Reader Posts
« previous | TPM CAFÉ READER POSTS HOME | next »
TPM Cafe Is Now Suckful
Having once been a breeze to navigate, post, and comment, TPM Cafe has become an unpleasant quagmire of lost posts, sparse information, and impossible conversations. The new site gives the impression of having been designed by a blind person of diminished capacity and developed by amateurs. This is particularly pathetic in view of the excellent interface that was in place just a few short weeks ago.
Just a few of the ways that the friendliness of this site has been damaged:
-- The Tracker used to be a great way to follow the ebb and flow of conversation. It's loss in the current paradigm is mourned by denizens far and wide.
-- Showing comments and posts in the profile "oldest first" prevents us from finding any new product more than a few days old.
-- The inability to search for another specific user's profile is unforgivable.
-- In the past, it was apparent whether one was logged in or not. Now? Who knows?
-- My password works. Sometimes. It seems to depend on the phase of the moon and whether or not my parakeet has had his dinner.
The list goes on, as does the moaning. It looks as though Howard, Tom Wright, and many other well-respected bloggers have given up in frustration, and frankly, I'm close myself.
Could we have our old site back, sir? Please? Or is this a Republican plot to scatter the liberal bloggers?
Comments (27)
You can say that again.
What the hell was wrong with the old site? It was much easier to post a formatted piece, it was reasonably quick to load, it didn't send lose your password, it didn't eat posts.
This site seems to be several grades lower in general web-goodness than the previous one. Josh Marshall got took when he bought this piece of crap.
March 3, 2008 10:20 PM | Reply | Permalink
I can't put my finger on it but the tpm site has gotten confusing and it's become a less pleasant experience. Not just technically.
The quality of reader posts, in my opinion has plunged in the last week. I think it reflects the increased nastiness of the presidential campaign.
March 3, 2008 10:52 PM | Reply | Permalink
I won't comment on others' contributions but mine have gone downhill.
March 3, 2008 11:14 PM | Reply | Permalink
I'll see your downhill contributions with my own and raise you a can't recommend anymore.
Hi, Tankard. Good to read a familiar face. :-)
March 4, 2008 1:31 AM | Reply | Permalink
Good to see you still here, 'shell.
March 4, 2008 7:33 AM | Reply | Permalink
Well, good, at least you're still here. Saw your grumbles last week and hadn't seen you for a couple of days, so I thought you might have decided to move on to greener pastures.
March 4, 2008 7:32 AM | Reply | Permalink
Tankard -
Thanks for taking up revolving outrage.
Hook up w/ ClearThinker - he's also on it.
As I commented on his "To TPM Management..." post - to be this amazing in content but technically frustrating to your audience is foolish.
HuffPo's technos got it - swallow your pride and borrow or hire.
March 4, 2008 4:20 AM | Reply | Permalink
Several problems with the new site:
1. Half-column format isn't easy to read
2. Replying to a comment is harder (need to click the "reply to x" button)
3. You can't track your comments
4. You can't distinguish unread from read comments
5. There are no ratings for comments or any other way to recommend a comment
6. Comments don't appear immediately when posted
7. There seem to be fewer main articles and fewer contributors
8. There is less interaction between readers than there was in the past
9. Many good commentators appear to have left the site
10. The site resembles every other site of its type--it's no longer differentiated from the crowd
11. In general the discussion has become less interesting and more typical of what I see at other sites. The old site encouraged dialogue between commentators which is much more interesting than a bunch of statements by commentators all strung together.
The one positive about the change is that reader blogs are a bit more prominent. This small improvement, however, is insignificant compared with all the negatives.
Also . . . I hate the "avatars". I finally added an image just because it made it easier for me to find my old comments--but generally I prefer to judge a post (and the poster) just by the words the poster writes and not be influenced (biased) by some goofy image the poster chose.
March 4, 2008 6:55 AM | Reply | Permalink
Thank you for listing the grievances far more comprehensively and eloquently than I did. It would seem that the intention of the change was to discourage conversation and become more HuffPo-like. But HuffPo is staffed to bring us large quantities of news, whereas TPM Cafe has always been a place for lefty discussion.
But I don't get what you mean about a "goofy image." I consider mine to be a dignified, accurate, and representative self-portrait.
March 4, 2008 7:39 AM | Reply | Permalink
Amen, Purple State
March 4, 2008 8:23 PM | Reply | Permalink
I actually like the look of the new site but there's a lot of you out there that I haven't had a good back and forth conversation with since the new design was unleashed. Something about this just doesn't encourage us to meet up in the discussion threads and to spend the day taking a topic off in a different direction the way we used to.
March 4, 2008 8:42 AM | Reply | Permalink
Good rundown Purple State. I would only add that terrible proofreaders like me are drowning without the ability to preview and edit.
March 4, 2008 8:44 AM | Reply | Permalink
I really like having a picture of Ric Flair as my avatar, though!
Whooooo!
March 4, 2008 9:01 AM | Reply | Permalink
Definitely Bruce . . . add that one to the list. The edit feature was a great plus.
March 4, 2008 9:31 AM | Reply | Permalink
Hey all,
Believe me, we know all of this. And there's literally nothing we can do to speed up the fixes, our tech team is working their heart out on all of it.
But know that obviously we want to make sure that both the frustrating technical problems that unexpectedly cropped up with the new site are ironed out and the missing features you all enjoyed at the old site are added in. The former has slowed our progress on the later.
We have no interest in frustrating you, what we're going through is the compounding of new software that was required if we were going to bring the TPM network onto one platform and the bugs associated with such a new piece of software.
I've obviously got all of these bugs written down already, but if you have anything to add check out the FAQ thread.
March 4, 2008 9:23 AM | Reply | Permalink
It's okay Andrew . . . we're sticking with you. You've done such a good job in the past that you've earned our loyalty.
March 4, 2008 9:34 AM | Reply | Permalink
Tankard, you image is one of the rare exceptions :-)
March 4, 2008 9:30 AM | Reply | Permalink
Ahem.
I just want to mention that I laid claim to the "This Place Sucks(tm)" brand a long time ago.
My lawyers will be in touch.
March 4, 2008 10:09 AM | Reply | Permalink
In the prior format you could track arguments and respond to objections without keeping a home log of where you had previously posted. Responses could be seen because new comments were flagged. The current format loses this aspect entirely and is suitable mainly for drive-by postings.
March 4, 2008 11:32 AM | Reply | Permalink
I think some miss the point here.
The issue isn't one of technology (although that is part of the problem), it's one of ergonomics and design.
I'm guessing that your budget for website design is about 1/10 of your budget for website implementation.
As any business knows (and TPM is a business), the "experience" of the website is critical and much of what Tankard writes is about the experience.
March 4, 2008 1:07 PM | Reply | Permalink
Just remind you that many are now finding a refuge over at:
http://forum.projectlucidity.com/
Once you register, you'll find us: A place for conversation, familiar names, content that does not get lost.
March 4, 2008 1:48 PM | Reply | Permalink
Thanks! I just registered! See you there!
March 4, 2008 9:13 PM | Reply | Permalink
Hey guys, I have been constantly frustrated since the new site took effect even though I had just started posting shortly before the change. However it does seem that with the owrd spreading about TPM over the last few years that there are more and more people coming here for news.
As to the recent conversations, they have been heated and imprecise as March 4th got closer and closer. I can not wait till we get back to covering and talking about the disaster that GWB and friends have brought to this country. I feel like everyday its about the election while the administration ad its cronies continue to dismantle our country with a smile on their face, chery-picker in hand, a classy or class-less lawyer (you be the judge) and a big can of fear.
Hey Andrew tell the tech team that I support all of their efforts to improve this site and thanks for the Skid Row series, I truly hope we can take our civic duties to new heights and help alleviate some of the issue we face as a community!
March 4, 2008 3:03 PM | Reply | Permalink
Well, I'm certainly glad it's not just me.
It did occur that perhaps the new format was designed to tamp down discussion.
This format is easier to read, but that's about it's only benefit thus, as far as I can see.
I wish there were a tech link to send questions and problems to.
I wish I could find specific reader blogs by entering their names into search.
I sort of like the Avatars.
I agree about passwords: Before, it was much easier to stay logged in. I miss a number of people I'm not seeing her much anymore. Where IS Howard?
March 4, 2008 5:22 PM | Reply | Permalink
See my link above. You will find Howard. And others too: Project Lucidity.
March 4, 2008 5:31 PM | Reply | Permalink
Andrew, Is the problem financial? When calls were made for support, did TPM fall short?
March 4, 2008 8:04 PM | Reply | Permalink
And heaven forbid you start a conversation with someone on a post that isn't "popular" enough and just gets lost. Is this high school?
How about being able to skip over things you've already read? No way to tell here.
My password works faithfully. Every Thursday at noon. Otherwise, not so much. I have to try others. They don't work either. I have to log out, and then log back in. Great for flow....
Oh, shit. It didn't work AGAIN. I guess I'll log out and try to remember the name of this blog and then....
Well, I found it again, so after logging out, and then in, let's see if it works:
PS, either way, this new site sux big time
March 4, 2008 9:04 PM | Reply | Permalink
Post a Comment