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trouble with the forum again...anybody else

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By working dog

| Sep 13, 2011

142 Comments

trouble with the forum again...anybody else

having trouble with the way the forum has changed its format? i only can see 2 answers to each question at a time...last time this happened iwent back and logged in...this time i can't correct it....billy

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142 Comments Post a Comment

nygirl7

Sep 13, 2011

Looks like they upgraded to a downgrade it makes no sense to me either.

Emily_MHModerator

Sep 13, 2011

Hi Billy -

This is our new site design that was released overnight.

Please let us know your thoughts, and please be kind and constructive. :) We welcome feedback from everyone.

Emily

willbb

Sep 13, 2011

terrible format... the light blue against the white and the threads seperated by a thin visable line...and only 2 posts shown.....yikes....nice downgrade

willbb

Sep 13, 2011

invisible line...

curiouslady1

Sep 13, 2011

I don't have a problem except the light blue font is hard to read

belle19

Sep 13, 2011

To: Emily_MHModerator

i really don't care for the new format at all. sorry. belle

Emily_MHModerator

Sep 13, 2011

Curiouslady1 -

Which light blue font? All my blues are fairly deep. Is it showing as light on your screen?

Do you know how to take a screen shot?

Em

flcyclist

Sep 13, 2011

To: Emily_MHModerator

Emily, I applaud the efforts of medhelp in trying to improved the site, but I'm not seeing any improvements. We used to be able to see a much larger number of threat titles, but now see a very large amount of white space, followed by Tags, then Hep C Community Forums. I don't like going to the 2nd page of threat titles, so the responses to those will drop and the threads will die quickly. I also enjoy seeing who responded to the threads, which also shows the time of their response to show recent activity. Now it only shows the last two responses, which is a major downgrade. I enjoy reading some of the posts from particular forum members. This new format reduces that opportunity. Not complaining, but just my constructive feedback as requested.

Emily_MHModerator

Sep 13, 2011

Hi there -

The way I understand it is that the page will show more threads as more are posted, and it won't always have this few thread titles, so that's a temporary thing, I think.

Thanks for taking the time to give feedback everyone!

Em

Aaron57

Sep 13, 2011

To: Emily_MHModerator

Hi Emily ,
It's great that you are asking for feedback and constructive input ! Thank you !

Negatives :

I open the Hep C Community "front" page and it holds 10 folks posts only , at the bottom of the 10 posts there are the Tags ,

Below the Tags .... is a Huge blank space .. then quite a scroll down ... until finally arriving at the Community Resources at the very bottom of the page ... the huge blank space is .. well a bit strange .. as the Right hand column , about 30% of the page , has reference links full to the bottom but ..... nothing next to it in the remaining 70% ...

The Applications (My Apps) is not on the front page , but have to open a post before it becomes visible .. not really intuitive for navigating to these choices ....

For me the font color is just ok , a bit more contrast would be easier on Tx eyes ....

Positive feedback :

The new photo at the top is nice , theme , colors/contrast are very nice !
For the individual post layout , it is ok & will just take a bit of getting used to ...

One consideration :
I use a Mac, so don't know if these changes appear the same on a PC ...
Hope this feedback helps .

Cheers, Aaron

nygirl7

Sep 13, 2011

How many iterations of MH have we been through now? ;)

Emily_MHModerator

Sep 13, 2011

Thanks Aaron! I just noticed myself that the app widget isn't on the main forum.

Nygirl - lol, it's been a few.

Em

mikesimon

Sep 13, 2011

I'll be blunt Emily.
I hate this new format.
Humans can adapt/acclimate to a lot of things and that will probably happen if you keep this format.
But initially, it's hard for me to imagine a worse "improvement".
I didn't think it was broke anyway - the form or the forum, that is.

MagTX

Sep 13, 2011

To: Emily_MHModerator

Emily,

Thank you for taking the time in considering our feedback.

There are a few features in the previous version of the site I found much more user friendly.

There used to be more responses displayed on the front page. This made it much easier to keep up with the latest posts on a topic, rather than having to go into every topic separately.

The change in color has made everything more difficult to read. The darker background was much more soothing to the eyes, and the contrast between it and the lettering seemed better.

Thanks very much for trying to make the site even better than before.

Maggie

Emily_MHModerator

Sep 13, 2011

Mike - anything in particular you hate?

Thanks for letting us know, and please feel free to be specific.

:)

Em

mikesimon

Sep 13, 2011

I find it extremely bland.
The threads and contributors are not as easily seen.
Perhaps it has something to do with the white background but I don't see the list of posters like I formerly did. Now, I see 2 poster for each thread. I look for posters who interest me and with this format I have to open the thread to see who is contributing. I find that inconvenient.
When I switch to Current Events which retains the old format I find it so much more user friendly.
I do have ad-block activated but I de-activated it and didn't see much difference.... except that I could see the "post" button.
I honestly don't know the reason for the change.

Just click here and tell me which format you prefer.

http://www.medhelp.org/forums/Current-Events---/show/621

Thanks for your interest Emily.

Mike

Emily_MHModerator

Sep 13, 2011

Thanks, Mike. We appreciate the feedback.

The changes were made to have a clean, modern look, to keep us current, not stagnant.

Any other feedback? So far, we have members not liking the 2 responses only being shown, the background colors, too much white space, the app widget only showing when you open a thread. Am I missing anything?

Anyone else?

Em

willbb

Sep 13, 2011

that describes it perfectly Mike ..bland . the light blue.. against the white and the almost invisible line separating the posts...also the very light print on the times someone posted.... looks like a whitewash...and the 2 posters is very inconvenient ...

Will

working dog

Sep 13, 2011

To: Emily_MHModerator

this is really a bad one i think...the showing two is awful...as well as other stuff...can you change it??? billy

FlGuy

Sep 13, 2011

Ditto Mike's comments on the limitation of 2 posts per thread. I also scan threads for interest and those who are "in" the thread. Opening the thread to do so is very inconvienient. Of all the changes over the years this one is the most user un-friendly one.

Emily_MHModerator

Sep 13, 2011

Billy -

To be honest, I can't change it (the engineers are the ones to do that), and I'm not sure what the outcome will be. We are passing on all your feedback, though, and we'll just have to wait for their response.

Everyone -

Thanks for the feedback! We really do appreciate it.

Em

Mary4now

Sep 13, 2011

To: Emily_MHModerator

If it aint broke, dont fix it applies here,
I dont understand why you would change this just to change it.
is this a way for the "engineers" to make more work for themselves? I really dont think the "look" is more modern and sometime "modern" is not good. Lets stay good, thanks for the effort, but the other "look" was better for me.
thanks again.
Mary

Willy50

Sep 13, 2011

To: Emily_MHModerator

I've been here long enough to see a few changes; some of them I liked, and others, not so much. : )

One of the reasons that I feel MedHelp has thrived, and perhaps particularly this forum was that it was CONTENT driven.  The reason that many of us have posted here was to get and to give information.  I can't tell that the most recent change is going to improve that.  For me it seems to be a downgrade.

Think of a forum and the notion of Feng Shui.  There is a balance of function and appearance that makes the use of the forum more inviting.

For me....... you have rearranged the furniture one more time.  People tend to dislike change but the thing that I dislike most is that more clutter has been added.  It is harder for me to navigate, which equals time wasted, more clicks, more searching....

The forum......the actual threads are what pays the rent, so to speak.  It provides the content that drives the search engines, hits, web rankings.

The new improved forum downgrades the utility of the threads.  When you look at them and estimate what percentage of the page they comprise it is a much smaller fraction and a continually dwindling percentage of the page.

MedHelp has opted to shrink the forum threads, in effect minimizing the thread count and information and it continues to move all sorts of less useful *furniture* into the room.  For me it is just more useless clutter.

I want to see more threads per page.  I also don't like being able to only see 2 posts; why not as they once were (good link, MikeS).

Why are someone posting a picture or a *mood* change of greater or equal importance as the threads?  Why are they prominently featured, why has the amount of space and attention to them been increased?
Why does MH continue to promote the star system/top answerers and  why has the space to promote this increased?

For me you are shrinking the thing that drives your success and enhancing those things that many or most of us find annoying useless clutter.

I am not feeling the desire to want to search harder for information.  Why have to click 3 pages to see the same number of threads as in the past, and yet still not be able to see many replies?  That was a really unintuitive move.  I think many of us will simply choose to not open the threads.

Ask yourself.......on the entire page....... how many of us click on "expert activity", "most viewed pages", your new HUGE "related tags" box, or the "popular resources" box that all are on the right margin taking up an inordinate amount of space.  MH has taken stuff that most people never use and given them a larger space, by shrinking that area that everybody does use.
If you take the contents from somebody's storage unit and move it into your living room you'll begin to understand what many of us feel about the improvements.  : )

If the thread time stamp feature has been corrected I think that it is a change for the better.  : )  Thumbs up.

Written with love.  I know the intentions may have been good.......

Willy

mikesimon

Sep 13, 2011

To: Willy50

That's a great post Willy.

Thanks,
Mike

willbb

Sep 13, 2011

Every thing they do is very well thought out... in the business sense and with the advertisers in mind..... the more we are forced to move around the site and forced to look at the inane ads...the better they feel it is..

the goal is profit.....if it turns out to be less of that watch how fast it reverts back......
..

.

can-do-man

Sep 13, 2011

" We are passing on all your feedback, though, and we'll just have to wait for their response."

I think we all know how that will turn out.:(
If med help really cared they would have put in a trial run to see how the people that pay for this site felt..... Not blaming you Emily.

Agree with Mikes and willys post.

flcyclist

Sep 13, 2011

To: Emily_MHModerator

In addition to my previous comments, I noticed the following.

1. 10 threads per page in not nearly enough considering the vacant real estate of white space remaining to be used.  If it's not on the first page, I'm not going to the 2nd to look further.

2. The first sentence or two of the thread content no longer shows below the title.  Not a big deal, but it helps some when the thread topic is vague.

3.  The Hepatitis Social link is no longer displayed in the top box.  It was easier to find before, rather than going to My Shortcuts now.

I've seen other forums go through these transitions with the hopes of improving things.  They realized their mistakes and quickly corrected them after listening to the input.  I hope, as Emily said, the engineers or programmers will take this feedback to heart.   Changes like these can have a large impact on the forum members usage.  It might become very obvious soon with reduced traffic and number of posts.  Time will tell.

hrsepwrguy

Sep 13, 2011

To: Emily_MHModerator

The color is fine, you have to scroll 5 pages back to see post that are only 14 hrs old, not good IMO

can-do-man

Sep 13, 2011

Any takers on how soon the 10 thread main page will be filled with.... Can i catch hep c from flushing the toilet???

hrsepwrguy

Sep 13, 2011

Maybe they want to loose traffic, and it won't take long.

flcyclist

Sep 13, 2011

If lance starts 8 more threads about snorting cocaine, he'll have the whole first page to himself.

Emily_MHModerator

Sep 13, 2011

Hey everyone -

I will attempt to address what I can here, in one post.

1 - The threads list should populate with more threads as more are posted.

2 - Some of the features "regular" members don't use are used often by new members, such as the tags, expert, articles, etc.  The forum does drive a lot, but so do the other features.  We did a survey awhile ago, and one thing people mentioned a lot is more articles, for example.

3 - One of the ways we keep MedHelp free is by advertising.  It's a downside for some, for sure, but it means everyone can use the site for free.  That said, these changes were not to optimize ads, but to hopefully create a better user experience for everyone.

4 - MedHelp is content driven, but we are also a support site.  Hep C is probably one of the most content-driven communities, but other communities are more support with some content, rather than content with some support.  the support, then content communities use the people info on the side maybe more than you all do.  I'm not saying it's a bad thing - just a community thing.  Each community has it's own personality, so to speak.

5 - The particular items of concern, such as more threads, the thread preview, colors, etc., are all being relayed to engineering, and they are listening.

6 - can-do - We all know you'll get those posts lol, so just report them and we can take care of it.

Thanks so much everyone for really well written, well thought out concerns and suggestions.  We all really do appreciate it.

Em

MagTX

Sep 13, 2011

To: flcyclist / all

"If lance starts 8 more threads about snorting cocaine, he'll have the whole first page to himself."

That's funny, but so true. This format is not user friendly, I've had to do more clicking around today than ever before. I'm glad I'm not on tx at present, I'd be more confused chasing threads around and would probably get tired pretty quickly.....my brain never did work too good on tx. :(

maggie

willbb

Sep 13, 2011

That said, these changes were not to optimize ads, but to hopefully create a better user experience for everyone.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
given that then...if we take a poll and the majotity likes the old format..I imagine it will be returned very quickly.... correct.??...to make it a better experience

MagTX

Sep 13, 2011

Yea, the old format was a better experience, apparently it ended last night.

mikesimon

Sep 13, 2011

It's just simply pathetic - in my opinion.

Mike

Willy50

Sep 13, 2011

To: em

Without regard to whether the forum is content or support, and whether we are giving or receiving....... any of us that provide posts in threads may have read at least 20-50 times the number of threads we have posted in.  I personally don't recall ever clicking on any of the tags or most of these other contrivances, and if so, the ratio was closer to 1000 :1 or greater.  Who repeatedly clicks on tags?!

And yet these features seem to be featured even more prominently that ever and the space provided for the threads has become far more anemic.  I think my point still stands; without the threads (which are composed of support or content, I'm calling either content) the other bells and whistles, and added *value added* features would not support themselves.

Like I told Elvis; "don't forget your roots."  It appears to me that the force which drives the whole thing and makes it work has been made smaller, harder to use, and less informative (if you want to see who posted, or the whole thread title you'll just have to click on the link). If you want to see more than the 10 past threads you'll have to go to page 2, or 3 or page 4.

Most of these value added features can be shrunk; halved or quartered, then placed in an area which won't steal space from the threads.....which I believe to be the main driver of traffic. (but maybe I'm wrong)

PS..... so far all of the threads still seem to have 10 threads per forum; Hep A. Hep B. Hep C. Community.  Page thread population seems to be set at 10/ page.

best,
Willy

Emily_MHModerator

Sep 13, 2011

Hi Willy-

Yeah, I'm checking on the threads per page thing.

I've also forwarded the concerns you (and the others) have about the page layout, etc., and they have been heard. I am not in on the plans to correct anything, so I can't make any promises, but I do know they are working on some things.

If anyone else has any constructive feedback, please feel free to share, and thanks for all the constructive feedback so far.

Emily

dointime

Sep 13, 2011

I echo others when I say that I don't like at all being able to only see 2 posts per thread.  This significantly reduces my experience of coming to this forum.

I also echo others to say that there are not enough threads per page.

When I first logged on I thought I must have forgotten to put my glasses on.  Then I realised that it wasn't me, it was just that most of what I was looking for wasn't there.

dointime

curiouslady1

Sep 13, 2011

There does seem to be too much advertisement. It is flashing all around you while you try to read. The blue lettering makes it difficult to read. Not enough threads shown and lots of extra space. The short cut drop down goes right on top of an ad.

flcyclist

Sep 13, 2011

To: Emily_MHModerator

While searching and reviewing some of the other Hepatitis C forums, the advertising content on Medhelp far exceeds any of the others.

All of the following forums are free and don't rely on a large proportion of the page for ad content as Medhelp has done.

When looking at a website redesign it's often helpful to look at other similar websites to get creative ideas of what works and what doesn't.

Some thought should be given prior to releasing a beta version of a major redesign to give it a trial run with the forum moderators.  Releasing a beta version and ticking off the users who support the forum isn't the correct approach.   I sense a major amount of frustation.   Just my opinion.

Following are a few websites to look at for additional ideas.   Note the small amount of advertising on these free sites.  I don't like some of the design attributes, but just wanted to offer for some additional input.

HepCnet :  http://www.hepcnet.net/serologic_tests.html

Daily Strength Hep C Support group: http://www.*************.org/c/Hepatitis-C/forum

HCV Support.org    http://hcvsupport.org/forum/index.php

UK Hepatitis C Forum:  http://www.hepcukforum.org/phpBB2/index.php
HCV Advocate: http://www.hcvadvocate.org/

Clinical Care Options, Hepatitis http://www.clinicaloptions.com/Hepatitis/Annual%20Updates/2011%20Annual%20Update/Modules/HCV%20Resistance.aspx

Emily_MHModerator

Sep 13, 2011

Hi there -

I'm not out to compare us to other sites, but since you listed those, I will respond. I think you are comparing apples and oranges.

Most of those look like great sites, have lots of info, resources, support, etc., for Hep C.  Of those that show how many members they have, the most is just over 1500.

We have over 300 different medical conditions/topics that we offer support communities for, a symptom checker, pill identifier, drug interaction checker, Find A Doctor, iPhone/iPod/iPad apps, trackers, user groups, articles on many topics/conditions, and more - all free.

We have over 1 million members, and have many non-members who visit our site, read, but don't register.  You don't have to register to use our mobile apps, and we have many, many users who don't.

I'm not at all saying we are better than the others, just different.  They are dedicated to one topic, and seem to do that very well.  It's just that if you have more members, more variety, more tools, you will need more money to support that and still be free to members.

I hope that helps.

Emily

GINGERPAL

Sep 13, 2011

I prefer the old format. Why not take a vote and go with the majority?

MagTX

Sep 13, 2011

To: Emily_MHModerator

I absolutely agree, it would have been a good idea to make these changes in a test environment and provide a link for users to try it out and provide feedback before making the changes in the public forum.

However I do appreciate their attempts at keeping the forum fresh and new, and asking for our feedback.

maggie

ellen1960

Sep 13, 2011

To: Emily_MHModerator

For me the white background is a problem because it strains my eyes in a short time. Please consider going back to the blue, or the old yellow from long long ago. Thank you.

Ellen

ellen1960

Sep 13, 2011

To: Emily_MHModerator

Oh also the old format had a link at the top of the page in the forum description to navigate between the social forum and the hep c forum. That was very handy. May we please have that back. Thank you.

Ellen

eureka254

Sep 13, 2011

"Please be kind and constructive."
----------------------------
It looks like at least 40 members are asking the engineers to be so.

Personally, this new format:
1) hurts my eyes
2) shows less items of interest on a page than previously
3) is far less informative per click despite it's new 'cleanliness'

"Clean and modern" does not prevent stagnancy: at least it seems to be agreed that here, content does... adding bells and whistles to encourage participating by a population that doesn't provide much content while off-putting many who do seems whimsical at best.  Improvement to me usually means growth... from the current upgrade it actually looks like the forum shrunk.

For myself, I just 'tune out' all the ads... never really notice them, and still don't.  However, the impetus to respond to threads decreases significantly simply because I can see fewer threads per click. From a a purely utilitarian 'keystroke' viewpoint, at least before the complete transition, logging in would still allow me the preferred view of things on the forum -- if this format continues permanently, I will only need to log in if I decide I want to post, not to visit.

It's good to see MH asking for feedback... my hope is , especially with all the moderator reverb we're seeing here, that the engineers actually take the ruckus and make some harmony and music with it.  Thanks for reading and caring... hopefully you're acting too. Respectfully,
~eureka

belle19

Sep 13, 2011

To: Emily_MHModerator

i like to see more posts because i look for the ones that interest me. now i only see 2 posts. it makes it harder to find certain peoples response. i give it a "d" rating. liked the old way better. belle (sorry)

Aaron57

Sep 13, 2011

To: flcyclist

CCO is not a forum .. it is a health care learning site free for doctors, nurses .. and fortunately free for the public too ! : ) There are no "threads" on that great site ...

I like the old format better , much better ... but, it's not just us Hep C'rs on this site .... after checking the other health forums on MedHelp ... just put the curser over "Health Information" tab at the top of the page ..

We can see the whole site has been changed , not just the Hep C forum ...

smaug48

Sep 13, 2011

To: Emily_MHModerator

I hate this new format. Way too much white, makes it much more difficult to read, at least to me.

It looks like the change has allowed more ads on the right side. OK, ads are a necessary evil, but why take away the colored background?

In case I wasn't clear, I really hate this new format.

smaug

Puppyluvur

Sep 13, 2011

I've been away for a while so I'm a bit lost. LoL However, I must agree with everyone about the new format. Sorry

Boobert

Sep 13, 2011

To: Emily_MHModerator

Well I hope majority rules because I can't stand it. It actually seems to be wasting a lot of the page. TERRIBLE

ellen1960

Sep 14, 2011

To: Emily_MHModerator

Okay I found the forum description with the link. Ignore that comment please.

HectorSF

Sep 14, 2011

To: Emily_MHModerator

Emily,

What was the objective of this update? "changes were not to optimize ads, but to hopefully create a better user experience for everyone."
Well it hasn't I'm afraid. Many of us have been on MH for years. This new format makes it more difficult to do the tasks we due on a daily basis.

What "user requirements" were part of the project planning process before this rollout? From what I can tell, no user input concerning creating a better user experience was taken from anyone of us nor were we informed that the format would be changing. How then can the goal of "creating a better user experience" have any validity? Asking for user requirements AFTER a project is done is like "closing the door after the horse is already out".

Any user interface software engineer knows that too much white background creates eye strain and is never used.

"I can't change it (the engineers are the ones to do that)". Of course, but we also know that the engineers are not leading this change either. It is a management decision. Money was budgeted and spent to purchase this software. The engineers migrate the data and features from the old version. The technical changes are not the issue here. The issue for us that have been community members for years, find the "upgrade" to not only make it less easy to navigate but the information that we share is less accessible then before. Is there anyone at MH that even uses any of the Health Communities and has any idea what a user's experience is? This format is less user-friendly then it used to be. There are actually less features that we need and use on a daily basis available. Lots of space and features that we don't use on a daily basis.

We will see if your IT and customer relations departments will respond to user requests that so many here have mentioned.

Cheers!
Hector

spectda

Sep 14, 2011

The format was quite good before. Very easy to decide which thread to delve into at a quick glance, colors were easy on the eyes. This format looks washed out and makes work of finding items of interest.

Medhelp seems to make decisions without user input in general. It seems a very strange way to operate a forum whose real appeal is the members.

I get the feeling that giving our opinion is really an exercise in futility. Personally I don't mind if things change, for the better that is.
-Dave

hrsepwrguy

Sep 14, 2011

To: Emily_MHModerator

Having to scroll 5 to 6 pages to go back 14-16 hrs is tolerable if you would provide a link directly back to page 1

Susan_1a_CC

Sep 14, 2011

To: Emily_MHModerator

I, too, am not in favor of the new format.

You wrote:
"We have over 300 different medical conditions/topics that we offer support communities for, a symptom checker, pill identifier, drug interaction checker, Find A Doctor, iPhone/iPod/iPad apps, trackers, user groups, articles on many topics/conditions, and more - all free."

If MedHelp's mission is to cover a greater span of medical conditions and, if  in that process, decreases the depth of exchange that we've enjoyed on the HepC thread, than I shall likely proceed to a HepC specific website that allows for the ease in posting that had existed here until this latest change.

While I do not argue with needing to raise revenue to continue to host a site however, I do wonder how much "information mining" is being done by MedHelp given that there's more than 1 million members.  Is this information being amassed and sold to help support this site?

I appreciate that you are asking for feedback and will stay tuned long enough to see how this is concluded.

Susan

Emily_MHModerator

Sep 14, 2011

Hi Susan -

We never sell any information about our members, nor do we share any personal/account info with anyone for any reason. Your safety and privacy are important to us.

You can read more in our Privacy Policy - http://www.medhelp.org/privacy.htm

Emily

flcyclist

Sep 14, 2011

Following are a few more observations related to the differences in space provided for content when comparing the "new" and "old" style formats.  These differences are on my screen with the default settings. They may be different on yours depending on the size of your screen and your settings.

Old format width - The opening page listing all the threads = 8.25 inches
                               Thread with individual comments = 8.25 inches

New format width - The opening page listing all the threads = 9.25 inches
                                 Thread with individual comments = 6.75 inches

You can view the differences between the old and new at the following links.

NEW style format  -  Medical Support Communities:
http://www.medhelp.org/forums/Chemotherapy-/show/904

OLD style format  -  "Ask a Doctor" Forums :   http://www.medhelp.org/forums/Chemotherapy/show/348

Although the content space is wider on the new format's opening page showing the 10 threads, once you click a thread title, you are squeezed down to 6.75" of content space to allow for more space on the side bars/advertising.  There's a reason the content looks so congested.

The blue background and outline of the content space of the old format was much more pleasing to the eye.  The white background is very harsh and unappealing.

Again, thank you for allowing us to provide input and constructive criticism.  It would be helpful to hear if any plans are in place to revise this in the near future.  Thank you for listening.

Emily_MHModerator

Sep 14, 2011

flcyclist -

Thanks, I've noted your concerns and have passed them on.

I haven't heard yet about any plans for changing, but keep in mind this is still brand new, and not that much time has passed for decisions to be made.

Em

Emily_MHModerator

Sep 14, 2011

Hey everyone -

I want to thank you all for the constructive feedback. It's quite helpful for us.

I'm going to ask that if anyone has anything new to add - a concern or feedback that hasn't been mentioned yet - that you send me a PM. As you can imagine, we are getting feedback from all kinds of places, and it's becoming a little hard to keep up.

Thanks!

Emily

willbb

Sep 14, 2011

To: Emily_MHModerator

Em...not sure why it would be easier for you to keep up sending you a private PM. I think keeping this thread going is a good idea ..I for one like to hear others thoughts...
Will

Emily_MHModerator

Sep 14, 2011

Hey Will -

Because I have one PM inbox, and several forums that have threads like this going.

Your thoughts will still be heard. If people want to post here, that's fine, but it would be appreciated if it is kept to NEW concerns and comments. The ones that have already been posted have already been reported.

Emily

Emily_MHModerator

Sep 14, 2011

Hey all -

I've gotten word that the brief preview of a thread by showing the first line or two will be coming back. It's a pretty involved change to make, so it could easily be a few weeks before the change can be implemented.

That's the only thing I've heard so far, but will keep you posted when I hear anything at all.

Em

FlGuy

Sep 14, 2011

I think the greater issue is the limit of two most recent posts. What about that? A few weeks? Sounds like an IT response that really means "let's leave it like it is and we'll see if the whiners stop complaining, becuase if posts don't decrease then they've accepted the change and we can blow them off" .

flcyclist

Sep 14, 2011

I do believe that Emily is passing on the comments and criticism as she promised. I sure don't envy her task at the moment, having to deal with some very bad choices made by IT management. She has to deal with the damage control, not only here, but several other Medhelp forums.

I do hope that those able to change the format understand that if the input in this thread decreases, it is no indication of acceptance of the new format. It's been clearly stated by many forum members that they don't like the change at all. Most everything has already been said, so what's the point of repeating. Reverting to the old format should be just a few clicks of the mouse.

MagTX

Sep 14, 2011

To: Emily_MHModerator

Well, if the developer thinks it will take that long to make that one change, and there are so many changes the user community is unhappy with, why not revert back to the previous version and only put in a few changes at a time. Depending on the system, they should be able to either back out the code or revert to a previous version if they took the proper precautions before making "the change".

Just a suggestion.

Maggie

can-do-man

Sep 14, 2011

People there is only one way to get their attention, unless that happens we can bit..ch all we want but were stuck with it.... Get them where it hurts and things will change.

willbb

Sep 14, 2011

folks...they are not going to revert back...this process was a long time in the making. When they do things like this they factor in the negative feed -back as the cost of change,Then they let us vent...giving us the feeling like we are accomplishing something. pfttt...

It"s just business. it was calculated to make more money...it is that simple....we adjust or we don"t ...personally.... the headache I get having to stare at the white will cause me to be here much less(no applause please)

Best to everyone.....
Will

.

Emily_MHModerator

Sep 14, 2011

Hey everyone -

Please calm down. I know it's frustrating, but we are working on it. It's a step, right?

I know you don't know the people who work at MedHelp, but I can promise you no one is heartless. We all know that the members are the heart and soul of this site, and while not all of the changes are popular, we are listening.

It does seem like it can take a long time for changes, but we are working on it, and a few weeks isn't really that long, in development time.

Hang in there, ok?

Emily

oceanblue701

Sep 14, 2011

To: Emily

I am surprised to see the particular changes that were chosen to be implemented. They seem counterintuitive to me.

The aqua blue background was beautiful and easy to read. It focused one's thoughts on the content and frankly it was an attribute that I feel encouraged participation in the forum.

The list of respondents also served a wonderful purpose of quickly orienting a participant to the number and character of the responders. This knowledge works for the forum and the individual's participating as it helps people make decisions about where they are needed and where they want to respond more quickly for any number of reasons. This increases the use of the forum and the help people can offer each other.

The longer lead in on the beginning question was also important as it focuses both the questioner and the responder to a greater degree.

I hope you will be able to restore these wonderful features. I have many times participated in software upgrades that did contain great advances but lost traction because the user friendly part of the product was lost in translation.

This new screen color and format is difficult and I really don't like it and
I hope a change back will be allowed on the features that people who come here really loved.

Emily_MHModerator

Sep 14, 2011

Hi there -

Just got an update from Engineering and Development.  We have no timelines yet for these changes, as the work is just starting, but keep in mind some are very complicated.

Our highest priority changes are:

*  There will be a preview of each thread, with a couple of lines showing in the main thread listing.  (We have already shared this one.)

*  More responses will show in the thread list, so instead of showing the most recent 2, it will show more.

*  We will be increasing the number of threads per page in the thread list.

This is not likely the total list of changes, but this is what we know for sure now.

Emily

can-do-man

Sep 14, 2011

To: Emily_MHModerator

Thanks emily for the latest, now if they will do something about this eye killing white i will drop my demand for 1 millon dollars to a reasonable 50,000.

Emily_MHModerator

Sep 14, 2011

lol I'll let you know when I hear something about that, either way.

Em

EyesofBlue55

Sep 14, 2011

To: Emily_MHModerator

I personally dont like the new changes either.The color is wrong!!If you want to make a good change put a chat in that way we can talk instantly!!!Im sure alot would go for that!!!!! cindy

willbb

Sep 14, 2011

To: Emily_MHModerator

so,,,,,more lines showing in main thread
more responses showing and more threads per page........
.and if they change the color back to what is pleasing to the eye....then well .......other than them adding some ads....it really boils down to a failed experiment....glad they figured that out

Thx Em....will be looking forward to the changes imminently

Will

HectorSF

Sep 14, 2011

To: Emily_MHModerator

Emily, we all understand you are caught between a rock and a hard place here but we have no one else express how unhappy we are with the new interface. Unless of course we find the need to personally contact the powers that be.

Granted MH needs to have the latest apps for mobile communications and real time metrics of what threads create the most traffic so as to attract advertisers. But to put the end-users experience way down on the list of priorities is bad way customer service. Without us users there is no reason to have the latest bells and whistles.

"We have no timelines yet for these changes, as the work is just starting, but keep in mind some are very complicated."
Blaming us end-users for this is really poor judgement. Post changes modifications should have been planned into the project to begin with. It is Project Management 101. Surely Khaled knows this. Anyone who has ever rolled out a new or updated business or web application knows this. Nothing goes 100% right 100% of the time. It is just how the world works. As some once said " if you break it, you own it."

P.S. I hope Engineering and Development are buying you great lunches (Maybe from the Four Seasons Hotel) because you are dealing with the grief that they created.

Cheers!
Hector

flcyclist

Sep 14, 2011

To: Emily_MHModerator

Thanks for the update and outlining some of the items they plan on correcting. We look forward to the "new and improved" version. As an alternative, you might take up can-do on his offer, because I heard he can do. Until then my visits will be limited since this white glare is killing my eyes.

FlGuy

Sep 14, 2011

"Nothing goes 100% right 100% of the time. It is just how the world works. As some once said " if you break it, you own it."

My guess is that it's working exactly as designed and it's not broken. Just a bad design.

willbb

Sep 14, 2011

FIGUY...good point.....the white background was very well thought out...in all advertising you only want the adds to be seen..they are all in bright vivid colors our inconspicuous tiny little bland space is exactly what it is supposed to be... a background to the glaring ad.....

Emily_MHModerator

Sep 14, 2011

Hi everyone -

I understand that everyone is upset, but perhaps we can just be grateful that your concerns were heard, and changes will take place.

Hector, I'm not sure I follow what you are saying, as we aren't blaming anyone.  If you'd like to follow up on that more, feel free to send me a PM, and let's keep this thread to feedback for the design.

I assure you all that no one at MedHelp puts members at the bottom of any list.  We know how valuable you all are.  The developers and engineers that designed this worked hard, and this wasn't an experiment.  They are disappointed that not everyone likes (and yes, some people really do like the new design) what they worked so hard on.

Let's just try and enjoy some of the new features, and move forward, and you all can focus on giving the great info and support you always do.

Emily

FlGuy

Sep 14, 2011

To: Em

We can get off the topic of the "new look". How about politics?

belle19

Sep 14, 2011

To: Emily_MHModerator

emily, thanks for all the feedback. i'm glad you'll be showing more than 2 responses per post. that's my main beef. thanks so much. belle

Ajw78757

Sep 14, 2011

My screen has a 9-3/4" viewable area.

4-3/4" of the middle viewing area show the threads.

That is less than half.

There is 5" of space on either side of the threads.
Most of this 5" is used for ads.

While I know that ads are the reason this site is free, more than 50% of the space used for ads is excessive.

More area on the screen should be given to the threads.

Aaron57

Sep 15, 2011

On my screen , I don't see anymore ads than before the change .. ad's have always been here ..

I'm just happy we have this forum and the other forums available for free !

However , the white back round is really starting to become very hard on the eyes !

willbb

Sep 15, 2011

well...I have spent 45 min on the forum today and have another eye strain headache fom the glaring white,so will leave for now....never been one to whine and complain. (seems a useless waste of time)..but I find this unfortunate.......
Will

child24angel

Sep 15, 2011

I can't imagine how people on TX can stand this, I can't and
I'm not on TX it's hard to follow, it's hard to read....things look
bluish to me...so many ads on the sides....slower loading.

It's like an egg hunt in here:(

flcyclist

Sep 15, 2011

I spent 2 minutes, got nauseous from the glaring white space and left with no desire to read more.

I hope everyone is doing well and hope to spend more time here after they fix these problems.

flcyclist

Sep 15, 2011

If the ads weren't being displayed properly, I'd suspect it would have been fixed the same day, maybe the next at the lastest, due to the concern of lost revenue. This stuff isn't rocket science. Ok, i've exceeded my 2 minutes and headache getting worse.

child24angel

Sep 15, 2011

This is horrible and I'm trying.

Emily, members may not be able to adjust to this change
It's so slow loading I've never had this problems before.

Bluish and blurry after a few posts. It makes me nervous, to much
going on.

Emily_MHModerator

Sep 15, 2011

Child24 -

Is every page loading slow, or only some? It seems that's only affecting some people and not others. For me, it sort of comes and goes.

Em

flcyclist

Sep 15, 2011

To: Emily_MHModerator

In general, it appears every page is a bit slower in this newer format.  The threads with a very large number of posts take longer to load than those with very few posts.  I never noticed that before.

I also wanted to be sure you saw the following post from some of the long term members on the other side saying their goodbyes to members of the Hep C forum.  I've looked for their posts for advice and inspiration, and greatly miss their input.  I share their frustration and feel the same way, quickly loosing my patience in waiting for this fix.  My time here will be very limited as well until the fix is made.

http://www.medhelp.org/posts/Hepatitis-C/Forum-change/show/1592990#post_7243340

The loss of these valuable members is more damaging than you can imagine.  I strongly suspect many others feel the same way, but don't want to waste their time venting.  It is very sad to see this happen to such a wonderful forum.

I strongly suggest that a timeline be posted to give forum members some sense of when to expect these changes to occur.  Otherwise, I believe others will be either leaving or greatly limiting their time here as well.  I realize you are just the messenger and not responsible for these decision, but this has been handled very poorly.

can-do-man

Sep 15, 2011

Where i work and with other things i have been involved with when there are big changes the company gives us what i call "talking points".

The give us a couple week thing is always used because they figure people will just adjust and quit their complaining.

A word to medhelp, it don't always work!!!

Maybe its time for someone higher up at medhelp to speak out.

Aaron57

Sep 15, 2011

To: Emily_MHModerator

Another observation EM ,

As long as the site is going through these changes .. and to add a bit more to your plate ;)
why not update the
"Most viewed Health Page" sub title "Common Hep C Acronyms" ...

They are outdated ...

http://www.medhelp.org/health_pages/Hepatitis/Common-Hepatitis-C-Acronyms/show/3?cid=64

Cheers

can-do-man

Sep 15, 2011

To: Aaron57

"As long as the site is going through these changes .. and to add a bit more to your plate ;)
why not update the
"Most viewed Health Page" sub title "Common Hep C Acronyms" ...

They are outdated ... "

Aaron these was not done by medhelp but by a member, never did care for it because the list was way to long with stuff that is hardly ever used.

Though i agree a shorter list with these new meds added could be of use.

Aaron57

Sep 16, 2011

To: can-do-man

Thanks Can-do for clearing that one up , wasn't sure who/how to input that data ...

Sure could be cleaned up and updated ...

I'd be willing to work on the update and cleaning it up .. by myself or anyone who wanted to help ... if I knew the procedure to post something like this ??

I'd be happy to give something back ...

willbb

Sep 16, 2011

To: Aaron57

" I'd be happy to give something back"
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
To who ?....the people that changed this site...or the members that legitimately think it is awful...some which have unfortunately left??

Emily_MHModerator

Sep 16, 2011

Hey everyone -

If we had a set timeline, we'd be sharing it. I promise we aren't holding stuff back, or playing some game with sharing a couple of things at a time. We are working through things as fast as we can.

Aaron - I sent you a PM about how to edit a health page.

Emily

Aaron57

Sep 16, 2011

To: willbb

First , the forum is free to members ... where do you get something for nothing these days ?

This Concept people are getting of thinking they Should Be Entitled to things in life these days ... and have it all their way ... well, it isn't the way I grew up ... had to work hard for what I have ... had to learn to adapt ...

So, I'm just happy to have any experience like this one .... at no cost...
All the members here should be as well ... imo

We got to give a bit of time for the format to get changed again .. and learn to adapt to change as well ..

I've gotten allot off this site in the time I've been here .. got some time right now and don't mind to help update that section for whoever needs to reference it ...

It's my time and I'll spend it how i want thanks !

you don't have to take part in the update if you don't want or you decide to move on ..

You know as well as I do .. some folks may have left for now , heck I visit 3+ forums every day .. not just this one ... and have for quite a while ... I'm not as "social" as you .. but looking for data/info for myself & pass it on now and again if i think it's pertinent ...

I think folks will be passing back through every now and then ,

If & when the White Back Round is Changed and a few other changes made ... they will stick around more ...

For the ads .. I couldn't care less .....

willbb

Sep 16, 2011

"there is an old saying "If you stand for nothing ...you fall for everything"

Glad you are giving back...I prefer to see the site be the most helpful and useful for the members... if you feel adding acroynyms will do that ...well good for you.

Something for nothing....didn"t see anyone say that ...not even close.....

the advertisers will be glad you care less for the ads....means YOU aren"t buying anythig I take it?....who is getting something for nothing??

streamline569

Sep 16, 2011

To: Emily_MHModerator

Seems all sites eventually make the same mistakes. Harder to read, smaller print, you loss your connection with conversations and information that's important to you. I used to like to see who was posting and picking which post to read, but if this is what you find to be more useful for med help, well then I'm afraid people will visit less often. It just not user friendly and only the people who have been coming here may be back but much will be missed as they have to weed their way through pages. Much wasted space. If it's not broken don't fix it. It's one of the reason I stopped using twitter. It's all got so unpleasant to view that I lost the connection with the people. I would seriously consider the opinions of the people here on the board. This is such an important place for us. Please keep it user friendly.

EyesofBlue55

Sep 16, 2011

To: Emily_MHModerator

Right now this site is just not as enjoyable to me as it has been in the past.Posts are quickly dissappearing .They are too hard to find when you want to .And the white backgroung-UGH!!!!!Seriously makes my eyes hurt!!!!Like others have said "Why fix something that wasnt broke?"It was just fine before.Now excuse me while I find some aspirin!!!!!Maybe will come back later-maybe not cindy

flcyclist

Sep 16, 2011

“the forum is free to members ... where do you get something for nothing these days?”

I frequently visit 4 or 5 forums and all are free to members, some with very little advertising.  I don’t feel any “sense of entitlement” since we are forced to view the ads, which obviously supports the management of Medhelp.  I can live with the advertisements, since Sonicwall blocks them at work anyway and I just ignore them at home.

If it wasn’t for Emily popping in to give us an occasional update and some promise of improvements, I’d be long gone by now.  I’ll occasional pop in to see if the next version has been completed, but until then I can’t stomach what poor changes and decisions have been forced on us.  This site has been a tremendous place to learn and I’ll miss reading some of the thoughtful and humorous posts.  I try to give back and cheer for those needing some inspiration and support.   Until then, I have no desire to post other than providing additional input to this thread in hope that a fix is soon to come.

If the new format somehow deleted all of the advertisements or made them appear upside down, do you think that would take a week or two to fix?  Not likely.  I’m trying to be patient, but beginning to lose faith.  Guess time will tell.

streamline569

Sep 16, 2011

To: Emily_MHModerator

Emily it's impossible to have a good conversation on the other side. Bring back the old format. This is all to important to us to give and receive feedback. We've lost that experience and it's getting frustrating. This is not a time to start something that doesn't work when so many people need to communicate.Please take this seriously. We are losing important info.

Cindy

Sep 16, 2011

To: ALL

Hi everyone,

Many of the comments and suggestions you have made are excellent and we are very appreciative that you've taken the time to share them with us. Please give us a little time to collect and digest all the comments across many other communities. As Em has mentioned throughout this thread, we will be making a number of changes, we just don't have all the data we need yet and therefore we cannot give you all the specifics just yet.

Thank you for your patience with us. You are an amazing group of people and we want you to know that we hear you and appreciate all the input and most of all, we appreciate the incredible support you offer to other members, every day.

Cindy Thompson
MedHelp

Aaron57

Sep 16, 2011

To: willbb,flcyclist

Nope Will , I don't buy from the ads here .. or donate $ to help keep it alive .. do you ?
If you go back and read from the beginning of this thread .. I made my fairly comprehensive reformatting suggestions early in this thread ...

I'll be happy to help update the acronyms , been since 2009 , Also needed are a pre-tx "questions for doctors" and in-tx questions for doctors imo .... and some definitions for quick reference ....

You willing to help me ?

flcyclist ,

It does seem to me many folks here feel "entitled" to have it their way ... otherwise there would be less anger and more constructive input without attitude and with some patience ....

If you think because you are forced to view the ads it is not free somehow .. Well , we are all "entitled" to our opinions ..

Do you or anyone else donate your hard earned $$ or time to help keep this site going ? If I was an investor here .. well that would be different ,

If you look back to the beginning this site has been online since the mid 90's ... much longer than any other focused on hep c ...

I for one am very grateful to have it and all the other sites I visit, I'm pretty sure they will make some changes , just have to be patient .. like dealing with the virus ... allot of waiting ....

can-do-man

Sep 16, 2011

To: Aaron57

"Do you or anyone else donate your hard earned $$ or time to help keep this site going ?"

Aaron, any of us that spends time here trying to answer questions, that takes the time researching the new and old treatments for people that pop in here with their questions. And all the support that many offer here and telling of their own experiences taking these drugs are what keeps this site going. Without that there would be no ads because a business would not pay on an empty site.

If i was an investor here they would be the most important part of it. Remember what we do is for free and many others make money.

GoofyDad

Sep 17, 2011

To: Emily

Emily;

I know you're doing what you can and we appreciate it.

If Willing has left this community because of the format/ads, that should speak volumes. Future content of a caliber that money could not buy has just been lost.

To me, all the color at the top of the page is very distracting and it makes reading difficult. Animation only exacerbates the problem (that's my $5 word of the day... I've been waiting all week for a chance to use it).

Navigation is a challenge now. I honestly suspect that efficient navigation is not the goal, for it would be too easy to implement. Of course it would reduce page views, ad displays, and cross-pollination within the site. If you want efficient navigation why not prominently place a block of links tailored to the user's most recent activity? Give me a list of links to the 2 or 3 forums I visit and I'm good to go. OK I just now discovered the Related Forums box... how long has that been there? It was lost in the clutter for me. On another positive, search for this forum, I discovered a hole forum dedicated to the 'rhoids (hole, get it, ha!) That there is grist for my mill... fodder for my cannon.

Aha! I just discovered "My Shortcuts" another nice feature that's lost in the ads.

Weight trackers, tag clouds, 7 deadly health sins, I could care less abut that junk. Give me a way to hide/collapse them and keep them collapsed for me. I'm not going to use them anyway.

Give the top 10 answerers in a forum an ad-free experience in that forum. Let people know how far away from an ad-free experience they are and they will answer like crazy to earn that carrot. They're not clicking on ads anyway - I mean for christsakes they've already been exposed like a million times...right?

"The aqua blue background was beautiful and easy to read. It focused one's thoughts on the content and frankly it was an attribute that I feel encouraged participation in the forum. " I recall that color scheme coming to pass in a previous incarnation. Users complained of eye fatigue and medhelp switched to the blue. How hard would it be to let me choose my own background color?

What purpose is served by the icons in the Popular Resources box? I see them as just another distraction.

Aaron57

Sep 17, 2011

To: can-do-man

Completely agree with most of what you said .. how many days/weeks of research reading studies or in CCO have I invested in my Tx ? Seems like a lifetime .

There are also many other health forums on this site .. not just the hep c forum ,
Some have doctors take part .. wonder why this one doesn't any more ?

My hats off to anyone operating forums like this offering free membership , I've gotten allot out of all the forums I have joined ... and .. hopefully have contributed/given back as well ...
For profit or not ,is not important to me .. I understand this one is biz orientated and more power to those that are making it happen ...

2 more real good idea's from GD !
"Weight trackers, tag clouds, 7 deadly health sins, I could care less abut that junk. Give me a way to hide/collapse them ."

"How hard would it be to let me choose my own background color?"

So , Can Do - Are you interested to help update the lists that need it ?

willbb

Sep 17, 2011

To: Aaron57

While you are helping to put in new acronyms..I spend my time here..much more constructively..actually trying to help and donate many hours contributing advice to the best of my ability

So ....yes I donate what I feel is much more valuable to members than you fiddling with the acronyms and whatever else you think in your wisdom should be done with the site.
You don"t spend even half the amount of time from what I see .advising and helping here...possibly because of the amount of time you are at nomads...

spectda

Sep 17, 2011

The members are the forum, and those with a lot of knowledge and experience are unpaid help. I only joined the forum because of those people.To me medhelp is similar to a church who provides a room for the AA meeting. Am I there for the room or the people and program provided by AA.

My opinion is that Medhelp needs to find a much better balance between selling ads, keeping moderator intervention to a minimum and keeping members happy. There are many not for profit forums out there. Once it gets to the point where it is more difficult to participate in the forum because of the obstacles that are imposed people start losing interest.

Aaron57

Sep 17, 2011

To: willbb

So Will , do you Buy from the ads or follow those links ? ?

I'm pretty sure the administrators understand what service/products they provide , this site was here long before either one of us showed up ....

It's clear to see your life revolves around this forum ... over 2000 posts in a year ! Maybe consider a career in the Hep C health industry, you certainly have enough time and could do some hands on helping.

Since you want to belittle my attempt to update the definitions/acronyms , maybe an hour or two work ... and, to try to focus on something productive that would be helpful, that hasn't been done in a few years ... also to deflect Away from some of the negativity and the waiting until the layout here is changed again ..
I'll do the light work and leave the real important stuff up to you ..

Boobert

Sep 17, 2011

To: MH

Change the background color and extend the amount of post on each page by double and it wouldn't be as bad.

willbb

Sep 17, 2011

Thanks for leaving the important stuff to those of us that are concerned with what really is important ..helping members....good luck with the acronym thing or whatever you feel is necessary

And yes ...best you stay away from anything that is important other than your contribution at nomads

willbb

Sep 17, 2011

To: Aaron57

fFrgot...I am finished chatting with you as we are both kinda busy...you helping out with the acronyms..and I will continue to try and lend a hand with advice on the forum..good luck in your endeavours..
Will

willbb

Sep 17, 2011

To: Cindy

Thank you for chiming in.Glad to see you agree from the many dozens of members that gave their excellent feedback .that indeed would be welcome the changes that you say will be coming.
.
Other than the one member above ...we hope these changes will happen in the near future..

Pleas keep us updated ..if you would..
Thx..
Will..

child24angel

Sep 17, 2011

To: Arron

Who cares how many posts Will has?
What is the point of that ? Will contributes and is
active on this forum, you?

There are many ads. Too many now.
This new format is horrible.

They can just as easily reverse it, but they haven't .

There was nothing wrong with the last one.

I think they are going to lose a lot of good members who have
contributed many years, without them, what will happen to this forum?
Nothing, blank , it's the members who keep this forum going.

Cindy

Sep 17, 2011

To: willbb

Thanks for your message and for all the messages posted here. Our goal is to make the communities and forums the best they can be, so that people can easily find information and support when they need it most. With everyone's help, we'll get there!

Cindy

flcyclist

Sep 17, 2011

To: Cindy

"we just don't have all the data we need yet and therefore we cannot give you all the specifics just yet."

Thank you for listening to the constructive comments and understanding our frustration.  I think the comments have been very respectful and the members have the right to provide input and vent, since this site is worth trying to rejuvenate.  And thank you for popping in to do a little damage control.

But how much data needs to be gathered and analyzed to determine that the forum users are extremely upset and unhappy with the changes.  Do you need additional time to analyze whether the number visits, time spent reading, # of ads clicked, etc. to see if there truly will be an impact?  Give it a week or two and we'll look at the data and make some decisions then?  Knowing how businesses work, I'd predict a conference call has been scheduled to discuss and review the website data.

Again, when you say you need more time to look at the data, those are wiggle words to say, lets give this some more time and see what happens, see if they get used to it, see if they stop complaining, see if they will venture elsewhere?

The content provided from the knowledgeable and generous forum members is the one and only reason I'm here.  To some members, this site has become a lifeline since they don't often have the support at home and sometimes receive poor advice from their doctors.  Those willing to provide input have guided several on the correct path.  I've received some wonderful support and input here and feel indebted to give back where I can.  This is how it works.

The format changes have made enjoying this site a challenge.  The balance of advertising vs. content has been exceeded and the profit motivation is becoming too clear.  The animated ads are distracting and I wouldn't be surprised to see ads floating down the page as they frequently do with newspapers and other websites.  You recognize the importance of member input and content, but your actions don't support the support and encouragement for this to continue.  I hope this changes quickly.

flcyclist

Sep 17, 2011

To: Aaron57

"Do you or anyone else donate your hard earned $$ or time to help keep this site going ? If I was an investor here .. well that would be different."

flcyclist

Sep 17, 2011

To: Aaron57

ok, posted before finished - this site it getting quirky.

"Do you or anyone else donate your hard earned $$ or time to help keep this site going ? If I was an investor here .. well that would be different"

The answer to the question to me - Yes. I try to respond to help answer questions I feel comfortable with, provide emotional support, some lame attempts at some misguided humor and otherwise, just be a cheerleeder for those needing to hear some encouragement. This is what this forum is all about and keeps the site going.

If you were an investor here, how would that change things? Would there be a good return on your investments? I've never considered monetary gain from a medical website for myself. I get plenty of pleasure contributing to the content, which is why everyone is here. At least for now.

crossroadsec

Sep 17, 2011

lol. I couldn't even find the link to the thread to complain.
Remember, the people on this site are mostly very ill, on tx, and can barely remember how to type. Don't change so fast...
I stay logged on but have to walk away a lot. Can't read the posts. Takes too long to find threads relevant to individual experience. Harder to find recent posts. THAT in itself was valuable instant feedback n info.
Usually not gripy, but miss the old ease of using the site.

willbb

Sep 17, 2011

To: Cindy

Hi Cindy That member Aaron57 seems to want to be added to the group now..so the 39 is now 40
Thx...
Will

flcyclist

Sep 18, 2011

Ho hum. No changes yet.

If medhelp has a "plan" or "timeline" in mind for the next format rollout, wouldn't it make sense to share it to avoid futher frustration? Or maybe there is no plan, and they'll just look at the "data", see if the IT's analysis of hits suggest they should do anything at all.

Ok, my eyes are burning, time to leave.

willbb

Sep 18, 2011

To: flcyclist

cyclist:Hard to give any input now ,as posts are being deleted faster than we can read them. Guess that feedback they thought was so "excellent" isn't so "excellent" anymore...who knows??

Cindy

Sep 18, 2011

To: flcyclist

We have more than 250 communities and more than 150 expert forums. We're gathering information from all of them.

Emily_MHModerator

Sep 18, 2011

Hi everyone -

The posts that were deleted were off-topic and personal. Let's keep this to constructive suggestions about the site design.

Thanks!

Em

flcyclist

Sep 18, 2011

To: Cindy

Thank you for the feedback.  But do realize the constructive comments and suggested changes will likely improve the visitor's experience to all of the  communities and expert forums.

Notice that the "expert forums" are still in the old format we desire and would love to have back.  It seems like such an easy fix.

Also, some of the 250 have little or no activity.  The Hep C forum appears to have a lot of activty and visits compared to many others.

willbb

Sep 18, 2011

I had one post up that was deleted that said 39 members(on this particular site) had voiced their displeasure with the format and one seemed to be in favor of it..and that 7 valuable members were going to visit less or not at all.. .that seemd to be on topic.....

Emily_MHModerator

Sep 18, 2011

The rest was personal. If you'd like to talk about this further, feel free to shoot me a PM.

Em

dointime

Sep 18, 2011

I've certainly lost interest now that I can't see a list of who's been posting to a thread. I don't open most of the threads now.

dointime

MagTX

Sep 18, 2011

It seems the posts are dwindling or dying down, not as much activity like when the format was user friendly. I suspect maybe members are loosing interest, and their patience especially with not being able to see the posters on each thread except for 2 at a time on the first page, it's an inconvenience and has made me loose interest as well.
The bright white background is so horrible on the poor eyes. if I were on tx I'd have to put on sunglasses and would still be prone to getting a headache and would not be able to stay on here long at all.

maggie

MagTX

Sep 18, 2011

Another format issue is with "My Shortcuts", the drop down box is only giving me an option to get back to the hep c side and doesn't give the option to return to the social community. This has been a problem (at least for me).

flcyclist

Sep 18, 2011

To: MagTX

A workaround is to place both Medhelp and Medhelp Social in your Favorites Bar if using IE. This wasn't necessary before, but is quicker now since the easy link is gone.

The fact that we just heard that medhelp is gathering information from more than 250 communities and 150 expert forums gives me little hope we will see any changes soon, if at all. Being told we are just one of over 400 forums sends a very strong message. Things are becoming a bit more obvious now.

MagTX

Sep 18, 2011

MH: Adding a link to any web page is a very easy thing to do, why hasn't this feature been put back, and are we ever going to see these changes?

Flcyclist, thanks for the suggestion, it's in the bookmark toolbar now, I'm using firefox. :)

Willy50

Sep 19, 2011

My screen set up on other forums shows (in any one individual forum)
20 threads per page at HCVsupport; started by & last post by poster

About 50 threads/page at Nomads; w/ started by & last post by poster.

Whereas 10 threads here.

I also personally am interested by # of views; not listed here and some other places.

I have enjoyed seeing the numerous posts and by author.  I really find it bothersome to have to go back pages here looking for a recent post.  My guess is that it will cause a drop in usage/ hits/clicks/number of page views.  Sometimes, to reply to a post, you first must FIND it; savvy?

I don't and I feel many people will not bother scrolling backwards.

I also at one time was plagued by the advertisements.  I'm not sure that the point is sufficiently made;

Some people are 'bothered or distracted" by the ads.....
.
Some computers FREEZE when the immense amount of junk tries to load.  (Once upon a time)Not only could I not visit Medhelp, but it would disable my computer, freeze it.  I would have to turn my computer off to unstick it.  I would lose any documents etc when I did this.  I could waste 7 minutes waiting for a page to load, or 15 minutes waiting for a page to reset, escape/ ctrl/alt delete, only to find it permanently stuck. MedHelp was BY FAR the worst offender of any site that I visited, hands down.  That was several years ago.

Flashing ads
drop down menus
tracking cookies that would place ads which cued to thread topic, and now the same technology also connects one to facebook, twitter ect.

For people who could lose jobs, lose benefits due to posts this incursion into our privacy is troublesome....at least to me.

It is true, that is the price that one pays, as well as for one's time.  For me, the people who post provide the content of the product that MedHelp *sells*.  I think some people are feeling overly taxed, or undervalued.
============
While I am complaining/ offering constructive criticism......I find it interesting that whereas some bells and whistles are added or some bothersome features are added (enumerated repeatedly in previous posts) ......
.............that one does not have any of the basic tools for constructing posts; preview, quote feature, bold, italics etc

willy

Claire_MHModerator

Sep 19, 2011

To: MagTX

Your profile indicates that you're not currently watching the Hep Social community. Once you begin watching a community, it will show up in your shortcuts.

Related forums are also shown in a box on the right side of the forum page. In this community, you'll see Hep A, B, C, et al, listed in this box. And in those communities, you'll see Hepatitis Social listed there as well.

Claire
MedHelp.org

MagTX

Sep 19, 2011

To: Claire_MHModerator

Thanks for the reminder. It must have been removed somehow, it's now showing up again in shortcuts.

Maggie

willbb

Sep 19, 2011

.currently 42 members on this site have now voiced their displeasure and dislike for this very user un friendly and hard to use format.And even more 8 currently have said they will visit much less if at all and 4 have said they are just leaving ...including willing ...who was in my estimation the most knowlegable .and helpful long term member here. His contribution will be extremely difficult to replace if it even ever could be.
Only one member seemed satisfied and even he said he had many reservations .
Will
Reply

willbb

Sep 19, 2011

not sure how the spam abuse thing showed u.p...wasn"t spam or abuse in in my opinion

Claire_MHModerator

Sep 19, 2011

Looks like you copied the words 'spam' and 'less than a minute ago' from the right-hand side of another post while you were posting and accidentally pasted it into the regular body of your post. I removed it.

GoofyDad

Sep 19, 2011

For me, the people who post provide the content of the product that MedHelp *sells*. I think some people are feeling overly taxed, or undervalued.

+1 (excessively monitized?)
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Not to be confused with the +1 button, conveniently provided at the top of this page.

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