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Featured videos - Thoughts?


RichM

What are your thoughts on the featured videos?  

33 members have voted

  1. 1. What are your thoughts on the featured videos?

    • I think it's a good idea
      9
    • I like the idea but I think it could be better
      4
    • I'm not too keen
      14
    • I have no opinion on the matter
      4
    • Abstain
      1

This poll is closed to new votes


Featured Posts

For quite some time, we featured gallery images on the homepage of Canal World. We kept them there for some time despite there being relatively few new gallery images. Some members were not too keen on this as they would have preferred to see new images, or none at all. Being a canal related website, it's arguably important to have some kind of visual identity that associates us with Canals and boats alike and as such we've decided to feature what we consider to be good quality videos from YouTube. The idea is that we will update them regularly. I don't know about you guys but I quite enjoy following their progress on YouTube.

While not obligatory, we have asked the featured Youtubers if they would kindly give us a mention on some of their upcoming videos which will no doubt help promote and grow our community. Also, if you have a relevant YouTube channel with regular quality canal and boat related videos, feel free to drop me a PM if you wish to be featured. 

With the recent removal of the temporary Chat Box, it doesn't take up any more space than gallery images and the Chat Box combined, but we're still interested to hear your views and opinions on it. 

Cheers

RichM

P.S.

Feel free to vote in the poll :)

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8 hours ago, Mike the Boilerman said:

Being on a tariff that charges me for data downloaded, the facility to turn off intrinsically data-intensive videos would be welcome. Especially when I'm also on a slow connection.

The videos don't download unless you watch them so in that respect it's no different to the gallery images. 

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  • 1 month later...
On 13/07/2017 at 15:04, Dave Payne said:

Awaiting the usual crowd to moan and groan and complain about tedious things.

I don't think I'm part of the usual crowd, but I'll complain anyway. They do slow down the loading of the homepage quite considerably and make it tedious to go through to reach any further. I am guessing there is some script from Youtube that is downloading and running to display the thumbnails, links and so on. Until this has progressed to a certain point it isn't possible to use any link on the homepage, at least on my old and slow laptop. I've taken to bookmarking the boating page with no youtube videos, rather than the homepage because of this.

Jen

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29 minutes ago, Jen-in-Wellies said:

I don't think I'm part of the usual crowd, but I'll complain anyway. They do slow down the loading of the homepage quite considerably and make it tedious to go through to reach any further. I am guessing there is some script from Youtube that is downloading and running to display the thumbnails, links and so on. Until this has progressed to a certain point it isn't possible to use any link on the homepage, at least on my old and slow laptop. I've taken to bookmarking the boating page with no youtube videos, rather than the homepage because of this.

Jen


It is feasible that it would take longer to load on older machines though compared to many sites, we're not doing anything out of the ordinary. Also, when using online page load testers, we get reasonably good results and as such I don't think this warrants the removal of them. It may be worth trying adblock though.

pageload.png
 

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1 minute ago, RichM said:

For me (on a mid range laptop) I find the page loads quickly but the Youtube thumbnails take a little longer to load but don't slow down the rest of the page. Though I appreciate it may take longer to render on older machines. 

When using online page load testers, we get reasonably good results and as such I don't think this warrants the removal of them. It may be worth trying adblock though.

pageload.png
 

Interesting. A lot of it is probably the ancient laptop. Don't think more recent ones are made from flint and reindeer sinew any more. I have an adblocker installed already. Using Firefox still as well, which has rather fallen behind compared with Chrome and probably doesn't help.

Jen

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Does it have some mechanism for only showing the most inane and banal of all the videos that might be available.

Having been daft enough to open a couple, I can't imagine why those investing time in making them could possibly have thought it worth the bother.

Perhaps I just got unlucky with those I clicked on?

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9 hours ago, alan_fincher said:

Does it have some mechanism for only showing the most inane and banal of all the videos that might be available.

Having been daft enough to open a couple, I can't imagine why those investing time in making them could possibly have thought it worth the bother.

Perhaps I just got unlucky with those I clicked on?

 

No they are dire. There should be an option to not have them. I'm sick of seeing the same images taking up my desktop space. Also the poll should have another option - "I'd rather eat a bowl of scotch bonnet chillis than watch another preselected video or see the stills"

Edited by mark99
  • Haha 1
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9 hours ago, alan_fincher said:

Does it have some mechanism for only showing the most inane and banal of all the videos that might be available.

Having been daft enough to open a couple, I can't imagine why those investing time in making them could possibly have thought it worth the bother.

Perhaps I just got unlucky with those I clicked on?

Its a common fad at the minute, lots of people are making boring videos and vblogs, they all seem to have a bit of love fest with each other also.

I find the ex news dude the most boring.

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26 minutes ago, mark99 said:

 

No they are dire. There should be an option to not have them. I'm sick of seeing the same images taking up my desktop space. Also the poll should have another option - "I'd rather eat a bowl of scotch bonnet chillis than watch another preselected video or see the stills"

^^^^^^^^

Yes this!  None of the answers in the survey adequately reflect how awful they are.

Who or what chooses them?

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4 minutes ago, Athy said:

I assume that these videos are made by forum members?

I had rather hoped they were not specifically made or put there by Forum members.  No doubt I'm offending one or two people then, but just because you have a camera or phone that makes it possible to record something doesn't actually mean the end result is something most people will want to see.

I won't pick out the ones I tried then, as I'm sure the person making them is lovely enough - just I really can do without what they have come up with.

(I'm sure there will be good videos amongst the bad, by the way - that's the nature of the beast).

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Like a few others who have already replied, I too hardly ever go to the home page.  Indeed it was only because of some other posts that I looked to see what all the fuss was about.

Have to agree that the 4 on offer are a bit.....  but I think the idea does have some merit especially if they can be tweaked to cover 'how to's' or navigation tips or other such stuff that far more useful to somebody like me hoping to get back onto the water in the not too distant future.  I would agree that the home page is probably not the place for them (videos or vlogs or whatever) and that random gallery images are just as attractive and provide the forum with its visual identity.  A separate area - like gallery has at the moment would seem to me to be a better option.

I actually like the ex news guy - maybe not always for the content but its production and filming are good and maybe because he's (so far) covered familiar areas, it brings back memories of home.

PS Haven't noticed it slowing things down from this side of the world

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