Updates regarding the new website

Now that the new website is online, live, and has been in use for a few days now, I figure I owe it to everyone to explain a few things.

Thank You For The Feedback

There's been some outcry here and on Facebook regarding the new format. While many of them have been rude and insulting, some have been submitted as constructive criticism. I have to say that I very much appreciate the latter. We're listening and taking all suggestions seriously, especially those who offer it as a suggestion instead of in the form of a threat (e.g. "If you don't fix it, I'm never coming back!" -- you might already know what my automatic response to that would be...).

That said, there has been a LOT of positive feedback. I've seen it here, on Facebook, and via email. Without doing any actual counting, I'd say that the positives are outweighing the negatives by about 20 to 1. Maybe more. There are approximately 4 people on Facebook (that I am aware of) who are complaining, probably about that same number here and 2 via email. However, I've received many private messages on Facebook (~10), private messages here (~6 or 7) and (the most) via email (~15+) who are thanking me for the new format. Heck, I've even received a few text messages of positive feedback. I'm actually thinking about compiling them into a testimonials page, in my copious free time.

There's also the group of folks who might prefer the old format, but are fine with the new and are willing to learn. They understand that the conversion didn't kill them and they can actually learn something new. Plus some have even said that once they poke around, opening doors and flicking switches, they've come to appreciate the new stuff.

So thank you to everyone who has provided feedback, whether it be negative, positive or indifferent, in a way that we can all appreciate and work with.

Tweak Mode

We are currently in tweak mode. We're trying to review all of the suggestions and support questions, and address them as best as possible right now. I will admit that there has been a lot less support requests than anticipated, and I appreciate that more than I can express. It actually proves to me how much better this software works than the previous software.

We will continue to tweak things as suggestions roll in and as bugs are reported. Feature requests will likely take longer, because they require planning, research and, of course, implementation. Please be patient, as we will actually try to implement the features that you are requesting. Sometimes they may be impossible, other times they may be easy, and other times they may just take some time (and expense).

About Threaded Discussions

Much to the delight of many complainers, we are actually looking at how we might implement some sort of hierarchical discussions, similar to the previous version of SurveyorConnect. We aren't exactly sure how or if it can be implemented, but rest assured, we are taking it seriously and attempting to find a way. Just remember that this isn't a promise that it will happen, but it is promise that we will try very hard to see if it is possible and within our means (and budget).

Regarding The Conversion

If you had seen or understood the nightmare behind the scenes of the old software, you might have a better understanding of our situation. We had installed multiple band-aid fixes to keep the forum running and protected. It was SO outdated that the band-aids were necessary to keep us from being hacked. On top of that, the performance was horrible. If you thought the site was slow on the old format, you should have seen how the server was struggling. We paid for multiple upgrades over our 5 years just so the server could handle that horrible, horrible software. We did one more upgrade for the new software, because we assumed all the new features would need more power. We were wrong. The server is probably thanking us because now it's a walk in the park.

Additionally, the management of users for us was a horrible nightmare. If someone lost their password and didn't get the reset email (which happened probably about 75% of the time), I had to manually generate a password, then encrypt it using the forum's outdated method, then manually edit the actual database to set the new password. That was the dumbest process ever for a forum manager to simply reset a password. And that's not counting any of the other crap we had to deal with. That's just one example of what we were dealing with.

The conversion was a calculated risk. We did say in the funding campaign that we need to modernize and we've done that. We didn't use a custom, unknown forum software like "that other site" did with horrible support. We researched all forum softwares and chose the best we could find. It's actually the #1 rated and is quite awesome. Anyway, my point here is that I knew some people wouldn't like it. Right now, I can count them on one hand (at least the ones I know of). We've been compared to a famous failed conversion by two people, that I'm aware of, and that's not even a fair comparison. We've managed to save ALL of the previous forum's content and used a forum software with an awesome support system and the ability to extend it.

I truly am sorry if you don't like the new format. But I'll cut to the chase -- this forum doesn't make money, even with the crowdfunding campaign, donations, and advertisers. We put a lot of time into this and even with all that funding, we make far less than minimum wage for our efforts. Also note that the funding we receive does not go right into our pockets -- it pays for our server, management of the server, software, subcontracted services, etc. This is why I mentioned that the conversion was a calculated risk; we knew everyone wouldn't like it, but we had to do something to try to push things forward and make this a viable entity. If we didn't see potential in SurveyorConnect, we wouldn't be putting so much effort into making it better and moving it forward. This new conversion gives me great hope for it, and excites me about the future we could have with it. I really don't expect to get rich with this... I want it to be successful and "elevate the profession" to new heights. When it gets right down to it, that is the primary mission of this website.

One last point about our reasoning for the conversion: We realized one day that most of our users are older (no offense intended) and we truly want to be attractive to young professionals looking for a place to learn about this awesome profession called Surveying. There is a wealth of knowledge and experience here that could mentor young surveyors into a successful and enlightening career. I may not practice surveying any more, but I truly love the profession and only wish for continued success and happiness for everyone involved. And, as a side note, I'm currently taking steps to make sure I can renew my Oregon license; it is an important part of my history that I don't want to let go.

Final Thoughts

• We love surveying and only hope to make it better. We're listening.
• Don't give up on us -- keep telling us what you like and don't like (just please be professional about it).
• Three words: We aren't done. SurveyorConnect will never be done. We'll continue to work on it and listen to your feedback.