I just reviewed the screenshots on USAToday and I look forward to checking it out next week. Always lots to learn when a major site does a re-do (117 million unique visitors can't be wrong, right?). That said, going through the gallery of screens available at this link, I am a bit...underwhelmed. Not sure what I was expecting, but the world's ugliest website (and, famously, one of the most successful) apparently did not really want to do a redesign as much as add a bunch of new features. That's cool, but the design itself is still wanting and really doesn't communicate "redesign" in my view. Again, excited to click around and get a sense of the new site. Always dangerous to throw rocks in this business as we ourselves have to put out redesigns that occasionally get trounced.

Obviously, their team needs to get ready for tons of complaints and hate mail, even regarding the improvements. That's just the way it is when you try to improve life for your users. The familiar is sometimes more powerful than a superior solution. You just have to have the courage to get through the initial freak out of the faithful. On the other side of the hill is probably (and hopefully) a larger audience. As we work on the next generations of AOL Programming, this factor always rings true in our work and our results.

Good luck guys!

This post is from our own Wayman Luy, the visual design lead of Black Voices:

"BV is the leading website for the African-American community, a double-edged sword when starting a redesign. That #1 ranking comes from having 4 million unique visitors and up to 49 million page views a month (BlackPlanet is #2 with 2.6 Million UVs and BET is #3 with 1.7 Million UVs). Users and owners alike are comfortable with the site (flaws and all) and reluctant to change. To complete the redesign, the team needed to merge 4 distinct platforms into one seamless experience. And most importantly it had to fulfill its purpose as a destination for African-Americans to come together, discuss, and be heard.

Click "Read More" for additional info on the redesign...