DISLIKE NEW FORMAT

Lose this format

This reply was created from a merged topic originally titled
new format.

new format sucks

This reply was created from a merged topic originally titled
new format sucks.

I hate the new format.

This reply was created from a merged topic originally titled
New format sucks.

this bites

This reply was created from a merged topic originally titled
your new format.

I think your new format is terrible.

This reply was created from a merged topic originally titled
What happened?.

This new format for the webpage is awful!

This reply was created from a merged topic originally titled
New website layout.

The new format is unreadable

This reply was created from a merged topic originally titled
Format does not work.

I don't like it the new format. Every time I get used to a new physical format, it gets changed. That's very irritating. I end up having to hunt around for what I read because it's no longer obvious how to get there. And this seems to be the worst iteration of the whole sequence of changes over the past couple of years or so.

This reply was created from a merged topic originally titled
ICK!.

Horrible new layout yet AGAIN! Why do you people insist on changing the online edition yet again? And with a terrible font that is hard to read online! Get a clue! Or find someone who has a clue. Was this a summer intern's project because it sure looks like it! Stop it!

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Obnoxious New Format.

Go to nytimes.com and model that. This site sucks.

This reply was created from a merged topic originally titled
This site sucks..

No, the new site is a big improvement... It's not perfect yet, but at least it's not as jumbled as before!

I hate this new site. makes me not want to come to even look at the chicago tribune

This reply was created from a merged topic originally titled
hate the new site.

I find the new layout much more difficult to navigate and find the areas I'm interested in.


One plus is the weather prominently displayed on the home page.

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Not please with new layout.

Who designs you web page? They should be fired. It was bad prior to the change and now I can't decide if this is just as bad or even worse.

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Horiffic web site.

I have tried and tried to get to like this paper better, but it reminds me of the Weekly Reader thing we had when I was a kid. Lots of flash, but no substance.
And don't get me started on the comment section.

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WHY did you have to change your website?!?!?!?!!?!?!?!?!.

The new format is horrible. Please don't keep this. Look at Washington Post, NYT or LA Times for better interfaces. And no, I am not buying the print edition. So give it up and improve the format to make it easy to browse.

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Format changes look cheap and browse poorly.

I always preferred the Trib over other local online news resources, but hate the new format. I'll be reading the Sun Times from now on. Too hard to find what I'm looking for.


Change for the sake of change isn't a good thing.

This reply was created from a merged topic originally titled
Thumbs down.

I really liked the old layout, it was simple I could just browse down and find whatever i'm looking for, now it's all pictures and less substance, if i wanted that I could check yahoo or something but I come to the tribune for quality reporting so I don't need this flashy layout

This reply was created from a merged topic originally titled
too flashy.

The new layout looks like it should be for a 6th grader. Navigation is poor too...

This reply was created from a merged topic originally titled
Poor layout, bad navigation.

I really dislike the new format. I find it difficult to navigate and it feels juvenile. Almost like it was made for a gamer instead of someone who wants to read the paper. Since the format changed, I have found myself spending less time on this website. Go back to the old site!

this is the clunkiest, crappiest site in the world. slow. slow. slow.

This reply was created from a merged topic originally titled
clunkiest site in the world..

Your new layout is terrible on the website. It used to be much easier to read the breaking news, headlines, weather and local news the way it was before. Now I have to click all over the place to get what I want. You should fire your web designer!

This reply was created from a merged topic originally titled
Website.

Tribune, stop changing your god-damn website. Your customers dont want to have bigger, better, different, etc. They just want a stable news source where they know where to find things consistently.

This reply was created from a merged topic originally titled
Contunuity Needed.

Pick a style and stick with it. Regularly changing the aesthetics of this website might hurt your brand image.

This reply was created from a merged topic originally titled
Pick a style..

New Layout

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The new layout is horrid and gawdy.

Did y'all in the Digital Media or whatever department consider doing any user research before launching this really late-20th-century looking and information-weak site? Or did you just let your developers have at it and turn the switch one day?

Sorry to sound snarky, but the new design is really sub-standard for a major newspaper's online presence. Items are organized poorly and the content reflects what seems to be a dumbing down of the paper in general.

I had pretty much bailed on the Tribune over the past several months for more substantative sites, many mentioned by others in previous posts; only coming to your site for the occasional lightweight local news and 'human interest' pieces, as well as a quick glance at the weather. The new design has been the final push I needed to say 'farewell.'

As a Web designer, if I'd turn in this quality of work I'd be out of a job pretty fast. Such as it is, as online-only news reader I am now just out of a local newspaper.

sucks

This reply was created from a merged topic originally titled
sucks.

sucks

This reply was created from a merged topic originally titled
sucks.

Must agree with most here that the LA Times has created something not appealing to readers. The layout could be tolerable if the black and white font/no color type was changed to something less harsh. Many of our neighbors have cancelled paid subscriptions to the daily paper delivery to protest the changes. I genuinely think the management over at the Times has taken too much Thorazine, rendering them incapable of creative thought. Too bad too - - this topic has become common in the oddest of places - like our dinner table and at work during breaks/lunch. Oh well, someone should just create a new paper to rival them - there are plenty of people who would contribute to the cause!

Stefanie in Venice

Put breaking news back on top; put the rollover section tabs back along the left side instead of at the top where everything appears cluttered. The new sections (Chicagoland, sports, et al) look terrible in the new format. Also, why no Topix message boards? New comments sections are weak. Basically, the overall new design stinks!

This reply was created from a merged topic originally titled
new site design problems (and there are many).

The only good thing about the new web layout is you brought back the old masthead. It looks cheap and you have less links to stories, not a good thing for a newspaper. Ant this feedback with happy or sad, I feel like I went back to 1st grade. Nice to show bunches of praise but hide bad stuff. Back to the drawing board!

This reply was created from a merged topic originally titled
New web layout and feedback really sucks!.

The new format is garbage!

The new site design has made me visit Chicagotribune.com less & less often. The new design focuses on 'news' that is of little interest to me. Maybe that just reflects the editorial policy of the CT. But... Google News & NYT.com and wunderground.com provide me with the news I used to get here.

This reply was created from a merged topic originally titled
New design has lost me as a reader.

You're site just gets worse and worse. How generic can you get Tribune? Who the hell gives the okay with the design plan? There's nothing but crap thrown all over the front page, it's hard to read, and visually unappealing. Did you hire people from off the streets to design this?


Why do you have the "Breaking News line" in the middle?? It should be at the top!


I read an employee's comment to a reader that said: "I hope you can let the new site grow on you."

Then what the hell is the feedback section for if you don't plan on changing it???


THUMBS DOWN BIG TIME - TRIBUNE SUCKS, unless you can change it again and make it visually appealing and easier to follow. Until then, I will visit far less often and go to other News sites.

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I'll go back to the DailyHerald more often now - this site sucks!!.

I have been a subscriber for years. The changes to the newspaper and now to this site are making me reconsider reading either and going to the Herald - this new look is much more confusing that the old, and that is something considering how bad the last version of the site was.

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Lousy site to go with bad paper.

go back to the old site

This reply was created from a merged topic originally titled
go back to the old site.

I used to visit www.chicagotribune.com at least twice a day for weather, traffic, news, etc. I now visit it maybe once a week. I'm not even an older person who has a hard time navigating sites - I'm young and in the communications field. I understand what makes a good website - maybe this is a good format in theory, but I find it extremely difficult to use. I have a very hard time finding the information that I actually need. When you changed format a few years ago, it was awkward at first, but then it was easy to navigate. I STILL cannot find information that I need. Thank god I don't pay for this service.

Clark, I think enough have replied negatively. Will we see something a bit less grade school-like?

The main issue is that you want readers to come back to your site or paper. I will not come back to a site that confuses me, is cluttered and disorienting and full of things that I don't want to read or even glance at. You should learn from the simplistic approach of Google.

God your new website sucks... even the new weather page stinks! I give up... the Tribune site is dead to me now.

Mein gott! Colonel McCormick must be spinning in his crypt. This site is even worse than Yahoo. I guess it was to be expected in a dumbed-down world. The once great paper looks like a bad remake of the Enquirer. It's only logical the website follow. Save the template for Barnum & Bailey. Hey, Trib, try doing what you once did well: report the news.

A Web Developer

When you first made these changes, you acted as if you were open to feedback and willing to listen to the readers. Clearly that isn't the case. One of my favorite things to do on a news site is read the comments. It is awkward (only shows a "few" unless you click a link which then takes you from the story) and it is BACKWARDS. Many people reply to other posts, almost making it like a book as the ongoing discussion grows. Do you read books backwards?

You could at least offer OPTIONS: Let the user decide what order to display comments, how many per page, show the entire story on one page by default, all comments display on the same page as the story, etc. This isn't difficult to allow these types of options these days, and that way EVERYONE might be a little happier.

Granted, others have problems with other parts of your layout, but I don't care too much about that. I get your headlines on my homepage via RSS and click on stories I like then back out to my homepage unless I see another story that interests me, so main site navigation (or difficulty in doing so) doesn't concern me. But there is NOTHING I like about the way you did the comments. I found out that Topix still provides the top stories AND has the nicer implemented comments section.and I have been finding myself just going straight to their site for my news lately. Is this what you wanted?

It's bad enough that one needs to sign up with your site now before we can even post a message. At least make use of that and also allow the user to customize how things appear (as suggested above) once they are signed in.