the Lotus Eater
August 29, 2005 11:54 AM Subscribe
The Lotus Eater... a creepy gallery that has a flash interface that doesn't actually suck.
holy crap. that reminds me of a tool video or two. I couldn't find anything about the artist him/herself but it was definitely a cool little interface. Did you notice that in the "about" section when you moved your cursor over the text it slowly dissappeared? Bwah-hah-hah-ha!
posted by Sr_Cluba at 12:12 PM on August 29, 2005
posted by Sr_Cluba at 12:12 PM on August 29, 2005
Hrmm. Impossible to read at 1600x1200. This is why I hate flash - I can increase my font size all I want in Windows, but flash has no handling for that (at least, this thing doesn't).
posted by antifuse at 1:34 PM on August 29, 2005
posted by antifuse at 1:34 PM on August 29, 2005
You must have a different definition of "suck" than I do.
Metafilter : For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.
posted by crunchland at 3:14 PM on August 29, 2005
Metafilter : For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.
posted by crunchland at 3:14 PM on August 29, 2005
Seems very likely to either be a ripoff or the creator of the Johnny Hollow website.
posted by Kickstart70 at 3:39 PM on August 29, 2005
posted by Kickstart70 at 3:39 PM on August 29, 2005
Ugh, whatever. The pictures and the sound and the menu made me feel like punching a cure fan out of spite.
I really think a good menu, flash or not, should be a bit more explicitave, and less balky, and maybe have some text involved somewhere.
I guess this is perfectly fine for someone's art site, since they don't have to make sense. But holding this up as interface design is not a good idea.
For random, but well designed interactive, I always point to hell.
posted by lumpenprole at 4:00 PM on August 29, 2005
I really think a good menu, flash or not, should be a bit more explicitave, and less balky, and maybe have some text involved somewhere.
I guess this is perfectly fine for someone's art site, since they don't have to make sense. But holding this up as interface design is not a good idea.
For random, but well designed interactive, I always point to hell.
posted by lumpenprole at 4:00 PM on August 29, 2005
I thought it was one of the coolest things I've seen in months. Thanks crunch.
posted by CunningLinguist at 4:49 PM on August 29, 2005
posted by CunningLinguist at 4:49 PM on August 29, 2005
I'm damn near retarded, and I had no problem working through the site. It was intuitive, simple and creative.
posted by recurve at 6:10 PM on August 29, 2005
posted by recurve at 6:10 PM on August 29, 2005
I thought it was an interesting enough and well-fitting way to display some medium-creepy pictures. I navigated it just fine, too. Thanks for posting!
posted by Drexen at 6:44 PM on August 29, 2005
posted by Drexen at 6:44 PM on August 29, 2005
I have nothing but bad things to say about the interface.
As an interface... shite
Ugh, whatever.
Man, how perilous it is to praise anything design-related around here--a gaggle of fucking naysayers sits in the wings, ready to pounce. Care to share with us any examples of your own interface design work to demonstrate how it's done? You all speak with such authority.
This site is gorgeous and the interface is interesting and creative--thanks for bringing it to my attention?
posted by ghastlyfop at 6:50 PM on August 29, 2005
As an interface... shite
Ugh, whatever.
Man, how perilous it is to praise anything design-related around here--a gaggle of fucking naysayers sits in the wings, ready to pounce. Care to share with us any examples of your own interface design work to demonstrate how it's done? You all speak with such authority.
This site is gorgeous and the interface is interesting and creative--thanks for bringing it to my attention?
posted by ghastlyfop at 6:50 PM on August 29, 2005
Care to share with us any examples of your own interface design work to demonstrate how it's done? You all speak with such authority.
Well, you got me there. All mine in on applications, so you can't look at it on this newfangled web thingy.
But you're right, I was being overly harsh. I don't like it, but it's not like mission critical or anything. I blame lack of beer. I heartily apologize for my tone, and promise to rectify said problem right now.
posted by lumpenprole at 7:03 PM on August 29, 2005
Well, you got me there. All mine in on applications, so you can't look at it on this newfangled web thingy.
But you're right, I was being overly harsh. I don't like it, but it's not like mission critical or anything. I blame lack of beer. I heartily apologize for my tone, and promise to rectify said problem right now.
posted by lumpenprole at 7:03 PM on August 29, 2005
if by "doesn't suck" you mean "does suck" then I totaly agree.
Honestly it's not the overly cute interface... it's easy to figure out, it's just FUCKING SLOW It takes twice as long to load an image as it does to look at it... you have to wait for the image size to rescale, etc, etc, etc.
This would be 'cool' if it loaded 50 times faster or so.
posted by delmoi at 9:36 PM on August 29, 2005
Honestly it's not the overly cute interface... it's easy to figure out, it's just FUCKING SLOW It takes twice as long to load an image as it does to look at it... you have to wait for the image size to rescale, etc, etc, etc.
This would be 'cool' if it loaded 50 times faster or so.
posted by delmoi at 9:36 PM on August 29, 2005
Which, piece of string was i up to again? The interface just resized and i clicked on the same image 3 times...looks great on first preview but navigation was unintuitive and got tedious after a while.
I liked the detail and paradox of the wall piece, and the packman ghost under the cloth...the rest seemed a little...unfinished? Still, points for effort - just needs more development.
I dont think 'slow' is a fair criticism though since we are pummelling its bandwidth into submission by it being posted on the blue. It worked fine here at my end.
posted by rawfishy at 10:04 PM on August 29, 2005
I liked the detail and paradox of the wall piece, and the packman ghost under the cloth...the rest seemed a little...unfinished? Still, points for effort - just needs more development.
I dont think 'slow' is a fair criticism though since we are pummelling its bandwidth into submission by it being posted on the blue. It worked fine here at my end.
posted by rawfishy at 10:04 PM on August 29, 2005
Yeah, Mr. Hurry-Up has got places to be. No time for these slow interfaces. It's click, click, clickity-click-click! What's the point of having high speed internet if you have to wait for transitions? ... Click, click, click! You got a happy mouse clicking finger, and don't need any stupid old art site dragging you down. Clickity-click-click! You got Fark to go to after all. You're a busy, busy, busy man!
posted by crunchland at 11:03 PM on August 29, 2005
posted by crunchland at 11:03 PM on August 29, 2005
For another tasteful flash interface showcasing art of a similar mood, check out the site of the late Beksinski.
posted by vira at 11:38 PM on August 29, 2005
posted by vira at 11:38 PM on August 29, 2005
That was a nice little sojourn into a netherworld. No problems with the interface or speed. It has just enough material. The style does/would get over-..umm....-used/cooked/played but a modest burst of it is lovely. [I daresay if you hadn't mentioned that the flash 'doesn't suck', then it would have drawn no comments/critique - but who can predict eh? Thanks crunchland.
posted by peacay at 1:32 AM on August 30, 2005
posted by peacay at 1:32 AM on August 30, 2005
Metafilter: a gaggle of fucking naysayers sits in the wings
posted by furtive at 4:10 AM on August 30, 2005
posted by furtive at 4:10 AM on August 30, 2005
I think the slow load times were definitely a bandwidth issue, because checking it out just now, it was downright snappy. Cool interface, I think.
posted by Roger Dodger at 4:25 AM on August 30, 2005
posted by Roger Dodger at 4:25 AM on August 30, 2005
Man, how perilous it is to praise anything design-related around here--a gaggle of fucking naysayers sits in the wings, ready to pounce. Care to share with us any examples of your own interface design work to demonstrate how it's done? You all speak with such authority.
I have to smile everytime someone posts some Flash or otherwise non-standard thing on certain boards (Mefi is only a prime example), and the bashers immediately jump in with a vengeance.
There are sites where standards and accessibility are a must (public information), there are some where it's highly advisable (private business), and there are those where it doesn't matter at all (art, sites with specific target groups...)
The internet is not exclusively for bloggers who measure their degree of geekdom by the last accessibility detail, it's for content of all sorts.
These threads are like watching a team of F1 racing engineers complaining about the handling of a new VW van. Or a group of scientists complaining how the latest Spiderman comic is not cross-indexed as well as Scientific American.
Those points are perfectly valid in their own right, but so far beside the topic you can't help the impression that what really matters to these types is to show off who is the biggest expert at this internet thing. It's a shame that most threads about art things have to drown in some kind of übergeek bitchfest.
posted by uncle harold at 7:38 AM on August 30, 2005
I have to smile everytime someone posts some Flash or otherwise non-standard thing on certain boards (Mefi is only a prime example), and the bashers immediately jump in with a vengeance.
There are sites where standards and accessibility are a must (public information), there are some where it's highly advisable (private business), and there are those where it doesn't matter at all (art, sites with specific target groups...)
The internet is not exclusively for bloggers who measure their degree of geekdom by the last accessibility detail, it's for content of all sorts.
These threads are like watching a team of F1 racing engineers complaining about the handling of a new VW van. Or a group of scientists complaining how the latest Spiderman comic is not cross-indexed as well as Scientific American.
Those points are perfectly valid in their own right, but so far beside the topic you can't help the impression that what really matters to these types is to show off who is the biggest expert at this internet thing. It's a shame that most threads about art things have to drown in some kind of übergeek bitchfest.
posted by uncle harold at 7:38 AM on August 30, 2005
uncle harold, thank you for articulating that so well!
posted by ghastlyfop at 8:33 AM on August 30, 2005
posted by ghastlyfop at 8:33 AM on August 30, 2005
F1 racing engineers
Not even close. More like people who subscribe to a magazine about F1 racing cars. Left-brained ninnies.
posted by crunchland at 9:56 AM on August 30, 2005
Not even close. More like people who subscribe to a magazine about F1 racing cars. Left-brained ninnies.
posted by crunchland at 9:56 AM on August 30, 2005
Oh god, what an awful interface. It's slow, and on my 1920x1200 screen I can't see anything. You shouldn't have to WORK so hard to see content.
posted by aerify at 11:23 AM on August 30, 2005
posted by aerify at 11:23 AM on August 30, 2005
Ah... the days where we had to worry about the displays of our audiences actually being too small!
*dreamy gaze*
posted by uncle harold at 11:50 AM on August 30, 2005
*dreamy gaze*
posted by uncle harold at 11:50 AM on August 30, 2005
a flash interface that doesn't actually suck.
You write a declarative sentence like that and are surprised when people disagree? Christ.
Put me down with the naysayers. I have zero problem with the art itself; I thought it was cool and creepy etc. etc. My problem was when I clicked on the about "bulb", strained to read the fucking two-point scribble font the jackass decided to write with, then discovered to my dismay that text I hadn't even read yet was disappearing because my mouse pointer accidentally moved across the frame.
Yeah, Mr. Hurry-Up has got places to be. ...You got Fark to go to after all. You're a busy, busy, busy man!
Nice. I'm guessing you must be a touch typist; your nose is too high up in the fucking air for anything else.
posted by quantumetric at 2:06 PM on August 30, 2005
You write a declarative sentence like that and are surprised when people disagree? Christ.
Put me down with the naysayers. I have zero problem with the art itself; I thought it was cool and creepy etc. etc. My problem was when I clicked on the about "bulb", strained to read the fucking two-point scribble font the jackass decided to write with, then discovered to my dismay that text I hadn't even read yet was disappearing because my mouse pointer accidentally moved across the frame.
Yeah, Mr. Hurry-Up has got places to be. ...You got Fark to go to after all. You're a busy, busy, busy man!
Nice. I'm guessing you must be a touch typist; your nose is too high up in the fucking air for anything else.
posted by quantumetric at 2:06 PM on August 30, 2005
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posted by WaterSprite at 12:09 PM on August 29, 2005