Hands up everyone who wants to try out the BRAND NEW MUMSNET MOBILE SITE

[RowanMumsnet]

Hello comrades

As lots of you will know, we've been developing a brand new, souped up version of the Mumsnet mobile site for seven geological eras quite a long time now.

We can now exclusively reveal that the new mobile site is... TOTALLY AND UTTERLY ABOUT TO BE RELEASED, LIKE, ANY TIME NOW.

We've tested it on loads of MNers ( to those who have helped out) but inevitably there will be glitches that only reveal themselves once tens of thousands of you dive in and start using it - so please use this thread to let us know about those (with the usual info about browsers and devices).

And if you like it, please pass along and to ShamTech, BrunoTech, JessicaMumsnet and all the other techs and MHQers who have been working their digits off on this.

The new improved apps are coming, honest... but in the meantime, if the old apps are driving you bonkers, do please take the new mobile site for a test drive.

Out of curiosity, I put together a few examples of what it looks like on different devices (using Desktop Chrome's mobile emulation mode). There's quite a difference in screen size and what's visible.

I've just logged in (on iPhone) and seen it for the first time.

I'm sorry, I hate it. It seems clunky and hard to navigate. I'm trying to see threads I'm watching and it doesn't seem to take me back to where I was before, just starts at page 1. Is this really right?

Also, it refuses to go to a specified page when I try to skip ahead, it refreshes but stays on page 1.

Last thing for now - am I just not seeing it, or has the 'go to page x', 'next page', 'last page' option at the top been taken away? Meaning you have to scroll right to the end to access that function?

Sorry, my immediate reaction is

Not possible to switch back to the old version while you go through all the comments?

Thanks, spring, I've just realised how to switch back to desktop. That'll be my default from now on.

This is the inconsistent font size on the nexus 7, it's working fine on my iPhone 5c though.

For some reason on my phone I can only type duplicate words when I want to post on a thread. (I've switched to my laptop to type this!)

It seems that when I type a word then press space it automatically adds exactly the same word again so I get it twice - aa bitbit likelike thisthis

Thought it was my phone first of all but it's only happening on mn, everywhere else I can type normally.

Other than that though I quite like it, it seems like it'll be easier to navigate.

@MrsVamos

RebeccaMumsnet

Why have you not responded to the posters who have complained regarding issues with dyslexia, migraines and epilepsy ?

For me, it is like other posters triggering auras and gave me a bad headache last night, the remnants of which I am still feeling this morning.

Are these issues going to be addressed, or are users going to be asked to use the desktop if the mobile site is staying like this ?

Hi MrsVamos,

We will certainly be looking at this and how we can make it work for everyone. Would softening the white help?

My eyes keep getting distracted by the moving ad at the top of the screen as I'm reading and scrolling through a thread.

With the desktop, the ad stays fixed at the top of the screen so as you scroll down it disappears. My 40 year old eyes can cope with that a lot better as they are not trying to shift between top and bottom of the screen all the time.

We will certainly be looking at this and how we can make it work for everyone

The Kindle reading app has this about right (and has likely has gone through numerous UX trials) - it has options for white-on-black, black-on-white, and a lower contrast sepia (light sepia background, with darker-sepia font colour). (And a great ability to zoom the font so that it gets larger and still wraps the page...)

Certainly, reducing the apparent contrast level between the black font colour and the white background colour would help reduce the glare (but I'm not a doctor, so this isn't a comment on the medical effect) .

Ok, just a few things that are annoying enough to make me revert to the desktop thread...

1. Can't see a way of easily flipping the thread.

1. Can't highlight OP's posts, even when click highlight posts in customise.

1. Taskbar at bottom not showing up on all threads at all times so can't easily post.

If all that can be fixed I think it's pretty good...

Another person here who has had to switch to desktop site. Mobile version is giving me a headache. No idea why. I'm not the sort of person who has issues with other sites or even regularly gets headaches. Quite bizarre.

Fixing everything is one thing but I'm completely baffled why none of the obvious difficulties e.g. Bookmarking is not bookmarking weren't highlighted in the testing??

Back on laptop, old desktop site, much better !

RebeccaMumsnet
Softening the white wont help me, sorry. Anything like that kind of makes me have to 'squint' to read text, and will incur the same issues I'm having on the mobile site.

It's such a shame, I really loved being able to use my mobile to mnet, and now that option has been taken away.

I've also found that if you are just lurking on the mobile site, you can't even get to 'active convos' without having to select 'talk', then 'active'. Such a pain !

It's really not user friendly for me. I loved using my mobile to natter with my fellow tennis nuts, as it meant I didn't have to drag the laptop out and stay in one place to mnet.

I'm gutted.

Font and background or something are giving me a headache after a few minutes too.. I could turn the contrast down, but that would make the whole rest of the interweb too dark. Sorry, this really isn't working for me.

MN, please could you explain what you were hoping to achieve with this change? I'd love to know what was so wrong that you needed to destroy so much goodwill...

I'd gladly pay if it was an ad revenue issue. Am off now because there's no pleasure in using the site like this will check back later.

PolterGoose

YY, the flickering too. I get flickering as a 'warning' to a fit, so really not helpful !

HQ

Whatever you are doing has fecked up my laptop now too. Grrrrr.

Keep getting a message asking if I want to open or save the message I am trying to post, then have to refresh to see post posted.

This is Not Good.

Unfortunately copy and paste doesn't work properly any more, so I lost the name of the poster who wrote this, but I agree completely.

-Back again. One other point MN. The way you've run this process has been appalling. Launch the changes at the end of the working day, let all the techies sod off home, not have any user's guide or how-to info available to help people find their way around, and then the one MN person on duty tells us we'll learn to love it ( sorry Dawn but that was really patronising and unhelpful while so many people were struggling to get to grips with the new site with no help or guidance or tech support).

Apols for spelling mistakes, am on the desktop site on my mobile which is really slow to type on but it's the only way I can access the site.

The absolute first thing that the techies should do when they get into work this morning is turn the old mobile site back on.

NNNOOOOO

It's thanked me for feedback I didn't give.
Gone to beginning of thread instead of where I wanted.
Awkward to use, and I hate the flashing adds, just tried to give you a biscuit and it went to a different page.

I have a bad headache after only 15 minutes of looking at the screen.

Can't use MN on my mobile anymore now

mipmop

I think we are done for. I think the techs are already working at trying to sort out the shambles 'minor technical issues' with the new mobile site.

I can't use it. Awful. I can't even work out how to post.
Have now reverted to using other site to post this.

I think I'll stick with my old app judging by comments here
despite Mumsnet never fixing the glitches re using pound/ euro signs etc and hence making some posts incomprehensible and MNTowers being told of this issue numerous times. All they had to do was borrow an iphone and see for themselves- not rocket science!

Have caved and reverted to desktop on my android tablet, bliss!