ThemeSquirrel
Web and SaaS
template marketplace browser
SHOW HN2012
How HN took it
4 positive, 7 neutral or asking, 3 mixed, 7 critical, out of 21 comments about the project. Thread score -0.14.
Design: 2 for, 4 againstIdea: 2 for, 1 againstExecution: 0 for, 2 against
The thread, comment by comment
Each row is a top-level comment and its replies, in HN's order. Select a cell to open that comment on HN.
positive neutral or mixed critical about another commenter or something else the maker
What HN said
What people liked
Clean design and large previews are easy to scan
From 2 comments
Your site is much better than most of the scrolling preview sites (e.g., thethemelist.com is stylistic but too visually overpowering and cluttered for my eyes to parse). I say…
nhebb on HNI built ThemeSquirrel since I really like ThemeForest, but absolutely hate the browsing method. I don't want to mouse over every thumbnail to see the larger preview.…
polyfractal on HN
Much faster browsing than ThemeForest
From 1 comment
Much faster browsing. I would like some way of grouping and also upvoting. I know, we're never satisfied.
jpdoctor on HN
Objections
Dense grid and infinite scroll are distracting and hard to bookmark
From 2 comments
It works really well. But, I consider anyone who finds the dense grid display easier than browsing down a list a savant; I have trouble focusing on just one thumbnail in the sea…
adambard on HNGreat site, however hate the infinite scroll. Makes it impossible to bookmark your place in the list (and is very disorienting). Also the animations of new tiles coming in are…
XLcommerce on HN
Marketing images on thumbnails are unwanted
From 1 comment
Great idea, however one of the things I most dislike about ThemeForest that is still present here are the marketing images for each theme. I'd rather just see a picture of what…
aculver on HN
Sub-category acorn toggles are not obvious
From 2 comments
It is not obvious that the acorns are actually disclosure arrows – they look like just list bullets. I think using the standard triangle shapes would be better. Or perhaps acorns…
roryokane on HNi didn't even notice the acorns until you mentioned it. don't sacrifice usability for better looks.
jrberger on HN
Some categories show no results
From 1 comment
Drilling down to some categories yields some with no results. (Maybe grey out and don't provide a click-thru to the category if it has no items..)
jrberger on HN
Requests
Single-column or list display mode
From 1 comment
I've begun to suspect the same thing. I'd love to read that article if you can find the link. I'll add "Single-column mode" to my to-do list. I think I will also make the "Large…
polyfractal on HN
Sorting and filters such as price and rating
From 2 comments
Sorting options (sort by name, price, rating, etc) are on the short list for me to implement. I actually have a lot of that data in my database right now, just no code to…
polyfractal on HNLooks cool, and a nice way to get some affiliate revenue. I would suggest adding some filters (like sort by number of purchases, price, etc.), and search parameters.
byoung2 on HN
Live preview inline beside a list
From 2 comments
would it be possible to have a display mode where: at the left would be a single-column scrolling list of the templates as they currently are (thumbnail + title), then to the…
jrberger on HNIt would be nice if clicking a thumbnail went straight to the live preview. Or, if each thumbnail had two links visible, one for the info page and one for the live preview. I…
epikur on HN
Upvoting or comments
From 2 comments
Much faster browsing. I would like some way of grouping and also upvoting. I know, we're never satisfied.
jpdoctor on HNUp voting thru your app (plus comments) might be an interesting value add.
jpdoctor on HN
Questions
How the crawler was built and what stack was used
From 1 comment
I apologize in advance if this isn't the correct place to ask, but how were you able to create a page crawler like this? What does your stack look like?
ilovezombies on HN
Whether the maker earns affiliate revenue
From 1 comment
Just wondering, do you earn anything out of this? Does Themeforest have an affiliation model, if so, is it per click or purchase?
alpb on HN
Alternatives named
thethemelist.com
From 2 comments
checkout http://thethemelist.com, which provides that. and a real screenshot of the theme
aibon on HNYour site is much better than most of the scrolling preview sites (e.g., thethemelist.com is stylistic but too visually overpowering and cluttered for my eyes to parse). I say…
nhebb on HN
Scrollsy
From 1 comment
I built ThemeSquirrel since I really like ThemeForest, but absolutely hate the browsing method. I don't want to mouse over every thumbnail to see the larger preview.…
polyfractal on HN