Added 2nd sidebar blog

[Mehdi]

This is a big update, took me almost 2 weeks to finish. Added 2nd sidebar on blog with ads and banner top right corner, with captions "advertisment" & "sponsors". Still some small bugs to be fixed here & there, but most stuff is done. Will be able to get back into writing soon.

[Mehdi]

Make sure you clear cookies and whatever, so you get last updated stylesheet and actually see all of it.

[Young Athlete]

Nice

[rissam]

This is a big update, took me almost 2 weeks to finish. Added 2nd sidebar on blog with ads and banner top right corner, with captions "advertisment" & "sponsors". Still some small bugs to be fixed here & there, but most stuff is done. Will be able to get back into writing soon.

Mehdi,
Changes look good! Also appreciate the fact that you introduced a "Print" page.
Now look forward to your next set of articles

[Kyle]

now you need a payed ad-free version haha

[Cleave]

Just to state the obvious......if your going to buy a book like "Starting Strength" or anything else discussed here. Use one of the links here at StrongLifts. Mehdi makes a little (and by Amazon I mean very little) bit of commission from your purchase and helps him pay the bills around here. It doesn't cost any more than going direct to Amazon, but by using the link from here you help keep the community going.

[helm]

imho it would be better to slightly resize the "book picture" on the left. the huge size gives me the feeling of also being an ad, thus as a new visitor I'd ignore it. and maybe move the "best of sl.com" section up one place, so people find the link to the 5x5 program quicker. I know that screen resolutions vary, but mine for example (1280x800) doesn't even show the recommended products part on the left. and studies have shown that people still quite often do not scroll (sorry, no link). this study shows how people read websites, here the home & blog page fit perfectly. I think somewhere on that site they also explain that most internet users simply ignore banner ads.

what I find slightly disturbing is that the ads are often promoting exactly the opposite of the SL approach (e.g. gain 41pounds of muscle in 6 weeks, firm and flatten your abs, get six-pack abs, etc.), but I think you cannot influence it that much.

with all those colorful pictures on the top and right, the logo somehow gets lost. those pictures somehow outshine it, if you know what I mean. I would even go so far and say that the pictures steal the viewer's focus by being so much more present.
taking away that obtrusive ad on top would imho look better. probably even enlarge the logo a little, making it more prominent.

please take this as constructive criticism, I really appreciate the work you put into the site. and I do understand that the ads are a necessary evil...

[Mehdi]

Just to state the obvious......if your going to buy a book like "Starting Strength" or anything else discussed here. Use one of the links here at StrongLifts. Mehdi makes a little (and by Amazon I mean very little) bit of commission from your purchase and helps him pay the bills around here. It doesn't cost any more than going direct to Amazon, but by using the link from here you help keep the community going.

Thanks a lot Cleave.

imho it would be better to slightly resize the "book picture" on the left. the huge size gives me the feeling of also being an ad, thus as a new visitor I'd ignore it. and maybe move the "best of sl.com" section up one place, so people find the link to the 5x5 program quicker. I know that screen resolutions vary, but mine for example (1280x800) doesn't even show the recommended products part on the left. and studies have shown that people still quite often do not scroll (sorry, no link). this study shows how people read websites, here the home & blog page fit perfectly. I think somewhere on that site they also explain that most internet users simply ignore banner ads.

what I find slightly disturbing is that the ads are often promoting exactly the opposite of the SL approach (e.g. gain 41pounds of muscle in 6 weeks, firm and flatten your abs, get six-pack abs, etc.), but I think you cannot influence it that much.

with all those colorful pictures on the top and right, the logo somehow gets lost. those pictures somehow outshine it, if you know what I mean. I would even go so far and say that the pictures steal the viewer's focus by being so much more present.
taking away that obtrusive ad on top would imho look better. probably even enlarge the logo a little, making it more prominent.

please take this as constructive criticism, I really appreciate the work you put into the site. and I do understand that the ads are a necessary evil...

No problem Helm, thanks for your understanding and help, I appreciate it.

I'm familiar with jacob nielsen's work. I select the ads and there is good stuff in between (like combat core or warp speed fat loss). Ads have captions everywhere to make it clear that it's an ad, not something StrongLifts.com recommends. I've looked at the design daily during the past 2 weeks: you get used to it.