If the message from our beta testers said anything, it said, “simplify things some more”. Of course, life being what it was, simplifying also means more complicated.
The problem with putting everything you might want all within easy reach is that you pretty much end up putting everything within easy reach. So how do you pick what to take out without making some things more than three clicks away?
Our answer was simple. Write an entire page about the four things you might want from Author Buzz – social, promotion, discover, and help. Those four have become our only top level menu items. Sure, feed, site lists, members list, blogs, etc. they are all there, just tucked away a bit.
Despite all that work being (technically) more complex, the result is easier to use. Now, as a user, I simply have to ask “what do I want?” and then “how do I want it?”
If this teaches us anything it is that we listen to our beta testers. That and we wish they’d stop finding things to fix but we are so glad that we don’t get what we wish for.
Oh well, back to the grindstone for me.
‘we wish they’d stop finding things to fix’
The more you add the more there is to break. I had a quick look and I wonder if there’s a bit too much replication here. One example are the group and forum for Thanet Creative: Writers, they both appear to show the same content so I wonder if having both groups and forums is really necessary.
In theory, the forum for Thanet Creative: Writers is part of the group. What I should probably do is write something that hides the group forums from the main forum listing.
I know I complain about you finding things to fix but I’d rather you found them than someone mean. You, sir, are absolutely vital to the improvement of this site. I could not do this without you.
