h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

as I am sure everyone is so far with the new half finished h2g2 in barlesque. It is impossible to flip to the correct part of the conversation thread, requiring lots of clicking and re-reading past posts to find the part you're needing.


it's annoying to discover that the smiley function isn't working at all, and that a lot of the time something hair trigger that is the stupid filter.


I just discovered by accident that you can make a smiley here, rather like in Skype when you type : and )

so


I shall stop moaning now, because there is so much that seems clearer and fresher to me, once we have escaped the maze of little problems. I am really glad that we have a new version. Everyone I've shown it to so far likes it better - these are friends and family who are not members. My 12 year old grandson asked if he could join, and was disappointed when I told him he was too young.

I like the new look, but I hope the most important features will be usable again soon. No idea what they're going to do about the < > tags which prevent us from posting smileys (or anything else you put between them, for that matter).
Here are a few more smileys, Lanza (without the spaces, naturally):

; - )

: - D

: - (

8 - )

d _ || _ b

: ' - (

{ { { } } }

: - *

: - O

| - I

Go to the smiley page for more (look for the forum codes)

Hi, Lanzababy.

I think I've screwed up the introductory part of my personal Space because I was trying to get rid of the marks. Instead, what I did seems to have made them more numerous than ever. :P-(

I'm glad that the new "skin" is popular with a lot of people outside H2G2. I think it's fairly attractive, but maybe this is because I'm easy to please. Nevertheless, I would like to keep open the option of having more than one skin choice. Maybe down the road six months, after the new version has had the kinks ironed out, the editors could survey the researchers and see how many would still prefer goo or some of the other old skins. People are often resistant to change, but gradually accept new things. Many of us feel that it is we, the researchers, who have made the site what it is. We should be treated as owners who have a say in what happens....

Thanks B&#39;el I feel like I&#39;m learning a little whilst getting to understand just how broke this new version is. I never even realised that there were things called forum codes

But now I do - so and and X-I


also


poor paulh! I took a look at your PS, you should write a comment on the feedback page so the technical staff understand our problems.

Also, the new system is calling this journal entry as *by* Slightly frustrated. rofl

I'm doing a sit inI WILL be the last to kicked out of the "old" hootoo

I've been popping back to barlesque this evening, just to check a few things. I still mostly like the look too. It's the using of it that I can't stand

Paul, I agree. We may not legally own the place, but we certainly are part of it enough to warrant discussion.

The issue of people being resistant to change is vital when major overhauls and updates take place. In this instance I really feel that the Eds handled it all well. We have had lots of involvement over the last months.

However, it all falls down and the detractors gain the upper hand when the long awaited new site fails on so many levels.

I was talking to someone who is not a member here who remarked that most internet forums he had had anything to do with all dissolve into antagonism and nastiness - and didn't h2g2 behave like this? I would hate to find that the uneasy start to the new H2G2 brings out lots of tetchiness.

Normally h2g2 is the most chilled place to come to, incredible people from all over the world willing to write and share their thoughts.

I wonder whether the Eds and other techies have really left the building for the weekend? I would hope that something is being done to fix the bugs and issues asap.

<>

No, you won't be as I intend to be, but at least we'll keep each other company in blessed Goo

Maybe the redesign is the thing that will finally unite all skin users in oneness

There's been the odd comment of people just not liking change, and while that is true I don't see it as the issue here. Many of us who were looking forward to the change are very disappointed, not with the look but with the surprise that the site doesn't actually work.

we'll keep each other company in blessed Goo


ha ha! I love it - we can hire Douglas' bath and fill it with nice cool blue Goo and stage a sit in in the Eds offices.


Enshrine Goo, invite nighthoover.


Oh, I need some coffee and have to leave hootoo now and tackle real life. Grandsons leaving here today and I need to wrangle them.

apparently (please don't quote me) but I think the new hootoo has been done by a different company to the "old" hootoo ??

I don't know which company did the original excellent h2g2 design. This company, Aerian, claims 100% customer satisfaction for the new H2G2 web site. http://www.aerian.com/portfolio/bbc.co.uk/h2g2_web_design_relaunch_user_testing

And this is what they were tasked to do by the BBC:

>>We were tasked with a particularly problematic design solution:, to appeal both to the eclectic and passionate existing community, and the un-initiated new comer alike. Such was the swathe of feeling towards the brand, we decided to engage with the existing community, and to bring them in as part of the design process through 6 rounds of User Testing (UT).

From our analysis of this data, we were able to create a toned down version of the Hitchhikers brand, that answers both these design problems.

The feedback from the community has been fantastic, with almost 100% ‘happy customers’.>>

So, there you have it; we have been toned down!!!

thank you for your info

Writing as one of those who took part in the 'User Testing' rounds, I would describe them more as a 'Look-and-Touch Experience' rather than User Testing.

And we have progressed to 'look and don't touch'; an interesting and novel way to launch a new website.

If I was a director of Aerian Studios, I think I would be panicking right now, after reading these comments. http://www.aerian.com/

I'm thinking about emailing them, just so they know.

Great idea, Kea. Give them links to all the Feedback page.

Here's the email I sent: >> Hi Paul, I'm one of the long term researchers over at h2g2. I've had a read of the blog post you did on the bbc (and commented there), and had a look at your website pages about the redesign. I'm not sure if you realise yet, but there has been a massive reaction within the community over the weekend against the redesign. This falls into two broad categories: that the new site has been launched with so many bugs, and that many of the functionalities of the old site have been designed out. (personally I think the latter is the the most alarming, as presumably the former will be fixed). Here's a couple of the conversations happening on site about this: Subject: Thursday 20 January, 2011 - The new H2G2 is live and kicking! http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/alabaster/F77636?thread=8010317&skip=0&show=200#p105459457 Subject: which site are you using, burlesque/H2G2 or dna/h2g2? http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/alabaster/F19585?thread=8013198 You may already be aware of the bug reporting page: http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/alabaster/A78067353 One of the main problems from the community point of view is that we've been left with a dysfunctional site over the weekend with virtually no explanation of what is going on. This will be taken up with Sam and Chris on Monday of course, but questions are starting to be asked about who did the redesign and why isn't it working. As an aside, I'm one of the researchers who has been excited about the redesign and who likes the general look of it. regards, kea. <<