lost without my old friend the old website- finding the new site design impenetrable

[Lizdeb]

of course just as I pressed Post I thought of something else!
The Search facility needs to be fixed!!
Need to be able to sort for Usernames or posts!

[Lizdeb]

I am a newbie and a member of a lot of different forums and yes I agree this site is one of the more difficult to navigate:
1) The left hand navigation part needs clarifying and simplifying.
2) The header at the top of the page should indicate the location of the thread you are now reading not a random section of the board.
3) The "Latest Posts" should be all posts since last visit not just a small selection and should have clearly stated Thread Title, Forum Section, Thread Started By Whom, Username of latest poster (at least)
4) Clicking on someone's name should take you to their profile (it does) AND their profile should have a link to all their posts so you can find all posts made by them in chronological order
5) When notification on posts is requested notifications should only be sent once per thread until next visit to that thread - this happens on several forums that I am a member of so it is perfectly possible.

I am sure there are other things that can be done to improve things. I am going to try and post these suggestions to somewhere where Admin will read it as well as here. Wish me luck.

In the meantime what I do with something I want to make sure is posted is I preview it first - this usually works I find - if it is a long one like this one I copy and paste it into Notepad to make sure that I have a copy before I press Post.

[Sascha]

THey could take some pointers from the Macmillan community website as that it quite easy to navigate and I spend more time over there now, sad to say as this is just too difficult to negotiate. THey don´t have loads of forums but allow you to out the name of the thread or group in the top and its easy to find everything, so is fvourite and following friends or threads.........on here its just impenetrable.....unless mike has an idiot proof guide he can post as a sticky on the top...?

[moorcow]

very funny mgsm, I love it -
at least there are some people managing to get posted and read and replied to - I wonder how many newbbies didn't ever get a reply to any post - or just looked at left hand side in astonishment and gave up...
its getting better but its just not human, friendly, accessible - if you notice there are lots of people talking about techie stuff in terms of how to use it -- I want the human interactions to be easy myself...will keep hoping

[mgsm]

see....................................................................................................stupid forum...........................................................................................................stupid forum......................................................................................................................posted last load of rubbish but wouldnt post next one ........................................................................................FIX THIS STUPID FORUM........ OH NO I havent filled in the field and the field is required...........................

[mgsm]

Have tried to post on various threads without success so have given up trying to say anything ...cos I#ll bet this attempt will end up with telling me that I havent entered a field......well i can tell you i was in a field yesterday at a barbecue and very pleasant it was too! But this post wont post if I say anything significant so am taling uncordinated rubbish and it'll get there ..not..... ....Mary M

[Kindensurprise]

Quick reply is anything but! I don't like it either, and I've been on here long enough to see 2 versions! I don't come on very often these days, as 4 years post dx, but sometimes offer help and not I will be loathe to do that as it's too difficult, same applies when I have problem myself.

Will give it a few weeks to see if they can sort it out, then might have to go elsewhere too, which woudl be sad as lots of ladies on here are fantastic.
Kindenx

[tob21]

yes I hate it too, can't find any of the topics I used to use

[sarahlousie]

Hi all,
I also agree with everyones disapporoval, much much prefered the old site was easier to use and better to look at, particulary miss the 'save discussions', the only good thing to come out of this is that i don't post nearly as much as i used too this is good for me as I am now doing more things off the computer but not so for any newbies as I have secondaries and since being dx last year have done extensive research I always try and help where ever I can including sharing valuable information based on the research I have done and what I have learnt in the past year regarding this terrible disease, the support I received from the other ladies on here pulled me through my treatments and surgery I dont' know what I would of done if I had not been able to discuss/ask the knowledgable women on this forum, so far this has not been a success and it seems to be putting alot of us off posting, this is a real shame especially for all the newly dx they will miss out on valuable support and understanding.

[geewhiz]

"it is an intentional feature that anyone can now see this and not just those who are logged in. The Breast Cancer Care forum encourages all forum members to protect their anonymity by not revealing personal information, such as name and location, in profiles and posts."
Well in that case it would be nice to tell us!
I'm amazed that such a fundamental change has only surfaced through an email. The old old site (ie the one prior to the one that has just been replaced) did not have avatars at all, and it was only the reassurance that they would be visible only to members that encouraged lots of us to use them when the site was updated last time.
My children and quite a few of my friends know I use this site, but don't know my username and I feel free to post quite personal information at times. I would not want them to pick me out by a photo appended to my messages.
Incidentally, that old, old version of the website also had a great feature where you could customise which categories of threads you wanted to see and hide the rest - its replacement never managed to achieve that but compromised by giving us the latest threads including all the latest posts for us to trawl through. This new site can't seem to manage even that at the moment - are we moving forwards or backwards?? Sorry that my frustration is making me moan - let me rephrase my last point: That old, old version of the website also had a great feature where you could customise which categories of threads you wanted to see and hide the rest - is anything similar envisioned for when this version is finally up and running?
Geewhiz (name hidden in case my avatar gives me away)

[pargayan]

Hi in answer to a comment from MrsBlue, I sent an email to the moderators which included whatI think is not a good issue re. avatars and photos being visible without having to log in and this is the reply I got back from Mike.

'With regards the profile pictures, it is an intentional feature that anyone can now see this and not just those who are logged in. The Breast Cancer Care forum encourages all forum members to protect their anonymity by not revealing personal information, such as name and location, in profiles and posts. Should you not wish your image be seen here, the image could be of something else (avatar, scenery, pet etc).'

Not sure if I agree with the intentional feature aspect. I have also noticed that a lot of the path routes are incorrect at the top of each page, for example this one is showing Diagnosis/ DCIS/ LCIS so I think there is an awful lot of tweaking still to be done. The site does seem to be a little bit more stable than it was which is a good thing.
I know on our chemo thread that some people have only just managed to find the new site which cannot be good when we all need each others support.

[NAZ]

I hate the new site! It is awful, totally unuser friendly and gives me a headache just looking at it...:-(

Please can you revert back to the old format?

Naz

[bertie]

I agree with most of what has been said. I mainly miss the old Latest Posts which was a quick and up to date method of keeping up with everyone and also seeing at a glance if you could help anyone and also help and support for yourself. I just fear maybe those who need help and support are not getting it. I know it is a difficult job trying to please everyone but alot of us seem to be thinking along the same lines. I personally found the old site quick and efficient and catered for all my needs.
Marina

[feistybluegeck]

I am just wondering if and when we might be able to retrieve messages? Just as the migration started I saw that I had a new message but was not able to access it. Now all messages, old and new have disappeared and I would love to know if I will be able to retrieve them and to read the new message/s
Good luck with the glitches - it is a mammoth task.
I look forward to hearing .....
Philippa

[scottishlass]

Hi Saffronseed. Yesterday I had 52 in my hotmail inbox from BCC. So now each time I post I untick the box and the bottom of my new post. After I had spent ags unticking all the boxes I could find there were another 28 in my inbox.

[saffronseed]

I contributed to this site and ticked the notify me box and unfortunately i keep getting emails both in my in tray and spam and they are the same notifications I know about already and even those who posted before me, so I ob viously have alread read them. Whilst its nice to get notifications it can block up your box particularly very quickly so not sure this is a plus to be honest - i wont be ticking the notification box again - its easier just to come back and check

[Tolliebelle]

Hi
Have to agree with all the comments already posted finding the new site very difficult to use and navigate round.
Jill

[scottishlass]

Thanks Jane for puting Mikes comment on because I couldn't find it either yesterday. I do see small changes/improvements taking place.
Do you all rememeber ages ago they were going to launch the new site? I wonder how bad it would have been at THAT point tbecause a year later and it is still not as good as I had hoped it would be. But I suppose they are trying......very trying....very very trying!
I have gone to the end of each new post I make to delete the tick there. At one point I had 52 messages on my email. I delelted them all but made sure there was nothing I hadn't already read on this site. Then a wee while later I went back to my hotmail and another 28 were there. far far too much for new people who may be looking in and thinking of joining the site.
Patience is a virtue. I wouldn't like to be one of the technicians right now. Must be a nightmare! Love Val
PS more biscuits under the door for you.

[moorcow]

Hi there, thanks everyone for posting, lovely to hear other views both positive and negative...I am so shocked you got no replies Harry Duck - that just would not have happened before - hopefully it was to do with the tech problems but if its a design problem please please BCC can you sort it..
maybe this is a good way of weaning myself off the site!!! very best wishes to you all BCC lasses, I think I'm signing off now - cetainly for a while and maybe a long while - no doubt my body will decide that for me!
BCC - please can you monitor usage and if its much lower in 3 months can you review?
cheers Nicola

[hatty]

for me its not the problems i just dont find the site lay out as good as before. Sorry.

[GIJaneH]

on http://www.breastcancercare.org.uk/community/forums/new-online-forum?page=3

Mike said

Hi all,

Thanks again for all your comments and on behalf of Breast Cancer
Care, we apologise for the continued problems. Myself and the moderators
have been as open as possible with forum members during this migration
process and are keeping you updated as soon as we have developments.

We are aware that there are still many problems with the new site and
while the digital team and an external agency work on fixing the
glitches, we have to be honest by saying this has not been the smooth
transition we intended. While some changes have been made, there have
also been some setbacks and we're aware that over the weekend there have
been problems with the latest posts and left-hand category order. We
are experiencing the same difficulties and are, as a matter of urgency,
ensuring the technical teams know what aspects need to be fixed.

We understand your frustration with the new forum and obviously do
not like to hear that these problems have forced some members away from
the site. We understand the importance of this online community and
ensuring the necessary improvements are made is an organisational
priority.

We will post any update on this thread.

Best wishes,

Mike

Ninja - I can now GET latest Posts, but when I went to bed yesterday, there had only been 4 posts all day! I don't think so! I made more than that! (none of which were coming up!) Is yours actually RIGHT?

Keep on keeping on...
Jane

[yamslass]

I don't post much but have always come on to the site several times a day to have a look at the latest posts. I am finding myself reluctant to visit now because it is too frustrating trying to use it the way I did previously.

[ChoccieMuffin]

Would love to read Mike's comment, but don't know where to find it...

Much as I love BCC, and being a forum user on several other sites, this has to be the most unfriendly (as in, user-unfriendly!) forum I've ever encountered. Would be happy to point out some other very useful forums as examples. Nothing to do with cancer, of course, but forum structure can be cross-topic.

[GIJaneH]

MGSM - if you save the thread to your browser's "favourite" tabs, it works... I've created a new folder along the top bar, which I've labelled BCC Forums, and I save any discussion I'm following to there. When I want to find out what's happening, I can click on the relevant thread and it takes me to it, and then I can go to "last read" and start from there. It's not as easy as before, but it does save you losing replies to new people... and from going completely batty! Until they get the "latest posts" sorted, it's a sort of solution.

I am finding myself more at home as I use the site, but I do feel for those who are curently undergoing treatment or just diagnosed, because they will be struggling to have the spare brain capacity to deal with all this...

[libby_2010]

Oh Linda and Moorcow you both echo my feelings exactly. I could go onto the forum and sift through several of the latest post and find my way around. This new site just doessn't seem so user friendly at all. And yes I have checked myself for lack of flexibility etc and I'm sure that does not apply.J

[scottishlass]

Thanks Cornishgirl/Linda, there are so many areas on the site that I think we are missing things. This incudes info from BCC. Thank you for letting me know. Will look for his update. Val

[cornishgirl]

Hi Scottishlass, Mike at BCC did comment last night on the " new online forum" thread under "website feedback" and said they will update on that thread as there are a lot of frustrations being aired on there too, also some of the BCC moderators today have been replying to posters specific problems on there and reporting them back to the Techie team for hopefully fixing, realy hope everything gets sorted out asap as its a nightmare for everyone at the minute.
Linda x

[esbee]

I appologise BCC I put 'BBC' instead of BCC! (typo) and I couldnt edit my post to correct it.

[mgsm]

Where are all my old friends? Where are all my saved discussions? Where all my messages? Why arent all my posts in 'my posts'? Where has the community gone? Anybody listening? I tried to do what I used to do and respond to a new person the other day who seemed to be in a similar position to me last year but now I have no idea where that post has gone BECAUSE I COULDNT SAVE IT TO MY SAVED DISCUSSIONS NOR IS IT IN MY POSTS!!!????? So I dont know what has happened to this lady and she has probably not has as much support as I had when I first joined because there is no-one much around posting?
THIS FORUM IS MEANT TO BE ABOUT US SUPPORTING EACH OTHER AND I DONT FEEL I CAN DO THAT AT THE MOMENT.

[saffronseed]

I agree, I find the site very disjointed and unfriendly and you can see the amount of posts have reduced significantly I came on today at around 4pm and there were no posts dated 14th may (today) - which is very unusual. I thought it was just teething problems but it seems this is the way the site has been set up and it is very poor compared to the old one where it was easy to see new topics/new posts at a glace. I know a lot of ladies including me don't necessarily post a lot but make use of the forums for information but I think the changes are not good and in my view will discourage people of making use of it.

[esbee]

I too feel like everyone else who has commented here - I am sorry BBC I know you so wanted to make the web-site more efficient but I really cannot find my way around here anymore.
I have had such warm and invaluable support for me and my Mum from everyone here and the old site used to keep me "sane" on my darkest days - therefore I feel concerned for anyone else who might be supporting someone through their treatment and may slip through the net and not get a reply (that would be awful).
I am quite computer literate but am really struggling here.
Sorry to be so negative.
Esbee x
P.S harry duck I am so sorry you didnt get any replies to your first posts - that would never have happened on the old site.

[esbee]

I too feel like everyone else who has commented here - I am sorry BBC I know you so wanted to make the web-site more efficient but I really cannot find my way around here anymore.
I have had such warm and invaluable support for me and my Mum from everyone here and the old site used to keep me "sane" on my darkest days - therefore I feel concerned for anyone else who might be supporting someone through their treatment and may slip through the net and not get a reply (that would be awful).
I am quite computer literate but am really struggling here.
Sorry to be so negative.
Esbee x

P.S harry duck I am so sorry you didnt get any replies to your first posts - that would never have happened on the old site.

[deed]

wow i feel totally lost on here now!!!!! i felt like this was a little family where everybody knew and understood everybody else.....now i feel like ive lost that support

[chinook]

Why have I just got a dozen e mails? They are all comments about site. Why do I have to go to two places? OH was so concerned by my sudden e mail traffic he told me to sort in not a very patient voice!!!!!!Chinook

[carolihne]

I find the new site so cumbersome and spread out - To be honest I didn't care if it was pink or sky blue before as long as it worked and connected people going through the same problems. I am concerned that a lot of money must have been spen on it - money that could have possibly been put to better use?
Latest post still don't work - and those that do apear come up under wierd headings - also the clock seems to have gone?
cheers
Caroline

[harry_duck]

Thank you Wandy i will try it.

[daffodil3969]

Me too, not been on since it changed as its all too complicated and I have lost my saved discussions and dont know how to get them back?? Only gone on today to leave my chums on the Shropshire thread a message about lunch on Saturday to find none of them have been on and posted either!!
Another example of life "improvements!"

[Wandy]

Harry Duck, did you mean starting chemo in May? Cos I think if you find the having chemotherapy thread on the left handside of the page and click on that, then you will see all the chemo threads and the May 2012 on will be there. That's how I've been finding the May 2011 anyway!
Hope you find your way back and get some support soon!
Wandyx

[majelsty]

I would like to agree with the above comments. The site is really hard to get around and i would really like to have the option to save discussions that i post in. This was a great option in the old setup.
Please please can i also have my contacts back?
majelsty

[3network3]

i'm with everyone else, have hardly posted since the change. I liked the old site a lot better, I'm glad a few of us have opened a secret group on Facebook, I'm mainly there now.
Sorry if this disappoints the technique guys who I'm sure wanted to improve things.

[harry_duck]

I am a newbe and have posted twice without any repies. I cant seem to find starting treatment in may and yet was sure it exsists. Hope it all works out as i could do with the support.

[scottishlass]

I agree with all of the above.
What I liked about the old format was........
I liked the icons on each thread which showed with a star if you had posted on that thread at any time.
I could tell by the colour of the icon at the left of each thread if there was anything new on or if I had read everything on it.
I coud SAVE any thread that I wanted to keep an eye on whether to give suppost of speak to others in similiar situation as me or play word games.(not everyone wants this but some of us chat through the games too and we keep in touch that way without talking about cancer, like friends. Kepps Ragamuffin and me sane!
I had a list of friends and could press a button and look up anyone I had not heard from in a while to see if they were ok.
I could search for a topic or person and got all the relevant threads with that persons name/or subject. Sometimes you know you have been talking about a particular issue with someone but were not sure which thread it was on as we all post on different threads.
What I do not like about the new format...so far...realise work is in progress.....
But the bit that bugs me the most is the having to go up and down, up and down when you only want to post a comment. When you press UP it doesn't go right to the top and when you are on a thread you cannot see which actual thread you are on. The title of the thread is MOST important.
A "LIKE" or similar button would be good to show you had read someones thread but did not need to make a post.
Do we have to have a huge list of what is in the Archives? Could you just have a one line for Archives and then once you got into that section the list could be shown and you could see all the titles at that point.
Hope this makes sense to everyone and it would be good to get some feedback for BCC as I feel that our questions are not answered and I have even had to explain to other users how to access the new site. Surely there is someone in BCC who woud be abe to do this better.
But thanks for listening and hoping that things will sort themselves out eventually. Comments would be most appreciated. Val

[Wandy]

I, also do not find it at all user friendly. Its like operating in a vacuum, it feels very linear where the old forum felt round and inclusive and you felt you were connecting. I am pretty computer literate but do not use a lot of forums, so maybe they're all like this and I have also checked myself for 'just don't like change', but not sure its that. It really has a different feel for all the reasons stated above...
Maybe it will just take time, but I find I am not coming on very much now and thats not too bad for me, I am 6 months from the end of active treatment, but what about the newbies and others who are in the middle of treatment?
Will go and try and make a bit more sense of it now...
Wandy (Lost in BCC cyberspace!)x

[hatty]

I hate this new site, cant really be bothered to use it familiarity has gone its not easy to find things and i feel like ive lost touch with everyone. Back to the HER2 American site for me. I will just bob in and out now and then.

[Tina46]

Hi, I thought I was alone in feeling that the site seems "disconnected". I, too, used to scan through the latest posts, responding to topic headings, becoming very familiar with poster's names. Not sure now how to make the most of the site. But I like the modern look and hope that a full search and maybe a bookmark option will be available.

[lbx157]

I so agree, haven't got a clue where to find anything & can't find the particular threads I was following anymore. Can't get my head round it at all. It's just completely defeating me!

[Flower20]

i agree- think it is awful

[chinook]

Hi cornishgirl and moorcow.Glad it's not just me then. I don't understand how to use the site at all. I'm finding it very difficult to follow different threads and I don't seem to follow the logic of it at all. I admit this is the only forum I use so it could be that's why others find it easy, if it follows the pattern of other forums. I'll keep going but I don't enjoy the process.Regards. Chinook

[mrsblue]

*** PLUS POINTS for the new site
I get email notifications.... hooray
Not pink ... yippee
We can now "Preview" before posting - woohoo
*** My list of further improvements: (not in order of priority, lol)
Live chat - I tried unsuccessfully to get on Tues secondaries live chat (never had problems with this before!) and on Thurs general live chat.
"Latest posts" MUST work properly.
"Search" function is needed.
Avatars/photos should NOT be visible by those who are not logged in.
Spell check (optional - not everyone wants to use it)
The ability to copy and paste plain-text messages in e.g. Notepad (then we could do a spellcheck before hitting the "Post" button)
Personally I'm not interested in any "friends/contacts" - for others, this is an important feature. But I would like to see a site map... there is a site map on the BCC *shop* website!
http://shop.breastcancercare.org.uk/index.phpmain_page=site_map&zenid=bmid1qtop6njdr3fjhge7s8n76
(Who has more need of a sitemap, people with breast cancer, or people who buy BCC merchandise? - come on BCC, please think this one through)

[cornishgirl]

Hi Moorcow, i feel exactly the same as you do , the site feels very impersonal to me now too and i feel as though ive lost my BC family, people ive know and spoken too for quite few yrs now are impossible to find and and im feeling very lost.
Everything just seems to be so very user unfriendly and so difficult , (and i think of myself as very computer literate too), but now new threads/posts are being missed and left without any replies ,the lay out is not at all good with these new grids, it all seems so back to front ,and everything is just jumbled up with no order, you simply cant find anything without searching every catagory , I liked the old forum where the Thread title was clear and bold above the thread, when someone posted on a thread it was brought back up to the top of the latest posts page,where everyone could see it easily , it was easy to find/follow any threads and also very easy to find all your BC friends, and any new threads would always get spotted and replied to ,i feel so sorry for any newbies joining the forums at the minute as if its this difficult for all us oldies how on earth does it feel for those ladies who are having a difficult enough time as it is without haveing to try and navigate and find your way round the new forum as it is.
For me, Its just a real feeling of being lost, and in more ways than one, the forums are/were a critical lifeline to so many people, i just hope that that lifeline that we all need and have depended on will be restored very very soon for everyone.
Take care of you, Linda x