• Welcome to BirdForum, the internet's largest birding community with thousands of members from all over the world. The forums are dedicated to wild birds, birding, binoculars and equipment and all that goes with it.

    Please register for an account to take part in the discussions in the forum, post your pictures in the gallery and more.
ZEISS DTI thermal imaging cameras. For more discoveries at night, and during the day.

Birdguides new system (1 Viewer)

RBA looks really good, I have just purchased a 3 month package, if I still like it at that point will pay my annual subscription.

Sad to leave Birdguides, having been such a loyal customer for so many years, but sorry the lay out is so ill-thought out and clumsy, I buy literally all the Gosney videos and booklets and after 10-15 years I feel like I'm betraying them, but I didn't ask or want change. I simply want an easy-to-view screen with list of sightings that are easy to read, requiring little scrolling down and easy to read on the move (mobile phone).

One thing with RBA I'm not so keen on is that to access the website and list of bird-news on your mobile phone, you have to make sure you have logged off your main lap top. I think that's why you are encouraged to pay for 2 services, to access the listing on both laptop and mobile phone??
 
Last edited:
wolfbirder said:
RBA looks really good, I have just purchased a 3 month package, if I still like it at that point will pay my annual subscription.

Sad to leave Birdguides, having been such a loyal customer for so many years, but sorry the lay out is so ill-thought out and clumsy, I buy literally all the Gosney videos and booklets and after 10-15 years I feel like I'm betraying them, but I didn't ask or want change. I simply want an easy-to-view screen with list of sightings that are easy to read, requiring little scrolling down and easy to read on the move (mobile phone).

One thing with RBA I'm not so keen on is that to access the website and list of bird-news on your mobile phone, you have to make sure you have logged off your main lap top. I think that's why you are encouraged to pay for 2 services, to access the listing on both laptop and mobile phone??
Click to expand...

Totally concur Nick but you can forget customer loyalty in today's world cos it counts for nowt. Don't think there will be a birdguides in the future as the next step will be a 'rebranding' as Birdwatch. Dave Gosney was a birder who launched the service predominantly for other birders with accurate info at a reasonable cost. The success he achieved was well deserved but I shudder to think what his attitude is to the 'progress' now.
 
Don't like the new set up either. However I have been using the email alert before mostly (straight to my phone). Now set up push notifications and disabled email. All good for me, even though the 'my account' section wasn't intuitive first time round. Not too fussed about the website. I had a look at RBA as well but to get the news I want it's significantly more expensive. Ultimately will probably move off the paid services, most news is on Twitter anyway.
 
Most news particularly on rare stuff can be found on Twitter. Text alerts on Mega's is a very useful backup which birdguides offer. Pretty happy with the new birdguides app which is in my view improved by not having gallery photo's.
 
Sorting news by county

Given the recent discussions it might of interest to some to note that we have added a new news report to the website sorted by county, meaning its even quicker and easier to scan for your local news.
Cheers
 

Attachments

  • Untitled-9.jpg
    Untitled-9.jpg
    42.9 KB · Views: 167
It's now possible to sort the BirdGuides news page by rarity, county and species (alphabetical order). The default sort is chronologically (time added).

If anyone has any queries, suggestions and/or constructive criticism regarding the site going forward, you are welcome to email us at [email protected] or me personally at [email protected]. We are addressing various shortcomings/improvements one-by-one and, rest assured, are far from finished with this exciting project. I'm afraid I don't have time to answer individual points raised on this forum, but you are more than welcome to email.

Josh
 

Attachments

  • sortcounty.jpg
    sortcounty.jpg
    209.2 KB · Views: 175
  • sortrarity.jpg
    sortrarity.jpg
    196.1 KB · Views: 149
  • sortalpha.jpg
    sortalpha.jpg
    213.6 KB · Views: 144
Last edited:
Mark Batten said:
Most news particularly on rare stuff can be found on Twitter. Text alerts on Mega's is a very useful backup which birdguides offer. Pretty happy with the new birdguides app which is in my view improved by not having gallery photo's.
Click to expand...

Not being one of the Twitterati, could someone please give me details of where to find gen on Twitter? I've no intention of joining the new Birdguides, which is now about profit rather than altruism. :C

Peter
 
Now, something has changed on Birdguides website, select "all sightings" and you get a nice, individual page very much like the old page.

Much better! Easy to read and easy to view, comfortable on the eyes. Is it just me the image has changed for?

I don't want to get involved in a 'Bird Service wars' here, both undoubtedly are very good services.
 
Papa 10 said:
Totally concur Nick but you can forget customer loyalty in today's world cos it counts for nowt. Don't think there will be a birdguides in the future as the next step will be a 'rebranding' as Birdwatch. Dave Gosney was a birder who launched the service predominantly for other birders with accurate info at a reasonable cost. The success he achieved was well deserved but I shudder to think what his attitude is to the 'progress' now.
Click to expand...

Very good post.

Loved watching the Gosney videos, took me straight to the place I visited, literally.
 
Well, at least they've now made it default to not show the search and map, scrolling past which before you got to the actual records was my biggest complaint. Search/map is now selectable. Just need to reduce the unused space in the records now to get more per screen and make the species name stand out and it will be getting to nearly 25% of the functionality of the old system ;)
 
Now that the one month trial has finished I am no longer able to see details. The site is still horrible to use - I will not pay to use such a badly designed site. Maybe birders should boycott it especially when time to renew.
 
Its much better than it was originally when new changes were introduced.

Though the bird species could be highlighted in bold.
 
Himalaya said:
Now that the one month trial has finished I am no longer able to see details. The site is still horrible to use - I will not pay to use such a badly designed site. Maybe birders should boycott it especially when time to renew.
Click to expand...

I will not be renewing when my current subscription expires, it's tiresome having to scroll through some 3 pages with the 'half page' format used.
 
wolfbirder said:
Its much better than it was originally when new changes were introduced.

Though the bird species could be highlighted in bold.
Click to expand...

'Hiding' the ridiculous map and search option was an improvement.

Species are highlighted in bold with WP 'megas', giving a region and site for WP birds means a double look and some head scratching, I would have thought the country ( or islands, e.g. Canaries) was essential.

All reports, e.g. insects and mammals are in the same format as birds so then again it's a double check, to counter they would say 'look at the symbol' but this is minute. I would have thought changing the background shade/colour would be far better'

Birdtext alert (or lack of) has cost me 2 county 'ticks' (historically) and although I've requested no 'untwitchable' reports still get a possible 'obscure' seabird fly past in Cornwall but no text for Roseate Tern in the county when I've requested notification for rare and scarce birds.

Glad I've 'phased', now where's that garden bogey bird, Redstart (wouldn't complain if it was American) ;)
 
Nothing to do with whether the new site is good or bad but I find it depressing to look at the "Birdmap" each morning and find nothing in West Central Scotland whilst the East has lots of nice stuff. If only I could move to Musselburgh!
 
I really miss the simplicity of the old system.

It was so easy to check what was in county, and there was no scrolling through pages and pages of Ospreys....

Mr.p
 
My trial has expired, and my old subscription has been converted to bird news pro fairly seamlessly, although I still have a red bar at the top saying my trial has ceased, which will hopefully disappear in time!

Have to say I find the website on an ipad (not tried on a desktop) pretty non-user friendly - would be much nicer if we had headings of rarity, date, species, place etc, and each species/report on one line as the previous site, as this was soooo much easier on the eye.

I will say when you drill down on a single report that this is nice though, just the wading through all reports has become just that, wading, whereas previously you could scan down a neat user friendly list to find birds of interest.

The app seems a bit better than the website, although is severely lacking in ability to sort by rarity, or even any indicator of rarity - maybe a toggle between the icon of the bird, and a M,R,S,L,C or just the words Mega, etc... would be useful.

I do like the notifications, but was a total pig to setup though! I have set filters to show all levels of rarity, for three counties, and then for notifications I have set first reports of birds at each level, and for the 3 counties I am interested in that is 30 seperate filters to ensure it does what I want! - could be so much nicer and easier in tabular format, ticking levels of rarity and whether a push notification is required. i could then also toggle counties on and off when in use if wanted too! [edit: reading again maybe I could have chosen e.g. rare, which would then get rare and mega reports the way I read it, although belt and braces I have set everything up I want, just to be sure!]

I am going to ride out my subscription and hope for changes - the service is still in there somewhere, it just seems they have now hidden elements, and have taken much of the ease of use away, I am hopeful itmwill be possible to remedy the issues though!
 
Last edited:
My biggest beef is the new map it simply doesn't work as well as the old one, is far harder to look at and understand what is going on. I originally stayed with Birdguides after a free RBA trail because I preferred the simplicity of the map, not anymore and I suspect I will move to RBA in due course. The bird information is marginally harder to follow than previously and is definitely not an improvement and the "modern look" of the website to me simply makes it harder to use.
 
I think the app and notifications are the service's savoiur - it will change the way I use the site/service, and I will be less likely to look at the actual webpage (and adverts) as a result of the redesign, but I am liking the notifications now I have set them up to my liking, and if I need further info on any bird then the app will give me that too.

In the past I would have scanned the webpage to see what's about, but with notifications I am alerted as I go, so using the website will be much less common for me - I think the app with notifications set up properly can still be a very useful service, and now think they have managed to keep me as a customer.

Maybe an email to current/past/trial users on how to use the app to the fullest from them might help - even the help notes on the site are a bit woolly, but now I have this working I like it.

Would still be more compelling for subscribers with a website rejig though!! I would probably even go back to scanning this if it were easier on the eye, which would also make me more likely to see the advertisements.....if adverts are put in the app I will likely jump ship too though!
 
Warning! This thread is more than 6 years ago old.
It's likely that no further discussion is required, in which case we recommend starting a new thread. If however you feel your response is required you can still do so.

Similar threads

H
Review of birding apps I use on Android
Replies
7
Views
2K
THE_FERN
T
delia todd
Tom Tom problem
Replies
9
Views
509
delia todd
delia todd
MohoNobilis
Starting a Birding Club at my School: A Thread
Replies
13
Views
907
delia todd
delia todd
T
First Love Rekindled
Replies
8
Views
793
Tringa45
T
MohoNobilis
New Campus, New Birds
Replies
3
Views
677
MohoNobilis
MohoNobilis

Users who are viewing this thread

Total: 2 (members: 0, guests: 2)
Back
Top