September 30: Redesigned Website Launch
Hello Everyone! It's been a long time coming! Our new site is finally here!
Please take your time and explore the site!
You can file feedback & bug reports here!
Additionally, later today @krinkthemellowunicorn will be giving a guided tour of the new site! Stay tuned for more information!
Now that I navigated a bit more on the website in this new design I want to get back to you and say this:
Huge congrats for updating both website and app (at least Android version has the new design as well). I would like here to ask you if we should send you bug print screens as well if we find any. I did - but no idea how to send you a picture. How should I proceed?
Also, I would like to say that I like a lot how I can navigate now through the forums. So much easier. I find it very pleasant to follow certain threads now, which was very hard to do with the old design. I was getting lost super quickly. So big thanks on this one!
I am sure it's so hard to please everyone in the community, so thank you for working with us and including our opinions in your post-release process.
@cristiana33
I'll check my Android phone because honestly I am surprised if the design updated there. :D
it does help to share screens. you can host them on a free site like imgur or gyazo and then submit the link with your report.
btw, I've given out the wrong report form in some places, from our QA (quality assurance) testing phase, so I'll grab that feedback and make sure it's not lost but I want to give out the right link now just in case: new design feedback form
@KrinkTheMellowUnicorn
Haha yeah I may have rushed in saying congrats for both. I think I opened it from the browser... *blushing* but it does work very well on phone too. Not sure how it works with updating the app, I believe it is some sort of different work there & you are still fixing the web version as I can see. :)
I will try upload the screenshot I have on my phone on one of those links you suggested & send it with the feedback form.
@cristiana33
yes, i tihnk you were on the browser and we are still perfecting the mobile web views.
The apps come next, and that's a two-step process.
1. First we update the software that goes in the Play Store or App Store that you download.
2 Then we update the web pages that go into the app to get the new look
We hope to have that all done before the month is out.
Would it be possible for us to choose the theme we want? I personally like the old one better. The new one is a little bit too bright for me, and my eyes kind of hurt after staring at the screen for a while.
@SophieZhang9805
can you talk about which parts are too bright?
We've toned down the white quite a bit (too much, if you ask me) and it is now MUCH less white than in the old design.
Please advise!
@KrinkTheMellowUnicorn
Hi Krink:)
Well in fact I just saw the new design today, and I think overall it's brighter than the old design. I think it's maybe because of the color difference. I personally find the old greenish color is more comfortable. Also I think the font is a little bit small and hard to see. I think the new one is cool, but it will also be really nice if we can have a button to switch between the old version and the new one:)
@SophieZhang9805
so it's the blue that is bright compared to the old green, red tan, black, etc.?
there is no easy way to switch between the two designs but in the future I believe we can probably offer themes or skins for people who prefer different color palettes or moods.
but we have to fix a lot of bugs yet and we are spending a lot of time trying to make this not so bright for people.
@KrinkTheMellowUnicorn
Ah I see. Well I'm looking forward to the new developments in the future haha
I would enjoy if my path also had physical exercises. Nothing intense or hard to do, stuff a very unfit person could do relatively easily (maybe even including alterations for those with disabilities when necessary?). I just think that physical health is also a pretty important but often ignored part of self care.
@TabbyPhoenix
neat idea!
it could even just advicse folks to get up and stretch or move around and things like that
@TabbyPhoenix really interesting idea! I'd love to see some basic yoga poses incorporated, I think it would be really beneficial both physically and emotionally. As with other path activities, I would like for it to be optional (especially seeing as we want to be inclusive for people with disabilities, and don't want to prevent them from advancing in the community) but I think this idea has potential, and that it would be beneficial to explore!
@KrinkTheMellowUnicorn
I never got the sense that the site was ever at odds with its own identity or there was a demand for less avatars, complaints about visual cluttering, or a change to a more texting style chat format. At first and second glance it just seems the site lost a lot of its identity. It does not look nor feel like 7 Cups of Tea but I suppose that was maybe part of the intent. As you said you have to make wholesale changes instead of incremental or everything will look like it is being stitched up. The colors, text and brightness still hurts my eyes but that's minor and ill get used to it.
As far as with the avatar size and it being stripped out of the chat. Its interesting to think that was a goal seeing as we just implemented a feed system based entirely on visual presentation, self expression, and creating a personal human atmosphere where people can post things like their drawings, or their favorite visual quotes, or favorite movies to share with those they choose to add as friends to share their personality and thoughts with. Just personally being able to see a members favorite scenery, or Khadz's smile, or one of my favorite quotes like Jace's "Not broken, just bent." Or being able to see any of Minionator's gifs that are always so cute and makes me smile, or Johnny's artistic humor that always made me laugh. It seems less a balance and more in literal terms, a minimization of individuality and community. Of course you want to see who you are talking to and if not see them, see something that represents them and their personality other than just their screen name. You said it perfectly, it makes us feel more "human" to each other. There is no place on the site that I feel would spoil having anyones form of expression, sense of humor, strength, and personality cos to me the site has always been about improving everyones self esteem.
I know you don't agree but please allow me to vent for one last time. lol.
Someone made the perfect analogy to me, he said it felt like upgrading from Windows 7 to Windows 8. lol. But as I said, I think in the long run the change is for the better and as I said before you have done a excellent job. The site does feel more responsive, lean and actually faster. Your wonderful Krink and I give you a lot of props. Whatever other changes you make in the future I know will be great. All your work is much appreciated and thanks for your reply. This is my last feedback message. Take care.
@SariannaMoon thoughtful feedback
That would be nice if the avatars were bigger too
@Johnny20
I think we wil bump them up a bit in size as that seems to be the consensus, just need to try to keep the whole design in harmony so it will take some "tuning" to get it all right.
@SariannaMoon
perhaps my seesaw / balance image was too vague.
my point was that if the balance was off then it can be rebalanced and just that all these things affect each other and some are in tension.
and to be even more explicit: if we made the avatars too small we can embiggen them. your feedback will help us figure this out. thank you.
please also be aware the the experience of someone who has already mastered and become acclimated to an interface may differ from that of another person seeing it for the first time and trying to figure it out (not related to the avatar-size question).
Hello!
First off, great job on the initial release, the layout of the new design is simple and modern and that's great. However, there are a few things that's been bothering me both from a listener and member's point of view:
1. The browse listeners page
As a member, I would like it if the display pictures of the listeners were larger. Make it more people interactive like how it used to be before. It gives the member a sense of relief at times :)
Also, I used to love that neat little trick where you hovered over the icon of the person's country and it would tell you where he/she is from. The icon's are not hi-res and that's bothering me slightly.
2. The chat page
The option to hide unwanted chats is missing now, would appreciate it if that came back up.
Also, when will the apps be updated, really excited for that. Hopefully the lag issues will be over then.
That's all for now, all the best!
@AnotherDay
there's a general consensus we've been a bit stingy with profile image size so we will figure out how to bump them up some without throwing off the design as a whole.
not,sure how we lost the country tooltips on hover but we wll fix that for sure.
and we'll also be fixing the missing ability to close / remove chats from your list, which was omitted in an oversight.
@AnotherDay - I totally agree with you about the option to hide unwanted chats. I miss that a lot! It made life easier when I could hide nonresponding chats.
Also, it seems to me that the guest's comments used to show up in green on the chats list, while the listener's comments were white. That worked well because it highlighted the things we, as listeners, needed to respond to. Now, as listener, my comments are highlighted in green and the guest's statements are in white. I hope I get used to this, because I keep automatically clicking on my own comments. Sigh.
@Kimmelane
Yes, sorry that as a total mistake, the leaving off of that "hide chat" (x) thing. We will replace it asap.
There is no message display/ alert button in the right hand corner . It was okay yesterday.
@lazyKatz
it shuld appear only when you have unread notifications.
also, it should have a message counter on it now, and it should appear in mobile layouts.
@KrinkTheMellowUnicorn
I am on a laptop, not a mobile. There has not been a counter since the change over. The button/ bell is visible every morning as there are always alerts waiting. This has always been the case. In fact there are normally about 25-30 awaiting my action.
Thank you for your response.
@KrinkTheMellowUnicorn
When you sent the reply to me the bell/alert didn't come on. The only way to check if there is a response is to stay on this page and wait.
Thanks again.
@lazyKatz
UPDATE:
the explanation below is incorrect. It's true for the real design but it ignores that there a bug right now that is preventing your bell from updating! Ouch, sorry! We will fix it as soon as we can.
(original message below)
oh, yes! my bad. sorry.
as before the notifications menu updates only on refresh (unlike the messages icon which "polls" regularly for updates).
It is possible to make the notifications bell updated "dynamically" too (I think that's right but @EzraBC would know for sure), but this may also make the page "heavier" in the browser or possibly more data-hungry on phones.
In the meantime, please refresh the screen at any time to update the notifcations in the browser.
@KrinkTheMellowUnicorn
Thank you for looking into this for me as I use that element more than most throughout the day on a daily basis as I am housebound and would be lost without it.
I look forward to having the link restored and having full use of the web site.
Thanks again,
@lazyKatz
Hi, it turns out that I misspoke and we did actually (accidentally) break the notifications bell for members and we will fix it as soon as we can.
Your notifications will not be lost, I think, and should appear as soon a we fix the error in the code.
Sorry for the inconvenience!
@KrinkTheMellowUnicorn
Thank you so much for letting me know. I will be over the moon to have the bell back. Many thanks once again for your efforts and prompt reply. You are a star.
Is it possible to darken the color of these buttons? They appear at the upper right of the chat page, and against the bright colors of the new page they are very hard to see. I am afraid I'm going to accidentally ban a guest when all I want to do is end the chat!
@Kimmelane
yes... as we adjust various colors things we'll get it dialed in.
I also think they should be fairly pale but should darken on hover.
@KrinkTheMellowUnicorn
If you decide to keep them pale, please at least distinguish the "Ban" button in some way. Maybe put the "End Chat" button as the first one on the left, or make the "Ban" button red. I have nearly banned members twice today.
@Kimmelane
good advice, thanks! we will take it to heart (@ezraBC)
Also, it sounds to me like maybe the Ban needs a confirmation step to avoid accidental bans?
@KrinkTheMellowUnicorn
Excellent idea! I'd love a confirmation step. Also, is there a way to un-ban someone?
@Kimmelane
If you ban someone in error, you can get that fixed by opening a support ticket at the bottom of the Support & Feedback page (accessible from the Community menu), explaining what happened and we'll put it right.
@KrinkTheMellowUnicorn - Thanks! I feel relieved to know that you can fix it if I do ban someone accidentally.
@Kimmelane
for sure. same thing with accidental blocks.
By the way, Krink, I apologize if I sound critical. I like the new look! I should have said that to begin with.
@Kimmelane
no worries! thanks for thinking about my feelings :D
Is it my imagination or is the listener font on the chat page smaller than the member/guest font? It really looks that way to me. Maybe it's an optical illusion - white font on a dark blue background. I'm hoping for a change in colors there. I don't know if anyone else finds this to be true but for some reason white font seems less weighty than black font, from an emotional or psychological perspective, and that bothers me because I want what I write to have a positive impact.
@Harry53
i find it that way too and also not sure if its the too-high contrast and saturating blue.
@ezraBC and i have discussed toning that blue down somewhat and the typeface may also need to be bumped up.
we're still evaluating whether to keep this typeface (Raleway) or go to a more neutral font.
@KrinkTheMellowUnicorn I am looking forward to finding out what you decide to do. 
@Harry53
thanks! any thoughts on this typeface?
@KrinkTheMellowUnicorn I'm still getting used to it but if feels a little sterile - that's the word that comes to mind. It doesn't have much personality. Other listeners have described it as "thin" and I think that's a good description as well. I was just doing some research about fonts and colors, and the emotional impact of different colors. There is a lot of information out there on these topics.
@Harry53
the typeface feels sterile or the whole design?
yes, the psychology of color, design, layout, typography etc is fascinating and essential.
Believe it or not, a lot of thought went into this, and we explored a lot of variations along the way. I know there is still plenty of room to improve.
@KrinkTheMellowUnicorn I was only referring to the font style, however, I think some of the other changes have made the site feel a little less personal to me. I miss the woman standing on the dock looking at the sky. That was a nice image. The smaller profile images and the disappearance of the listener's profile image on the chat screen make it less personal too. Two nights ago, for the first time since the introduction of Noni, a guest asked me if I am a real person. I don't think that would have come up if my profile image had been there because my image is an actual photo of me. The absence of profile images de-personalizes listeners I would say.
@Harry53
thanks for the feedback.
to be clear, the member talking to you can see your profile image just as you see theirs (or their initials when they are a guest).
it's only that you don't see your own profile image in each case.
does that make sense?
@KrinkTheMellowUnicorn Yes, that makes sense. I didn't realize that.
So upset and frustrated with the constant changes here! I thought the point of updating the format of anything was to make it "better" and more user friendly. Where did all my notifications go of upvotes, new posts to forum threads, and so forth that made me smile when i logged in? I've been avoiding the site for days because the frustration I have encountered now that that information makes it immensely more difficult to track the parts of 7 Cups that make me happiest?
@ladylazarus1971 the disappearance of notifications is a bug (a mistake)/made inadvertantly while fixing a bunch of other bugs Friday night.
We will have it restored by the end of the weekend.
Sorry for the inconvenience as we sort things out in the updated design.
@KrinkTheMellowUnicorn Thank you, thank you! My easily disturbed equilibrium is back on track! Thanks for patiently letting me electronically vent and pout! Super fast response! :)