New site design

[sdburns]

I have been a long term user of the cyclingnews site. I can't remember when I first visited but it must be about 10yrs ago. During this period the site has gone through many changes. While any change and progress can be a bit inconvenient, I have always got used to them and learnt to navigate and find information, which hasn't substantially altered, relatively quickly.

However, I have issues with the latest changes;
- the site is extremely slow to load. Not an issue at home but is at work.
- the layout is messy, before I could have a quick look and decide what I wanted to read.
- a lot of the information seems to be missing, the information on the races, current and upcoming appears to be severely limited. It either has been deleted or the information is hard to find. Things like the live coverage, stage profiles, etc
- the news items seem to be all over the place and harder to peruse.
- the number of clicks to get to the information I want has greatly increased

Unless the site becomes easier to use and navigate and includes the information that has been lost I expect that I will give up on the site and find some other way to get the news. This is unfortunate, since I have enjoyed the site for the past 10 years.

 

[brightstorm]

rss feeds

i've subscribed to the rss feeds to get my news and now i can get it in even less clicks than the previous site.

 

[bobbob]

Still sucks

I've stayed away since the day after the big change. This time a two week boycott, then a month and then I guess if all is the same then I'll get my news from your sister sites (I bet they've had a big rise in No. of hits!!). It's a pity someone there stuffed up a good thing.

 

[jharbert]

Bye

Register me as another very disappointed customer. I've been visiting CyclingNews.com for several years; and recently during the Giro I was using it more than VeloNews.com. However the site redesign has sent me away, discouraged cause:

- It's extremely slow, taking nearly a minute to load every page. That's unacceptable.
- It's very cluttered, finding stuff is really hard.
- The ad's are way too intrusive and in-my-face; some preventing me from seeing the content.

Bye.

 

[manolo]

My wife asked me "Why have you been so amorous this past week? You haven't paid this much attention to me in ages!"... I didn't have the heart to tell her Cyclingnews and I aren't seeing much of each other anymore... : )

 

[Ninety5rpm]

- It's very cluttered, finding stuff is really hard.
- The ad's are way too intrusive and in-my-face; some preventing me from seeing the content.

Bye.

Before you leave for good, in case they listen, don't forget to vote about the "today at cyclingnews.com" Flash box.

http://forum.cyclingnews.com/showthread.php?t=1509

 

[uphillisgood]

Another vote against the new site, or more specifically all the Flash.

I swear, Flash is going to bring the entire internet to a crawl.

 

[pedrospeeps]

Future Publishing

I read the complete Future Publishing website today, just to get an idea of the company.

I am sure that cyclingnews was just purchased to fill out their books, I think it will be put up for sale soon or joined with bikeradar (which might have been the idea all along). The company does not have a good record of sound business decision. We will be the loosers, unless someone comes along and saves cyclingnews, if not it will be lost amoungst their other mags and websites, we do not have very committed people here. I am not sure if they understand things in the USA, which might be the root of the problems, it is time to ask a USA based company to help them through the next few months. I feel the Tdf is lost to them, which might cause the progress of things a little faster. I wonder why they did this now and not while the season was over and the hits were down anyway. We might never know, Future will go on as they have done for many years.

 

[pedrospeeps]

Google Groups

While looking to see what else this twurp Stefan has done in his life I came across Google Groups rec.bicycles.racing. It seems cyclingnews is under pressure outside this forum...it's getting pretty interesting. I guess soon we will be able to find all sorts of forums giving it to cyclingnews...why don't they listen?

See yer

 

[john mcburney]

Doesn't work for me

I have to confess I can't that after trying to live with the new site for a while it is just not doing it for me. CyclingNews was part of my morning brief but I am finding that I tend to skip it more frequentlysince the overhaul. VeloNews has less information but is more accessible to me at least. Two thumbs down.

John

 

[uphillisgood]

Yep... I'm with you.

I used to visit this site a few times a day, and now I'm visiting once every few days.

'guess I'll get my news over at Velonews and DailyPeleton <sigh>


Sorry to see you go (as we knew it) CyclingNews!

 

[fred van deelen]

Forget this site and bring back the old. As so many of us readers, we used to visit Cyclingnews twice/ three times daily, but those times are over now.
If you have any sense you would listen to us.
I'll start looking somewhere else from now on.

Cheers

 

[sfgrandprix]

I keep reading that we should be patient. Well sure, we could all use more patience. But in order to be patient, you need to have faith that your patience will be rewarded. In this case it's becoming more and more obvious that the problems will never be resolved, because they just don't have the ability or the will to do it.

They invested in a "content management system" which they don't know how to use, didn't bother to learn, or just aren't bright enough to figure out. As far as mobile access, I don't think they even know where to begin. Graphic design and typography issues are beyond their comprehension. They are too stubborn to admit any of it so I'm afraid they will just muddle along until everyone's patience is exhausted.

 

[JOCKEYWILSON]

In my view Future Publishing's Procycling Magazine is equally dreadful. Fixated on all things Lance and team Astana. The layout like this site is cluttered and confusing. The writing in general sycophantic and of low quality.

Future themselves are suffering significant falls in their operating profit. At their year end in Sep 08 they showed a drop from 10.40 (07) to 11.60 mill GBP. These companies only have so much money in their coffers so I suspect we could see them ditch some of the non core businesses over the next 12 months. Perhaps concentrating on the more lucrative games market. You can at least live in hope hey?

 

[Don Simons]

Have just taken the trouble to register for this one post.
The Tour de France is about to start and the facility that used to exist on this premier cycling site has fallen in a heap.
I am not a reactionary and welcome new initiatives which are smoother and more informative, but if any team of web designers delivered this incompetent mess to any professional company they would be shown the door very quickly.
Where are the list of starters, the readable stage maps, the stage profiles, the introduction and predictions for the TdF 2009?
Those scrolling/flashing soft graphics are very distracting.
The graphics overwite each other top left - very amateurish.
Why are the news headlines repeated three times on the one front page?
I will go to Steephill and keep looking back here in the hope that someone in control takes the action which is should have been taken in the development stages of this "New Look".
Sorry but I have been coming here for years, this is not page rage, just an expression of exasparated dissapointment at seeing Cycling News being sold a bill of goods.
Hope you can get it fixed soon or you will be losing a few sponsors real fast.

 

[pedrospeeps]

Patience is exhausted

I keep reading that we should be patient. Well sure, we could all use more patience. But in order to be patient, you need to have faith that your patience will be rewarded. In this case it's becoming more and more obvious that the problems will never be resolved, because they just don't have the ability or the will to do it.

They invested in a "content management system" which they don't know how to use, didn't bother to learn, or just aren't bright enough to figure out. As far as mobile access, I don't think they even know where to begin. Graphic design and typography issues are beyond their comprehension. They are too stubborn to admit any of it so I'm afraid they will just muddle along until everyone's patience is exhausted.

I am sorry I advised the staff to stop responding to emails on this forum, it was sort of human to see them blunder through the feedback, now we are left with a deafening silence and really no hope that cyclingnews will return, they really are not interested in what we think.

I would love if some of those computer specialists would come back onto the website and run through what the statistics mean on sites such as this:

http://www.alexa.com/siteinfo/cyclingnews.com

I see the bounce rate has increased, I believe this is important as it means users are logging onto the site and then not going any further. I have not even bounced off the site as I have not visited the site since day one of me going onto this forum. I know my visiting the forum counts as clicks, so by Tdf I have decided to leave for good. (if the old site is not returned!!) I think others should do the same. We can only do so much on this forum and the thread should have an end date, for me it will be a week from today.

Good luck cyclingnews, lets hope your top brass ditch the project and let someone else have ago at reporting cycling news, go back to knitting and games.

PS my estimate of approx 40,000 readers to this thread last weeks was spot on!

Kr

Peeps

 

[Ninety5rpm]

Poll about the Flash box at top of main page

Please register and participate in the poll about the Flash box on the front page:

http://forum.cyclingnews.com/showthread.php?t=1509

If we can convince them to get rid of that monstrosity, I think we'll be on the right road at that point.

 

[pedrospeeps]

Going Global

It seems the dislike to cyclingnews is hitting facebook. I guess we are going global! I didn't know I cared so much...we will see what another week will do.

Nearly 40,000 views here

 

[manolo]

I thought we should have a thread that only addresses two specific questions:

1) What was in the old website that is missing in the new one, and should be restored?

2) What is in the new website that was not in the old website, and should be removed?

This is a good idea... On the other hand, I wish the editors would put up a poll asking what they should work on as a priority for the readers... And put it on the homepage... So they can see, not how popular or unpopular the new site is, but so they can concentrate on fixing what matters most to their readers... That's what I don't like about the forum, we can all have our say but there's no central tracking or prioritization or collaboration... Please, CN, take the lead and post something yourselves! The truth is you have a site we all would want to enjoy just as much or more than the old one.

C'mon CN editors! Take the lead! Post a poll yourselves!

 

[BBRoberts]

CN Fiasco

CN started it modest roots with Bill Mitchell, a guy who did it as a hobby while working at University in Newcastle Australia. It gained steam over the years become of thousands of fans and like minded people who sent in their photos and stories free of charge. While over time, CN hired more staff and got better stories, they worked on a very small budget and depended heavy on everyone worldwide to send results, photos and reports. It's really the grass roots support of all these people who are the reason for their success. I often wonder if Knapp knew when he sold it that FP would gut it for profits, and cashing out the good will and help all those fans have contributed over the years. It's certainly very unfair now that when these same fans have spoken quite clear and with one voice to return to the old style touch and feel, while allowing them to keep their new generators that they still won't even consider to meet them halfway. It's really a thumbing of the nose at the fans, and a real corporate hardline stance and the Grinch approach, but unlike Scrooge and Grinch, they won't be returning CN to the fans. Sad, but I wonder how many of those who donate photos, results and reports will now seek new partners in this cycling media. What comes around goes around, you reep what you sow, truly. End of an era sadly.

 

[mintcake]

An earlier post mentioned the Alexa statistics - here's the speed of the site as it loads...

Average Load Time for Cyclingnews.com

Slow (3.719 Seconds), 71% of sites are faster.

Visitors are coming from around the globe but interestingly, most are from the USA - which could explain why the owners aren't interested in our gripes...

Cyclingnews.com users come from these countries:

* 45.2% United States
* 7.3% United Kingdom
* 6.2% Germany
* 5.3% Australia

Traffic stats are showing a downward trend...

3 month change -3,004

Doesn't look like things are going too well for the new 'wonder site'!

 

[Ninety5rpm]

CN started it modest roots with Bill Mitchell, a guy who did it as a hobby while working at University in Newcastle Australia. It gained steam over the years become of thousands of fans and like minded people who sent in their photos and stories free of charge. While over time, CN hired more staff and got better stories, they worked on a very small budget and depended heavy on everyone worldwide to send results, photos and reports. It's really the grass roots support of all these people who are the reason for their success. I often wonder if Knapp knew when he sold it that FP would gut it for profits, and cashing out the good will and help all those fans have contributed over the years. It's certainly very unfair now that when these same fans have spoken quite clear and with one voice to return to the old style touch and feel, while allowing them to keep their new generators that they still won't even consider to meet them halfway. It's really a thumbing of the nose at the fans, and a real corporate hardline stance and the Grinch approach, but unlike Scrooge and Grinch, they won't be returning CN to the fans. Sad, but I wonder how many of those who donate photos, results and reports will now seek new partners in this cycling media. What comes around goes around, you reep what you sow, truly. End of an era sadly.

The only reason it's not a complete disaster is because there is no other reliable source for cycling news on the web. It's like the bad restaurant in the touristy part of town, or at the ski resort, or in the amusement park - when you're the only game in town you can get away with serving cr@p.

This is only going to be fixed when someone steps up and serves cycling news the way it should be. You know, like CN used to be.

 

[pedrospeeps]

bottom of the class

An earlier post mentioned the Alexa statistics - here's the speed of the site as it loads...

Average Load Time for Cyclingnews.com

Slow (3.719 Seconds), 71% of sites are faster.

Visitors are coming from around the globe but interestingly, most are from the USA - which could explain why the owners aren't interested in our gripes...

Cyclingnews.com users come from these countries:

* 45.2% United States
* 7.3% United Kingdom
* 6.2% Germany
* 5.3% Australia

Traffic stats are showing a downward trend...

3 month change -3,004

Doesn't look like things are going too well for the new 'wonder site'!

Thanks for that. I see the bounce rate is up at ave of 30% of people logging on and the going no further. During the Tfd I expect ave 35 -40% just at the time when everything should be going well.

Cyclingnews you are at the bottom of the class!! lot of Brits in USA you know, plus a lot of cycling fans!!!

http://www.alexa.com/siteinfo/cyclingnews.com

 

[manolo]

April Fools is long past, please bring back the old site!!!!

This is sad, very sad. I find myself avoiding your homepage. Instead I go to http://www.cyclingnews.com/news, click on a few items and leave totally disheartened. It's just not fun. I don't like it because:

Everything is cluttered.

I have never read so much on the left-hand side of a webpage. This side of a page is usually meant for navigation or index areas! Why are you driving readers into an uncomfortable area?

You have three columns on each page and I feel the two on the right are useless clutter. Worthlesss. I find myself hating your sponsors for intruding on my reading and hating "Also on Cyclingnews" boxes because they cram my reading space to the left.

I find the new website boring, crammed. I'm visually overwhelmed and get a sense of despair. Too much stuff. Please, get rid of all the flash. Please create a little sense of order, a little bit of sanity. Go to two columns per page. Please.

 

[manolo]

I have been a long term user of the cyclingnews site... the layout is messy... information is hard to find... the news items seem to be all over the place... the number of clicks to get to the information I want has greatly increased... I expect that I will give up on the site... this is unfortunate, since I have enjoyed the site for the past 10 years.

Register me as another very disappointed customer... the site redesign... is very cluttered, finding stuff is really hard... the ads are way too intrusive and in-my-face; some preventing me from seeing the content.

This is crazy. Hpw many different ways can we say the same thing?... Please! Simplify! Please! Bring back the joy of simplicity! Pride yourselves in less clutter, less chaos!