free templates? good or bad

free templates, and flash intros ready made

[pindi2000]

Is it a good thing to have these template sites that allow you access to hundreds and thousands of designs, which you can rip and implement in your own style?

From a designers piont of view, it would be a time saver, but morally, I personally would not feel the same sort of satisfaction i would do if I had created the site myself

let me know what you think?

[pmkpmk]

Welcome to WebmasterWorld!

rom a designers piont of view, it would be a time saver, but morally, I personally would not feel the same sort of satisfaction i would do if I had created the site myself

You gave the answer yourself!

Please note, that many of these template sites have different licensing approaches when it comes to personal use versus commercial use. Usually these templates can only be used for free when the site is non profit, but have to be purchased for a commercial project.

Also be aware that if you "sell" one of these templates to a customer, you walk a thin line if you state that it's your won design! Imagine that customer finding out it was a free template...

[mcjohnson]

One of the interesting thing about templates, is that they are easy to spot. If you have template sites that you have created dotting your portfolio, it definitely damages your credibility with your competitors. Imagine someone giving a proposal to a client touting their 100% original coding and stating that "xyz company" just buys their templates on line. hmmm...

PLus, most of the templates, even the ones you pay $50-60 for, suck. They are so much sameness, blandness, and you can tell when a dentist office has been "crammed" into a corporate template purchased from CooolHomePages.

[Leosghost]

naff is bad ..the same naff as everyone else is worse ..unless you are into kitch ..

[lcampers]

true you can spot an obvious template site, but how many originally designed sites are there in the world?

i'm glad when i can easily navigate through a site becuase its architecture is so obvious, so i'd say to go for it...

i think most internet users would agree too..

depends on who you are targeting but i would say yes, use, make people happy, concentrate on what fills that template

[truezeta]

Please no flash intros...so annoying!

[totage]

It's really up to you to determine if a template would work for your site or not. If your site is for example a traffic exchange service. You would be better off doing your own design because, there are so many of these types of sites and most of them use the same templates. Creating your own design would make you stand out amongst your competition.

If you are using templates for clients, be sure to read the licensing agreement before and be honest with the client. Let them know you use templates even if you modify them beyond recognition.

You can find some original templates if you look hard enough but, in my opinon, it's better to create your own works. The more hard work you put into your site, the more apperciation you will have for your site.