got to say why as the site been changed?from a simple log in and navigate easy and find what you looking for very easy.to what we have now.got to say im not liking it one bit.i dont post much that gets much interest anyways so you wont miss me.good luck and I hope enough enjoy the new software to make it worth while.
It’s easy to reject something new when the “old” provided familiarity but this format is dreadful in comparison… (To me, at least.) Previously the site had a safe and welcoming feel, a thoroughly attractive layout and was so easy to use. Now there seems to be text jumping all over the place on my 10inch tablet, to use the site on a smaller screen would be a nightmare to contend with. I’m really sorry to be a grumpy old woman but the new format just doesn’t do the site justice at all. It’s such a shame.
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Thanks Priscilla, now you’ve "highlighted " the help section I can find it but where is it normally?
Also , the size of the text now is so tiny on a mobile phone I find it hard to read. Can this be changed please? Why all these changes it was so easy to use before and it isn’t now. Jx
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This new format is much more complicated to our previous format and layout, their may have been less functioning’s but much more straightforward, at least we all knew where we were, now much more is added but causing more complications…sometimes less is more…This is not a format-layout i will be finding easy to get my head around…
Jackie…
I agree with all the criticisms. This new format is awful. Much too cluttered and confusing. Don’t like the spooky bot faces either, and is ‘Enjoy your stay’ appropriate for a community we would prefer not to have had to join? I haven’t posted for a long time but still look to see if there’s anyone I feel I can support, and I chat to another forum member via PM, otherwise I’d be cancelling my account. Sorry, maybe I’m just a grumpy old woman who has had too much change in her life over the past 3 years, but the previous format worked so well even for someone with my limited computer skills.
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Hello everyone,
I’m really sorry to everyone that’s finding it difficult. I know that it can be difficult when you are used to doing things a certain way and then it changes. I also know how important the support of this community is to many people, and I’m really sorry for disrupting this.
To answer those who would like to know why it has been changed, there are two main reasons:
- The ‘platform’ was old and out of date. The platform is the technology behind the site - rather than build a community from scratch (which would be very time consuming and expensive), a platform is like a basic template site that you then adapt to your needs. The old platform was starting to have problems, and we would have soon reached a point where we could no longer get technical support to improve it, so it was unavoidable that we would need to move to a new one.
- Although many of you here have said you found it straightforward to navigate, we did also get quite a lot of feedback from people who found the old version difficult to navigate, or found it hard to know when they had replies. The new features that have been added are in direct response to user feedback.
In terms of the basic functionality, we have tried to change that as little as possible, so the way that you start and reply to conversations is the same, it may just look a little different visually.
We also tested the site with members of the community before we launched to try and make sure it would work for our users - there was a post a little while back asking for people to get involved and those that put themselves forward spent some time on a test version of the site. The feedback from this testing was generally positive and we did make some changes based on comments from our testers.
With regards to the welcome message text and statistics on profiles, I’m really sorry about these. Going back to what I was saying about a platform being a template site, sometimes they come with features that aren’t useful for our particular community, but I will look at getting these hidden.
We will be continuing to work on the site and make improvements, so I’m making a note of everyone’s feedback now, so thanks very much for sharing your comments. At the moment I have a note to investigate:
- The time stamps on posts
- The text size and layout on mobiles and tablets
- Changing the welcome message text
- Hiding the profile statistics
I will keep adding to the list as necessary.
Can we edit posts after making mistakes? I see yes we can. Well at least that’s a big improvement.
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I don’t like this format at all, it’s too busy to navigate easily, less is more, when you are grieving you need the type of site you had before, easy, this is just too complex.
i can see a lot of our posters will leave this forum site, including me, as it has far too many " unnecessary " functions and far to complicated to manoeuvre around, such a shame, that a valuable to our bereaved site had to be tampered with and destroyed…Why mess with something that was already working perfectly in the first place…
Jackie…
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The print for me is far too small. We need something familiar not this we are all lost as it is whoever did this is some technical kid how haven’t been in ower shoes.
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Hi, I agree what a mess. I have spent nearly three hours just trying to log in. It wouldn’t accept anything I tried and I still have no idea why I suddenly seem to be in here. I have had to change my password because it wasn’t long enough anymore and although I went into ‘forgot password’ and changed it (twice) I was still refused then suddenly here I am. So still don’t know which password got me here.
| worked on computers and programmed when at work and must admit to probably being a bit left behind now but I’m not that bad and can usually find my way around in the end.
I don’t think we want all this fancy stuff just to make contact with each other. Now will have to spend another couple of hours trying to work out what everything means. Or will I bother.
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I have to agree .
Joining a forum is a big deal for a lot of people who are struggling to cope with
their grief and I think a lot of them will just give up.
I’m going round in circles and getting frustrated. I don’t have the energy for this before it was so quick and easy, I could use ir on my mobile now a lot of it isn’t shown on the screen. I tried to cancel a message but the "cancel " option was hidden.
It’s a real shame because I’m sure Sue Ryder
staff worked hard to get it all done.
I’ve always believed in the KISS principle
Agree Jackie, when grieving were not in the mood for more complications. I used to work on computers for over twenty years and used to sorting things out but just don’t want to be bothered now.
It has taken me two days to even log in and I am wondering if I will have to go through the same problems when I try to come back in. Hope we don’t have to log in everytime because I have had to change my password three times and not sure which one I will have to use. I had a perfectly good password in the first place which never gave me any problems, then informed that I had to make it longer. Still problems. I am at the moment trying to find my way around and would not have had a problem at one time but nowadays I haven’t the patience and have no idea what the icons are meant to do, what’s all that about!!! help, I just want to talk to ‘friends’. Should be simple enough. Not all of us are computer whizkids.
Hi Jackie, I was reading Pat’s post to which you have now replied . As I was reading it underneath was the circle with D init (your username,) and the word ‘replying’ . Looks like we’re being monitored even before we post🤔xx
That’s an interesting point. I must admit to being a bit concerned.
Now Pat, don’t you dare leave because of changes to the site. You would be a big loss. I’m getting along fine with it and I’m not an expert. If anyone 'hovers ’ over the icons it shows what they are for. I have all my messages intact. The more I use it the better it gets. We have features on here we didn’t have on the old site like being able to edit posts which I think is a big asset.
Patience is not a big thing in grief. We can get annoyed and frustrated so easily, whereas before we would have found it so easy. There is always advice to be had and if you come to me or admin I am sure you can be helped. Love and blessings.
That is a bit concerning! A bit big brotherish
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Hi Sadone. It would be impossible to ‘monitor’ your post as you write it and before you post it. It may happen that someone is posting to you (replying) at the same time as you post to them. I don’t know for sure, but it has happened to me on other sites.
Hi Jonathan, not know for my patience at the best of times, so hope my laptop doesn’t end up going through the window!!!. I daresay I will be asking a good many questions but at the moment just having a play around. I used to enjoy a challenge with the computer but now can’t really be bothered. As long as I learn enough to keep in touch will be satisfied. Haven’t worked out how to send a private message yet though. I’m a bit unnerved as I couldn’t get into the forum in the first place and don’t want to upset it. Might throw me out again… Did hover over icons but can’t see what point they are for just to send a message to someone. Think I have got a bit left behind since leaving work as I don’t even understand what some of these Icons mean. Better take a crash course again.
Pat
Found the private message envelope, getting there …
Pat xxxx