New look, new brand

In the next few days we will be launching a complete re-design of the user-interface of the Inkling Markets platform. This is the fourth time we have fundamentally changed our UI and I'm sure there will be many more rounds to come. We don't believe in versions, only constant iteration.

The current look we have now has served us quite well but based on some new functionality we will be introducing in the coming months, it was time for a change. Specifically, we had a few design goals for this iteration:

• Remove the sidebar to give more room for a newly designed dashboard and other features we are working on
  
• Introduce a new color palette to match the new logo we're also introducing shortly
  
• Modify the layout to accentuate the growing trend in widescreen displays
  
• Gain additional flexibility for when we customize the look and feel for our clients
  
• Reduce the number of clicks for most administrative tasks
  
• Stay ahead of the burnout curve on the traditional "web 2.0" look of rounded corners and pastels :)
  

Not wanting to introduce too much change at once, we did not alter the fundamentals such as how trading is performed. Everything may look a little different but it functions the same way.

Here is a screenshot of the new marketplace dashboard:



In addition to the new look and feel of the application, we've re-designed our logo. We'll miss the little people that have been with us since we started the company, but it was ultimately time to retire them. We feel our new logo still conveys a diversity of voices coming together, albeit a bit more abstractly, while at the same time distinguishing us from those who had begun to use similar marks. This new logo also works much better on paper because all the shadowing and 3-d effects are 86'd. This was important as we are increasingly participating in conferences and workshops and often have paper handouts or presentations.





We're always open to feedback so please let us know what you think about the upcoming changes!