topic Re: Changes to the boards. in Selling

Changes to the boards.

padi*0409 — Wed, 07 Jun 2017 13:22:32 GMT

I think everyone here needs to be aware of what eBay is planning for the boards, and also have a look at what they've done to the US and UK boards.

http://community.ebay.com.au/t5/Community-Feedback/Updates-coming-to-eBay-com-au-Discussion-Boards/m-p/2065512#M1

Re: Changes to the boards.

lyndal1838 — Wed, 07 Jun 2017 13:33:06 GMT

I was surprised at how long it took for anyone to see Michelle's thread.

It might get interesting in the morning.

Re: Changes to the boards.

k1ooo-slr-sales — Wed, 07 Jun 2017 14:20:03 GMT

@padi*0409 wrote:
I think everyone here needs to be aware of what eBay is planning for the boards, and also have a look at what they've done to the US and UK boards.

padi, I've looked around of the USA boards. Found this page

http://community.ebay.com/t5/Community-Platform-Feedback/bd-p/CommunityNews/page/3

which had a few threads on it. I looked at these ones which make for interesting reads in the context of eBay looking to introduce a USA style board format here in Australia:

http://community.ebay.com/t5/Community-Platform-Feedback/eBay-Boards-Going-Round-in-Design-Circles/m-p/26762215#M2666

http://community.ebay.com/t5/Community-Platform-Feedback/WHEN-WILL-THE-quot-ENHANCEMENTS-quot-STOP-AND-THE-FIXING-BEGIN/m-p/26756028#M2586

http://community.ebay.com/t5/Community-Platform-Feedback/FIX-FOR-THIS-CHILDISH-MESS/m-p/26757005#M2596

http://community.ebay.com/t5/Community-Platform-Feedback/Instead-of-coming-out-with-version-2/m-p/26747569#M2326

http://community.ebay.com/t5/Community-Platform-Feedback/Disenchantments-of-the-Community/m-p/26747802#M2347

plus us many more I have yet to peruse.

Re: Changes to the boards.

padi*0409 — Wed, 07 Jun 2017 14:42:25 GMT

Thanks for those links slr, I'd had a quick look at them after hearing about the changes, and I've got to say I'm not very impressed with the changes.

I think you could be right lyndal, could be like poking a hornet's nest with a stick...............................

Re: Changes to the boards.

chameleon54 — Wed, 07 Jun 2017 22:36:21 GMT

OH GOODIE !!!! ..... so now I can have a candle and a heart in a box......I,m sure a 55 YO farmer will find a use for those....

Come to think of it ......I live in S.A. so the candle might come in handy.....

Re: Changes to the boards.

k1ooo-slr-sales — Thu, 08 Jun 2017 01:15:43 GMT

I think they came out with version -1

Re: Changes to the boards.

k1ooo-slr-sales — Thu, 08 Jun 2017 02:24:15 GMT

sorry for my previous post. I wanted to show something but needed identical one line posts to make my point.

One of the reasons given for moving to a USA board layout is that it is mobile friendly. I'm going to have to disagree.

Take a look at the one line post from a USA board thread and my post shown side by side in screenshots from my samsung mobile. The one line post on the USA thread takes up my whole mobile screen, but my one line post with identical text takes up very little of my screen. My point is to show that the proposed move to a USA style layout WILL NOT be an improvement for members who use their mobiles to view and post on the Australian boards. Maybe their is a way to go to a mobile friendly view of the USA thread, but I couldn't find it. On the Australian boards their is a link at the bottom of the screen when viewing from a mobile that enables you to toggle between mobile and full view.

What is even worse is how the top of the thread shows on a mobile. I urge those members who use their mobile to view the boards to go to click on the link below while viewing from their mobile to see what I mean about how the top of the thread is presented in mobile view, then compare how the top of this thread is currently presented on our boards.

http://community.ebay.com/t5/Community-Platform-Feedback/Instead-of-coming-out-with-version-2/m-p/26747569#M2326

The more I look at how the USA boards are presented on screen, on both my iPad and my mobile, the more I dislike them . . . . . and I don't believe that time will make any difference to this feeling.

Maybe be my feelings about this are influenced by the fact that I don't do Facebook or twitter and am not used to how these sites appear onscreen. On the USA boards, when viewing the boards on a computer, much of the screen is blank space.

Re: Changes to the boards.

k1ooo-slr-sales — Thu, 08 Jun 2017 02:38:33 GMT

@k1ooo-slr-sales wrote:
One of the reasons given for moving to a USA board layout is that it is mobile friendly. I'm going to have to disagree.

For anyone who was wondering where I got the idea that we are headed towards this USA format, this is a quote from michelleoz's announcement thread:

Eventually, we’ll look at a ‘makeover’ of the platform which includes a responsive design for a better mobile experience, again similar to eBay.com.

http://community.ebay.com.au/t5/Community-Feedback/Updates-coming-to-eBay-com-au-Discussion-Boards/m-p/2065512#M1

Re: Changes to the boards.

*tippy*toes* — Fri, 09 Jun 2017 12:24:09 GMT

Apart from the layout of the US boards in general, this is what else I really hate.

There is no message posted count. No, I'm not patting myself on the back because I've posted thousands of messages, but if a new member can see at a glance the amount of posts another member has made, it can instill some confidence that the person answering their message has some experience. Especially when members like myself use a posting ID with 0 feedback.

There is no feedback number visible. Again, having a number there can instill some confidence to some members that the person responding to them knows what they're talking about. My 0 feedback has concerned a number of members, as it's hard to convince them that I have thousands of feedback on other accounts, so have an understanding of how things work.

The "titles", like explorer, adventurer, are childish. That is something I would expect from a kindergarten class. Just being logged in and doing nothing earnt me 5 "badges". Reminds me of "awards" that kids get at school. It doesn't matter how good or bad you are, everyone must get one at some point.

There is so much dead space on the right hand side. Surely something could be put in that dead space?

There is no indication that a message has been read. Here, an unread message will be in bold text. That goes for new unread messages, or old threads with new messages (bold blue text) and recent threads with new messages (bold red text). Once they are read, the text converts to red unbolded. When you're logged in, you can see at a glance which threads you need to click on.

It's difficult to add photos or smileys. I tried to add a smiley from my hard drive and got a square box with a pencil. I tried to add a picture, got the same thing. Cutting and pasting a picture adds it onto a new line of its own, so you can't add one mid sentence. What you get there is

which kind of causes you to lose the flow of your sentence.

I hate that every time you do something, the bell lights up with a message telling you what you've done. Leave my bell alone! I posted 2 replies to messages and the wretched thing lit up like a Christmas tree! Heaven help me if someone marks my reply as "helpful".

Which brings me to my last point. Helpful? Really? That's a crock.

What I do like about the layout of the US forums......NOTHING

Re: Changes to the boards.

padi*0409 — Fri, 09 Jun 2017 12:39:34 GMT

Brilliant post Tippy could you copy it to the "official" thread to let others that don't see it here be aware of it ?

http://community.ebay.com.au/t5/Community-Feedback/Updates-coming-to-eBay-com-au-Discussion-Boards/m-p/2065512#M1

Maybe even eBay's reps will take your views on board..................................one can only hope.

Re: Changes to the boards.

k1ooo-slr-sales — Fri, 09 Jun 2017 14:20:35 GMT

@tippy

I started visiting the US boards about a month ago (USA date format shown in screengrab below). I had visited them ages ago before they had their community makeover.

My status started rising astronomically and updated almost immediately. In the space of about 6 hours I went from being an Explorer to a Pathfinder to a Rising Star to an Adventurer.

Then, before I knew it I started to collect badges

I already had one badge for my first anniversary . . . . . . still not sure how I got that one as it appeared almost as soon as I logged into the USA boards. Then, I got two badges within a minute . . . . . one for marking someone elses post as being helpful earned me a First Helpful Given badge, followed by a First reply badge. Two days later I got two thumbs up notifications and another badge when someone marked my post as helpful I was awarded my First Helpful Received badge.

I now have three badges, only 34 to go

I won't ever get the all the other 34 badges . . . . . . ~~but I don't want to tell you why I will never achieve them as that would just make me feel like a loser~~ . . . . . . needless to say that I do have a life away from the boards. To get the other 34 I would need to live on the boards 24/7 and start many threads (as many as 500) or be on the USA boards for 15 years to get my 15th anniversary badge among 32 other meaningless achievements.

Fancy dishing out 6 badges for marking 1, 50, 100, 500, 1000 and 5000 posts as being helpful! (helpful is the new kudo).

Yes folks, this is not a wind up, this is life on the USA boards since 27th October 2016 . . . . . . and we are headed towards a USA style board experience some time next year (or maybe earlier). The badges may or may not become a part of our Australian board experience, but from past history we usually get what they have in the USA some time later.

Re: Changes to the boards.

k1ooo-slr-sales — Fri, 09 Jun 2017 21:26:29 GMT

in all the excitement of counting my badges I got my numbers wrong. I have 4 badges, only 33 to go.

Its a good thing there's not a badge for counting badges as I'd miss out on that.

But I would qualify for the absolute disdain badge and sarcastic post badge if they were to exist.

Re: Changes to the boards.

springyzone — Fri, 09 Jun 2017 23:01:02 GMT

I am only interested in badges if there is some monetary reward that goes with them. eg Collect 50 badges and get a $5 ebay voucher to be used on any spend.

I know, I know. I'm dreaming.

Re: Changes to the boards.

imastawka — Sat, 10 Jun 2017 00:53:09 GMT

WHAT?????

NO SMILEYS?????

This cannot be

How utterly boring

Thanks for nothing, ebay

Re: Changes to the boards.

lyndal1838 — Sat, 10 Jun 2017 00:58:22 GMT

Oh poor Stawks....you won't be able to post if there are no smileys.

Re: Changes to the boards.

imastawka — Sat, 10 Jun 2017 01:24:00 GMT

Re-reading Tipp's post, it seems the smileys can't be inserted mid sentence.

My challenge - if I accept it - is to find a workaround for that

(ebay on the left)

But she's right about the post count and the fb numbers being shown.

We need to see theirs, as much as they need to see ours. Like everything else,

it's necessary information.

Re: Changes to the boards.

domino-710 — Sat, 10 Jun 2017 01:56:14 GMT

Re: Changes to the boards.

lyndal1838 — Sat, 10 Jun 2017 02:02:32 GMT

Because it is ebay and they like to fix things wot ain't broke. If it happens to be the boards they change them.....again.

Re: Changes to the boards.

kopenhagen5 — Sat, 10 Jun 2017 02:38:19 GMT

Re: Changes to the boards.

brerrabbit585 — Sun, 11 Jun 2017 01:30:57 GMT

Sorry, but I have to disagree about the feedback and/or number of posts being necessary. The number of posts is no indication of how accurate the information in a person's post is, any more than their feedback number is an indication of how well they know how ebay works.