A suggestion for the "All lessons" page

Feel free to get outside the box here.
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neverfoundthetime
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Thu Feb 21, 2013 3:23 pm

...and searching for Feeling Groovy (The top right search, not the search on the lessons page) brings us back to the beginning... :laugh: So YouTube is the best bet!

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michelew
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Thu Feb 21, 2013 3:38 pm

suziko wrote:
Like I said in my first post, I do think the new look is "tidier" but that doesn't necessarily mean it's better. You still have an extremely long list of names to scroll down through just as before. Granted, it's not as long, but it's still long. But now all the lessons are hidden, so if you just want to browse through the lessons to see what's available, you'd have to physically click on every one of those categories. As much as I didn't love scrolling through all the lessons before, I did like that there was an easy way to see what songs were available through the Target program. It was actually something I'd do on a semi-regular basis: scroll down and make a list of the songs that I haven't yet tackled but want to.

Again, my nature is to want to be enthusiastic and supportive and I feel uncomfortable being the "griper" in this thread. But we all know that the search functionality and the layout of the All Lessons page has been an issue that needs dealing with for a long time. A lot of feedback has been given to The Powers That Be, asking them to make this aspect more user-friendly. My concern is that instead of the issue being addressed holistically, all we're going to get is a superficial "improvement."

And I have to agree with Ness that the search functionality rarely works well for me. Let me give you another example. Recently I wanted to refresh my memory on how to play "Feelin' Groovy." I remembered that Al had posted a video of himself playing it, and wanted to check out what he did. So first I went to the "Target Student Reviews" page and sorted by both "Al" and "Acoustical" (two choices for him). Nope, not there. So I try searching for "Feelin' Groovy Acoustical" in the Forum. No. Maybe if I type the same thing into the search box above "Master Menu?" No. At this point I get fed up and go to YouTube and search for the same thing and it comes up as the 2nd choice. I have no idea why I can't find it here. Maybe it was posted to the forum and no longer exists in the forum. But it happens time and again that I just can't find things on the site that I know exist- or existed at one point. And, again, I've been here for 3 years! How do newbies feel?

I love TG and I've learned so much during the time I've been here. Neil is a top-notch instructor, and whenever I look around at other instructors online, I'm always reminded of how excellent he is. Also, the quality of the materials we get with our lessons is great. But this aspect of the site- the search functionality and the layout- is embarrassingly bad. If TG were a new site, it would be forgivable. But at this point?
All good points Sue. And I hadn't thought about scrolling through to see the songs you'd like to work on. I do that too. I guess we've been scrolling up and down the list for soooo long that some of us were relieved that it's shorter now... But as you say that means we've lost functionality too.


I also often can't find things when searching often. Sometimes it's because the thing is over a year old and the automatic filter of 'a year ago and newer' is on. I can sometimes find the thing I'm looking for once I used the 'a year ago and older' filter instead. You might find Al's video on this occasion if you try that. Good luck.

And thanks for your persistence in requesting that the menu be improved in a substantial way. That's good for all of us.

Shel


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auntlynnie
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Mon Feb 25, 2013 9:28 pm

Methinks I opened a can of worms?


thereshopeyet
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Tue Feb 26, 2013 1:49 am

Lynn

You did for sure open a can of worms... :laugh: :laugh:
the topic has come up a few times now, thanks for adding more fuel :laugh: :laugh:

I can't believe it's worse.
At first glance the changes look nice and tidy but it's hopeless.

I notice that the top right search criteria box has been eaten by the worms :dry: .
Although not great it was better than not at all!

Funnily Lynn after watching your excellent rendition of Billies Blues you uploaded, I decided to
search the Master Menu for Billies Blues.

The only tip off how I could find it was because you had mentioned Neils? in the forum subject.
It comes under Neils Instrumentals..... I wouldn't have found it without your clue..... ;) !!!!

I've played about with the changes and don't care much for them.
If I can't find anything I'm just going to post support a ticket!

:S :S
:woohoo:



tovo
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Tue Feb 26, 2013 3:01 am

auntlynnie wrote:
Methinks I opened a can of worms?
What are cans of worms for if not to be opened? I can also see the shortcomings of the menu and like Shel I initially thought it was greatly improved.

This is a paid site and members have a right to point out where things could be improved. In the end it helps everyone including those who aren't even members yet!

I'm sure the software dudes who work on this take respectful comments in the way they are intended. I don't think anyone should shy away from pointing out weaknesses.


Chasplaya
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Tue Feb 26, 2013 4:56 am

Haha, you sure did!! :laugh: :laugh:

But really, it hád to be opened again!!! ;)

auntlynnie wrote:
Methinks I opened a can of worms?


TGMike
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Tue Feb 26, 2013 12:15 pm

Hi Everyone,

We appreciate all of the feedback whether it is praise or criticism. We just put the search box back on the upper right of the Master Menu. That was not intentional! Sorry about that. We will continue to work on this and find the best balance overall. Not sure we can make it 100% perfect for everyone as we all have different personal preferences but I will keep an eye on this to find a great happy median.

Thanks,
Mike


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neverfoundthetime
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Tue Feb 26, 2013 1:30 pm

auntlynnie wrote:
Methinks I opened a can of worms?
Causing trouble already Lynn? Looks like you'll fit right in! :woohoo:
We'll make a TG Pirate out of you yet.


unclewalt
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Tue Feb 26, 2013 2:40 pm

One thing that might help (assuming it wasn't brought up earlier) is the relatively little-known Google site search, which is often far superior to a site's own search function. I just tried using this site's lesson search to find "Ain't No Sunshine," and got no results. But the following Google site search brought up exactly what I was looking for. Just go to Google and type in (including the quotation marks):

"ain't no sunshine" site:totallyguitars.com


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neverfoundthetime
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Tue Feb 26, 2013 2:42 pm

Yep, that's powerful.... good suggestion Walt!


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