SmokingPipes Site Redesign

[cosmicfolklore]

Sykes may still be travelling. I know that he was out on a business trip last week.

Another difference is that in Estate Pipes, they used to be divided up into country of origins. Now you will have to look for the country category in the filters on the left hand side. I think that I like this better that the way it was before, because you were sort of forced to only look at one country's pipes at a time.

 

[jackets]

Sykes may still be travelling. I know that he was out on a business trip last week.

Another difference is that in Estate Pipes, they used to be divided up into country of origins. Now you will have to look for the country category in the filters on the left hand side. I think that I like this better that the way it was before, because you were sort of forced to only look at one country's pipes at a time.

It look like you can still view by country from the estate drop down. I used to navigate it the same way by selecting estate and perusing by country but this should save a couple of clicks vs using filters.

 

[cosmicfolklore]

It look like you can still view by country from the estate drop down. I used to navigate it the same way by selecting estate and perusing by country but this should save a couple of clicks vs using filters.

Oh yeh... Ok, that does make it easier if you wanted them divided. Thank you.

 

[Peterson314]

The benefit of the Finders over the Filters was that the Finders started a new session, searching the entire catalog. The Filters only worked (and still do) on the active selection. So, to replicate the Finders, you have to start at the top with New Pipes -> All New Pipes, and then you can use the filters. Click -> Menu -> Click when it used to be Click. Adding steps to the user interface for no benefit is the wrong direction, but at least the functionality is still available.

The new stock information from the *Fresh* functionality is gone.

My workflow for this website was to check the homepage, see immediately if SP's pipe stock was updated (0 clicks), and if it was, I could click on Fresh (1 click) and see if my favorite pipemakers added something new. This is now impossible.

Boo.

 

[ziv]

Fixed it for you

 

[fireground_piper]

The benefit of the Finders over the Filters was that the Finders started a new session, searching the entire catalog. The Filters only worked (and still do) on the active selection. So, to replicate the Finders, you have to start at the top with New Pipes -> All New Pipes, and then you can use the filters. Click -> Menu -> Click when it used to be Click. Adding steps to the user interface for no benefit is the wrong direction, but at least the functionality is still available.

The new stock information from the *Fresh* functionality is gone.

My workflow for this website was to check the homepage, see immediately if SP's pipe stock was updated (0 clicks), and if it was, I could click on Fresh (1 click) and see if my favorite pipemakers added something new. This is now impossible.

Boo.

I'm confused. Didn't it used to be click Tobacco -> tobacco finder....use the finder? Now it's click Tobacco -> All Pipe tobacco.....use the finder.

It's the same amount of clicks for me but maybe I'm missing something.

 

[litup]

The filtering is confusing at first. If you select "Estate Pipes" and then "Dunhill" as a brand, it returns a blank screen because (I guess) you're searching for an Estate and a "new pipe brand" at the same time which would be a null set. I feel like this is a UX mistake. If you select New or Estate, the site should somehow indicate which "drill down" filters are still available.

 

[Swiss Army Knife]

We need to organize and have them roll back to their best site design of all time.
View attachment 376162

I would unironically use a modern SmokingPipes screensaver.

I'm confused. Didn't it used to be click Tobacco -> tobacco finder....use the finder? Now it's click Tobacco -> All Pipe tobacco.....use the finder.

It's the same amount of clicks for me but maybe I'm missing something.

Pretty sure it used to be a button on the homepage that would take you straight to the pipe, tobacco or cigar finder.

 

[Peterson314]

Pretty sure it used to be a button on the homepage that would take you straight to the pipe, tobacco or cigar finder.

Yes, on every header on every page, there was: a Pipe icon for the Pipe Finder, a Tobacco Leaf icon for the Tobacco Finder, and a Cigar icon for the Cigar Finder.

 

[anotherbob]

It doesn't seem much different. I am sure there is a reason for it. The thing is we'll get used to it and that's when we can really tell if it's better or worse or whatever.

 

[Sig]

Huh, maybe my wife is right.
I made an order yesterday and didn't notice.

 

[georged]

A generation ago---and for a hundred and fifty years before that---if you wanted to shop for pipes or tobacco you climbed on a horse or got in your car, and went to a brick-and-mortar storefront business which sold them.

Small selection, and considerable effort was required (time, transportation expense, etc).

Today, the largest selection of pipes and tobacco available in one place on Planet Earth, along with thousands of pages of educational pipe and tobacco-related content, requires only finger-pushes to select from and purchase.

And what you buy will be brought to you. Literally dropped on your doorstep.




But the finger push sequence has CHANGED!!!

HOLY SHIT... THE FINGER PUSH SEQUENCE HAS CHANGED!!!!!!!!

Call 911, call out the National Guard, activate EWS, and sound the sirens!!!


THE FINGER PUSH SEQUENCE HAS CHANGED!!!!!!!!



The Monty Python crew would have rejected this situation as skit material because it was too unlikely.

 

[litup]

Sorry to have offended you George but some of us test web sites for a living and it's hard not to notice when things change for the worse or don't work as a user might expect to. But besides that, I would say that just because we have modern conveniences doesn't mean we lose the privilege to notice and write about changes in our lives.

 

[fireground_piper]

I would unironically use a modern SmokingPipes screensaver.


Pretty sure it used to be a button on the homepage that would take you straight to the pipe, tobacco or cigar finder.

Right, but the issue here seems to be it's not called "The X Locator" but instead is just nested within the estate/new/tobacco/cigar main product pages.

The only real difference is you are clicking on a link that says "All Pipe Tobacco", etc. to use the locator instead of clicking "The X Locator".

There's no extra steps and people seem to be upset that you aren't actually clicking a button that says "The X locator". If you go to the previously linked locator page and the "All New Pipes" page, they are the same thing other than their page heading.

 

[fireground_piper]

The filtering is confusing at first. If you select "Estate Pipes" and then "Dunhill" as a brand, it returns a blank screen because (I guess) you're searching for an Estate and a "new pipe brand" at the same time which would be a null set. I feel like this is a UX mistake. If you select New or Estate, the site should somehow indicate which "drill down" filters are still available.
View attachment 376202

Yes, that is pretty confusing. I wonder if that was previously the case or not.

 

[georged]

Sorry to have offended you George but some of us test web sites for a living and it's hard not to notice when things change for the worse or don't work as a user might expect to. But besides that, I would say that just because we have modern conveniences doesn't mean we lose the privilege to notice and write about changes in our lives.

You didn't offend me.

You made me laugh.

 

[litup]

You didn't offend me.

You made me laugh.

Please correct me if I'm misinterpreting your comments. Of course, I didn't actually offend you. You just think it's comical or ridiculous that anyone would have complaints about a pipe-related web site and they would complain about it on a pipe-related forum because it used to be much harder to buy pipes back in the day?

 

[georged]

Please correct me if I'm misinterpreting your comments. Of course, I didn't actually offend you. You just think it's comical or ridiculous that anyone would have complaints about a pipe-related web site and they would complain about it on a pipe-related forum because it used to be much harder to buy pipes back in the day?

Both comical and ridiculous.

Not because someone complained about a different series of keystrokes now being required to accomplish the same task on a website per se, but because they thought such a change was complaint worthy in the first place.

 

[Peterson314]

 

[Dave760]

Both comical and ridiculous.

Not because someone complained about a different series of keystrokes now being required to accomplish the same task on a website per se, but because they thought such a change was complaint worthy in the first place.

Ahhhh...the fallacy of relative privation. Something else was worse (a world in which cavemen had to track and kill the dangerous, wild Latakia beast) so we shouldn't ever complain about anything that isn't at least that bad.

The new site is bad compared to the old site. The font is terrible, functionality has been moved around for no good reason, and grey text on white is a horrible look (but so modern!). It's been changed for the sake of change, not to make it better in any way. This may be a modern, first world problem, but it turns out I'm a modern, first world person. So, yeah, I'm going to complain.

Now get off of my lawn!