Well, if you tried to log on yesterday it said it was in maintenance mode. And someone mentioned something in another post on the RTK1 forum last week, but that was the first I'd heard of it.

I find it quite a hassle that when I've added new cards I have to go all the way back to the review page before I can study them. When I've added new cards, I don't immediately want to add new ones or remove any, yet it goes back to that page after I've added.

Other than that; had to get used a bit to the new layout, but it looks spiffy. Haven't tried the Undo button yet.

Last edited by Koos83 (2009 November 02, 12:57 am)

There's really not much sense continuing with this site, since now a large fraction of my keywords are no longer the keywords I made stories for.  Didn't anyone consider this before flipping the switch?  Sheesh.

I mean this is a *timed* memory program.  You can't just screw with it and not expect people to complain if you suddenly ruin their study method.

Last edited by Wally (2009 November 02, 1:24 am)

bombpersons wrote:

Wally wrote:

There's really not much sense continuing with this site, since now a large fraction of my keywords are no longer the keywords I made stories for.  Didn't anyone consider this before flipping the switch?  Sheesh.

I mean this is a *timed* memory program.  You can't just screw with it and not expect people to complain if you suddenly ruin their study method.

Your custom keywords, etc are just because of a greasemonkey script. None of that was stored on the site, so none of your keywords have been lost. You'll just need to change / wait for someone to change the script to work with the new site.

What do you guys mean no announcement, faburice said that he would be updating the site soon...

Yes, I understand where my keywords are, but of course they don't do me a lick of good *there*.  I need them *here*.  And "wait", you say?  Until how many cards have expired?

Exactly *where* did Fabrice put all this information?  There is no mandatory thread to read that I know of, and it certainly was *NOT* on the main page where site activity is usually found.  Some people *never* use the forum at all.  I'm sure they're going to be a bit upset, too.

Fabrice ... really.  What were you thinking of?  The cosmetics are nice, but not at all dramatic, and now you've rolled who knows how many people out of their study.  You have to have all the bases covered.  Sorry, but this is really not good.

bombpersons wrote:

What do you guys mean no announcement, faburice said that he would be updating the site soon...

I call bullsh*t on that. Here's the latest announcement on the homepage from 31 May 2009:

"I will use the test period to document the changes and will write again before the site goes live, to cover these changes in detail."

I love Fabrice and I love the site and I know it's FREE so I'm not complaining.
I just would like to know how the Add cards > Study > Review process has changed.

Last edited by DavidZ (2009 November 02, 1:49 am)

I'm *guessing* that we can do this pretty easily, but I'm not a programmer and I don't like messing around with a script when I'm not sure what I'm doing.

There are 7 URLs in my Greasemonkey script that refer to the old site.  I'm guessing I just need new URLs.  Anyone got a list so I don't screw it up completely?

I was kind of surprised to find the new site operational and I was concerned to see incorrect data about my reviews but Fabrice explained it was a time zone/database/page issue and it is working correctly now. Thread: http://forum.koohii.com/viewtopic.php?pid=79247#p79247

I also have a lot of customized keywords and it is kind of a drag they aren't working at the moment but I do have a paper list of them also that I can use as cross-reference until the script thing gets sorted out which I am confident (hopeful) will be done at some point in the not too distant future. In fact, the script is working partially as one is able to change a keyword as before (but it apparently isn't getting updated in the database so it doesn't show up anywhere except the card itself).

The site is indeed free and one should remember the meaning of the word "donation." It is not the same as a user fee or charge. I think it is great that people have donated because so much work has gone into this site. I have donated as well and I'm mentioning that not to toot my own horn but because it was a donation given in gratitude for the site being made available to me, not given because I expected some kind of service in return. That is not what a donation is about.

Things will get sorted out at some point so let's be patient.

This site is absolutely great. I wrote it in the past on this forum. I also wrote it once to Yves Maniette in an attempt to convince him to grant Fabrice permission to offer a French version of it. We must all thank Fabrice for that, and also Woelpad for developing the scripts and updating them every time it was necessary.
Now, just because of that, this site is quite unique in the respect that, without the scripts up and working, it becomes practically useless for a significant part of the users. Therefore, until he is given the possibility to include the script functionalities into the core of the site, I believe that Fabrice should consider them as if they were actually part of the site, and perhaps keep Woelpad informed of what he is up to, so as to minimize chances of failures like the one we are experiencing now.
Being free (and in general very happy and grateful!) users does not mean, however, that we should refrain from giving feedback also when we feel something could have been handled in a more effective way.
This site can be quite addictive and this is probably why some reactions sound a little "emotional"…

Jarvik7 wrote:

The thought that a developer should be restricted by the whims of a third party developer who creates hacks without permission or endorsement is ridiculous.

Fabrice has explicitly acknowledged Woelpad's scripts in a positive way more than once on the site itself as well as the forums so it is your statement which is ridiculous.

Saying "nice scripts" is not the same as saying "I fully support and encourage the use of these scripts and I'll make sure they always work". The only acknowledgement I've seen is in responding to people who want to change some aspect of the site that Fabrice didn't want to do. As in "your only option is to use this hack".

Fabrice could pull down the site today, taking all of your data with it and you'd have no right to complaint, even if you donated. Nice sense of entitlement you all have. If you are that worried about it, don't rely on volunteer third parties for your data security (I don't).

DavidZ wrote:

Jarvik7 wrote:

If you followed the forum thread on the updates then you'd also know that the new site is mostly a backend change that will make future updates possible/easier.

I call bullshit on this too.

Call bullshit all you want, it's the truth. There are of course some changes, but nothing is fundamentally different on the surface. It also explains why some things are not consistent. The backend seems to be up, so from now on it's likely going to be more visible changes.

Last edited by Jarvik7 (2009 November 02, 3:07 am)

Could we avoid flame wars here? This was just a site upgrade, right? :-))

Wally wrote:

Fabrice knows very well that some number of serious students use the alternative keyword script.  And he has never tried to dissuade anyone from using it, so he has de facto approved its use.  It's reasonable, and far from ridiculous, to assume that he isn't going to break this script without plenty of forewarning.

He's a great guy.  But he's let some people down here.  Get over your attitude, and let's hope it gets fixed before expired cards get to the point where some people are truly going to get angry.

Not dissuading anyone from using it is not at all the same as accepting responsibility for it. Also, you should check your own attitude before making comments about that of others.

In any case, if you want the script fixed you're asking the wrong person to do it. I don't go whine to my electrical company when I encounter a software bug.

In fact, even if Fabrice was the author of the greasemonkey script, your posts still smack of entitlement. You could have just said "The substitute keywords script seems to be broken on the new site. Does anyone know how to fix it?" or something to that effect.

Last edited by Jarvik7 (2009 November 02, 3:18 am)

Jarvik7 wrote:

Wally wrote:

Fabrice knows very well that some number of serious students use the alternative keyword script.  And he has never tried to dissuade anyone from using it, so he has de facto approved its use.  It's reasonable, and far from ridiculous, to assume that he isn't going to break this script without plenty of forewarning.

He's a great guy.  But he's let some people down here.  Get over your attitude, and let's hope it gets fixed before expired cards get to the point where some people are truly going to get angry.

Not dissuading anyone from using it is not at all the same as accepting responsibility for it. Also, you should check your own attitude before making comments about that of others.

In any case, if you want the script fixed you're asking the wrong person to do it. I don't go whine to my electrical company when I encounter a software bug.

In fact, even if Fabrice was the author of the greasemonkey script, your posts still smack of entitlement. You could have just said "The substitute keywords script seems to be broken on the new site. Does anyone know how to fix it?" or something to that effect.

Actually, yes, there is some responsibility -- at least as far as ample notice or common courtesy.  Entitlement?  Yes, that, too, as stated just above.  People don't often get what they expect however, and in the end that's their fault for having confidence in someone who either didn't have the same POV or who didn't care.  Plain and simple:  This could have been done more smoothly.  And people who now have expired cards piling up as a result don't have any recourse -- but they have the right to be disappointed, and to express that disappointment.