Brickset: 2008-2020
Posted by Huw,
In the first part of my history of Brickset article I covered the early years of the site, which in some ways were more exciting than the later ones due to the number of redesigns it underwent.
During 2008-2013 the site saw just a few tweaks to the design, but many new features and data sets were added.
In 2014, the current site was launched and it took some time for people to get used to it...
2008: version 6
A new version of the site was launched on Boxing Day, of all days, during the site's busiest period!
The page layout is fundamentally the same, but the design has been tidied up and is width-constrained once again. Items new at LEGOshop.com, as it was then, and new in the database are featured prominently at the top of the page. The random set seems to have disappeared.
2009
There were no major changes to the design but a number of now familiar and indispensible features were added during the year including Amazon and eBay links, 'My friends' (subsequently removed) and most significantly in May, we reached agreement with BrickLink to display its minifig data here which thus enabled us to determine the minifigs you owned from the sets you owned.
A month later we started showing parts and inventory information from Peeron, but that relationship was short-lived because that site was left to wither and die.
In August, Brickset members owned 1 million sets between them, and in September BrickLists were introduced.
2010-2013
The design introduced in 2008 provided stable platform upon which more new features could be added and remained in use until 2014. There were a few visual tweaks but nothing major.
However, more data sets and features were added:
- January 2010: Links to instructions at LEGO.com and additional images for sets
- May 2010: Mobile version of the site
- June 2010: Web service to enable mobile apps to be developed
- 2010: Advanced Collection manager
- April 2011: Discussion forum launched
- September 2011: Amazon Bargain Watch
- August 2012: Set inventories obtained from LEGO Customer Services
- November 2012: Rebrickable integration
Nothing changed on the site during 2013 because work had commenced on the new version.
The logo changed subtly during this time:
2010:
2011:
2013:
2014-2020: the current site
I mentioned in the last article that I added affiliate links to LEGO.com in 2007, which were followed by those to Amazon and eBay. In the following years, revenue generated via them increased to a level where I could give up my day-job and concentrate on running the site full-time. So, Brickset became a limited company and I gave up work in 2012, I then spent the first year or so afterwards working on a brand-new version of the site.
Although the database itself and many of the code libraries behind the scenes remained, the front-end was rewritten from scratch. I commissioned a professional web designer to come up with a fresh new look that would work equally well on desktop and mobile devices, which were becoming more widespread.
The new site underwent a long period of testing, during which time users were encouraged to provide feedback, much of which was acted upon before launch. However, when it went live n February 2014 it was not met with universal praise, it has to be said, given it was such a departure from the old design.
I think most would agree now that it was a necessary change and that, actually, it's not so bad after all.
What is certain is that it is robust and flexible enough to enable me to continue to enhance it, so while the look hasn't changed much since, many new features have been added since it was launched.
One thing that people did rightfully complain about was the site's logo. Initially the designer wanted to omit the three 1x1 plates but on my insistence he added them, somewhat awkwardly.
In 2015, for reasons that escape me, I reverted to the designer's original, which of course antagonised people even more!
In 2016, the current version was introduced, which is what it should have been all along.
Set reviews became an important part of the site in 2013 which is when Chris, aka CapnRex101, started writing them for us, particularly for licensed sets. He impressed us with his knowledge and writing skills, so it was a no-brainer to take him on as our first employee in 2015. Initially he worked part-time while still at university, then became full-time in 2017. The company now has three employees: me, Chris and my daughter Alice whose role is primarily social media.
2020 -2040
What does the future hold for the site? I have no plans for any major changes in the immediate future although I will continue to update and enhance it, and of course listen to users' requests and feedback.
The technology the site is built with would not be anyone's choice for starting a new project in 2020, but it's stable, robust and flexible enough to support change, and I am still able to maintain it efficiently. Most importantly, I have the skills and knowledge to do so.
Stay tuned as the next chapter in our journey unfolds...
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39 comments on this article
I think I made it here around 2010 -ish...
Cool articles Huw, really makes you realize how much time, effort and love is spent on this great site!
I discovered Brickset around 2016 I think, after the last big major change that you mention so as a ‘newbie’ I didn’t see the previous iterations. Personally I really like the usability and functionality. Here’s to another 20+ years
Joined in 2009, hence the name. I do miss the 2008+ site, it was my first Brickset love, so to speak.
I'm really enjoying the history lesson and trip down memory lane.
Happy 20th anniversary Brickset!
The current version is definitely the best yet.
2040:
Total cyberspace immersion:
3D VR and Holodeck support
Life support with LEGO Cyberbricks(TM) and LEGO VR
and much more XD
Thanks for these articles on Brickset's development over the years. Kudos to you for making the leap of faith and leaving your day job to run the site. Those life changing decisions can be intimidating. You and your web designer, Chris Sanderson, did a wonderful job building a site that is informative, intuitive and appealing to the eye. It is good to know that the current system is sustainable and robust enough that you don't have to rebuild it after all this time. (It's also comforting to know that Lego is fairly robust these days, too:)
Your Brickset story is inspirational in that you followed an idea that over time has been able to sustain your family and connect a global community of Lego fans. It is really quite an achievement!
I signed up in Feb 2017 but I believe I've visited the site since around 2014. Why it took me so long to join idk but happy I am.
I admit, I don't like major changes when they happen, but over time you get used to it, and then you say to yourself, "I like this better than the way it was." Human nature, I guess.
sweet!
I came to here somewhere 2014/15, may be some time later.
And I'm glad to see such stable and streamlined place - nothing superfluous, nothing creepy (as referring to Flash-isized sites with a lot of clicking and animating but less function).
As a kinda new user (I first discovered Brickset in 2017), it was interesting to discover the evolution of this website
Thanks for all the hard work over the years! You've made a rare thing on the internet: a truly indispensable website.
I discovered Brickset in 2014, joined in 2015 mainly to figure out what sets I owned.
Huge thanks for all you do, Huw!
I don't even remember the old interfaces, so I guess I joined sometime after 2014
2040: I expect nothing less than a VR-experience includig virtual builds & instructions and Forums...
I think this is the first time in years I’ve actually seen what the home page actually looks like on a desktop! I think I started viewing the sets database around 2014, but the vast majority of my time here has been via my mobile.
I got interest back into LEGO around the 2010s, most my info came from the Club magazines at the time.
But not until Brickset around 2015, I learned first about the Nexo Knight theme here, which got me back into actual new LEGO sets from 2016.
@Zeb said:
"I once ran the HTML of this website through an HTML validator, and it passed every test with flying colors. Out of multiple different sites I tested, it was one of the only ones to do so. That just goes to show how well-built this site is"
I was obsessed with that sort of thing, but I don't think it would pass now: too many images without alt tags, for example...
By 2040, HuwBot will be implanting random sets in our minds...that we will feel compelled to purchase through your affiliate links.
Everything will be as it should...
A dark mode would surely be nice as an addition to this very well written website.
Although Dark Reader does a pretty good job.
I remember the controversy over the 2014 change, I joined in 2012, but now, looking back, I honestly forgot what the site looked like back then!
Thanks @huw for this nostalgic look back on one of the most useful sites in my collecting journey
@Arnoldos said:
"A dark mode would surely be nice as an addition to this very well written website.
Although Dark Reader does a pretty good job."
You can change the background to dark blue in the general site preferences page, but the page itself remains white.
Having said that, maybe I'll experiment with a dark mode stylesheet...
I remember being very annoyed at the time of the change. I became quite fast used to the old site(being non-native English user), but the reform of the interface caused me a lot of problems back then. I think the new interface have aged quite well, so you did a good job in building an efficient website. I still use the blue background, I hate all-white wesites that hurt my eyes, so it's good to be able to keep the blue side lines. It was a good compromise after all...
Ah, seeing the pre 2014 site again made me nostalgic, that's when I became a member here (and never left!)
I only joined this year, but this is probably my most-visited website now (particularly during this pandemic!). Thanks, Huw, for all of your years of hard work to make it what it is today, and thanks to the community members who have helped it thrive along the way. I’m happy to be here for the next twenty years!
Oh wow, I don't even remember the original 2008-era design :o I know I must have seen it, since a lot of my older reviews (mostly removed from public view by now, but still accessible in my account history) are dated 2008 / 2009, but it doesn't look familiar to me at all.
I guess I really did just browse the database, at the time, and didn't even notice the front page until after the redesign; because the 2014 version is genuinely the only one that looks familiar to me.
Still, it's really cool to see the progression over the years :D
I joined in 2012, initially to work out which childhood sets I could piece together and to catalogue them prior to selling them. Needless to say that never happened and I've somehow managed to accrue a further 500 sets since then - for which I entirely blame this site ;)
Despite visiting the old design almost daily for two years I liked (and continue to like!) the redesign - fresher and brighter. Can't wait to see what comes next!
I joined in early 2014 shortly before the switch to the new design. From memory, I was quite happy to see the new design as the old one seemed a bit dated back then...
I made it here in the year 2011, back when I was still a kid. Now I'm kinda nostalgic for version 6.
I joined in late 2012, so I remember the old site quite well. I was very honoured to be one of the Beta-testers for the 2014 version before it went live.
@Huw, future of Brickset. Bricklink is now under Lego, will Brickset become part of official Lego? If you get offer will you sell it? And go to retirement
Well said, I couldn't agree more. Congratulations Huw and Brickset team! I wish you all the best in the future, this is a wonderful site, I sincerely hope it will continue bringing joy to users around the world for many decades to come.
Huw, I suggest adding a quantity option to each wanted item, maybe in the next site update?
Thanks to the Brickset team for making this a great fan site for the LEGO community to enjoy!
I feel like I've only been here a couple years, and was starting to wonder if I'd been around for any previous designs... but clearly I was around by 2012ish, because I do recall the earlier design now and remember enjoying it a lot, actually... and I now recall the adjustment to the newer one, which felt a lot more difficult than I would assume right now.
It's hard to believe I've been browsing here for eight or nine years now though, wow!
I joined 2012--much later than I thought! That must have been exciting to be able to quit your day job and work full time on the site. I think you made the right choice ;)
Congratulations on the first two decades of Brickset!
I joined the site in 2013, but most likely I visited it a couple of years before signing up, as I really started finding LEGO websites around ten years ago. I do remember the change of design in 2014, but do not recall having any big annoyance about it. Nowadays Brickset is the LEGO related site I visit the most.
It’s a great look back and a well-made website for both desktop and mobile. If only Lego would take a look and improve there own.
Weird to think that Bricklists and Ebay links are so new, as a kid those were some of my favorite features of the site