ever considered unraid.

[Juzzotec]

It's a NAS device.  You set it up in a closet or basement.  Once in a while you check in to see everything looks ok.  You use it via network shares.  You have some peace of mind that if something does blow up you won't lose everything.  How sexy does it need to be?

But I understand the sentiment.

 

It needs to be sexy, dead sexy.

 

That is all 

 

Thanks to your SimpleFeatures Plugin, unRAID looks alot better.

 

The interface is the second most important factor when choosing a NAS software, obviously stability is number one. SimpleFeatures Web GUI was the first plugin I installed when I purchased my unRAID license.

 

On a positive note, Im just starting off since Monday, peiced together my 6 drive unraid nas and I have not encountered any major issues with the limited knowledge I have, so far so happy with unraid. If only pre-clearing drives didnt take 30hours+ for 3TB thats standard I guess

[BetaQuasi]

Personally, I'm all about function over form - don't get me wrong, I use simplefeatures and like it, but wouldn't miss it if it wasn't around.  GUI or bash prompt?  Bash prompt all the way

 

I'm also not much of a 'first impressions' type person.  I do a lot of research before I purchase anything.. first impressions mean little to me.

 

Now I'm not trying to start anything, don't get me wrong   However,  I think it's a bit of a hasty generalisation to say people are all about first impressions and that it's all about the shiny.  Perhaps the majority are, but certainly not all of us!

[SavellM]

I totally agree with you.

I was looking at every solution out there including the new Windows Essentials 2012, FreeNas, WHS2011 with FlexRaid and souring the web for different solutions.

So dont get me wrong I also have done a lot of research. Yes the functionality of unRAID is awesome, but if it wasn't for Crash pointing and pushing me to unRAID I would have missed out.

 

Also you look at all the other solutions out there, and there are multiple devs working on it. All collaborating together with the same goal in mind.

That way the product is being pushed along by multiple people, and product grows because of the shared knowledge.

[joyless]

Tom,

the one and only reason I decided to try unRAID is because after reading about it I googled "unRAID", saw some screenshots and my first thought was - damn, it looks great!

Turns out it was SimpleFeatures.

I would NEVER go through the hassle of installing it and finding a spare drive to give it a spin if first screenshots I saw were from default GUI.

Like someone said - more polished GUI might attract some new customers. Maybe something worth thinking about.

[NAS]

People buy with their eyes. It is that simple.

 

 

[Influencer]

I'm with the function over form crowd. While I like eye candy, if it works I'm happy. And testing/troubleshooting plugins for other users I probably look at the GUI more than most.

 

I understand the sentiment for the updated interface, and I partially look at design when purchasing, but in the end if it looks good but doesn't function well, I'll pass. Plus the look has a nostalgia factor . Now some of the functionality simple features introduces should be in the stock installation.

[jowi]

If you provide your product with a web interface that is essential to its functioning, it should be up to par with current design and specs, its simple as that. So either dont provide a web interface and limit your audience to techy linux command line enthusiasts (and sell less prodocts probably), or supply something that fits current expectations... Not something in between. For me, if it wasnt for simplefeatures, i would not have went the unraid road... i even think the "95" web look adds to the sense of the product "not yet finished". It fits the eternal beta stage... not a good thing.

[limetech]

If you provide your product with a web interface that is essential to its functioning, it should be up to par with current design and specs, its simple as that. So either dont provide a web interface and limit your audience to techy linux command line enthusiasts (and sell less prodocts probably), or supply something that fits current expectations... Not something in between. For me, if it wasnt for simplefeatures, i would not have went the unraid road... i even think the "95" web look adds to the sense of the product "not yet finished". It fits the eternal beta stage... not a good thing.

I really appreciate this kind of feedback and hopefully I will be able to address this.  I use several good apps and websites with interface appearance one could call "a bit dated".  As a techie-guy and not a design-guy (no really?) I had no idea most people would make buying decisions on appearance alone, but I guess that attitude is pervasive in just about everything in America these days.

[neilt0]

One option is to use a free, modern web library. That's what the developer of nzbget did (I think), he now uses something like the free bootstrap interface from Twitter.

I can't find the reference now, so he may have developed it from scratch, but that seems a lot of work.

 

http://nzbget.sourceforge.net/Web-Interface

 

nzbget went from this:

 

 

to this:

 

 

And not only does it look completely modern, but the new UI has greater functionality.

[jowi]

Its not necesarily an attitude; gui's are tradionally seen as nice-to-haves, especially by (unix) techies, but time has changed. Design, the look and feel of things, is an intricate part of the functions and system as a whole and should not be neglected. Just look at Apple, you wil not find a better example i guess.

[NAS]

This is well documented and a reason why companies spend millions on it...

 

if you take two functionally identical products but one looks polished and attractive not only will users buy the polished one they will subconsciously give that product extra traits of reliabilty, functionality and more importantly use the word quality more (before they even have any real experience with it).

 

But the biggest benefit is stopping people in their tracks to look more and buy. When most people are looking for a product they dont have very specific requirements so if they land on uNRAID homepage few of them will be thinking unstriped parity, most will be thinking i need a NAS whats this one LOOK like.

 

If you dont grab them with visuals most of your customers leave before giving it a better look.

 

It doesnt need to bells and whistles (which can have the opposite effect) but it should look professional to a style level that they wouldn't consider home made.

 

 

[SavellM]

I really appreciate this kind of feedback and hopefully I will be able to address this.  I use several good apps and websites with interface appearance one could call "a bit dated".  As a techie-guy and not a design-guy (no really?) I had no idea most people would make buying decisions on appearance alone, but I guess that attitude is pervasive in just about everything in America these days.

 

Hey Tom, I really appreciate you taking the time to look at this thread.

I hope it helps with the overall product future and it continues on an awesome trend.

 

Quick question, SimpleFeatures is already done, could you not work with the dev and use that as your base with his approval?

Saves you having to design something as its already done, and a lot of people are already famaliiar with it.

 

This is just my $0.02

[dalben]

And not only does it look completely modern, but the new UI has greater functionality.

 

Bootstrap sites are everywhere these days. It's very handy for throwing a page site very quickly.

 

You can even make it quicker by buying a custom bootstrap theme which I think your example has done.  Plenty here: https://wrapbootstrap.com/

 

I'm not sure if the web server in unraid can handle css3 though.

[speeding_ant]

I'm happy for Tom to use the simpleFeatures GUI, in fact I have offered this many times.

[mrow]

One option is to use a free, modern web library. That's what the developer of nzbget did (I think), he now uses something like the free bootstrap interface from Twitter.

I can't find the reference now, so he may have developed it from scratch, but that seems a lot of work.

 

http://nzbget.sourceforge.net/Web-Interface

 

nzbget went from this:

 

 

 

to this:

 

 

 

And not only does it look completely modern, but the new UI has greater functionality.

 

Oh wow, I had no idea the interface had finally been updated to something more modern looking. Even more tempted to switch now... I'm about to virtualize everything and run most of my current plugins in FreeBSD and it would be a good time to make the switch.

[SavellM]

I'm happy for Tom to use the simpleFeatures GUI, in fact I have offered this many times.

 

Thats awesome news

Hopefully this thread helps better unRAID.

[Juzzotec]

I'm happy for Tom to use the simpleFeatures GUI, in fact I have offered this many times.

 

Thats awesome news

Hopefully this thread helps better unRAID.

 

I support this as well, simple GUI is what unraid should be in standard form.

 

Please consider this Tom, easy transition

[afly]

Completely understand what's being said but personally I couldn't care less

 

I spent a few hrs getting it set up and then didn't touch it for months until yesterday when new HDD's arrived. That's evidence to me that unraid does the job I need it to do 

 

That said, I probably am a "techy linux command line enthusiast" 

[doorunrun]

While the look and feel of SimpleFeatures is easy on the eye and VERY functional, there's still a lot to be said for unMenu and MyMenu! When I jumped in with my first build I went straight to SF and never looked at uMenu. But with my PreClear workstation/test-bed I'm using unMenu and there's a lot to like. The fact you can get a status on a PreClear job inside the GUI is very appealing. Don't get me wrong, running Telnet and Screen is fun, too!

 

Those of you who have developed and contributed to this whole fantastic world of unRAID deserve a great deal of CREDIT!

[rednick69]

It's a NAS device.  You set it up in a closet or basement.  Once in a while you check in to see everything looks ok.  You use it via network shares.  You have some peace of mind that if something does blow up you won't lose everything.  How sexy does it need to be?

But I understand the sentiment.

I agree with both sides. When I first started looking at unraid I wanted to see pictures, it didnt look good, I stopped looking. My friend started using unraid and explained it to me a bit and how good it actually is and I bought it. Now that it is set up, it really doesnt matter how good it looks.

Although, when I show it off to people, I want it to look good based on my first opinion of it.

[theone]

While the look and feel of SimpleFeatures is easy on the eye and VERY functional, there's still a lot to be said for unMenu and MyMenu! When I jumped in with my first build I went straight to SF and never looked at uMenu. But with my PreClear workstation/test-bed I'm using unMenu and there's a lot to like. The fact you can get a status on a PreClear job inside the GUI is very appealing. Don't get me wrong, running Telnet and Screen is fun, too!

 

Those of you who have developed and contributed to this whole fantastic world of unRAID deserve a great deal of CREDIT!

I think snap has the ability to show preclear status and I think I read that SF will come out soon with this ability

[drawz]

And not only does it look completely modern, but the new UI has greater functionality.

 

Bootstrap sites are everywhere these days. It's very handy for throwing a page site very quickly.

 

You can even make it quicker by buying a custom bootstrap theme which I think your example has done.  Plenty here: https://wrapbootstrap.com/

 

I'm not sure if the web server in unraid can handle css3 though.

Free opensource admin management interface based on bootstrap here (live demo there too):

http://usman.it/free-responsive-admin-template/

 

Includes a file manager and picture gallery features. This could really step up the look and feel of unraid, even beyond simplefeatures (don't get me wrong, SF is great too).

[SavellM]

Any update on this thread?

And when will 5 be released?!

It's been forever!!!