New Look MSE: Get a sneeky peek

wannasavemoney

"We don't like change do we deidre"? Suppose I'll get used to it - eventually! Only joking, nice shiny new up to date website, brilliant, was ok once I found the purple forum bubble:D Just as long as you DON'T get rid of my mate marge the shriek:eek: :rotfl:

Stockie

Looking good!

Very colourful going to take a little getting used to after the toffee brown for so long.
One request though can you drop the tools box down a put a BIG Forums button as the current one is a bit too small and out the way up there.

Stockie

stphnstevey

Has the search the forums facility been improved? Sorry, but it is a bit naff at the moment

Heinz

In case nobody else has said it yet, I don't like this, I don't like that, you should've done this, you should've done that.

MSE_Martin

Hi folks,

Thanks for all the feedback. Actually perhaps even more thought has gone into this than you think. I'm not going to answer every question, but I will point out a few things - which may give you an insight into how much this has been thought about.


1. Why isn't the tools equal to the articles - why is it lower?

The home page has three jobs a. To introduce newbies to the site b. To be the centre of navigation c. To allow browsing.

Non of the tools are meant to be used as standalones, they are all subsiduaries to the articles. E.g you shouldn't use the callchecker without seeing where it fits into the home phones article - the flightchecker is a specific tool to do a specific job; again its place and what you should use it for are in the articles.

I actually toyed with not putitng the tools on the front page for just that reason. Yet regular users want quick access to them - so they are deliberately lower down in the box - so they're less prominent to newbies, but regulars can go straight to them.

2. The Forums...

Martin prepares to get boo-d. Actually the forum has more links on the home page than before, and I now have the ability to do specific links in the announcements section. Plus its linked to in the stats section

Currently there is only one link - down the left. The new forum link is in the top of the page so you can easily access it.

Yet quite deliberately I dont want to overpromote the forum to newbies. The site is still dominated in traffic term by articles and 80% of users go there not here. They prefer the information from a specified source ie me, frankly - especially when it relates to a media appearance. Using the forum is the second stage, not the intro stage, we have huge numbers of people who are new to the web - and the forums are a confusing and take some getting used to.

Yet now in each of the new section (top tab bits) there are specified relevant forum links - and these forum links will also be on each article page too. The new design incorporates the forums even more in the totality of the site.

As for regulars, you'll get used to the new main forum button in about 0.5 seconds so Im not worried - its just moved.

3. Why is there 'wasted white space'/

First of all - remember thats only on the main site, not the forums. There are a number of reasons for this

a. Accessibility, we've been advised that this is best for disability access to the site
b. Articles. We gradually working on improving the format of the articles, so they look consistent and easy - a fixed width is needed for that, or it makes it look very strange (e.g. bbc does the same).
c. Cluttered-ness. I know the site looks cluttered now, and with the info we want to put across thats always going to happen. The while space helps make it a little easier and less cluttered.

A wee summary

I'm really pleased you like the site. My above explanation isn't to justify what I've done, as some of you may disagree, but more to say that this has been a long process and we have discussed most options to try and get it right. We've looked at how people use the site. I have my priorities on what I want (people joining the email is the single most important thing, as then we can reach out to them rather than vice versa).

So while you may have different priorities, until MSE 3.0 when it'll be customisable (a long time yet) I have had a very long drawn out thought process getting the info where I want.

Once we're up and running we do plan to use Google Analytics to try and track how people use the site, and work through any mistakes we've made (there will be some) to make it easier for people.

Martin

sarabob

There is some serious mosquito effect going on in the top graphic.

The green 'tools' heading has stray black pixels at the top left and top right.

The page jumps from side to side (insurance, travel, mortgages and 'the site & Martin' are off to the right compared to the other pages)

Obsessing over details aside, it's very pretty :-) I like the keyboard shortcuts too...

Ellie2758

OGB03 wrote:

:rolleyes: When I saw the Ssshhh thread title, I thought, why is MSE Martin promoting Jade's perfume on this site? Is it cheap(er)? Glad I was wrong. As for the site, it'll take me a while to get used to it, but as long as there are bargains, I'm quite happy.

I thought it was to do with Schweppes.................................


Showing my age now, lol

rebeccaj

ND wrote:

I think it looks like moneysupermarket.

yes, it does, looks very similar indeed :eek:

HunnieB_Hayz

looks good

jaxxy00

Oh no!! i thought why change it :eek: , i hate getting used to something new. Was dreading clicking the link and seeing something what i was going to have to get used to.

Well what can i say, very very nice. Looks really great. :T Thanks so much for such a great place to talk and discuss all that we can on here. I recommend it to eveybody. :beer: