Hi everyone!
Sparkle is actually one of my favorite tools for creating websites in the last years. I had so much fun designing and experimenting with this software. I enjoyed every single update and I felt that I could improve my designs and possibilities with every new version.
I feel really good and comfortable using Sparkle and I don’t want to move to another platform and for sure im going to buy the next big update. Its for it that I´d like to see some improvements in Sparkle.
1.- Full screen overlay menu on mobile devices with a 100vh filling the screen with a beautiful and centered menu in the middle which a nice animation while opening and closing.
2.- Responsive tables.
3.- Icon fonts.
4.- A better and complete search system.
5.- Attach files as pictures or other documents in forms. Also support for google reCAPTCHA.
6.- A better cookies consent customization with graphics and more options to make it not so boring.
7.- Trigger events. If I push this or that button a popup window appears with offers, information or contact form…
8.- Better support for responsive layouts. CSS grid, Flexbox…
9.- Scroll in and out animations
10.- I know this is not an important part of Sparkle but I´d like to give a semantic names to divs. Header, Main, Footer, Aside… Also have the possibility to export the HTML and CSS code more readable, Indented with 2 or 4 spaces. This will help to other people to continue with the project more easy.
Well, I think they are too many improvements but it would make sparkle even better and better.
Thank you for your time and efforts.
Here some more items for the Sparkle wishlist I’d like to add:
1 - Better mobile menu options.
2 - 3 sections in the Font Styles editing area for saving font styles to: Desktop, Tablet, and Phone.
3 - Add in scalable CSS units for font sizes. This would help reduce the font sizing adjustments currently needed when adding in new devices for a site page.
4 - Add font icon options in the nav UI controls for submenu level indicators. A popup menu with 4-5 options to select from.
5 - Hero image widget.
6 - More hover options for images, boxes, and buttons. For example, you have a product image you hover the cursor over which displays a color background with product name and more details link.
7 - Simple blog functionality.
8 - Automated photo album thumbnail grid index generation. Select and drag in a group of images into the UI and a thumbnail grid is generated from the images automatically, with larger images of each thumbnail image displayed in a light box when thumbnail is clicked on.
9 - For Advanced Users Only - Option to add in calls to the head area and JS calls right before the closing body tag on a page or site wide.
Thanks @franrc. Only answers to things which aren’t obvious to me.
3 icon fonts: the whole point of font awesome is to be able to type fa-something in code, how would this work in Sparkle? Or are you asking for the ability to inline arbitrary images in text?
4 search: better/complete how? How is the current search lacking?
5 captcha: Sparkle forms have captcha-like functionality, why do you want to burden site visitors and leak their details to google?
6 what’s not customizable about the cookie banner?
8 what about css stuff is useful in a visual editor?
On item 1, adding in some contemporary slick looking nav menus in addition to the basic one now offered in Sparkle. The current one does the job fine as is, but since other programs offer additional options I thought it would benefit Sparkle to do so also.
So maybe a slick looking sliding mobile nav menu coming in from the right side like this example as an option:
Or a full screen mobile nav menu layout with a nice animated transition between the hamburger menu icon and an X close icon and/or some animation in a standard nav menu when it extends down from the top. Below are some other examples to view some more mobile nav menu layouts with too as additional options to consider:
Anyway, just a suggestion to consider on the mobile nav menu for Sparkle.
On item 5, having a preset Hero Image Banner widget displaying full screen initially with a title and tagline text below it, and a downward arrow image at the bottom (or a preset button) to click on to move down the page, that are always centered vertically with the image resizing automatically to fit the device width would save a lot of time and make it easier for Sparkle users to set up up on a site page. I know you can build something very close to a Hero Image Banner yourself in Sparkle now, but you still have to adjust all the elements in it for each device width. Having it adjust automatically would be a big time saver for Sparkle users.
@Charlie, The mobile nav actions would be a great addition to what Sparkle is capable of now! I also understand where you are coming from with the hero widget concept - I guess this will become all possible as Sparkle progresses through its iterations.
So Charlie where are you coming from on this? Are you a template builder?, WordPress user?, etc…
3 - Icon fonts. Yes, I can add the code fa-something but if I make changes of my website in Sparkle, the fa-something and the font awesome css link will disappear every time I need to update. It would be nice to have icon fonts in Sparkle.
4 - Search system. It would be nice to have the possibility to open the links of the results page in a new blank page. Also search inputing several worlds separated by comas or something.
5 - Captcha. I thought its a good system for disuade the spam but I can live without it. By the way, It would be nice to have select elements in forms.
6 - Cookies banner. Allow to locate it in different positions, rotate , different backgrounds… Just like other elements in Sparkle.
Yes to both questions. I have been designing and creating templates, themes, and widgets for a variety of programs since 2004, primarily for RapidWeaver and Sandvox, but also custom one-off templates/themes and widgets for a variety of programs including Wordpress, RapidWeaver, Sandvox, and others.
I am currently working on several Sparkle pre-built site designs that I plan to release later this year.
@Charlie, I thought as much and good on you! Similar I started with hand-coding sites, coded templates for CMSs, a few others, Macaw, and then went to Muse and now loving Sparkle because I can unleash by web designer creativity now more than ever!
So we are in the same boat of thought! I also have a number of Sparkle pre-built templates I’m finishing off and looking to release our early Spring here “downunder”!
I’m sure you’ll do great so good luck with it all!
I also understand where you are coming from with the hero widget concept - I guess this will become all possible as Sparkle progresses through its iterations.