UPDATE - Attn mobile users - Help me make this site better!

So that we can provide faster and better support, this forum (the "Public Suggestion Box") has been retired. Instead, please send any suggestions you have to us using the official website contact form.

This allows us to streamline our support system so that we can get to your message much faster. Instead of our support staff having to check three different places (support forum, suggestion box, and contact form messages), they know can respond to all message through one method, with that one method being the official website contact form.

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rssllue
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Re: Attention mobile users - Help me make this site better!

Post by rssllue »

I have nothing as of yet to complain about while using my tablet on here, pretty much exclusively, but I will work on figuring out something that bothers me. After all, I do all I can to be helpful! ;) :D
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Post by Scott »

cherrydumas wrote:The iPhone seems to be ok for the most part...I have not run into any issues as far as posts malfunctioning, or the forums/website malfunctioning. However, I think a more mobile website would be good in the regards of possibly putting the key features in more accessible locations...because you so have to do quite a bit of scrolling to get anywhere. However, some mistakes that some mobile websites have, that I have found, is putting too many menus that you have to click to find where you want to go.
Fair enough. Which key features would you like on a mobile version of the site?
cherrydumas wrote:The Nook has a few other issues that I have found. The site is quite small, as it displays it as a computer would. If you put the Nook on landscape, it helps a bit, but it also makes links malfunction as sometimes the labels overlap each other.
Which links?
cherrydumas wrote:As far as posting...this is where the real problem lies. When you put in any of the emoticons by clicking on them, it sends you to the top of the post ad you have to scroll back to where you where. However, if the post is long enough that it starts moving the box, if you get moved from where the last typed character is, you cannot get back to it. it just makes the screen jump if you try to click or move the cursor down and so you cannot get to where you were. does that make sense? I have not noticed any other issues...hopefully that is it. :smile:
That is strange. I will try to uncover and correct the underlying issue.

Natash_zmch wrote:I think the best thing and easiest thing to make the mobile website better is to simply make an app which is specifically for use on a mobile or tablet like once I joined the website the first thing I did was to see if you have an app in the App Store but you don't not only will having an app be easier but it also means that when you are typing a reply you do not have to continuously zoom in and out so that the writing isn't too small or the button isn't too big. I use an iPhone and Have iOS 7 the latest one on Apple
An app is one option. Another option is make a special mobile version of the site that is automatically delivered to small, mobile screens.

-- 21 Jan 2015 05:38 pm --
sybil1reader wrote:I also use a Kindle and I have not been able to get to the bookclub for about a month now. This is the message that I get: Gone The requested / source is no longer available on this server and there is no forwarding address. Please remove all references to this resource. Additionally, a 500 Internal Server Error was encountered while trying to use an ErrorDocument to handle thi request. I had the website in my favorites so I re-entered it and got the same message. Strangely when I get an email saying that my review page has been updated I can get to my review page, but when I try to navigate from there I get the above message again. Hope this helps. I miss using my Kindle for the club!
Was this ever fixed for you?
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Post by colorsofvegasx »

Maybe an app in the future? It is really hard to use from a smartphone
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Post by Scott »

colorsofvegasx wrote:Maybe an app in the future? It is really hard to use from a smartphone
I am thinking of adding a very lightweight mobile version of the forums.
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Post by Night reader »

Hey I'm a couple weeks old on this site and I love it. I occasionally access this site on my iphone (apple) and I would like an app. An app would be a great solution for all our problems. It would enable us to type reviews easily when we are on the go instead of going to a computer or a laptop. The user interface would have to compatible on most smartphones to enable the best usage for everyone. Readers can constantly stay in touch with the forums wherever the may go. The only downside to this idea is that money must be used to create an app like that. To make profit or stay even with our spending we would either have to make it a paid app or load the app up with ads. It is worth considering so please let me know what you think.
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Post by reubenkey »

DroidRazrM. I just typed in and submitted a detailed suggestion on how to make this better based on my efforts to post. Upon tapping submit, I was kicked back to log-in again. I did. Then I figured I better check to see if my comment posted. It did not.
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Post by Scott »

reubenkey wrote:DroidRazrM. I just typed in and submitted a detailed suggestion on how to make this better based on my efforts to post. Upon tapping submit, I was kicked back to log-in again. I did. Then I figured I better check to see if my comment posted. It did not.
That's as ironic as it is unfortunate.

I think I will make a mobile version of the forums.
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"Non ignara mali miseris succurrere disco." Virgil, The Aeneid
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Post by TLGabelman »

Scott wrote: I think I will make a mobile version of the forums.
Well, I know what Ill be doing in carpool lane now! Plus reading of course....
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Post by L Brox »

I like the idea of an app.

I tend to only be able to really check forums and posts properly while I am in work stuck at my PC.
Supreme excellence consists of breaking the enemy's resistance without fighting.
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Post by reubenkey »

Scott, that is an accurate assessment of my first attempt to use and enjoy this site. My post that did not make it thru was addressing the particular issues that I felt many new members could have trouble with upon having completed registration. The main thing is that I was looking for how/where to post a comment. There should be either be an option at the top to post a comment instead of having to look around trying to figure it out. Or at the least somewhere at the top of a topic/forum that says, "Hey! Guess what? If you want to post a comment, you have to manually scroll through every comment made on this to find the Quick Reply area." and then show Nelson from The Simpsons pointing back at us with his standard caption of "Hah-Hah!!!!!". I kept searching because I want to read books and get to review them from my perspective. I also took my time continuing my search for the elusive comment box because I'm taking medications to counteract the symptoms of this awfully painful flu that snuck past my immune defenses. They made me have too much energy in the wee hours. Oh yes, back to my point.... If I would guess there have been more than a few who just never stumbled onto the idea that they needed to swim thru the thread of comments in order to make one. I am not a professional, but I do love reading and the reviews of books are sometimes quite interesting in themselves. Thank you for the reply. I posted a comment or two in other areas and received replies on them as well. I'm really starting to like this site! I have not tried to review books on any other sites, so I am new to the process of how the books are assigned. I look forward to being a reviewer. Hopefully, I'll get books in SciFi/Fantasy, Horror, Mystery/Thrillers, Paranormal.... But I digress. Post Comment/Quick Reply box would better serve newly registered members and there are likely many other members who would rather have it there as well.

-- 28 Jan 2015, 13:45 --

I agree with L Brox that an app for this site would be great! Following a link is OK and all, but an App would really get this to a broader viewing audience. I look at apps almost every day just to see if there's an app for something I've thought of. Oddly enough, I never searched the appstore for book reviewing. I went straight to the googlebar. Curious.....
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Post by Scott »

I'm still thinking I would rather do a mobile version of the site instead of just doing an app.

What interests me a lot is the thought of creating smartphone app that provides notifications of subscribed topics and PM messages, but still opens up the actual topics in the internet browser. I suppose to many users this may potentially seem like the same thing.

***
reubenkey, incidentally there is a post reply button at the top as well. It probably needs to be bigger on mobile devices.
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Post by ALynnPowers »

I think the biggest thing for me when using this site on my mobile is the size of the print. Of course I can zoom in, but then having to scroll right and then back left to read the posts is kind of troublesome. If the mobile version allowed for all of the posts to adjust to fit the width of the screen, that would be awesome.
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Post by Scott »

ALynnPowers wrote:I think the biggest thing for me when using this site on my mobile is the size of the print. Of course I can zoom in, but then having to scroll right and then back left to read the posts is kind of troublesome. If the mobile version allowed for all of the posts to adjust to fit the width of the screen, that would be awesome.
I am going to have a mobile version of the forums. However, that will apply to the forums, not some other parts of the site (such as the review team and the main homepage). If you get a chance, please try looking at these pages on your mobile device:

http://onlinebookclub.org/

http://onlinebookclub.org/most-popular-forum-topics.php

http://onlinebookclub.org/reviews/

And let me know how they look on your mobile device.
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Post by ALynnPowers »

Scott wrote:
ALynnPowers wrote:I think the biggest thing for me when using this site on my mobile is the size of the print. Of course I can zoom in, but then having to scroll right and then back left to read the posts is kind of troublesome. If the mobile version allowed for all of the posts to adjust to fit the width of the screen, that would be awesome.
I am going to have a mobile version of the forums. However, that will apply to the forums, not some other parts of the site (such as the review team and the main homepage). If you get a chance, please try looking at these pages on your mobile device:

http://onlinebookclub.org/

http://onlinebookclub.org/most-popular-forum-topics.php

http://onlinebookclub.org/reviews/

And let me know how they look on your mobile device.
So far, those three look pretty awesome! I don't have to scroll right/left at all. Much easier to read and navigate.

Here is a screen shot!
Image

If I had to nitpick about anything, it would be that the banner at the top and that BOTM banner beneath it are the same size, and attempting to click on any of those links (to the forums, bookshelves, etc.) usually results in me clicking the wrong one (it used to always be the "logout" button, but fortunately, that's not an option anymore) or hitting the BOTM banner instead... I can always zoom in, I guess ;)
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Post by Scott »

ALynnPowers wrote:Here is a screen shot!
Image

If I had to nitpick about anything, it would be that the banner at the top and that BOTM banner beneath it are the same size, and attempting to click on any of those links (to the forums, bookshelves, etc.) usually results in me clicking the wrong one (it used to always be the "logout" button, but fortunately, that's not an option anymore) or hitting the BOTM banner instead... I can always zoom in, I guess ;)
Thanks for the feedback. I have made a slight adjustment to the way the header displays in mobile browsers per your feedback. Namely, I made the header links bigger and more spaced out. Please check and let me know if you are still having that problem.

-- 01 Apr 2015 08:35 pm --

UPDATE - April 1, 2015 - I have implemented a mobile template to the site. It should automatically detect whether you are using a mobile device or not. By that, I mean if you access the forums from a mobile device you should be shown the mobile version and if you access the forums using a non-mobile device you will be shown the regular version. However, there will also be links in the footer to switch back and forth from the mobile version or the desktop.

Please also note that theme only affects the forums. The other parts of the site (with the sidebar in the desktop version) use a different template and already have mobile vs. non-mobile version.
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