very well done for a much improved update

Here here.

Was fed up of the extremely distracting video when trying to read the news and sport. Now it is back to being much more like the old ceefax service with the full page news which us North West Englanders lost in late 2009 when analogue was turned off.

Freeview has this update as well - a big improvement.

It hasn't changed on Sky yet but the articles are formatted for the new full screen layout, meaning they're spread across 3 pages with just a single line or two on the third.

They've always appeared that way on DTT prior to this new layout.

We still have the quarter screen on Freeview for articles on the Help page 9990 and CBBC extra page 570: it's unclear as to whether this is going to change.

Interestingly, some posters to the Points of View "The BBC" messageboard are saying they preferred the quarter screen formatting and would like it back.

I do feel for BBC Red Button: they can't please all of the people all of the time ...

Indeed - there have been DS posters who have remarked upon the awkward quarter-screen formatting leading to one or two sentences per page, or the video being too distracting.

Damned if they do, damned if they don't.

I agree, it's a vast improvement, especially the news section. I like how it's now broken down into each region.

See also http://forums.digitalspy.co.uk/showthread.php?t=1740993 and http://forums.digitalspy.co.uk/showthread.php?t=1795867

BBC announces it is to close the Archers message board and two 6 Music message boards on February 25.

www.bbc.co.uk/ariel

As a broadcaster, the BBC should be leaving message boards & forums to external sites, rather than diverting scare resource and budgets policing & maintaining them.

If the BBC stays as a broadcaster then it will get left behind. If it had stayed as it was in the last century it would still be just a radio broadcaster (or more likely have been wound up by now). It should and does change with the times and be as fully involved with modern media presentation as it can within the limits of funding and its charter.

Hence its use of Twitter, Facebook email and other more cost-effective means of communication (resources which are generally provided and maintained externally). Messageboards (as distinct from the more structured forums) belong in the past.

Still, it looks as though Read Hear on Red Button Text is heading for a reprieve and Write Hear will return soon.

My wife has been complaining that she cannot read the text now as easily as it is smaller and there is more on the screen, maybe fine for folks with good eyesight but she now has to put her glasses on to read it. I'm sure it's not an improvement for those with less than 20/20 vision.

Stuart

Stuart, please do think of contacting the BBC directly with this observation as they need to know.

Now this could be me, but to my eyes (not perfect by any means) and to the best of my recollection (again necessarily perfect) the text size on Freeview appears unchanged. But that does not mean that your wife is wrong (wives never are anyway )

Time to get the Tape Measure out NB Screen sizes vary.

Page 160 has all the local news areas. When I choose North West, as I live in Cheshire, I get the option of Liverpool, Manchester, Cumbria and Lancashire.

Now I know not much happens in Cheshire, but if it did, where exactly would that news appear? Surely they need a 'rest of the North West' option as well.

The options are based on BBC local radio area. As Cheshire famously hasn't got one - if you're in Crewe it'll be under West Midlands - under Stoke and Staffordshire. If you're in Chester, go to Liverpool and if you're in Macclesfield go to Manchester. Think it's a shame Cheshire hasn't got a better a service though.

I thought the BBC had announced they was discontiuneing it from 2013 or am i dreaming it.

I prefer it, too.

i also like the shares section where they state 12 months high and twelve months low prices hope the future is not too many lows triple dip recession etc

I really like the new system, especially the choice on page 160, being able to choose to read news from Birmingham and the Black Country is great as under the old format, it was mainly news from Shropshire that was shown. Now all that needs to come back is Read Hear.

Not so keen on the blue text though, find it can be quite hard to read.

Read Hear was back on Freeview last nightwith , albeit not as much content as before: on Freeview to find it, you had to go News 102>Community News>Read Hear as 1050 and 1040 direct dialling is not available at the moment.