DS Forums

 
 

Digital Spy ... this website!


Reply
Thread Tools Search this Thread
Old 02-01-2017, 13:46
SepangBlue
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Oct 2014
Posts: 1,519

I quite thought that we were going to have a whole new look DS with a new hosting company, lightning navigation facilities and everything. So now I find that absolutely nothing about this site has changed .. it's still tissocky as hell, very annoying to scroll through (won't always respond to the scroll wheel properly), sometimes freezes for a few seconds (press f5 to resolve), sometimes doesn't recognise letters you type into a post so you have to preview to try and get it to work properly. Every time you click another page or make a change to a post in progress, you have to wait a second or two to give it time to 'jump' down the page before becoming still again, and so on and on .. it's so wearing.

I can't be the only person who finds this the most un-user friendly forum on the internet (and I belong to several which are a joy to use). Come on Digital Spy, you promised so much but nothing seems to have happened!
SepangBlue is offline   Reply With Quote
Please sign in or register to remove this advertisement.
Old 02-01-2017, 13:48
Jaycee Dove
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Jul 2004
Posts: 16,670
They did update us about the trial run before Christmas and the proper update is coming.

Be patient. Hopefully a better site is on its way.

I am just happy it is going to continue.
Jaycee Dove is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-01-2017, 13:54
muggins14
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Aug 2010
Location: The Pit of Despair
Posts: 50,130
They did update us about the trial run before Christmas and the proper update is coming.

Be patient. Hopefully a better site is on its way.

I am just happy it is going to continue.
bib - so am I!!

There is a pinned announcement OP, about the update and what they have and haven't done so far.

I prefer DS in it's minimalist form myself - no like/dislike, images, videos, etc. but we are all aware of the various other problems such as the search and advertising slowing things down for those who still don't use an ad blocker.

I certainly don't experience all the jumping, etc. you describe though.
muggins14 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-01-2017, 13:59
Thine Wonk
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Mar 2009
Posts: 14,541
DS forums are already hosted on Amazon AWS, which is probably the best host in the world. The forum software is old and outdated which is presumably why they are doing the upgrade.

It sounds like the OP's issues are more PC / browser related, whilst the forums and especially the ads can be quite a big page load at times, any half decent PC shouldn't struggle and that certainly isn't my experience on my PC, iPad, even my Android phone.

How old is this PC OP, spec, browser used?
Thine Wonk is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-01-2017, 14:02
GusGus
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Nov 2016
Posts: 619
bib - so am I!!

There is a pinned announcement OP, about the update and what they have and haven't done so far.

I prefer DS in it's minimalist form myself - no like/dislike, images, videos, etc. but we are all aware of the various other problems such as the search and advertising slowing things down for those who still don't use an ad blocker.

I certainly don't experience all the jumping, etc. you describe though.
babble


I have similar problems to the OP but just on this site. Thought I was my old cheapo laptop but after investing in a slightly better upmarket one it is no better
Think I need a super laptop but am wary of the technobabble the sales people give out
and wasting money on a more expensive one
Perhaps posters who have no problems with DS could tell us if this is true, and what model laptop etc. they are using
GusGus is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-01-2017, 14:09
Thine Wonk
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Mar 2009
Posts: 14,541
Perhaps posters who have no problems with DS could tell us if this is true, and what model laptop etc. they are using
Asus NX500 core i7 12GB ram, core i7 2.3Ghz processor with Nvidia GTX850M running Chrome browser, no issues

Apple iPad pro works fine, no lag, no adblock, running Safari browser, no issues

LG V10 smartphone, no lag, no adblock, running Chrome browser, no issues

Macbook Air 2013 model, dual core i5, Chrome browser, no adblock, no issues
Thine Wonk is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-01-2017, 14:11
gds1972
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Feb 2007
Posts: 5,515
I quite thought that we were going to have a whole new look DS with a new hosting company, lightning navigation facilities and everything. So now I find that absolutely nothing about this site has changed .. it's still tissocky as hell, very annoying to scroll through (won't always respond to the scroll wheel properly), sometimes freezes for a few seconds (press f5 to resolve), sometimes doesn't recognise letters you type into a post so you have to preview to try and get it to work properly. Every time you click another page or make a change to a post in progress, you have to wait a second or two to give it time to 'jump' down the page before becoming still again, and so on and on .. it's so wearing.

I can't be the only person who finds this the most un-user friendly forum on the internet (and I belong to several which are a joy to use). Come on Digital Spy, you promised so much but nothing seems to have happened!
I have no issues with the forums as they are but if you think this is bad I could name another forum worse than this.
gds1972 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-01-2017, 14:14
d'@ve
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Oct 2003
Location: Darn Sarf
Posts: 28,725
I quite thought that we were going to have a whole new look DS with a new hosting company, lightning navigation facilities and everything. So now I find that absolutely nothing about this site has changed ..
Patience, grasshopper, good things come to those who wait.
d'@ve is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-01-2017, 14:51
zx50
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: County Durham
Posts: 78,614
The forums work okay for me. The forums were painfully slow one time last night when I tried visiting them but apart from that, everything's okay. I've not experienced any freezing of pages on here.
zx50 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-01-2017, 14:52
Thine Wonk
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Mar 2009
Posts: 14,541
I wonder if the OPs laptop has vtech printed below the screen?
Thine Wonk is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-01-2017, 14:55
flowerpowa
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: Playboy Mansion
Posts: 22,718
They did update us about the trial run before Christmas and the proper update is coming.

Be patient. Hopefully a better site is on its way.

I am just happy it is going to continue.
Me too!
flowerpowa is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-01-2017, 15:02
KarlSomething
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Feb 2011
Location: Norway
Posts: 3,398
I think it works fine as a forum. Something tells me the ads might be what're causing most of the problems. I remember being very annoyed the last time they made changes, but the main thing I remember about it was that floating navigation bar that wouldn't go away until it was scripted out manually.

I hate changes that are made for the sake of making changes, and for justifying someone's job or investment or whatever. If it already works, and you want to completely redo it, why not start a new site instead?

Or make the new interface an option that can be chosen, rather than something everyone has to use.
KarlSomething is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-01-2017, 15:06
Thine Wonk
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Mar 2009
Posts: 14,541
I think it works fine as a forum. Something tells me the ads might be what're causing most of the problems. I remember being very annoyed the last time they made changes, but the main thing I remember about it was that floating navigation bar that wouldn't go away until it was scripted out manually.

I hate changes that are made for the sake of making changes, and for justifying someone's job or investment or whatever. If it already works, and you want to completely redo it, why not start a new site instead?

Or make the new interface an option that can be chosen, rather than something everyone has to use.
You don't have to vote up or down posts though that's your choice, and being able to put videos and pictures in-line is a nice bonus, there may well be a setting in the profile area to disable in-line video and pictures and just to show the link.

I'm looking forward to the upgrade, it could bring more users to the forum and grow the userbase. Aside from the colours this forum hasn't changed for more than a decade, it is needing a refresh and some newer features.
Thine Wonk is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-01-2017, 15:13
BanglaRoad
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Aug 2014
Location: Stirling/Windsor/Overseas
Posts: 14,334
Never heard that word "tissocky" the OP Zused before.
BanglaRoad is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-01-2017, 15:25
Crooked Heart
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Apr 2015
Location: Swinging from the glitter ball
Posts: 1,895
Never heard that word "tissocky" the OP Zused before.
I've never heard of "zused"!
Crooked Heart is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-01-2017, 15:41
pearlsandplums
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Nov 2009
Posts: 2,490
I think the people that run ds should be ashamed old themselves. Most articles are badly written drivel. I d9nt understand why you'd want to aim your site at morons. A load of tweets is not an article. Omg ronnie died and we are getting all the feels
pearlsandplums is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-01-2017, 15:47
David (2)
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Mar 2003
Location: S.West England.
Posts: 18,032
Currently the forums are working quite well.
My PC is 4+ years old, win7 (64bit), one of the first 64bit i5 processors, with the ram upgraded from 4 to 8gb. I mostly use IE on that, and it actually runs the forums very quickly (as long as my system isn't doing a backup at the same time). No ad blockers.

But these days I mostly use the iPad. I think this is s 3rd gen mini with Retina display. Working fine on iOS 9, with the standard browser, no ad blocker. If anything the PC is a bit faster at navigation, and typing on the PC keyboard is superior to the iPad (although it's good for a touch screen).

DS does go through periods of problems, like the one in 2016 where is was virtually unusable for a while. There was also a period where it was off line due to cyber attacks on some of the ISPs.
David (2) is offline Follow this poster on Twitter   Reply With Quote
Old 02-01-2017, 16:22
Thine Wonk
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Mar 2009
Posts: 14,541
I wonder if it's just as simple as the browser, have you tried another OP? Any news on the machine being used?
Thine Wonk is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-01-2017, 16:44
SepangBlue
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Oct 2014
Posts: 1,519
I wonder if it's just as simple as the browser, have you tried another OP? Any news on the machine being used?
Thanks for your interest, TW. I only have the one desktop PC, i.e. no laptop, tablet or smart device.

My PC, which is 2½ years old, has the following specification:

Processor: Intel® Core™ i7-4790 Processor (3.6 GHz, 8 MB cache)
RAM: 16 GB DDR3
Graphics card: AMD Radeon R9 270 (2 GB GDDR5)
Storage: 3 TB HDD, 7200 rpm
Motherboard: Intel Z87

My OS is Windows 8.1 64bit. I use IE 11, set to install new versions automatically (it's currently showing v. 11.0.9600.18538). I tried chrome once but I hated the interface so reverted to regular IE, which has been perfectly adequate for absolutely everything I do. The pop-up blocker is set to 'on'. The router is connected to my PC with an Ethernet cable.

If there's anything about the above spec which you feel might be the cause of the problems I have with the DS site (and, I remind you, only the DS site) then I'll be pleased to hear from you again.
SepangBlue is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-01-2017, 16:49
Thine Wonk
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Mar 2009
Posts: 14,541
Hi Thine Wonk ... thanks for your interest. I only have a desktop PC, i.e. no laptop, tablet or smart device. Info re my PC is as follows:

Processor:Intel® Core™ i7-4790 Processor (3.6 GHz, 8 MB cache)
RAM 16 GB DDR3
Graphics card AMD Radeon R9 270 (2 GB GDDR5)
Storage 3 TB HDD, 7200 rpm
Motherboard Intel Z87
Well it's not that then, have you tried different browsers? which one are you currently using. Maybe it's a plugin or extension.
Thine Wonk is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-01-2017, 16:51
Avidian
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Dec 2012
Posts: 3,334
I quite thought that we were going to have a whole new look DS with a new hosting company, lightning navigation facilities and everything. So now I find that absolutely nothing about this site has changed .. it's still tissocky as hell, very annoying to scroll through (won't always respond to the scroll wheel properly), sometimes freezes for a few seconds (press f5 to resolve), sometimes doesn't recognise letters you type into a post so you have to preview to try and get it to work properly. Every time you click another page or make a change to a post in progress, you have to wait a second or two to give it time to 'jump' down the page before becoming still again, and so on and on .. it's so wearing.

I can't be the only person who finds this the most un-user friendly forum on the internet (and I belong to several which are a joy to use). Come on Digital Spy, you promised so much but nothing seems to have happened!
DS haven't really been very forthcoming with their plans to migrate to a new platform and system. From what I've read, there was a three stage (possibly cunning) plan. The first stage of the migration was done offline to see how long the data scrape might take using a recent older backup. Then they stopped everything to do an enormous dump a few weeks ago...but not everything came out right...so they're going to do another smaller...fresh dump in the new year, after which everything should be better
Avidian is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-01-2017, 17:04
SepangBlue
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Oct 2014
Posts: 1,519
Well it's not that then, have you tried different browsers? which one are you currently using. Maybe it's a plugin or extension.
There seems to have been a strange double posting going on here. I hadn't finished my reply to you before it all went off on its own. I went in again on the edit button, but in the meantime it had become an immovable fixture. Answers to your other questions are included in the longer reply. Sorry for any confusion!
SepangBlue is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-01-2017, 17:12
Thine Wonk
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Mar 2009
Posts: 14,541
There seems to have been a strange double posting going on here. I hadn't finished my reply to you before it all went off on its own. I went in again on the edit button, but in the meantime it had become an immovable fixture. Answers to your other questions are included in the longer reply. Sorry for any confusion!
IE isn't very popular these days, it would at least be worth seeing if the issue happens with an alternative browser for testing purposes as it could just be a problem with IE. The google Chrome browser has a 50% share of the browser market despite Windows machines typically coming with IE, it accounts for 10% of browsing usage.

It just takes a week or so to get used to a new browser that's all, and I suspect these problems may not exist with a decent browser.
Thine Wonk is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-01-2017, 18:57
SepangBlue
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Oct 2014
Posts: 1,519
IE isn't very popular these days, it would at least be worth seeing if the issue happens with an alternative browser for testing purposes as it could just be a problem with IE. The google Chrome browser has a 50% share of the browser market despite Windows machines typically coming with IE, it accounts for 10% of browsing usage.

It just takes a week or so to get used to a new browser that's all, and I suspect these problems may not exist with a decent browser.
Thanks TW, but I'm reluctant to change things as they stand since the issues I refer to only affect DS; no other website or forum plays up like DS does! Thanks anyway for your input.
SepangBlue is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-01-2017, 19:12
abarthman
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Feb 2009
Location: Edinburgh
Posts: 7,820
Will the new regime sort out the search function, I wonder?

I can just about remember when it used to work.

Now, when you post on a thread, it just disappears and you don't get a chance to reply to other posters.
abarthman is offline   Reply With Quote
 
Reply




 
Forum Jump


All times are GMT. The time now is 18:36.