Spectralis devlog #12
—Hello again proggers—
Website’s getting a real pass. Not new copy this time, actual visual identity work, because it currently reads like every AI startup landing page that ever came out of the middle of California, and Spectralis is not that.
gradient blob, bold sans headline, “revolutionize your workflow” — no
Cat or dog? theme.css
Okay let’s get into it~
—Yap—
Not released yet, deliberately. This one’s still in progress, but close enough that it’s worth logging before it’s done instead of only after. The goal’s simple to say and annoying to actually do: stop looking generic.
—The Great Suffering—
1 — The AI-Startup Look Had To Go
Somewhere along the way the site had drifted into the exact aesthetic every seed-stage AI company in the Bay Area ships with — same fonts, same soft gradients, same layout rhythm everyone’s using because everyone else is using it. None of that says anything about what Spectralis actually is.
2 — Actual Visual Identity Work
Working through what the site should look like instead of what’s easy to reach for by default. This is the slow part — not writing more copy, actually deciding what the thing looks like and why, instead of inheriting a template’s opinions by accident.
3 — Not Done, Getting Close
Deliberately not shipping this mid-rework. Better to land it as one coherent pass than dribble out half-finished visual changes and confuse anyone who lands on the page in between.
—FAQ (no one asked these but they are here)—
Q: What is a “progger”?
A: A human programmer. You. The one trying to make a music app’s website stop looking like a fundraising deck.
Q: What specifically screamed “AI startup”?
A: The general vibe more than any one element — the kind of design every YC-adjacent landing page converges on when nobody makes an active choice.
Q: Why not ship incrementally instead of waiting?
A: A visual identity rework half-applied looks worse than the thing it’s replacing. Waiting for it to be coherent.
Q: How close is close?
A: Close. Not “next devlog” close necessarily, but visibly closer than devlog #11 left it.
Q: Does this touch the changelog-from-backend system from devlog #5?
A: No, that infrastructure stays as-is. This is purely visual.
—This is the end*—
*end for now, gradient blobs permitting
POGO!!!