Custom Solus theme, does it make a difference?

[SkylarM]

Just interested in opinions. The goal eventually is to have everything in house (Stallion v2 looks pretty amazing) in the next year or less, but for now I went with the good ol proper bootstrap theme for SolusVM.

As a customer, do you feel a custom Solus theme puts a provider ahead of someone who uses stock Solus install? How big of a value do you put on custom panels, or do you prefer something that is known and has support?

What is done so far for a Solus theme:

http://i.imgur.com/JOZGYLC.png
http://i.imgur.com/BQSP3jN.png
http://i.imgur.com/JhzRXLw.png
http://i.imgur.com/bA7GJrN.png

 

[SeriesN]

While you have done great job with custom theme, there are some issues with it. The biggest one is when system has major upgrades (Like whmcs does every other month), you are stuck with an obsolate theme and manually updating themes are a pain in the arse. I had to release our WHMCS customization before new site was ready, just because I did not like the stock whmcs theme and upgrade had too many goodies that I couldn't miss. Also remember, you might have people who are reselling your service.

If you are ready to deal with that part, then by any mean, go ahead

 

[trewq]

If it's the same theme as their website then I like it but if it's just another random theme it really makes no difference if it's the default or not.

That looks really slick! Good work.

 

[shovenose]

Did you make it yourself or did you base it off their new boostrap client area theme? Because if you do, it would save some time...

Rather than wasting time on a custom SolusVM theme, I would prefer 100% WHMCS integration so they don't have to sign in something else.

 

[Zach]

Just interested in opinions. The goal eventually is to have everything in house (Stallion v2 looks pretty amazing) in the next year or less, but for now I went with the good ol proper bootstrap theme for SolusVM.

As a customer, do you feel a custom Solus theme puts a provider ahead of someone who uses stock Solus install? How big of a value do you put on custom panels, or do you prefer something that is known and has support?

What is done so far for a Solus theme:

http://i.imgur.com/JOZGYLC.png

http://i.imgur.com/BQSP3jN.png

http://i.imgur.com/JhzRXLw.png

http://i.imgur.com/bA7GJrN.png

Hey Crissic!  Looking good!

 

[SkylarM]

While you have done great job with custom theme, there are some issues with it. The biggest one is when system has major upgrades (Like whmcs does every other month), you are stuck with an obsolate theme and manually updating themes are a pain in the arse. I had to release our WHMCS customization before new site was ready, just because I did not like the stock whmcs theme and upgrade had too many goodies that I couldn't miss. Also remember, you might have people who are reselling your service.

If you are ready to deal with that part, then by any mean, go ahead

That is obviously a concern, but SolusVM doesn't do TOO many updates on a regular basis similar to what WHMCS does, so I'm not entirely worried about it until there is proper WHMCS integration available (not something I feel comfortable attempting). As far as reselling, that is definately a concern -- but that's not a direct issue that I feel to be of too much concern.

Did you make it yourself or did you base it off their new boostrap client area theme? Because if you do, it would save some time...

Rather than wasting time on a custom SolusVM theme, I would prefer 100% WHMCS integration so they don't have to sign in something else.

It's a bootstrap admin theme from a website that you can get it for a few bucks. Hopefully something more integrated for the website can happen in the future, but I want a complete site overhaul before I do that anyways. Basically just hack and slashed their god awful template coding to make it function as nessisary.  I'd definately prefer full WHMCS integration, less logins is fantastic, but for now this was the best alternative.

 

[shovenose]

Right, but was just hoping to save you some time pointing out that SolusVM now includes a boostrap theme for free

 

[SkylarM]

Right, but was just hoping to save you some time pointing out that SolusVM now includes a boostrap theme for free

Yeah but it's awful and only partially functional ;( Guess it is still in beta though.

 

[Tipsta]

I think it does add to your end product, and looks really good as the base Solus theme isn't the greatest (Then again I love eye candy!)

 

[concerto49]

Definitely helps with marketing and branding.

 

[Reece-DM]

+ 1 @concerto49,

Looks good Crissic

 

[johnlth93]

I personally doesn't care too much about the theme as long as it got the job done.

But i would say with custom/better looking/unique theme definitely add some value to the provider. It can be annoying sometime to have all the svm panel look exactly the same, just saying 

 

[wlanboy]

Nice touch of your SolusVM.

But I don't think it's worth the hassle. I do see the SoluVM page 1-2 times a year...

 

[SkylarM]

Nice touch of your SolusVM.

But I don't think it's worth the hassle. I do see the SoluVM page 1-2 times a year...

With the ModulesGarden SolusVM module coming out soon (I'm using it in a limited production beta atm if anyone is interested) the theme unfortunately becomes rather useless. AH well.

 

[jarland]

Keep backups


I was doing the same thing only like an idiot I was doing it all server side with the live files (I live life on the edge). Then I updated to the latest beta and never gave a single thought to losing everything I did


Looks good!

 

[SkylarM]

Keep backups


I was doing the same thing only like an idiot I was doing it all server side with the live files (I live life on the edge). Then I updated to the latest beta and never gave a single thought to losing everything I did


Looks good!

Haha yeah to get it to operate properly I had to use the bootstrap solus folder structure, so anytime I plan to update it will overwrite it. Lucky for me when I did an update I had the files on hand

 

[MannDude]

I was always a fan of well integrated designs sitewide. This goes for WHMCS, cPanel. SolusVM, and anything else. Looks loads more professional, maintains an experience wide brand image and sets you apart from the rest of the pack. Some of us sometimes will have multiple tabs open from different providers and instead of having to look at the URL or the VPS hostname, I could know which VPS belongs to what provider by having a control panel that is actually branded.

In short. Yes, it makes a positive difference. (For me)

 

[Ivan]

Of course! 

Personally I think if a provider has their site's template nicely done, I'd have a better impression towards the provider.

Same goes to WHMCS templates. 

Extra props if they have a custom SolusVM/control panel theme. 

 

[bbb]

Little things make big differences. It helps hosts stand out from one another and shows that they're willing to put extra effort in, even if it's just for aesthetics. I know that Iniz and Backupsy have custom SolusVM themes and I think they're fantastic. It's a little upsetting that some hosts don't even bother to change the banner.

Typos, broken links, overused templates (and templates in general), badly-scaled images, etc. aren't deal-breakers, but they're certainly on my mind when I'm considering purchasing from a new provider. I'd be much more attracted to RAM Host, than, say, FlipHost, simply because they don't use some template (their site could use a make-over, though).

Also, regarding the aforementioned company: is it Fliphost, Fliphost.net, FlipHost, or something else? They use several variations on their site -- it looks awful and that, combined with the use of a crappy template, makes me think that they're not worth my time. That's the sort of thing I'm talking about. Another example would be this post. I mean, uBuntu? Seriously? Do you even proof-read your posts? (I don't, but I'm not a provider -- I can get away with it!) Not to mention the lack of proper bullet points and such... We have fancy formatting options for a reason.

 

[SkylarM]

What's wrong with adding a bit of fLare to your post? I love me some lInux sErvers. wIndows is my favorite though. <_<