For sometime the BBC homepage has contained a link to view a beta release of a proposed new homepage with a request for comments. They certainly received my input but it’s not made a scrap of difference. Beta testing must be over now because visiting the homepage today immediately takes you to the new page :-(
The ‘old’ homepage was extremely configurable; users could remove sections in which they had no interest (Sport, Weird & Wonderful etc. in my case) and expand those in which they wanted more detail (Business & Finance being one of mine).
Here’s how my customised ‘old’ page looked. It’s logical, tidy and contains lots the information in which I’m interested.
Here’s the new dumbed down homepage with the only customisation possible, location, having been carried out.
Everything seems to need a picture alongside in case the words are not enough. It reminds me of a typical Kebab & Pizza takeaway where everything they offer needs not only words but a bright, backlit, gaudy image in case the words alone don’t convey the message. The BBC homepage used to present a classic menu, now it’s dumbed itself down to a kebab shop style menu just like this one!
Cluttered, messy, poor design. Doesn’t work in Opera browser which would suggest code is not standards compliant? Glaring white background is bad for those who suffer from migraine. Not user friendly for the disabled or the elderly. Carousel with horizontal scrolling is not good and is ‘jumpy’. Difficult to find any content you are interested in. Very surprised the BBC put this live has it will no doubt damage their reputation for high quality.
You have summed up exactly how I feel. The new BBC Homepage is awful and I refuse to look at it or any other BBC page until it is sorted out.
You have summed up exactly how I feel. The new BBC Homepage is awful and I refuse to look at it or any other BBC page until it is sorted out.
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The B.B.C have removed all the toys from my playpen!
It seems to me that they provided the customisation feature of the old website as a ‘gimmick’ that they assumed that not may of their customers would bother using. They have now discovered that many people used it and as a result have, in the opinion of the B.B.C, become far too selective in what they viewed.
To counter this they have removed the ability for their customers to customise the new website to their needs so that they are now forced to navigate through a vast array of meaningless content to in an attempt to find what was once, before their very eyes.
This was done I feel, in the forlorn hope, that someone might mistakenly click on some irrelevant link, (that before would not have been displayed due to the use of the now removed customisation feature) and boost the hit count for that obscure item.
I am devastated ! I had the homepage set up exactly how I wanted it to log in everyday and I feel I have lost a friend. Now 6 pages full of pictures and loads of stuff I’m not interested in. If I could customise it maybe not so bad but I feel I am being treated as an idiot without any views of my own and just given what I get – whether I like it or not. Just like brussels.
Indeed, well said. I too spent time on the survey expressing disappointment of the proposed changes and look, here are the changes. Our comments fell on deaf ears. I renewed my TV licence at the 11th hour as I was struggling to justify spending £145.50. The tv is dumbed down rubbish and now the website is going the same way. Radio is the last bastion of sanity.
I can only agree with these comments. Lack of configurability, and all those pictures and special effects. Now impossible to treat this as a serious news service. Dumbing down and down and down
Well said, I spent a lot of time on the survey saying how horrid the new format is. I don’t own an iphone for the exact reason that I hate the interface, (and this is all it is, a rip of off of a touch screen phone). I also hate the way that as more people look at a stroy, it becomes a ‘top story’ meaning it gets viewed by even more at the expense of other stories that may now be missed. in short, the new home page is poo! Maybe ok for computer illiterates, but they are thin on the ground these days.