Honest opinions

I have said before that I personally am not so keen on some of the changes made on the site, but was willing to give them a go. From a personal point, I have got used to them to a degree but it's obvious that a lot haven't.
We have been promised changes like colour/badges etc and I'm aware this can take some time, but the truth is, the site is worse off now than it was a week ago.
As before, this site thrives of its core membership, people who are on here daily, leaving comments and writing; to be honest, I could name those on two hands at best.
I could also give a comprehensive rundown of people who aren't participating anymore who did keep the site alive. They are entirely distanced by this new look site and no changes have yet been forthcoming.
Senior member participation is low - almost nil - and I'm sorry, but bar one or two, the mods are some of the quietest. The amount of poems/comments/nominations is very very low. Change is sometimes necessary but so is recognising when ceratain things aren't working. This may anger a few people but if everyone's honest, nobody can say the site is thriving/better than it was a fortnight ago...and surely that was the point.
I should just say that I'm only posting this because I care, as I know we all do. I just feel something's not quite clicking at the moment.

While I agree that some of the changes and updates are difficult to swallow at the moment, I have confidence in Janis and the mods. They created a site we have loved for so long, and I'm more than sure they are capable of appealing to us again. They just need some time to sort out what is necessary. I mean there were plenty of things people weren't sure about with the old site, and we all still loved it to pieces. Again, I understand your concern, but I honestly think you need to wait it out before getting hurt. Our home is changing, it's being renovated, but that doesn't mean it has lost all it's charm, memories, and hope.

Be patient. Good things will come.

I can only answer for myself, I am one of those members that have gone off the boil.

I have had spells of not writing anything, usually 2 or 3 months, I think it is about 8 months since I last posted a poem.

This has nothing to do with the new look site.

In the last 8 months I have gone from being part time self employed to full time working. I also paint every night as I have a commission that is about 4 months overdue.
My daughters wrestling careers have taken off in a big way, this all keeps me busy.
I check into P and Q everyday, read and sometimes comment in the forums. I haven't really written a meaningful comment in a long while also.

But it is only a blip. I may find inspiration to write again soon.

As for the new look?

I think it will be amazing once fully completed. I have been lounging about on this site for years and to be honest the old look was crap.

This new look is modern and in keeping with some of the other forums in the internet world.

I do miss the letters after my name as they made me look important without the need of a masters degree.
I liked the little win icons also.

It could be possible that those of us that were keeping the site alive about 5-6 years ago have all grown up and found that real life now gets in the way. In that time an outdated site didn't attract a new generation of hardcore poets. With this fresh looking site it could. Give it a few months (or a year or 2) and this site will thrive.

This is good. More opinions!
Unfortunately, change comes down to Janis and he is only one person. We gather information and pass it along to him, but he makes the final decisions and decides what and when to change things.

There will definitely be awards again soon.

I’m an older member that isn’t as active as I once was but that’s for many reasons. From the number of active friends on here, the need for an emotional outlet, the lack of controversy, other online distractions like Facebook twitter etc etc. But I still visit most days.

Personally I like the new changes, for years we chased Janis around (well the mods did the chasing) and many thought including me that Janis had disappeared and left the site to wilt and die. That he has returned and reinvented the site is a great stop forward and a great way of invigorating the site, which will hopefully lead to more participation from everybody? Time will tell of course but fingers crossed………..

I agree to a certain extent as I am finding the new site to be somewhat colourless and impersonal but feel that it had become very quiet for a long time before the changes. I know I am not the most prolific poet on the site and tend to read rather than comment or post on forums but I did used to enjoy the cameraderie of belonging both to the site and to a club and enjoyed entering the various challenges. In the past few months before the changes however both club and site had become quieter and quieter, with challenges not completed or even completely ignored and I must admit to eventually leaving the club I was in and contemplating leaving the site completely.
Then, the site was changed and I began to think that this would bring back the vibrant, challenging site I remember first joining. I am still living in hope that this will indeed happen. It is early days yet Ben I suppose.

I feel you. Actually my eyes hurt from reading in all white...anyone else experiencing this? Aside from being more busier with other things in life, I find it harder to read with the new design and that's slightly off putting. I did like that all was white... but I find myself squinting my eyes.

No i don't find that at all ... every book I have ever read is in black and white, the newspapers,emails, in fact when you think about it just about all correspondence written is in black and white.

Must be used to it..... i only struggle when its written in a different colour ...

On my kindle I have the option to view the page how I like it. If Janis could give members the ability to personalise their own page then everyone would be happier. Or is this me living in La La land?

I've been on & off this site since 2007/8 -ish. I wasn't really active on the main forums till 2011 when I came back on my second account, but the site's been steadily declining ever since then. Back in 2011, you had hoards of people commenting and voting, it wasn't unusual to get comments in the double digits. What I'm trying to say is, this site's been declining for a very long time, and the new site may be playing a role in it, but certainly is not the fundamental issue.

Personally for me, the new site feels much bigger, and I think that's a good thing. I feel like I've been reading way more poems lately (still haven't been commenting as much as I'd like), because of how the new site recommends poems + shows you all latest poems from all categories. The site's still a work in progress, there's still a lot of things left to be done, and will be implemented in the soon future. The mods had access to the new site since mid December-ish, it took me a while to fully acclimate to the new site. There are things I'm not fond of, but Janis has been open to feedback and collaboration.

Maybe it's confirmation bias, but I've noted more active members signing up (active as in, they've actually submitted more than one text, updated their profile and have a picture). Previously we'd have a lot of user signups but no activity (a significant amount of them were spam accounts).

Like mentioned earlier, I think you should give it some more time, and the site will feel like home again. :)

Like Jane said, it's really good we're having this discussion! Thank you for starting this thread.

Now that it's a new week, I have time to devote my mornings and certain times in the afternoon to logging in and trying to leave my "trace". The site DOES feel wider to me which also means more to explore. I'm really looking forward to it though. It's like a new 'lil adventure for me. I have more time available to be at home or at a computer so I can give more time and passion to my beloved PnQ.

I think we're all apprehensive but as BlueJay said in such a positive, heart-warming way: "good things will come." So many of us love and support the site and the community as a whole, so I believe we can get through any rough spots starting out and get re-acclimated.

Please, keep talking and sharing opinions. We are all on board this sailing ship :)

Hmm thinking about it..
The newspaper that I have read are kind of grayish white (but not that white) with black letters. The books are kind of beige with black letters. My gmail is white and I often find myself squinting my eyes, hence, I don't really used that mail. Facebook is white but it has the blue and other colors, some pictures that distract me from just looking at the white. Funny, I have the feeling I wrote a poem about the color white and that I have yet to finish writing about it.

sorry sometimes I get easily distracted.

For now, I'll just change the brightness on my phone and may be that'll help me.

Just a quick question, Nicko did the colors in the old version of pnq hurt your eyes?

I find that if the letters have color other than black, let's say yellow bright or pink bright, my eyes get tired so easily. But if it's black, they are okay, so long as the background is not too white.

But this happens after I spend sometime in the site, not immediately.

I haven't read all the posts here, but ironically, it seems as though I'm the only one who finds the new changes as a whole package really cool. Speaking about mobile browsing, the changes made it feel as though I'm using an app, not a website. The white color is appealing for me, the background was white before, I recall, it's just the yellowish edges that are gone and they looked pale honestly.

The tabs are very useful and I've found it more organized. Ofcourse there are glitches but that's normal. I don't see why the theme or frame would affect the writing process. Hmm.

I miss the WIN tags and number of views, these were nice for memories, but other than that I really admired the new suit XD but that's just me, annoying :p

Rania, I'm with you. I really like them all :)

In response to OP saying the mods are quiet save a couple - I am definitely one of those quiet mods right now. I know I don't have to explain myself, but my personality says otherwise ;) I've been insanely inactive the past few months - my husband and I have been in the process of building a house, and now we've just moved in and are trying to get everything settled. It's incredible how much time all of that actually takes, so I've had to prioritize. Mod squad has done amazing and I'm appreciative of their understanding and picking up all my slack!

I don't think the decline of the site has much to do with the new features. Yes, change can be off-putting but we've been waiting for years for Janis to show up so I think it can only be a positive thing now that he has re-emerged.

The fact is that the site has been in decline since about 2008-2010, it was probably in its heyday before that even. I think its a combination of factors: mainly other social media has taken over and people are using other platforms to express themselves (and to source reading material.) There was a problem for years with new member registration that accounts had to be activated manually. I think also its only natural that people naturally drift away from websites, and from poetry in general.

I think if people esp senior members feel an obligation to post, comment, etc. that the enjoyment can go then pretty quickly. People naturally come and go, especially when the site has stayed the same for so many years. Hopefully a new look and an updated site will attract a few members back who had left or gone inactive, as well as attract more new members and encourage them to stay around and get more involved.

I think people may have misunderstood what I meant or, more likely, I haven't made myself clear. I am aware that the site has been in decline for years; I've only been a member for a year and a half, but it's fairly obvious from votes/comments left now compared to years ago that the site isn't as busy.
What I meant was that there are members on here who have kept the site afloat and too many of those have been put off and are just not visiting daily anymore. Again, I could name them but it's not really my place; the people who write/leave comments daily are known to everyone who's ever around. All I will say is that there are at least four people from my club alone who are important members who have actually stated they won't be back. As for that, I don't know but the tweaks do need to be made, in my opinion.
Colm - I do agree, though, that the new site may attract others and encourage them to stay around. But many of the site's mainstays are currently not participating, and I think that's a shame as they keep the place going.

On another issue, do any of the mods know why 'Sour poems' is spending its second week on the winners' board? It's a great poem but...

Ben, I wonder, why do you think the poets you have in mind would stop commenting/ writing/ posting.. Etc following the changes ? I mean the members are still here, why would the colors, theme, buttons and such technical stuff affect the writers' activity.. Just wondering.

And you probably mean "sour poems" guess it's stuck for some reason :/ I'm sorry I feel like my poem is taking someone else's, but not my fault :'/

Rania,
Not sure but it's something these people have said to me via messages. I cannot answer for them, but I would imagine it's something to do with poets being sensitive people - some hyper-sensitive - and simply hating change. I'm sure they'll be back, but there it is for now.
As for your poem, Rania, I'm sorry if you took my question personally - it was never meant that way. As you can see, the question was just a technical one aimed at the mods.

In all honesty, as above, I myself am getting used to the site - it clearly needed a revamp. But I just wanted to point out that some members who have really strived to keep this place going are a little put out at the moment and some simple changes (like colour) may bring them back. As I say, we're a sensitive bunch in general and it's the little things. Patience is required, I understand that.

Could it be possible that the forums have the comments like let's say,

First post the background white then second post a light grey then third post white again and so on?

Oh No, not at all, I did send a message for Larry earlier before your comment to inquire about the glitch.

Anyway, guess poets treat change differently XD

Hopefully everything will be for the better.

Great idea!

I like that idea, Everlasting. It would make the site more interesting too. I am growing to like the "clean" feel of the new site, though I agree with others that it remains cold and kind of boring... would love if we could find a happy medium.

Ben, if you could tell your upset club members to private message the moderators with their concerns (assuming they don't want to post publicly), we could use solid evidence that x amount of members are unhappy. Public and private opinions are weighed the same. We want members to be happy overall with the changes. If a lot of members are unhappy and continue to be unhappy as the weeks unfold, we will be obligated to do something.

Oh.. the forums look a bit different when I use my laptop. I can actually see the profile pictures, the names, and the member status, and not just a block of text distributed over white background.

Yep the site 'adjusts' itself based on the screen size; it's too make it more user-friendly on phones/tablets etc.

seems the colours have been changed ? its more beige coloured

It is not that Sour Poems is stuck. The problem is that the site only displayed two of the three winners for this week. That issue will go to Janis as a glitch.

BTW the public vote glitch has been eliminated!

Larry, thank you for explaining the issue. Yay for no more public vote glitch!!!

-Jane

I've just found out that I am the hidden winner and now I find the site error to be completely unacceptable! Fancy my win not being displayed properly! :)
No more nice words, Rania - damn you, good woman! :)

In all seriousness, thank you Larry for replying to the question; I suppose there will be a few glitches to sort out for a while.

By the way, what is 'the public vote'? I never did find out.

I’ve been on and off this site since early 2009 and, in my opinion, it’s been slowly declining in activity since then. A lot of the people I knew left the site due to things going on in their personal life (school, starting a family, writers block, etc.). People seem to always end up back here, it’s a home to some extent, and it will always be that for a lot of people. It seems to go up and down on activity probably due to the time of year and dry spells for a lot of poets. It also seemed to be more active back when clubs were small/tight knit and there were a lot of site contests and club battles. That’s just an opinion though.

For me, I’ve been on hiatus for a long while. I haven’t been able to write since last March and that made reading poetry difficult for me. I’m sure other people have similar experiences and that, in itself, could have a negative effect in site activity.

It is weird coming back to the site in its evolved state. It’s not comfortable like it used to be and I wish that it hadn't changed. But it has and a lot of work has been put into it -that will only take some time to get used to- it's also a work in progress which is a nice thought. I’ve noticed some awesome new features such as the home page feeling more inviting and functional for new people, it highlights the winners and new work which will make it a lot easier to notice new people and find work to read/comment on. Having the award system back would be cool, it was nice seeing status of members and it give people small goals to work towards.

My only complaint in the font sizes and line spacing on posted poems. A simple 12-point font would be a lot easier on the eyes and be more visually appealing. The bigger font feels oddly intrusive. A bit more of an option for creative layout would be cool too.

Also, more of a technical note for mods, I went to post a new poem of mine and the title is III, but it kept correcting it to Iii. I’m curious if that’s a new feature to keep people from posting titles in all caps or if it’s a glitch? Decided against posting it until I find a new title.

Honestly I've been a member for over a decade, partially on this account and partially on a different one. It's definitely taking some getting used to but I don't mind the new set up:)

Tbh I haven't been on long but I have noticed a rapid decline since I signed up especially since the changes.

That could very well be the natural up and down of the site, which we experience every year.

The site needs a lot of work. You guys will hopefully see positive changes and ease of functionality over the coming weeks and months.

In addition to Britt's post way up there: The mods collectively insisted that Britt take a vacation from PnQ because for those of you who don't know, she just bought land and *built* a house on it with her husband, and they are only now moving into it. I don't know if anyone here has built a house before, but it's kind of a big deal lol. It's been a months long process and is ongoing. So please no harsh words for Britt's absence... only congratulations!!!!

A big congratulations from me. Don't take too much notice of my unpredictable rants...they just come over me sometimes! All you mods do a great job and have never been less than decent and helpful when I have had an issue. I suppose I was just a little frustrated.

And we didn't even have to do any of the actual building ourselves! Lord knows I can't wait for an entire weekend off! We haven't had an entire weekend off where we didn't have to do -something- since last May. It's exhausting, but really quite amazing to have the whole process happen! Pinch me, pinch me!

I check in sometimes but not enough and I've felt really guilty. The mod squad is seriously amazing, you guys. You have no idea how much I just adore and appreciate their friendship. I cherish it so much!

Haha Ben, I just want to squeeze you sometimes. You're too cute.
Don't dismiss yourself though because you have every right to be frustrated. Always keen to read your thoughts.
We are reading everyone's posts and reporting in the mod forum, so hopefully Janis sees everything and continues tailoring the site until we have a modern, welcoming, intuitive PnQ that old and new members can get on board with. The process requires patience and flexibility. I know this is tough for a lot of people. We don't want to leave anyone behind, put pull everyone forward. If only we could fast forward to a month from now and take a peak.
Keep in mind that complaints and suggestions are especially welcome because in certain cases, Janis will not make changes requested by the mods unless enough members seem to feel the same way.

I lost my love for the site not gonna lie :(

I come here for the poetry and the interaction with other members.. how the site looks is pretty cosmetic to me

If I do have a gripe it's about the suppression of freedom of speech ie the moderation of language. For eg, we used to be able use whatever language we wanted within our clubs now we can't. It's not major, but to me that sort of censorship is a step backwards especially on an art site.

I don't mind the new site now, if I'm honest but the problem is there clearly are some glitches that need cleaning up and some other little improvements that most of us agree need to be made. I'm just worried that Janis has disappeared again for who knows how long?
The front page thing needs sorting out. I think having a competition where only two of the three current week's winners are displayed makes a bit of a mockery of the whole thing.
The fact we cannot edit our comments needs changing.
I also think having our favourites feed back (to hand and displayed clearly) would add a huge amount back.
A personal preference would be a bit of colour but that's not too relevant.

Do the mods know if Janis is still around and addressing any of these issues?

Janis is around, been a bit under the weather. He's looking into the contest glitch right now.