This new look board

jem16

Despite MSE's post in Feedback that all logged in users would remain on the old version until they chose the new version, mine changed automatically to the new.

Changed back immediately but now everything is squashed into the centre of the page using a widescreen monitor. This is using IE as the browser. I've noticed one or two others complaining of the same thing on another thread so something is not right.

Anyone else having this problem ( or not as the case may be ) with IE?

My main gripe is the fact that they trialled this at least a year ago and basically have not listened to the feedback as the main issue of much too bright and causing headaches and nausea is still there.

DREKLY

I cannot understand why, when the site was understood by everyone, and easy to navigate, it has to be altered, to something which is IN NO WAY, an improvement - why change it ???

Learn from the Americans, "IF IT AIN'T BROKE, DON'T FIX IT".

MSE staff,Please leave the site well alone, thankyou.

jem16

Well it's not IE that's causing the squashed look so it must be my login.

So I'm stuck with a squashed look that at least works or a horrible look that doesn't - thanks MSE!

EDIT : Fixed that at least as I found another option in the User CP - stretchy look apparently. No idea why it had changed itself yesterday though.

colsten

I am using the original style forum on my iPad right now. Nothing wrong with it so I hope it will not be taken away

badger09

Grumpygit wrote: »

The new format is not good - too bright and too spaced out.

Agreed.

And it leaves me feeling not too bright, and too spaced out

Grumpygit wrote: »

Whilst the current (old) format may have been a bit jumbled at times,

SAVE THE JUMBLE!

bowlhead99

When logged in I'm still on the old view which is a perfectly fine interface on desktop and ok on mobile; don't think I'll bother changing until I have to.

Have not tried the new one on mobile much but I did try it. Like many "mobile optimised" sites it auto-fits the screen without needing to zoom -which is handy - but there's no ability to zoom in or out (which I'd prefer,i think).

One thing evident on the mobile, when you scroll to the bottom of the forum page you get a lot of stuff which used to be in the sidebar that is not really relevant to the forum post you're reading and you probably don't really want on all of your pages, which I think is iceman's pint above :
-scroll past the Weekly email
-scroll past a big smily photo of the Forum Team and "popular on mse"
-and Martin's twitter
-and news blog
-and how this site works (which itself takes up a page at small font on a modern smartphone)
- and *then* you get to the footer

That's six full pages of scrolling which, although you don't have to read it if you don't want to, really shows what a lot of "stuff" they are making you download on a supposedly light and clean mobile optimised site which you might be trying to download over a weak connection, or on the move (like in the 30 seconds of free WiFi while your tube is in the underground station), or whatever.

Interestingly, on the "desktop" version of the new site format, you go straight from the bottom of the list of threads or the posts on a thread, to the "how this site works".

Fair enough it's a free site so I guess they have to shove the ads and things you don't actually want, in somewhere...

bluebell321

SeduLOUs wrote: »

I actually like the new 'look' but can't cope with not having a 'view first unread' button on threads (I wish it would just default to first unread like it does on pretty much every other forum I use.

I also wish there was a single click button to jump to 'new threads' rather than going back to forums home and needing to click twice for no good reason.

It does it for you.
Click on your picture and it gives you list of threads you have read and how many posts within are unread. Clicking on one of those threads takes you straight to first unread.

masonic

bluebell321 wrote: »

It does it for you.
Click on your picture and it gives you list of threads you have read and how many posts within are unread. Clicking on one of those threads takes you straight to first unread.

Not for me. 'Recently viewed' and 'Recently posted' links just take me to my profile page, which doesn't contain any information about my recent activity.

bluebell321

masonic wrote: »

Not for me. 'Recently viewed' and 'Recently posted' links just take me to my profile page, which doesn't contain any information about my recent activity.

I just had another play.
So i clicked on my picture and as you said it takes me to the profile page with different tabs.
The tab 'unread posts' gives me a list of threads I've viewed and tells me how many unread messages there are and the name of the latest poster. Clicking on the thread I'm interested in directly from there takes me to the first message I haven't read- in this case it was yours.

I'm going to stick with this format for a while and see if I get used to it. Nice that I can always go back if I want.

masonic

bluebell321 wrote: »

So i clicked on my picture and as you said it takes me to the profile page with different tabs. The tab 'unread posts' gives me a list of threads I've viewed and tells me how many unread messages there are and the name of the latest poster. Clicking on the thread I'm interested in directly from there takes me to the first message I haven't read- in this case it was yours.

Ok, I see the tabs you are looking in now. As you say, there are a few different tabs. 'Unread posts' (where I'd expect to see anything new) is completely empty for me. 'Last viewed' shows a history of the most recent threads I've looked at, but they are in no particular order and those with new messages don't look any different to those without - I'd have to know what time I'd last viewed the thread to determine whether there were new posts using the time and date shown for the newest post. Worryingly, for the same threads, the newest post is different in the 'Last posted on' vs 'Last viewed' tabs, so it looks like new posts could easily be missed and I wonder how many days threads appear in that list. If a thread goes quite for a few days and then starts up again, I suspect it will not be there any more.

It seems like the only way to track threads effectively in the new layout is to subscribe to them, but that would take quite a lot of effort.

I really can't understand why the go to first unread post button can't be retained in this new layout. The above alternatives are quite simply a backwards step.