David, here is a cliche idea, To spark interest in rosetta@home.

Ok, think of the matrix code running down the screen but its amino acid sequences instead, there is some kind of hynototic moby sounding music playing. All seams preety cliche but then screen starts changing and music is more intense, The acid sequnece starts increasing speed and starts morping into a protein. It shows the protein develop and then anouther protein pops up and more and more. Next we fade into a sceen from baker labs and we see you guys doing stuff with test tubes and lab rats and then it fades into some kid taking a pill. It ends with a powerful message supporting the rosetta@home project.

It could be done in flash or anouther medium. I am sure there is room for that contest idea I had earlier for something like that.

Or better - User definable screen savers that get programmed via an output A-La "Winamp Style".

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Must be frustrating, Devid (K), to read about all those whishes and suggestions to change the web page on which I am sure you spent quite some thought and effort (the result of which was already quite good to begin with :-).

Not at all. I like everyone's input. I've already implemented some great suggestions. Keep them coming!

The web page design was thrown together very quickly (as you probably have already noticed, it is not unlike other boinc projects). The content which trumps design for this type of site in my opinion, however, does take time to develop (imagine the time it would take to do a flash segment as some are suggesting), but with time, my hope is that the site will mature with lots of great information and feedback.

Speaking of flash, any flash gurus out there want to donate their time to develop a "Rosetta@home intro/info" flash segment?

If you use "Flash", please include the option to "skip"

I don't like flash either for all the same reasons, but some people do so what I was considering was a link to a tutorial or brief intro type of segment that people could click and view like the links that Johnathon provides below.

I don't like flash either for all the same reasons, but some people do so what I was considering was a link to a tutorial or brief intro type of segment that people could click and view like the links that Johnathon provides below.

There is no reason that the links out to Flash pages could not be used. WIth the clear indication that this additional material would require flash.

To be honest, if we WERE to put major effort into the site, I would first comb out all the discussions we have had on Rosetta@Home and the science and then expand the "lecture" series. Somewhat like the "How SETI@Home works pages" of that project. We have much, but, I have to admit I am still swimming hard trying to figure it all out ...

Just my vote ...

=== Edit:

Like the question of what does RAH and the other projects, Predictor@Home, etc. have in common ...

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I may risk that the Davids start getting annoyed with all my many home page suggestions (this is my last website related post - I promise ;-) but I wanted to summarize my main point once more: I believe the material on the home page should be arranged in such a way that the average first time visitor is in a position to make up her mind whether to run Rosetta within the first minute or so of visiting the site. I think this can be accomplished with two very minor changes which could be quickly implemented: (1) change the intro text at the top, and (2) reorder/rename some of the links:

(1) I still believe that the intro at the top preferrably should not contain _any_ technical terms (I may have a PhD in Astrophysics but I still haven't completely figured out what ligands, protein structures, and protein complexes are). As to the link to the 'Human Proteome Folding Project', can your imagine a big company, say, amazon, placing a link pointing away from their site, and even one to a competitor of sorts, at the top of their site ? ;-) Actually, the current intro seems to sound a bit like it were copied from a research or grant proposal, i.e., something written with a very different purpose in mind.

(2) With the current ordering of the links, the reader is first directed to the '[read this first]' text at the top of the list which begins with a link to the license agreement - even before one has had a chance to make up one's mind about the project. Not very friendly, isn't it ? ;-) I rather believe the project should first introduce itself to the potential user before bothering him with some dull legal stuff. I therefore would put the 'Welcome by DB', 'Research overview', and the new 'Quick introduction to Rosetta and its graphics' first, perhaps followed by 'News and articles', pointing away from the site. The 'Quick introduction ...' (currently named 'Rosetta Graphics') may be especially appealing to readers who don't want to spend a lot of time on the site.

Wouldn't it be a shame if, with the large current influx of new users into BOINC, Rosetta would loose some potential users, because they perhaps don't have the patience to find and digest all the good stuff, e.g., in the forum, that attracts many of us (including me) to this project.

personaly i thing there could be some minor upgrades to the boards and such. and im sure alot of people dont understand protein folding

shrug its always hard to say what will and what wont attract new users

oh and one of the reasons that places like seti get more users is movies like Contact. alot of people watch movies like that then do internet serches find they can do seti reserch on there OWN computer and ding seti has more users who havent bothered to see what else is out there

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