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New Ning Dashboard (Manage Panel) - What Are Your Thoughts?

First, let me announce: I've added a new Forum Category called "Join The Conversation". This Category will be used for Forum Discussions that may lead to heated discussion and debate. Now there are two Admin Categories on JenSocial Forums - - one for Announcements and one for Conversation. Naturally I have made the Announcements Category for Admin only. And, for now I have set the Join the Conversation for Admin. only. If you think I should open it to all, I will be happy to change it. Just let me know.

So tell me, what do you think about the new Ning Dashboard (Manage Panel)? I've been trying to use it all day, and as much as I hate to complain, I don't like it, at all. Like I've already stated on Ning's Creator site, maybe I'm just set in my ways. Is it that I use the dashboard so much that the new orientation (side links) has me all off-balance? It really throws me.

This is what I just wrote on Creators in this Discussion:
Sorry Ning. The new manage panel is maddening. It took me 10 minutes to find out how to add a new Category to a Forum - - good grief. And, it may not be that far off from the old. But since the orientation is totally different, it is completely discombobulating - - for me at least.

I hope you all hear me. I'm the kind of person who can catch on quickly, and don't mind change for the most part. If I'm confused, not good.

For anyone who needs to add a Forum Category: Manage/Settings/Features/Forum

I'm trying to decipher if the links are the same. Are they? If so, I'll just go by URL, instead of this panel.

I've been designing software for 20+ years. I just don't get this. Why go from a lovely Web2.0 look with easy icons, to a "smushed" up side panel with old fashioned links that you have to drill down over and over to get to where you want to go?

Best Regards,
Jen

UPDATE - GREAT NEWS!
Ning has made the statement that they are working on giving us an option to use the old Manage Panel!

What are your thoughts? Join the Conversation!

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Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by JenSocial on July 21, 2010 at 1:47am

Hi Rudy,
I agree with you 100%. I like the new features, and totally excited about the openid signup/signin with Twitter/Facebook, etc... Hopefully that will happen in the near future.
Best,
Jen

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Permalink Reply by disabilityresourceexchange.com on July 21, 2010 at 2:48am

hello jen and everyone I actually wasn't finished editing the above comment. Unfortunately I pressed the add reply button by accident and even though I clicked the comment to edit it immediately it took me longer than the specified 15 minutes to edit and add the additional things I wanted to say therefore the edit was not accepted.

I meant to say "I definitely agree with your point" Jen

And I also wanted to say I really like the new graphs on the dashboard and I hope that Ning expends the amount of statistics they display soon.

I've been working on the community I created for the discussion of disability/chronic illness and health issues for a long time and there has been a lot of ups and downs along the way.
whatever happens I am extremely committed to making the community I run as supportive, useful and informative as it can possibly be.

I just try to remind myself of that whenever I get frustrated with things like this.

change definitely can be difficult however I am hopeful and optimistic that the service will continue to get better.

Jen thank you for doing such a great job with this community it is a valuable resource and has been helpful to me.

sincerely
Rudy Sims

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Permalink Reply by Philip Voice on July 21, 2010 at 6:21am

I'm trying to discover how I can access my ads code in my right sidebar - does anyone have any ideas?

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Permalink Reply by Magic Happens on July 21, 2010 at 9:19am

Ads goes in text boxes and placed on the right side , l read on creators ,all ads go into text box

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Permalink Reply by Philip Voice on July 21, 2010 at 9:46am

Thanks Fantasyland

I hadn't notice that it had automatically reverted to a text box with an edit facility.

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Permalink Reply by Magic Happens on July 21, 2010 at 9:50am

l miss read your question, sorry. l do not know how to get you can access your codes.

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Permalink Reply by Magic Happens on July 21, 2010 at 9:37am

Some are saying it take a little time for everything to work, they say to sign out and clear your browser cache and sign back in. And if you know how clean your network cache. Which l am going to do now.

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Permalink Reply by Magic Happens on July 21, 2010 at 11:17am

l am sorry to hear this, on the creators, it was said that some sites may take a little long to work. l would not know this as the problem or not.

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Permalink Reply by Neuerotica on July 21, 2010 at 10:01am

It seems nc's are reporting an array of issues, and they don't seem to be limited to our networks. I've noticed this morning that old discussions are being pushed to the top at the Creators site. This usually happens when someone comments on a post, but these are posts that no one has commented on recently, or in quite some time. Some of the items say a comment has been added recently (e.g. 12, 7, 6 minutes ago, etc.), but it is wrong.

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Permalink Reply by Magic Happens on July 21, 2010 at 10:05am

l think l am getting two email notice to the same place. lol, do not know if this is a problem with the new changes or not.

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Permalink Reply by Administrator☼JenSocial on July 22, 2010 at 9:45pm

I have seen this happen to I accept a new member and one was back in 2008 GO FIGURE

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Permalink Reply by Drilling Ahead on July 21, 2010 at 10:56am

I am also disappointed. I suppose in time I will be able to navigate it better. The old layout was much better with the icons.
Ning seems to really struggle with simple decisions like this and I worry with Ning making bad decision after bad decision-then having to cut staff in half...I worry they won't be around much longer-then we will all lose our networks-or lose a big part of it in migrating.

I had to remove the "Rate a member" thing as soon as it came out as ning decided it needed to be active on my network as soon as they updated. Maybe I am missing something ,but with over 6000 members-how are my members supposed to find the member they want to rate? i mean it starts in alphabetical order and makes you move 7 members at a time or something like that with no search option?

It's really been all anti-climatic. I am pleased as a pro user I will be paying less each year now- & I like the fact I can now limit the number of photo uploads per member per day-but that's about all the good I can see from the update.

getting off topic I know-So i will agree that i do not like the new "Manage: section as much as I did the old.