Feedback to Rich #1 - 2006/07/08 15:36 I sent this feedback to Rich and he asked me to post it here:

Hey folks...had a chance to do another round of tests on the new "live" site:


Rich, you've done a good job adding new features and links, the page is making more sense now. Thanks for getting the forums working for posting also (more should post and test on them).


1. Question for Rich:


Is the "help" menu now at the point where text can be added on a page-per-page basis? I see it as an option on the menu bar but I'm not sure if we are at the point of adding help messages that are specific to specific pages. Once I know that's ready, I'll start adding help language.


2. On the main live page:


Can we change the wording slightly to let folks know where to login?


So, instead of: Welcome to the New Hidden-tech LIVE website, take your choice of Blogs or other features or login so you can add your own postings....


change to...."login on the right so you can add your own postings." http://live.hidden-tech.net/


3. The Emailing List Page is here: http://live.hidden-tech.net/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=14&Itemid=34


to learn more about the lists you click on the first link, "Policies and list specifics are here,"
which leads you to this page:


http://www.hidden-tech.net/listEtiquette.html


This page kicks off with some stern words on etiquette and you have to scroll down to get to the descriptions of the list. I think it would be helpful to make it more clear that this page also has list descriptions on it, perhaps by a page heading that said "Hidden-Tech Email List Descriptions and Etiquette". I can see the value of having folks read the etiquette stuff first, but would be good to make it more clear that the descrips are also on this page.


Also on this page, the last list says "private discussions of the steering committee." I think it should also say something like...."You can email the steering committee by clicking on the link to the left" to make it clear that this is an option here.


4. On the main live page, I like the "Jobs" page idea a lot! Good link to have. Someone should post a placeholder job to check the job posting functionality, and then test the search capability after. Rich, on this job posting page: http://live.hidden-tech.net/index.php?option=com_jobline&Itemid=35&task=add There is an "enter job status" pull down menu. If this status is visible to job seekers, I would recommend changing the internal phrase "Sourcing", which many job seekers do not know, to "Evaluating Resumes."


5. The Service link on the main live page leads to this search page: http://live.hidden-tech.net/index.php?option=com_wrapper&Itemid=36 We need help instructions on this page, but for now, something simple at the top like "Search our Hidden-Tech member directory by keyword" would go a long way towards making this page cleared in its purpose.


6. If you go into the forums, http://live.hidden-tech.net/index.php?option=com_joomlaboard&Itemid=32, you then have the option to click on your "profile." Once you click on that, it says, "Profile for Jon Reed or what have you." Since we have so many profiles on this site, this should be changed to "Forum Profile for Jon Reed" to make it clear this profile only applies to and works with the forum. It might even be forth adding a link to the real member profile if someone wants to make changes to their overall profile here: http://www.hidden-tech.net/members/


7. On the live top menu (in green), all the current menu options make sense, but I would suggest changing "press room" to "news" and linking to a blog page where we can add news, or, for now, linking to an article page with hidden tech articles instead of to an empty press room.


8. Also on the top green menu, I don't think "WWW site" is self-explanatory at all. Perhaps "Home" might work a little better?


9. Within all the Live site pages, there are menu options on the right hand side. If you click on the "My Details" link you go here:
http://live.hidden-tech.net/index.php?option=com_user&task=UserDetails&Itemid=21 This is the page that is most confusing from the vantage point of our old member login and profiles versus this new system. Until the two are integrated, we should add some language to the top of the My Details page that says something like: This is a profile for using the new Hidden-Tech site including our new blogs. To access your full Hidden-Tech member profile, click here: http://www.hidden-tech.net/members/. Something to reduce this confusion and link the profile and details pages is needed.


OK, that's a solid swing at this. Rich, if you implement these changes I will then respond with another round of language and suggestions. Hopefully others will test the site and chime in with more, this is too big a job for one or two.


have good weekends.


best


JR


Re:Feedback to Rich #1 - 2006/07/08 16:46 Hello Rich,

Please let me know how I can help.
I love what you've accomplished so far.

Dan Green

1) Help screens - 2006/07/10 14:39 From Jon's Feedback #1 question:

1. Question for Rich:

Is the "help" menu now at the point where text can be added on a page-per-page basis? I see it as an option on the menu bar but I'm not sure if we are at the point of adding help messages that are specific to specific pages. Once I know that's ready, I'll start adding help language.

The help function is a content page, menu setup using a the ezFaq system -- it is not page related, in fact the nature of an active content site makes direct help to current page handling very complex and it is not built-in to Joomla.

Net-net - start working on help text related to specific functions and we will build an faq menu to match. Once test is written it can be moved within the faq menus. Putting the condition on it you are describing will only delay the work and not effect the end result.

Rich


3) Emailing & Site Etiquette - 2006/07/10 17:07 3. The Emailing List Page is here: http://live.hidden-tech.net/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=14&Itemid=34
to learn more about the lists you click on the first link, "Policies and list specifics are here,"
which leads you to this page:
http://www.hidden-tech.net/listEtiquette.html


I consider this whole set of pages as very poor and confusing - someone needs to take them and made a consistant set of policies and faq.

This page kicks off with some stern words on etiquette and you have to scroll down to get to the descriptions of the list. I think it would be helpful to make it more clear that this page also has list descriptions on it, perhaps by a page heading that said "Hidden-Tech Email List Descriptions and Etiquette". I can see the value of having folks read the etiquette stuff first, but would be good to make it more clear that the descrips are also on this page.

Agreed


Also on this page, the last list says "private discussions of the steering committee." I think it should also say something like...."You can email the steering committee by clicking on the link to the left" to make it clear that this is an option here.

Yup

I would expect to load these pages into Joomla content referenced from the faq system


4) Jobs function - 2006/07/10 17:13 4. On the main live page, I like the "Jobs" page idea a lot! Good link to have. Someone should post a placeholder job to check the job posting functionality, and then test the search capability after. Rich, on this job posting page: http://live.hidden-tech.net/index.php?option=com_jobline&Itemid=35&task=add


Agreed - any suggestions who ?

There is an "enter job status" pull down menu. If this status is visible to job seekers, I would recommend changing the internal phrase "Sourcing", which many job seekers do not know, to "Evaluating Resumes."

This is probably an internal field - maybe one of the Jommla-enabed Team members can look at that.

Rich

5) Search page - 2006/07/10 17:17 5. The Service link on the main live page leads to this search page: http://live.hidden-tech.net/index.php?option=com_wrapper&Itemid=36 We need help instructions on this page, but for now, something simple at the top like "Search our Hidden-Tech member directory by keyword" would go a long way towards making this page cleared in its purpose.

This has been an open issue for some time, I will add any text that gets written

6) Forum Profile - 2006/07/10 17:24 6. If you go into the forums, http://live.hidden-tech.net/index.php?option=com_joomlaboard&Itemid=32, you then have the option to click on your "profile." Once you click on that, it says, "Profile for Jon Reed or what have you." Since we have so many profiles on this site, this should be changed to "Forum Profile for Jon Reed" to make it clear this profile only applies to and works with the forum. It might even be forth adding a link to the real member profile if someone wants to make changes to their overall profile here: http://www.hidden-tech.net/members/

I am not clear if this text is changable, it needs a Joolma-enabled team member to look at. To be clear, all the pages on the site are not totally flexible text that can be changed as we see fit. It makes sense to review these issues, that does not mean we can address them.

Rich


7) Menu options and content consitancy - 2006/07/10 17:30 7. On the live top menu (in green), all the current menu options make sense, but I would suggest changing "press room" to "news" and linking to a blog page where we can add news, or, for now, linking to an article page with hidden tech articles instead of to an empty press room.

There are different pages with News vs Press Room, I put Press Room there because it is a Action contact, that page should probably point to the News pages

I think this raises a bigger issue as to someone needs to start to review the site from the perpective of overall consistancy

Rich

9) Profile(s) - old, new and migration - 2006/07/10 17:36 9. Within all the Live site pages, there are menu options on the right hand side. If you click on the "My Details" link you go here:
http://live.hidden-tech.net/index.php?option=com_user&task=UserDetails&Itemid=21 This is the page that is most confusing from the vantage point of our old member login and profiles versus this new system. Until the two are integrated, we should add some language to the top of the My Details page that says something like: This is a profile for using the new Hidden-Tech site including our new blogs. To access your full Hidden-Tech member profile, click here: http://www.hidden-tech.net/members/. Something to reduce this confusion and link the profile and details pages is needed.

Again, not sure what can be changed on those pages, we will be migrating the profile contents totally into the Joomla databases - it is easier to change the old area pages bacause those are not part of a larger system -- also something for JETeam members.

There are two key issues that will effect the rate of migration and growth of the new LIVE site, and one is that the emailing list needs to be migrated to use the new user profile database - not the old one AND the 2nd is the overall pacing element, and that (as it always is and will be) is people available to help.

Having words to explain the differences, on the pages and in the HELP (faq) area will help -- someone needs to do the words, we have a place to put them

Rich

Re:9) Profile(s) - TASK NEEDED - 2006/07/12 06:55 It would be extremely helpful if one of the Joomla-talented team members:

1) review the various Joomla extensions for one that provides for expansion of the Joomla profile fields to allow loading the existing user proflles.

For reference this is the data structure:
http:///www.hidden-tech.net/members/hidmembers.desc

2) Look into the sqlauth package and see how we can improve it's use, the reference for that is here:
http://extensions.joomla.org/component/option,com_mtree/task,viewlink/link_id,642/Itemid,35/

The key issues are:
a) it creates duplicate entries if someone already has created a new user with a profile from the original user's database
b) The joomla username field is only 25 characters, I have upped the database to 50 but the data entries fields are still only 25 making it hard to manage.

3) Pick a user list extension that allows emailing
from within Joomla for team communitcations, for
now, this would only be available to those with backend authority.

Rich