Dev Diary Ep36 - Powerful New Scroll Effects

[trinube (Kim)]

@Godber

‍The typical duration of a beta test will vary depending on its objectives. Of the hundreds of tests we’ve run for customers in the last two years, about half of them were between three and five weeks of testing time.

So? It means half of them weren’t that short - and I can tell you the Adobe ones I was on were way, WAY longer than that. Did you even read the first sentence quoted about objectives?

@Godber

but you never answered my question…how much did you pay for all your beta testing

Nothing. What’s your point? Are you saying you’re paying just for the beta version (which we all clearly know isn’t correct)?

Frankly if Adobe quoted me a discount price for their software to be on the beta program I’d have paid them - knowing I was going to buy it anyway.

I was happy to support RealMac - they’re a tiny company trying to do something amazing. If paying for a full license in advance helps them out I’m happy to do it.

[Godber (David Morris)]

been supporting them for years.
and there you have it…you paid nothing…
and yes I will buy Elements too and quiet willing to pay full wack for it.
wonder what happens if you decide …hey elements is not for me???

[trinube (Kim)]

@Godber

and there you have it…you paid nothing…

Of course not, they weren’t giving me a full license after it was released. I seriously have no idea what you’re on about. No need to reply, I won’t see it.

[skids (Simon Knight)]

Hi,
I am not a beta tester and this is my first post on this “Elements” forum. I would describe my self as an occasional user of Classic who updates a couple of web sites on an as needed basis. I find that when I decide to update one of my sites that I often have to relearn how the various site pages are constructed and what settings I made to achieve the end result.

Looking at the video my first thought was that the settings menu was very long and how difficult it will be to remember what settings have been changed from default to achieve the effect seen on the page.

I think it would be useful for unsophisticated users such as myself if the individual elements of the page had a way of describing the non-default settings that have been applied. Perhaps this could take the form of a text description pop-up displayed when the mouse hovers over the element. A second option would be to allow the user to enter a text comment about each element and to provide a method of creating a text file containing page and element descriptions thus making the site self documenting. A method of copying the settings from one element to another, much like MSWords Format painter brush, would have merit as would an option to reset element settings to defaults.

Finally, while I understand that the market demands that websites animate I personally loath sites were it is overdone and is to the detriment of real information that the site is attempting to convey. So with this and the demo in mind is it possible to restrict animations to a first view basis? In the example above the animations seemed to run as the page was scrolled up and down and just serve as a distraction.

best wishes
Simon

[Bruno (Bruno Le Penven)]

Hi @skids Everything you point out here is important. The question of Elements’ target audience continues to arise, it would be good to have some clarification on this subject in order to be able to make appropriate suggestions during the testing phase. I had already spoken about it but I did not hear a response. This would also avoid, I think, diatribes like the ones we have just undergone, hmm follow after a demonstration video (the number 36 seems to have the same properties as 1401, 237, 2√231, and the classics 666 and 13). With a clear vision of the target audience we will be able to give an informed opinion on the relevance of what is proposed, in particular in terms of complexity of use, prerequisite knowledge, functionalities…

[Pete (Pete Schuder)]

As an outsider who paid for the beta, but is not using it, I would like to say that, perhaps, this beta forum is a bit too “open” for public view. My reason being that there is just too much information coming out that is confusing and shows frustration, rather than accomplishments. I really don’t think those who are interested in RW and Elements need to see the inside buildup of this new product with those having very litte “skin in the game” adding to concerns that don’t always benefit the end product.

It is nice, I suppose that Dan is open to suggestions, but it is his product and he is the expert. Getting sidetracked with “add ons” that may or may not be needed by a customer seems time that could be spent getting the main product “on line”. Having beta testers is both a blessing and a burden, in my opinion. I suppose you get what you pay for.

My experience is with Provue Panorama, where Jim, the owner has a small group of beta testers that have supported the product for over 30 years and are extremely helpful in finding bugs and slowly, very slowly adding on “extras”.

If Elements is to succeed, I think the appeal has to be that you can do what was possible with Classic, but without having to purchase add-ons from outside sources. This seems common sense to me.

As some others have suggested, get the product to have the basics working without fail and then add on the “special affects” as time permits. The learning curve will be time consuming to begin with, so why make it even more complicated.

If beta testers have suggestions for add-ons, leave it in the suggestion box and be patient. If bugs show up in ordinary actions, then Dan and his team can attack that, fix it and move on.

As I suggested earlier, leave the behind the scene action out of the public eye, as it just seems to “muck up” the built, rather than benefit it.

These are just my two cents from having enjoyed working with the RW product for over 10 years now.

[Flash]

I really do understand what you are saying here. I too have wondered about this open development process. That said, I have seen the amount of amazing input that has been offered, and I personally am really enjoying the process. I think it has served RM very well.

What’s unique about this situation is the history of the drama from the pre-Classic days. Rather than ignore it or gloss it over, Dan, Ben, and the team have addressed it all head-on. They have shown that things are different, and they have found their stride.

Ultimately, I believe Elements is destined to be easy to use—crazy easy to use—with great power tools built-in. The UI is in flux, as is most software being tested. As the features develop, we see user feedback sharing how they use it, what went wrong or right, and suggestions on ways to improve.

But mostly, because of all the pain from the past, this whole process has been refreshing and reassuring to me personally. We all go through phases, and RM went through one as well. On the other side, I feel RM and the whole community are going to be better for it.