433 posts
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Post by DuchessConstance on Apr 15, 2016 20:32:08 GMT
Still better than the Almeida's car crash of a website.
But then having to book exclusively via carrier pigeon would still be marginally better than the Almeida site.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 15, 2016 20:41:52 GMT
Agreed, peelee - the thought of using the current version for something like the first day of public booking is slightly frightening! Looks like they're asking for feedback though, so hopefully they're open to making changes. Vast, sweeping changes, one hopes. ;-) Don't hope too much. In most cases when they ask for feedback the feedback they're looking for is along the lines of "Your website is so awesome it's an honour and privilege just to be able to use it. Will you have sex with me? I don't care if you're the wrong sex; I'll convert because you're worth it." Any negative opinions are dismissed with phrases such as "users are afraid of change" or "they don't understand what we're trying to do" or "they'll like it when they get used to it" or just a plain "users are idiots". |
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208 posts
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Post by argon on Apr 15, 2016 20:54:15 GMT
I tried the rush tickets today after the webpage hanging for sometime i was eventually placed in the queue at position 7 after 5 mins i was down to position 2 after a further few mins my queue position came up has number 23 (how strange i went up in the queue that's a first). After a further 10 mins a went back down to position 9 & then later went back up to position 13 . My queue position just kept Yo-Yoing down & up - Anyone experienced the same?
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Post by Deleted on Apr 16, 2016 11:48:27 GMT
The Barbican website has been unusable for years and they have no intention of improving it. It's true that it works perfectly fine if you are psychic and magically know exactly how to navigate it, which is why they blame the user.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 16, 2016 17:37:29 GMT
I tried the rush tickets. It was an unmitigated disaster. I'm still grumpy.
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4,156 posts
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Post by kathryn on Apr 16, 2016 18:33:23 GMT
The Barbican website has been unusable for years and they have no intention of improving it. It's true that it works perfectly fine if you are psychic and magically know exactly how to navigate it, which is why they blame the user. It's not just me then! Best way to find anything on the Barbican website is a very precise Google search. |
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5,707 posts
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Post by lynette on Apr 16, 2016 18:46:39 GMT
I always phone.
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183 posts
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Post by caa on Apr 17, 2016 20:44:17 GMT
I don't understand why there was a need to update the NT website
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5,054 posts
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Post by Phantom of London on Apr 17, 2016 21:07:14 GMT
The Barbican if you search on their site for future theatre events, the search results can be very poor at best.
The National website needs time, by which I mean the users confidence improves and learn how to use the website more satisfactory and also their website developers hopefully will roll out improvements. Websites evolve too.
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406 posts
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Post by MrBunbury on Apr 18, 2016 12:27:15 GMT
Does anyone know if in the new website one can see all his/her booked tickets? I liked that in the old website as it helped to remind me what I had bought but I could find any access to my pending tickets in the new website.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 18, 2016 12:39:59 GMT
Yes, I found mine, but they're not as nicely laid out as they used to be. Hopefully www.nationaltheatre.org.uk/my-nt/history will take you to it, as long as you're logged in. You've got a choice between Forthcoming Events and Past Events. |
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923 posts
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Post by Snciole on Apr 18, 2016 14:03:46 GMT
There is one plus, you can now get credit or exchange via the website without emailing/talking to a soul! Screengrab |
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Post by Deleted on Apr 18, 2016 14:17:29 GMT
Well that's MAGICAL. I forgive them for the complete mess of Friday rush, it's just a shame I've got my current crop of tickets all in hand so won't be able to use this fabulous feature for a while!
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2,760 posts
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Post by n1david on Apr 18, 2016 14:34:33 GMT
There is one plus, you can now get credit or exchange via the website without emailing/talking to a soul! ScreengrabOh that's a great find! Thank you! |
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Post by Deleted on Apr 18, 2016 15:12:33 GMT
OK, I was curious/bored enough to look at this and, while the 'activate seating plan' is annoying, it's nice to be able to see the whole theatre and not by level. It seems reasonably navigable, bit of a faff to find the platforms, but I suppose they are for the dedicated with time on their hands anyway (I count myself in that sweeping generalisation, by the way). Doesn't sell the variety of what they've got on very well, which is a shame. Proof of the pudding will be the next first day of public booking!
As an aside, I love their idea of limited and medium availability - according the NT 'medium availability' = 'three quarters of the seats are unbooked'...!
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968 posts
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Post by TheatreDust on Apr 18, 2016 15:18:10 GMT
I don't understand why there was a need to update the NT website I assume one of the reasons behind the update was to support mobile devices properly - which is a good reason as far as I'm concerned - I'm quite often browsing for tickets on my phone while on a train to or from theatre and their old site wasn't good at that. The new NT site is 'responsive' which means it adjusts more cleanly to different platforms/browsers/available space, however, what seems to have happened to the new NT website is that it now feels like a site designed for a tablet and therefore the amount of useful content on a screen at any one time has decreased significantly. This is fine for tablet users but not so good for those using a 'proper' computer. There has been a trend towards this particular problem over recent years - lots of sites getting 'chunkier' as they need to be when operated by fingers rather than mice. However it is possible to create a responsive website that still gives a good experience on a desktop platform - try the BBC News site as an example... if you look at it full screen then gradually reduce your browser window size you will see the site adapting as you go, changing navigation options to suit the available space. Hopefully the NT team will be looking at their new site from a desktop platform and start finding ways to add back in content for those of us reading it in that format. Also hopefully they are reading this thread - if so, feel free to engage with your public here NT web team! Edit: I notice they have a form for feedback on the new site, so I shall make use of it. |
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213 posts
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Post by peelee on Apr 18, 2016 17:06:57 GMT
I think that is pretty much it, TheatreDust, although you say you welcome the improvements for phone users. The changes to the website as seen from my desktop iMac look odd and presumably the new NT site is designed primarily for smartphone users.
Apple itself has done this very thing: redesigns for smartphone users while the rest of us can just fall in and tag along. So that menus look like child's-choice options where once Apple design had been a delight. And the updates of word processor software like Pages that come with less than the older versions because the smartphone people aren't using it as much more than a passing word processor that'll do for someone on the move. Or the way that the elegance of iTunes has given way to an inability of the new versions to simply list items and even to accept sound files or for me to know what the heck is going on when an iTune page now comprises a jumble of icons, lines of text, numbered files and 'unknown album' icons for reasons I cannot fathom.
It's a shame they cannot offer the various site-users some proper choice, rather than an implicit 'This'll have to do all online users' .
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Post by Deleted on Apr 19, 2016 9:41:16 GMT
Now I'm not the biggest NT fan at the moment as a result of their salt & vinegar crisps boycott but I must say I rather like the new website.
I'm not saying that I take back my wish that Rufus was fired over the crisp debacle just yet but I do think the site looks nice. I've not had any problems using it as yet.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 19, 2016 10:13:23 GMT
Have to admit it worked really well for me drunkenly booking a ticket for "Les Blancs" on my mobile while on the bus the other night  |
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2,760 posts
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Post by n1david on Apr 19, 2016 10:13:26 GMT
There is one plus, you can now get credit or exchange via the website without emailing/talking to a soul! ScreengrabIf the tickets have been issued, then you still need to send them back, so if you have collected your tickets then there's no change. |
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Post by Snciole on Apr 19, 2016 10:22:39 GMT
Yes, I just got an email saying send the ticket back (it came flying out of that convenient but overexcited ticket machine), which has cost me 64p but it definitely works if you haven't printed the ticket yet.
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406 posts
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Post by MrBunbury on Apr 19, 2016 13:38:06 GMT
Yes, I found mine, but they're not as nicely laid out as they used to be. Hopefully www.nationaltheatre.org.uk/my-nt/history will take you to it, as long as you're logged in. You've got a choice between Forthcoming Events and Past Events. Thanks a lot. It is even better than before. |
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