Introducing Your Profile
(As Twitch continues to grow and evolve, so too will your personal footprint on this site. When we introduced our current channel page design back in November 2012, we listened carefully to your feedback and remain determined to meet your demands for increased customization, while staying true to our vision for the site. Here to tell you about the new profile page and the design philosophy behind it is our Director of Products, Jacob Woodsey.)
Your profile is where customization and user personalization can really shine. It begins with a large profile “cover photo” that’s a cross between the old channel backgrounds and banners. Your avatar acts as a link to your channel, with a status indicator showing whether you’re currently live or offline. We’ve also incorporated your bio, videos, follow lists, and follow/subscribe buttons. In the right column we have your channel’s chat, as well as the new “info” tab where your panels will live (more on that later).
Having all this information in the same place is important, as we’re considering directing viewers to your profile when you’re not broadcasting. A lot of viewers land on your channel when you’re offline, and are faced with a dead video player with no easy way to learn more about who you are what your channel is all about. If you’re already live, viewers will be able to watch as usual, which brings us to the new-new channel.
You’ll notice we’ve utilized the same right column as the profile. We want the info section to be available on both of these pages, and really, they shouldn’t be thought of individually; swapping between the two will be seamless and (nearly) instant. This also allowed us to fix one of the major issues with the current panel system: you see what everyone else sees. No more panels flopping around and swapping places depending on the viewers screen size.
This does mean that, at first glance, we’re hiding your personalized info behind a tab, but we feel the trade-offs are worth it. When a visitor lands on your profile, the info tab will be the default, but when they hit your channel, chat and the live video experience will be the main focus. Instead of directing your viewers to “scroll down” to learn more about you, they can switch tabs.
The space previously occupied by your panels will now be home to a “mini-profile,” and one of each of your most recent videos and past broadcasts. The mini-profile will mirror the full profile with your cover photo and bio.
So that’s it. Hopefully it all makes sense and we’ve answered some of the more burning questions you’re bound to have. If you do still have questions, or just want to scream bloody-FrankerZ, please feel free to do so in the comments. We’re going to be rolling out several iterations on beta.twitch.tv over the next couple weeks, so you can check in our progress and follow up with your feedback. The easiest way to get started is to view your own profile at beta.twitch.tv/profile. The first update only includes the profile: none of the channel changes are ready for the discerning community. Check back often and don’t forget to upload a new cover photo (we even made a sweet template for you)!