What Do You Think of Softpedia's New Web Design?

The whole website is just terrible now in my opinion. I told them that via email but never received a reply. I still visit there every day as I like to find out about new software releases. But since I just visit two of the category pages directly by typing the full URL, its not so bad. However, trying to find software categories from the home page is much harder to do now.

Some other points of annoyance are that only recent changelogs to software are displayed, and you have to actually click on the version number to see the change log for that version, rather than having them all displayed at once. Also, I don't like that screenshots are now shown one image at a time instead of having them them all displayed underneath each other.

 

I would like to see a site admin making an online chat meeting where the designers could answer to the questions asked by the users. It should be interesting to find out what some designers have in mind when they do certain things.

 

Thumbnails of screenshots are displayed in a terrible way. A blue layer is over the thumbnails which will vanish when the mouse is moved over it. The designer must be given an award for this.

 

Well, I'm not one of the designers, but I can provide somewhat of an insight on the principles behind the new layout. I've already explained most of the stuff below by mail to those who contacted me directly, but since some of the issues gained so much traction here, it's probably best to address them publicly.

First of all, the change to some extent was intended as a "reboot", a fresh start that provides an improved experience at a global level. We've removed thousands of outdated / low quality / useless listings, we've decided to be a lot more selective when adding new stuff and skip low-quality software and focus only on interesting, cool apps and, of course, we removed each listing's adjacent pages - but we'll talk about that later on. Anyway, there were a lot of changes, so I'll focus on those mentioned here.

Basically, the main page helps visitors filter and find programs a lot faster:
information more accessible
- the search box is more visible/accessible
- in software areas news/blog areas can now be easily minimized

- larger thumbnails provide a better preview of the software's interface - the switch from icons to thumbnails is indeed an important change, but for the average user how the program looks is far more relevant than its icon; getting a taste of how the app looks prevents the visitor from wasting time opening its webpage, opening the screenshots or downloading an app that will prove very unattractive, so we actually hope most of our users will welcome this change (even though we might lose some downloads, time on site or page views)
- software categories now listed along the information
software bookmarks
- allocated more exposure/space to in-depth reviews
- recent major discounts and important freeware apps now available in "essentials" list
- extended/improved list of trending downloads
- "software of the day" now promoted at the top of the page not just on social media
better filtering
- the free/paid/mixed filter is more visible/accessible
- new and updated programs are no longer mixed, each is now displayed in a separate/dedicated column - a lot of people missed this change, not realizing we left behind the "everything-in-one-big-list" concept. Many visitors come to Softpedia hoping to find new, interesting software and when those apps are listed along hundreds upon hundreds of updates, finding them was a task for those truly dedicated to the cause.


Software listings have received major improvements:
- made text more readable and removed clutter by moving categories sidebar
- links to portable editions now displayed at the bottom of the editor's review
[removed adjacent pages and created one unified listing]
- mirrors page removed - now included in the software's listing
- report malware page removed - now included in the software's listing
- refer/share pages removed - now included in the software's listing
- send updates page removed - now included in the software's listing
- comment pages removed - now included in the software's listing
- award pages removed - now included in the software's listing
- screenshots page removed - now included in the software's listing

Now, consider this: even if we leave out all those outdated listings (I mentioned above) that were removed, each app on Softpedia featured the first 5 pages in the list above, now multiply that with the total number of listings (well above a million) and you'll begin to understand why I used the word 'reboot' earlier. We took a chance by removing millions of pages, just to provide a better experience, an organized layout that makes more sense than the older one and doesn't force users to click through dozens of webpages to find new apps or their info.

Furthermore, these are just layout changes... most importantly, our service is better than ever:
- we test all programs - new or updated - for viruses (scam, cloned, infected, rogue or even shady apps are rejected) and bugs (apps with functionality flaws are not published and the developer is notified) - we prove that by listing our own screenshots and writing reviews based on our own experience
- we were the first website to point the finger at software that can... cause headaches to our users, so we clearly mark ad-supported software - and you might remember the article I wrote when Comodo had a problem with this particular area of our policy - and even write articles when ill advised decisions are made - maybe you've seen my article on Roboform's upgrade scheme http://news.softpedia.com/news/How-Not-To-Change-A-Licensing-Model-171188.shtml ?
- we strive to provide the best price, so deals are made available whenever possible: we're currently listing thousands of discounts and the list of apps on sale grows by the day - even though discounts mean a lower commission (if any) for us
- now you know we've never used our own downloaders - although we receive offers for this type of distribution on a weekly basis - but did you know we even avoid ad-supported installers and setup downloaders from the developers if they provide clean/full installers? (see KC Software or Freemake, for example)
- visitor comments (for software or news) are approved whether they're positive or negative, while spammy reviews never see the light of day (some developers think they can post dozens of positive reviews and we're too dumb to trace them back)
- software is usually updated within hours if not minutes - here's just an example: I remember v9.2.12.0 of RogueKiller was released at 9:40 GMT and we had the new version online at 9:47 GMT, the developer didn't even get to chance to publish the changelog when we were already promoting the update - how many other major download portals offer this speed? And please keep in mind that we check for viruses (for example, we were one of the very few download portals to host a clean version of Combofix when it got infected http://news.softpedia.com/news/Main-ComboFix-Installer-Infected-With-Sality-Virus-325121.shtml ), version, changelog ( maybe you've seen our recent post https://twitter.com/Softpedia/status/528116504584527872 ), adware, etc
- we usually reply to emails (from developers OR users) within minutes, a working day or two if the issue requires in-depth analysis

Last, but not least, some people seemed upset because they weren't able to navigate the website as easily as before in order monitor their favorite apps. While each person is entitled to an opinion regarding our layout, browsing the website for specific updates it very counterproductive to say the least. In order to monitor updates for your favorite apps, Softpedia currently provides three methods that don't require scanning dozens of pages - all you need is an account. If you'd like to know when a program has been updated, just visit its listing and click the "Add to watchlist" button. The watchlist ( http://www.softpedia.com/dyn-watchlist.php ) should really be considered a "personalized update system" as it features several options to monitor updates:
1) time of last update
2) email notifications
3) rss feed - an XML which can be imported in any feed reader


That being said, I can only hope I've managed to cover most of the issues raised here. I apologize for the long post, but in order to make my point a TLDR version (like "our goal has always been the same - provide a high quality service") wouldn't have convinced anyone. Softpedia is by far the largest download portal that doesn't offer its own downloaders, while still offering updates and feedback faster than any of its competitors - if someone finds another download portal that offers the same database, QoS and more... well, then I can understand why they would move away from Softpedia... On the other hand, switching to a service that has far less to offer doesn't make a lot of sense...

 

Well the "improved experience" is a matter of opinion. In my opinion as someone who has visited your website daily for years, I think the new design really a huge step backwards, and that the old design was truly excellent.

That's all well and good, but, you could have done that without ruining the design of the website. In my opinion you still list a lot low quality software. But, that it not an issue for me personally.

There is more I could say about the software you list or, but it's not really much of an issue for me. The issue for me is the new website layout. You say all you want about how much better the new design is, but there are some serious flaws and limitation in the new design. For example, as I mentioned previously, only one screenshot being shown at once is a serious flaw. Not only is the changelog for software now limited, as old changes are no longer shown, it is a big annoyance that you have to click to see the changes for a particular version of the software rather than showing the changes for every version of a program all together. It baffles me as to how that could be called an improvement.

Another problem with the new site, is that the list of software categories is not readily accessible from the home page. When going to the home page the new design makes Softpedia look like an IT news website which has software downloads as an afterthought rather than looking like an actual software download site.

You are missing the point. The issue is not with the software you offer, it is solely with the atrocious new design. The old design was excellent in my opinion.

 

@Nozavi

You do understand that people are looking at positive and negative changes, not just positive?

Would you be kind and explain why do we need now to click 4 times to see "Requirements" and "Limitations" of some app? Why are these categories sometimes on the right side of the page and sometimes at the bottom?

Why is "Application description" at the bottom and why I need to click on it to see it? Don't you think that "Application description" is important?

To see a whole changelog for some frequently updated app, why do I need to click like 50 times?

Old design didn't have these, serious, time wasters!

And lets not talk about that huge useless thumbnails like apps are pictures and you can decide by just looking a thumbnail that you don't like it, want it or whatever.

I can go on if you want me to.

 

Yes, now you must click and click and click and click and click and click and click and click ...
How can't they see this?

 

Thanks for the detailed explanation. I appreciate hearing about the many ways the site has been improved. Softpedia is always my first choice because I almost always find exactly what I need there and, as you say, you don't use an adware wrapper. That said when I first encountered the new website design I was quite disoriented. It is radically different from the previous version. After taking some time to really look at it I can see that it offers essentially the same functionality. I'm not familiar enough with it yet to have an opinion, but I do understand people's grievances.

 

Let's face it, the new design sucks. It used to be one of my favorite sites, but I almost never visit Softpedia anymore, please hire some SKILLED website designers, and in the meantime bring the old design back.

You might want to check out these posts:

https://www.wilderssecurity.com/thre...ias-new-web-design.368361/page-2#post-2410696
https://www.wilderssecurity.com/thre...ias-new-web-design.368361/page-3#post-2414858

 

At least make the website to still work without enabling javascript, please.

 

This might be yet another long post, so its TLDR version would have to be... While we really do respect our "software gurus" and appreciate their support over the years, just like in the case of thumbs vs icons, these changes have been made because the overwhelming majority (of Softpedia visitors) isn't just as advanced and appreciates the current approach a lot more.

And now the longer version, with a few more details:
There were a lot of reasons behind the screenshots change, but here are some important points that you should really take into consideration: most visitors are not interested in seeing all the screenshots we've published for an app; nonetheless, in the old format they were all loaded, which translates into an unpleasant experience for those visitors who just wanted to see one, maybe two screenshots or those accessing that page from a slow connection or a limited data plan (since a lot of ISPs and data carriers still enforce a cap on all their plans). Now this, on the other hand, for us that meant a significant, yet unnecessary server load and an overall lose-lose situation. Last but not least, as I said before, this change really made sense when we've approached the "all-in-one page" concept, providing immediate, on-the-spot access to those screenshots.

As for software descriptions... there were several reasons here too: any respectable software developer will provide an accessible description for his apps, therefore it would take a few hours, a few days at most for any decent programmer to pull those descriptions and publish them on a download portal. That alone is reason enough not to use them: Google would mark our descriptions as duplicate content and no longer list us, while visitors would have one less reason to choose Softpedia. Now, for years we've done our best to provide better, different content and avoid these "free-for-all" descriptions, but that still doesn't change the fact that a developer's description is still just that: his subjective view on a piece of code that he wrote. That's why we're trying to provide a fair, objective take that users can trust before downloading an app.

As a final thought I'd like to point out that - while we didn't expect everyone to enjoy the new layout - as you can see, each change has been carefully considered in order to provide an experience that would hopefully please both novice and skilled visitors. It would be really disappointing to see someone recommend another website, offering downloaders, old versions and copy/pasted descriptions or screenshots just because something in our layout didn't feel quite right...

That being said, I can only thank you for your support - past or present - and apologize for yet another long post.

 

@Nozavi

I am wondering if the traffic to the site has dropped or increased since you started using the new design?

 

What you fail to acknowledge or perhaps even realise is that new layout makes it an unpleasent experience for visitors who want to see every screen shot. Why don't you leep the new layout and also have a link to a page which shows all screenshots at once?

If you do as I suggested above, the issue will be solved. People like me are still going to view every single screenshot (causing server load), but as it stands now it is a highly frustrating expereience to do so.

Well to you maybe, but I can assure you it does not not to visitors like myself who liked the old format and want to see every screenshot.

One thing you've failed to answer is changelogs for software.

How about you apologise for not listening to feedback for visitors to your website, rather then writing long posts which explain the reasoning for the new website design. What you fail to understand is that visitors to Softpedia like myself really hate the new design and no amount of explaining the reasoning for the new design will make us change our opinion. I don't know why it is so hard to understand that. I seems pretty clear to me that Softpedia simply does not care about the opinion of its visitors.

Personally, if the website layout stays as it is, I will always hate it. It's not a matter of getting used to the new layout. It is becuase the old layout was brilliant and the new one is terrible.

 

Great post, I fully agree!

I'm also wondering about this.

 

Great post, really? I disagree. Softpedia is a business and they have their own criteria for deciding how to organize their site; people here don't get to tell them how to do it. Nozavi listened to the criticism and offered an explanation for the current design; he did that out of courtesy not obligation. There's no reason why he should be expected to apologize to anyone.

 

I prefer the old design. Can't get used to the new one.

 

Yes they do get that, but it would be nice if they listened to the opinions of visitors to their site.

He actually took very little notice of the criticism and mostly came how to post about how "wonderful" the new design is. If he's not going to listen to feedback, then why even post here?

 

What does "listen" mean? If you feel it necessarily means that the company will agree and change the site back to the way it was then I think that's an unrealistic expectation. Based on Nozavi's posts I feel he did understand the criticism; perhaps he will pass it along and maybe down the road there will be modifications. What is important to me is that the site still hosts a vast library of software and doesn't use an adware wrapper.

 

Apology is not needed of course, but if almost all people on this forum hate the new design, there must be some truth in it. It's cool if the owner is quite happy with the site, but too bad he's alienating lots of users. The good news: I see some stuff is already fixed, I can now see user comments, and all screenshots (I do have to scroll, very unhandy) wit javascript enabled. But since it's quite obvious that a design similar to the old one, won't be coming back, I've solved the problem, by avoiding Softpedia as much as possible.

 

That would be nice, but I know that won't happen.

That's not the impression I got at all. It seemed to me he was just posting here to explain the reasoning for the new design and wasn't interested in listening to feedback on it. For example:

 

I'd be interested to know what other sites you use instead.

 

The format of the main Windows downloads page (at least), has been changed.

 

I mostly use SnapFiles, I've been using it since 2002, and believe it or not, in the last 12 years they have made only minor "cosmetic" changes to the design. These guys just "get it", why change a winning formula?

 

Ah, SnapFiles. I used to DL from them when they were called WebAttack. I have to check out the site again.

 

Yes it's awesome, the only thing that it needs is more user reviews and sometimes screen-shots are not up to date. That's why I liked Softpedia so much, but now they basically ruined one of their stronger features.