CNBC.com redesigns, becomes outfield wall

CNBC.com just launched a redesign, and I'm not a fan of what I see so far -- admittedly, at a cursory glance.

I made a screen shot of the new home page (it's posted with this item), but you really should look for yourself.

On my visit, ads and only ads dominate the landscape. The first and largest news headline does not appear on the first screen at all unless it is viewed on a very high vertical resolution display. Almost all text and links in the first screen are within a pixel or two of the same size, and seem to speak at the same volume.

Oddly, up and down the page, the prevailing blue colors don't seem to be in coordinating hues -- some more greenish, some more purplish. The whole thing just seems messy, like that minor-league outfield wall look I have lamented for years now.

CNBC bosses decided this already crowded home page didn't have enough room for everything, so they larded on a couple of inline scrolling boxes and a ticker. At least the ticker requires user activation.

Again, I have spent only a few minutes examining this new design, but the problems leaped out right away. I'm disappointed.