If you're reading this post in a Web browser, you've probably already noticed that something is a little... different. This afternoon we pushed the second half of our Ars Version 5.5 that went live back in December. As you poke around and use the site over the next few days, you should notice a large number of design (and quite a few functional) updates from the way the site used to look and operate.

From the category pages, to author bios, to our comments, there's not a nook or cranny that's been left untouched by Aurich Lawson's nimble Photoshop fingers. You've probably seen quite a few new bits already, but I thought it might be helpful if we presented some of the biggest changes side by side with their older counterparts.

Category pages

An old category page "top"

The new category page "top." Note the cool new category headers, the restyled sidebar links, and the new treatment of articles.

An old category page.

A new category page. Note how we highlight features here like we do on the front page.

Articles

An article in the old design.

A newly styled article. Note how the content starts higher on the page, and the restyled article links in the sidebar.

How the bottom of an article looked in the old design.

The new bottom of an article. Note the new comment bar, and newly minted sharing links, now featuring Facebook and a ton more (including email) in the "Share button."

The Ars Premier Experience

How an article looks to an Ars Premier Subscriber

How the front page looks to an Ars Premier Subscriber

Author pages

An author page on the old design

Author bios on the new design. Coming soon will be additional links for an author, like Twitter pages, personal blog, and more.

Footer

The old crusty footer.

New, super-fresh footer.

Comments

Comments on the old design.

Super sweet new comments. The overall design is, we feel, a lot easier on the eyes. We're also calling out authors and staff members much better now.

Sidebar

The latest top stories sidebar box in the old design.

The latest top stories box on the new design. Much cleaner look overall. We've removed the ability to use this box on the front page, as the whole front page replicates this functionality (and more) now.

Forums

Fresh new icons at the bottom of the forums.

Feedback

As with all our projects and changes here, we highly value the input of our readers. If you have comments or constructive criticism, please feel free to leave them in the comments below. If you prefer to use email, you can send your feedback to civis@arstechnica.com.

Thanks

None of this project would've been possible without the work of our Technical Director Kurt Mackey, our Creative Director Aurich Lawson, our HTML/CSS Guru Greg Hines, our Developer and Project Manager Extraordinare Clint Ecker (that's me), or without the support, direction, and feedback from nearly the entire editorial staff here at Ars Technica.