Is this supposed to be a parody of "responsive" Javascript-intensive web design? Because as much as I know Hacker News likes to get off on ridiculously-large pictures and text with fancy scrolling and over-engineered Javascript preloaders for what could have been accomplished perfectly fine with plain HTML and CSS, this is a little much.<p>I like the idea. I really do. I think it's touching that you want to preserve these snippets of your grandfather's memory. That enjoyment is quickly overshadowed by this page demonstrating everything I <i>hate</i> about the current "responsive" "disruptive" "Valley" "mobile" fetish:<p>* It shouldn't take 30 seconds or more to load some pictures and text in an HTML document. Additionally, I shouldn't be <i>sitting there the entire damn time watching some little animation spin around</i> while it struggles to load.<p>* I really <i>don't</i> need an ugly 900pt font in order to read your homepage. While your grandpa might have poor vision that warrants that, I don't. I'd reckon the <i>vast</i> majority of your site's viewers would be fine with your run-of-the-mill 12pt font; people with visual impairment typically have other accessibility tools at their disposal.<p>* I really <i>shouldn't</i> have to scroll down a whole page for <i>every single goddamn sentence</i> on the homepage.<p>* The fancy "hover over this part to bring up a menu" is buggy because it overlaps with the "hover over this part to bring up an arrow" crap.
Such a sweet idea deserves a much better web site. A static web page with some pictures would be so much less tedious. Wanted to see if I could help but just didn't have the patience to go through the gymnastics needed to see the unobscured photos.
Loved the project. I do not think he is really showing his technical prowess here or the know-how of creating a responsive design. The idea is to help fine lost places in those photos. And that can only happen if one reaches a lot of people. HN is a good diverse group to do that.<p>Also, it really feels incredible to see how places have evolved over the times even when you have never really been to the place. Sometimes waiting isn't that bad. :)
You know what? I think it's a beautiful site. It tugs the emotions the right way, and evokes a certain feel that is probably more effective at getting people to engage and help your Grandpa identify his old photos. It also doubles as a nice showcase of your grandpa's photography.<p>I'm not sure it would have achieved this effect with a simple static HTML + CSS page.