Finding the latest forum post on a plugin takes at least 4 clicks & is a bit of a nightmare.
Finding this thread to post in was a bigger nightmare, usability is still seriously messed up here even after been on every day since the site redesign.
Why dont the WordPress and Buddypress websites share more in terms of user interaction cues, e.g. using forums versus groups etc.
Why is it not easy to clone off other langauge sub-domains and them all share the same layout etc … ? This is also true for WordPress sites.
Personally, I and others find the site navigation and layout a nightmare to follow. Never sure quite what we’re looking at once we click something; tabs appear to change but it all looks the same, etc. Ie., am I in an ‘overall’ forum or a group forum? A plugin page or a forum page? A general activity stream or a help/plugin stream? Etc.
Most sites have better visual clues as to exactly what you’re looking at. The insipid colours might have something to do with it as well..? Thanks for the hard work, but something about the design and layout doesn’t work well for us.
Edit: Actually, this is helping us design our site, and most things which seem to be ‘features’ in BuddyPress have been ripped out because they badly confuse our test users. People need to know they’re in one place, looking at a particular thing, not ‘a forum’ which could be overall, for a group, for a plugin, for something unknown leaving you unsure what the heck you last clicked and having to go ‘Back’ yet again… If there has to be a forum and/or blog for everything in the kitchen sink, each needs *very* clear labelling and other visual clues.
First thing I would like to see fixed – the “next page(s)” as I will call them for groups, and members, and other sections of the site appear in the top right of those views – that should really be placed at the bottom of the groups, and members, and forums, and plugins page views. I spent 10 minutes looking for all the plugins on the extend page one day – and I thought we only had 25 plugins – after pulling my hair out and going around the site.. I realized that after viewing all 25 plugins, I had to scroll all the way back to the top to click next page – this is the same for several areas of the site. At least some pages have “load more” at the bottom – but most pages lack navigation at the end of page where it should be.
When inside a group – there should not be another tab called home – very poor design choice there.. even if it was “group home” it would be better… but perhaps it should say “latest group activity” although I guess that wouldn’t be accurate if someone click to filter there.. unless that tab changed names.. either way – home is not the best choice there…
It would be nice to have a “search the group” or search this group’s forum box next to the rss button near the top..
Talk about things broken – ugh – I think perhaps we might need to label the topics that get posted in groups / the updates that people post. I can’t find a reliable way to search them using the buddypress search.
Also, wow. I just had a devil of a time finding this thread right here. I went to my profile and searched in my activity – and couldn’t find where I had posted to this thread, or several other threads in my activity. I even did a search for my username, and buddypress did not find me in forum topics or even in members. This is pretty bad, seriously needs some fixing! I had to go to google and does a site:buddypress.org to find – ended up going through my history to find this thread.
*EDIT* – my activity has mysteriously re-appeared, now making it easier to find the things I commented on – I guess that is a temp bug or something that may not need fixing now – LOL
@Djsteve
You are bang on Djsteve … it is an incoherent torrent of information coming at you from all directions.
I cannot be bothered itemizing it all.
Reading around here again this morning, and checking our own site design again as regards BuddyPress use, I find the whole thing is an incoherent torrent of information – and that’s for we who are developing sites!
Our test users are clueless as to what’s going on unless most of BP is ripped out or renamed, and everything laid out in simple, logical terms. Frankly, WE need the same. Smart design makes for ease of use, not stuff all over the place because the designers have butterfly minds and want to show what pretty kaleidoscopes they’ve built.
It’s worth the BP devs and admins considering that in the end the tools they’re creating are for ordinary people to use, not people who’s brains are wired differently through years of programming, forum use, etc. To paraphrase an ancient Chinese saying, “The wise love simplicity, but fools tie themselves up”.
Great Topic/thread. I’d save it as a “favorite” it, but….
@BeckB this and the other thread are a bit old to be resurrecting.
Thoughts and suggestions/comments about the site in general are now best made in the group dedicated to the improvement of buddypress.org
https://buddypress.org/community/groups/buddypress-org-ninjas/home/
We’ll leave this thread as read only.
