Housekeeping note: Disqus has upgraded and it seems I cannot go back to the old version (that would be strike one).
I'm keeping an open mind about the new sytem, and am trying to modify it so it fits what we do and how we communicate. Let me know in the comments here if you notice anything that's completely off the wall bizarre?
Thanks. I hate forced upgrades. Dammit, Beavis.
I’ve heard good things about Washington state. Tons of rain to assist in growing things and for Sarah, near to the ocean.
We could turn it into a “Touch my NoNo” button. Instead of downvote I’m just being pervy! Wait… is that any better? Yes. NO! I don’t know.
And, if you click on someone’s name it allows you to view every post they’ve made on any blog that uses this system. Oh, I do not like this at all. I value my privacy and my anonymity on the internet. While I don’t comment that frequently, this little feature would probably send me back to full-time lurker mode.
Also agree that down-voting will stifle conversation and isn’t necessary here. Nor do I care for nested replies. Can you tell change is hard for me?
My two cents (and someone may have already mentioned it). I like the nested comments just because it makes reading conversations easier (at least until it gets so freaking small the comment is all of two cm wide). I also really like reading this chronologically so the top votes this is big turn off.
That said, if you click on the discussion dropdown, i was able to sort it by oldest first. It’d be cool if that was the default instead of ‘top comments’
There was a little “1” next to My Disqus and apparently someone replied to a comment i made days ago, so it was nice to be notified of that. I rarely go back to a page to review comments after I’ve done the initial read through.
Is it possible to downvote someone’s comment into oblivion? That I wouldnt like. If all of a sudden we are talking about an troll and the minions come over and start downvoting everyone’s comment until it disappears…
I got a buzz from the like too! And to me, “like” is different then up vote.
In this format we can still sort chronologically. If you click on discussion it give the options of “Top” “Newest” and “oldest”. I just set it directly to oldest first so I can follow the discussion as it naturally flows.
I clicked refresh and HATERAGEOMG!!! I hate all the changes. They’ve been mentioned before but:
1. I want a flat, chronological thread so I can tell when new comments have been added. (At the end of the thread, where they belong!) It helps with following the conversation. (Feels like NewDisqus wants to stilt conversation.)
2. I want numbered comments so as the thread grows I can find comment number 75 (where I left off the night before) and read the new ones.
3. I hate any up/downvoting. Comments are supposed to stay where they’re put. I’m trying to have/follow a conversation here, not a popularity contest.
4. Why do I have to scroll back up the page when I want to comment? As someone commented somewhere (I can’t say “upthread” now can I?) I’ll lose track of what I wanted to say.
It looks like the only positive change might be that clicking the “replying to SB Sarah” next to the commenter’s name will take me to the original comment that is being replied to.
I say KILL IT WITH FIRE! I’m going to curl up in bed and weep. I’d drink heavy but I don’t want to face the hangover on top of the Disqus headache.
I totally get that “move to a shanty” urge – which is why I deleted my personal Facebook account, don’t have a personal Twitter account, etc, etc. Only I wouldn’t move to Montana. Too cold for my Southern blood. ^___^
Lauren Willig and Ilona Andrews are two author sites I visit that have nested comments and they work fine, but this one does not facilitate discussion. It seems set up for derision, especially with the voting. I’m reminded of those awful political and sports comment threads on MSNBC, ESPN and CNN that become very nasty. I liked the former “liked” as it is much kinder and if I don’t have anything to add, but agree with a commenter I just clicked on it. There’s something dishonorable (to me) about the up/down voting. Updated Disqus doesn’t really seem to fit here at the Bitchery. The competition element is disturbing and the thread seems to lack cohesiveness and it’s not easy or enjoyable to follow. Och was a muddle!
And I still can’t edit when I screw up! What a muddle.
My 2¢: Hate the loss of privacy issue (altho you can opt out?). Hate the juvenile downvote button and ranked comments. Dislike the loss of numbered comments. Moderately dislike the comment box at top. Greatly like nested comments (see, I’m not all negative).
Not of fan of the threaded/nested comments or whatever you call them. I like when they are numbered so you can easily start reading only the new comments when a post is popular and you’ve already read the earlier ones. I also dislike the whole sign in with Twitter, Facebook, etc. I know I am in the minority, but I am not on any of those platforms. And even if I was, I would dislike being tracked across the internet everywhere I go. Maybe one doesn’t want their boss/BIL/etc knowing everything they do online. Also, I have commented less on this blog and others since Disqus was introduced as I find it to be a giant PITA.
Thanks for letting me know that! I agree – nested comments make it easier to follow tangents, but it’s difficult to see new comments unless you sort by new comments and then it’s hard to tell who is talking to whom about what.
I’m working on dropping the Disqus and going back to the native commenting software that comes with the CMS. That means we will have numbered commenting, RSS feeds, *possibly* subscribe to comments via email, but no “like” button. I liked the “like” button because it was a way for people who don’t/can’t comment to participate quietly, but I don’t want to have a “dislike/downvote” button – and I can’t have one without the other in Disqus. My other option would be to use Facebook commenting so there would be liking and whatnot, but the idea of using FB commenting makes me break out in hives.
Stay tuned for renovations. Hopefully everything will be better.
I agree exactly: new Disqus doesn’t fit the Bitchery. That was my first reaction as well.
LOLOL – I HEAR YOU! I’m going to switch it out with some help. No worries. I won’t force the new Disqus on you like an overzealous suitor who tells you what to say and how to say it.
I have indeed written back to Disqus and taken their survey about the new software, and explained all the things I wish I had that I no longer do – basically control over appearance, features and use.
I’m going to be switching out for the native commenting software, which is not as slick as Disqus but does have more control and a better match for how we all talk to one another. Thank you for letting me know your opinion! I really appreciate it.
it becomes difficult to follow the convo with the ranking –
Yeah- facebook commenting means no one can be anonymous anymore. Our local newspaper went to that and while the conversation is a bit more polite now, I rarely comment anymore on education issues because, as a teacher, I don’t necessarily want everyone to know what I am thinking. I do like the nested comments but other than that I prefer the old way of commenting.
It may just be that I am not used to it but it’s hard to see what has already been said. The few sites that I do post on use the form of posting that you formerly had. OTOH, I imagine that eventually we will all get used to it or ignore it. But, in general, it is annoying to have to scroll to the bottom to see what comments are already there.
Thanks for the link. It explained a lot about the features. It did not necessarily make me thrilled with everything but, then, we are going live with our EHR in three weeks and I am not thrilled with any new IT stuff right now.
That’s good to hear, thanks for the update!
I said somewhere else that NewDisqus incentivezes comments and de-incentivizes conversations. I think that’s the heart of my problem with the changes. I come here for the conversations about books that I like and, even if I’m not often a participant, I still enjoy the discussion.
No, no no please oh good lord, no FB commenting—for people like me, who don’t do facebook, it would mean abandoning the Bitchery. Please, not that.
Sorry, SB Sarah, I don’t like this new system at all. As someone who comments occasionally, the entire idea of “top commenters” makes me feel like I’m circling the school lunch room again, hoping someone will ask me to sit at their table. Down-voting adds more than a whiff of something unpleasant to what has always been an open and welcoming SBTB community.
Please don’t do the Facebook commenting!
Didn’t Disqus do that before? I could swear I remember clicking on someone’s name and having it come up with the comments broken down by site. Could have been a different system, maybe.
I’m another one in favor of nested replies. Makes things easier for me to keep track of. In the discussion tab, you can set it to Best, Newest, or Oldest, which I also like. Gives me a choice of seeing the posts from the oldest and read on, or I can just check out the newest comments first. Also, I don’t know if anyone else remembers, but the old school system had a members list with everyone arranged by number of comments.
Testing, testing
Urgh, don’t like this vote up and down vote thing – feels like high school
Hating the nested comments. Yesterday there were 63 comments when I last checked, today there are 69 and if I arrange by Newest only 3 new comments appear at the top. That means there are 3 other new comments that are nested somewhere in the thread and I would have to scroll thru and read every single one to find anything new. Sooo frustrating.
Seriously, I do NOT want this linked to facebook/social media/whatever. I have no problem providing a public email address. But I am not on facebook, google+, twitter, what-have-you. I do not want to be. You want to talk to me, email me via my website. And no, I do not want to register with Disqus. Please do not make this mandatory! I do not want to stop commenting here!
On a side note, I find the nested comments distracting and much prefer numbered chronological order, but I can deal with that if absolutely necessary.
Don’t worry – I’d never use Facebook. *shudder* I’m working on replacing the Disqus setup now, and will have new things here soon. Stay tuned!
So I have to say that now that I’ve figured out how to arrange the comments by Oldest or Newest instead of Best (by using the Discussion drop down menu), I hate this less than I did the other day. But I still don’t care for the up / down voting.
I too like nested comments. But something saying ‘this comment is new since you last loaded this page’ would be good.
Yes this! I’m not on Facebook, I refuse to. And while I don’t comment often, I like having the option of commenting if I want to. Facebook commenting would mean not being able to comment at all. That would be sad.