Upcoming Site Re-design: I need your thoughts on this.

[ClarkP]

Hello all!

The inevitable is happening:  We are being forced to migrate DK to an updated website platform.  There is not a firm date yet, but it sounds like we will have to be updated within the next 6-8 months

This upgrade is both good and bad.  I wanted to give you a heads up and get your opinions on a few things.

First the GOOD:

• DK will remain wild and free for everyone.  :-)
• All our content from the beginning of time will be available on the new site.
• The new site will have a more contemporary, clean look to all features
• The site will look pretty similar... same logo, colors, etc.
• Improved functionality on many features that we use daily:  forum, groups, blogs, photos, etc.
• The new site will be faster.  This current one is a slowpoke (84% of sites load faster).
• It will work much better for tablets and mobile devices.

Now the BAD:

• We think we might lose functionality that we like
  - points that determine Hopeless Doodle Addicts might not be possible (this is a BIG problem... and we are working on it.  We want this as much as anyone.)
  - music player will not be included (but embedded music will be available)
  - no native video upload:  Videos will all be embedded from YouTube / Vimeo / wherever.
• I'm sure there will be bugs and glitches when we "flip the switch" to start using the new design.
• There will be a learning curve as we all get used to the new layout and how it works.
• It will force us to invest substantial money in the design/upgrade

Here is an example of a different site that has just been upgraded to the new platform.  [Edited to add:] This example site looks completely different than ours will.  It has different navigation & features than ours will.  Only look at this site for it's better functionality across all devices, NOT for how it looks.  [end edit]:  http://lenscience.ac.nz  Try it out with different devices and screen sizes.  You can see how it is much cleaner and handles tablets / mobile devices so much better.

And that is the main reason for this upgrade.  Our current site is slow(ish), dated, and doesn't work very well on tablets / mobile devices.

Now where I need your help.  We need to know what features of DK you value to the most.  We want to know how you use DK and what features you can't live without.

Take this short survey for me if would be so kind:  DK Site Upgrade Survey

Comment below when you've taken the survey.  Comment below with the ONE thing you value most about the current DK site.

Thanks so much!
Clark "DK tech slave" Pearson

[Added]  PS.  I will be creating a "sandbox" version of the new site.  It's a separate site where we test the new design/features before we go live.  If any of you would like to be members of the sandbox site to give additional feedback, just let me know.  Thx!

[Stacy, Bruno, Molly and Gracie]

took the survey

[Nicky, Riley & Boris]

I did the survey and also commented on the blogs which I have given up on as I think it is a misused area. I only read Laurie's or anyone who I recognise as a DK member that engages with the rest of the community. Selfish people show themselves up pretty quickly here LOL

[F, Calla & Luca]

Amen. But you just made me realize that one prime example seems to have disappeared, sadly only to have another reappear.

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

Me too, Nicky.

[Jarka, Monty & Auggie]

Done. Hard to pick just one thing I like the most, though. I don't use the music player, so losing that won't be a big deal for me. As long as all the information that is already out there migrates to the new site and nothing is lost, that's sufficient.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I'm hoping that we will still be able to embed photos in discussions. 

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

Agree with others about too many blogs occurring from one source showing up at the same time. I wish that old discussions or blogs would pop up when new posts on them happened - this might revive wonderful older discussions.   

I am not very flexible in my old age but what I see on the sample site is a bunch of 'stuff' on the sides that seem more like ads, with the real 'meat" all in the middle rather than the way it currently is set up. This puts the  the blogs and discussions on top of each other.  I would miss the current posts in the center.  I often 'butt' into a discussion or post in another group after seeing an interesting comment, or I click on a picture that someone has recently posted.  Again, I am old, and I appreciate the more friendly look (font, etc) of doodlekisses than the sample.  I noticed that the sample had fewer choice options across the top bar - will dk change to fewer choices with more drop downs?   I might be an old dinosaur but  I really enjoy changing my page for the seasons and holidays.  This is SO easy with the current design and would probably change with a new one.  :-{

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I feel exactly the same. 

[ClarkP]

Nancy,
That was just one example of a site.  The platform is pretty flexible.  We can have all the same menu options as we have now.  As far as layout, we can put stuff wherever we want it.  So most important stuff up top.  That's part of the reason for the survey.  Unless we learn something shocking from the survey, I fully plan to have the top/center thing being the Activity Feed.  :-)

We will still be going for an open and friendly look with the same fonts, etc. as we currently have.

One thing that I thought would have to change to make DK more mobile friendly was that the main home page would be a two column page instead of a three column page.  We know that will cause some items to be stacked where they are now side-by-side.  We will work and tweak to get the right items up top.  That's what I liked about the example site:  it was the first one I'd seen that was three column.  But it is still a compromise we might have to make.  We will work to keep it familiar.  :-)

From what I have seen so far, changing your own page for holidays/seasons/any reason will be just as easy as the current system.  We certainly hope to keep that.

/Clark

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

Thanks, Clark. Technology tools have moved on and you do need to make dk more user friendly for people who use mobile devices.  Whatever you choose, we dinosaurs might take a tad longer with the learning curve, but we will support it.

[Gail and Bailey]

Agreed!

[Anne & Mr. Haley]

Clark, I just came in on this discussion and as it is geting late at night for me have not yet taken the survey nor checked out the linked site but just wanted to say that I use my tablet almost all the time and do not have any problem with the layout of the home page other than how long it takes to load. Thought it was my ISP. : )