Announcement from TN/TB gods' supervisor

[eightangryreindeer]

May 14, 2012 14:55:17 GMT -5 upnorthgal said:

Sounds like they offshored their IT because, after all, it costs less! Hmm, I bet that doesn't seem like such a good deal now. I wonder how much traffic the boards brought and how the mass exodus will affect their ad rates...

OT AW: Woo-hoo this is my first post on the new board ;D

(now my 2nd since I had to correct my spelling, bwahahaha)

Your assumption that outsourcing IT functions = inferior product is seriously flawed. I've worked with plenty of talented Indian developers, and some not so talented.

[ESF]

May 14, 2012 14:18:27 GMT -5 asdfjkl said:

Honestly, I think it's astounding that it's been four days since the roll out and it hasn't been fixed yet.

Exactly. The Nest/Knot/Bump is an online business. If Target launches a new site resign and it's all FUBAR, it would be annoying but understandable if they take a few days to fix/redesign etc, because Target's main business is operating actual stores, and online shopping is just one part of what they do.

WTF else does the Nest do besides, you know, operate the fucking Nest?

[dev22]

May 14, 2012 15:13:43 GMT -5 ESF said:

May 14, 2012 14:18:27 GMT -5 asdfjkl said:

Honestly, I think it's astounding that it's been four days since the roll out and it hasn't been fixed yet.

Exactly. The Nest/Knot/Bump is an online business. If Target launches a new site resign and it's all FUBAR, it would be annoying but understandable if they take a few days to fix/redesign etc, because Target's main business is operating actual stores, and online shopping is just one part of what they do.

WTF else does the Nest do besides, you know, operate the fucking Nest?

Well, come up with 10 party ideas for Memorial Day of course.

[Deleted]

May 14, 2012 15:13:43 GMT -5 ESF said:

May 14, 2012 14:18:27 GMT -5 asdfjkl said:

Honestly, I think it's astounding that it's been four days since the roll out and it hasn't been fixed yet.

Exactly. The Nest/Knot/Bump is an online business. If Target launches a new site resign and it's all FUBAR, it would be annoying but understandable if they take a few days to fix/redesign etc, because Target's main business is operating actual stores, and online shopping is just one part of what they do.

WTF else does the Nest do besides, you know, operate the fucking Nest?

This is why I find the idea of them outsourcing their IT so fucking hilarious. You're a WEBSITE. But you don't have your own IT? That's like my starting up a law firm and then deciding I'm going to outsource all the lawyering. WTF?

[secretlyevil]

May 14, 2012 14:47:22 GMT -5 pixy0stix said:

Irony? I posted this message on TN P&CE and it disappeared. ::lays head on desk:: I'm so done.

;D

[secretlyevil]

May 14, 2012 15:00:21 GMT -5 debatethis said:

here's the rules on Penny Arcade (I think they'd fit in great over here, but that's a topic for another thread):
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1. Really

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Love it!

[sprky79]

They haven't responded to my message from Wednesday.
And really, its time for them to take the public flogging, and post this beyond moderator boards

[UMaineTeach]

May 14, 2012 14:54:50 GMT -5 pixy0stix said:

May 14, 2012 14:52:57 GMT -5 meshaliuknits said:

What the what? Is there a story here? Or did it just implode when everything else did?

It just disappeared during the change and wasn't put back. They told everyone to use the TB mod board.

weren't they afraid that TN mods would ruin things for 'regular bump mod board posters"

[Deleted]

May 14, 2012 15:31:10 GMT -5 mr+ms said:

May 14, 2012 14:37:11 GMT -5 @missusbee said:

I asked my H about this, since the message board ads were mostly internal. He says that the amount of traffic to the boards, even if they were never directed through the homepage, were crucial to website statistics that attract ad revenue. Your overall volume of users makes you appealing to advertisers. H said that this blunder would be suicidal to ad revenue.

Meh, suicidal is a bit dramatic, imo. I predict that this sucks for them temporarily but they'll be fine. I'm sort of amused by how riled up everyone is over this. It's not like anyone was paying to use their message boards. It was a free service; you trade your email address for a chance to spew on their site.

Anyway, I personally prefer it here anyway because it looks more like I'm doing work while goofing around

H is an executive in internet advertising--I value his opinion on this because he knows how integral the board traffic was to ad revenue.

[brookles]

May 14, 2012 15:35:51 GMT -5 @missusbee said:

May 14, 2012 15:31:10 GMT -5 mr+ms said:

Meh, suicidal is a bit dramatic, imo. I predict that this sucks for them temporarily but they'll be fine. I'm sort of amused by how riled up everyone is over this. It's not like anyone was paying to use their message boards. It was a free service; you trade your email address for a chance to spew on their site.

Anyway, I personally prefer it here anyway because it looks more like I'm doing work while goofing around

H is an executive in internet advertising--I value his opinion on this because he knows how integral the board traffic was to ad revenue.

Yep. I'm no exec but I do work in internet advertising/ecomm. If page views/impressions are down that much, it's very bad for the nest. They sell their ad space based on this information, so ad revenue will drop if the downward trend continues.

[jeepdoll]

What I don't understand is the exact same format change was done on THE KNOT a year ago! Shouldn't the outsourced vendor remember all of the changes they had to do to prevent the issues that happened on the local boards and now on the National boards? Learn from their mistakes? Or are they really that stupid (the Nest and the vendor) to roll out something without addressing any of the issues beforehand.

I will admit I don't know much about message board formatting, but when something like ProBoards already has a better format than this outsourced vendor, shame on the Nest for not researching their vendor well enough before offering them the job.

And I missed the Wiki edit... seems to have been edited out again.

Boo.

[Deleted]

May 14, 2012 15:57:42 GMT -5 brookles said:

May 14, 2012 15:35:51 GMT -5 @missusbee said:

H is an executive in internet advertising--I value his opinion on this because he knows how integral the board traffic was to ad revenue.

Yep. I'm no exec but I do work in internet advertising/ecomm. If page views/impressions are down that much, it's very bad for the nest. They sell their ad space based on this information, so ad revenue will drop if the downward trend continues.

That's exactly what H said.

[pixy0stix]

May 14, 2012 15:58:46 GMT -5 jeepdoll said:

What I don't understand is the exact same format change was done on THE KNOT a year ago!

I think part of it is that the TK clients are transient. Most of them don't know any other forum formatting, and those that did migrated to TN when the changes occurred. Once they're through with their wedding they stick around for a few months hoping to become wedding planners, then fade away.

Their (TN/TB's) client base is not transient. They want us to stick around after we're married, create a community, have babies. So a lot of use have been around for years. Throw in a completely unworkable change and anarchy ensues.

[womet]

May 14, 2012 14:57:42 GMT -5 y4m said:

May 14, 2012 14:47:22 GMT -5 pixy0stix said:

Irony? I posted this message on TN P&CE and it disappeared. ::lays head on desk:: I'm so done.

This is classic!

I think this is the best part. They have fucked themselves over by having a shitty message board and not listening to us, their customers, when we had complaints/suggestions.

PS- I love being able to curse here when I get mad. :Y:

[LauraMoser]

I don't get it. DH works in IT and his company would be facing major consequences if they rolled out a platform they knee wouldn't work. Who is this third party running the boards? They seriously suck. And the nest sucks for agreeing to allow the rollout of the non functioning boards.

[IIOY]

I'll repeat what I said in an MM thread over the weekend, but I really do find the Nest's reaction to all of this fascinating. I appreciate that some of the folks who work on the boards probably don't believe the company line they are being asked to tow, but I can only wonder at the culture of a website that regards a failed upgrade as normal and a mass exodus of users in response to said failure as evidence of petulance.

[secretlyevil]

From a PR stand point, make love not war and all that, they suck big donkey balls, however, the next group of engaged bebes, etc. aren't going to know any different and therefore, TK/N/B, should be able to recoup their traffic numbers. In reality, they lost a lot of old timers for awhile (let's be real - it's still up in the air), the messages boards still don't work worth shit and are slow so keeping the newbies is highly unlikely.

Especially if those of the mass exodus continue to post links to proboards.

[marie427]

I blame the non-IT people at TN (in other words, everyone) for believing this bullshit being spewed by their third-party vendor that the conversion will work wonders despite evidence of the contrary via the local board conversion. It's like they're guests on Maury because their SOs are cheating douchebags but they are totes gonna change this time around!!!!!

[marynjoe]

May 14, 2012 16:24:18 GMT -5 IIOY said:

I'll repeat what I said in an MM thread over the weekend, but I really do find the Nest's reaction to all of this fascinating. I appreciate that some of the folks who work on the boards probably don't believe the company line they are being asked to tow, but I can only wonder at the culture of a website that regards a failed upgrade as normal and a mass exodus of users in response to said failure as evidence of petulance.

So true. My DH could have fixed the boards by now. Seriously. I'd love to know who they hired. And why haven't they been fired by now.

[broc]

On what planet does a vendor under contract say, 'lol, your shit's broke? tough titties.'

[heightsyankee]

May 14, 2012 16:42:13 GMT -5 asdfjkl said:

May 14, 2012 16:38:56 GMT -5 secretlyevil said:

From a PR stand point, make love not war and all that, they suck big donkey balls, however, the next group of engaged bebes, etc. aren't going to know any different and therefore, TK/N/B, should be able to recoup their traffic numbers. In reality, they lost a lot of old timers for awhile (let's be real - it's still up in the air), the messages boards still don't work worth shit and are slow so keeping the newbies is highly unlikely.

Especially if those of the mass exodus continue to post links to proboards.

Exactly. The local board have been fucked for over a month. You know how many posts were on the Houston board since its defection? Maybe 6, and 3 of them were asking how to get to the new board. A couple new people tried to post and when they didn't get any responses, they certainly did not carry on a conversation amongst themselves.
Someone was trying to make this point on another board and my response is that the boards only work if there is an existing network. It's like a Christmas Tree farm. If all you have are sapplings, you're not going to make any money because you can't harvest the mature trees to sell. The communities exist because the "mature posters" are posting topics. Who wants to post on a board with no traffic? If I were a "sappling" on the nest, I'd take one look at P&CE and be like, "There's nothing happening here. I'll go over to Baby Center/ ivillage/CNN/any of 1000 other websites where I can talk about politics with an active existing community."