Fri 2 Nov 2012
Opinions wanted
Posted by naz under Uncategorized
[50] Comments
Hey folks, its been too long since we’ve had a revamp. I need to have a conversation with as many contributors, donators, listeners, posting staff, admins, developers and owners. As traffic, seems to be down, I’m not going to leave this post up for the complete month of November. I’ll start the ball rolling; of course you can address any points that the purpose of this is to collect your own opnions and to make changes that we benefit the site in the long run. I’m on painkillers for my youth ATM, so apologies for my selling and syntax.
not sure how but facebook/twitter/stumbleupon etc itergration =)
also maybe emails if/when people comment after you do or on your mixtape;)
What sort of things do you have in mind naz?
i’d like to revert back to all new mixes appearing at the top of the page, as they arrive, instead of subscribers and then the non subscribers underneath: (i understand tho that this was done to generate much needed funds for the site and the stickies at the top was an incentive to do so).
the facebook/twitter ideas are both good, so i’ll endorse that idea too. i don’t use either but i think they are relevant in this age of social media.
maybe a return to a downloads monitor, if one exists that doesn’t mess with the WordPress. the stats thing is ok but not very friendly to those who’s mixes don’t have a high volume of hits
and maybe a more than one mix a month levy. (which may be useful to the new dj’s to the site, who have a few ready in their back catalogue)
change is always good so c’mon people get thinkin’ 😉
In the past 10 years we’ve lost a lot of great artists. Donna Summer, Adam “MCA” Yauch, Davy Jones, Etta James, Gil Scott Heron and Amy Winehouse to name a few. Many of which, works end up in many mixes here on b00mb0x. I call for allowing tribute mixes under such circumstances. I also second the suggestions already mentioned above. Peace.
Hi, social network integration would drive traffic, i think its a must. Also having the newest mixes at the top ensures a variety for visitors; with the sticky mixes you see the same thing at the top for ssometimes a week. Would love to get downloads counter if technically possible. So, what bong said really 🙂
I agree that the home page needs to be more dynamic and should also be more obvious to the lazy first time surfer. Suggestions in this regard:
– previous design of having newest mixes at the top should be reinstated as others have said.
– the information about b00mb0x that currently sits at the top of the home page is essential but should be found in an obvious link rather than taking up all the real estate at the top of the main page. I think the most recent mix should have pride of place right at the very top so that that the laziest surfer still understands very quickly what the site offers without needing to scroll.
– How about something more obvious in the header graphic that this is a mixtape site?
I also think a Shout Box visible on the front page without scrolling would help generate activity/interest. At least, I would use it and I think it offers a sense of ‘approachability’ to the site for first time users.
What about an “Archive Mix of the Week/Month” section somehow? One of the site’s biggest assets is the sheer depth of quality mixes available going back over many years. I’d be willing to participate in administering this as part of the monthly rota. I’ve got plenty of suggestions already – I cane the old mixes all the time.
Maybe an “about the mixers” slot too.
love the archive mix of the month idea
and would too add my shout to it..
we did have a shoutbox but i think it was breaking the site every upgrade. it is useful if it works
re the banner, maybe if the WordPress would allow it there could be a graphic designer in the house that could add some visual spice to the soup?
and the real estate comment ended up with the cat almost being sprayed with hot tea 😈
Blogrolls. There is a blog roll on this site but do they link back? Also there must be many other popular blogs,sites etc hat would be more than happy to exchange links.
Erm, feel a bit outta place in this company, just bein a casual listener to the joys of this place.
However, like bong (& others) said, a link up with the all dominating social media (Faceache/Twatter/etc) would seem essential to garner fresh meat. Dont do any of that stuff meself, but the rest of the world cant get by without it, apparently? 🙂
Also, I’m on board with the idea to redesign the top of the site.
It could do with lookin a tad more dynamic & attractive to the fresh meat ?
I too like the archive of the month idea.
This would remind everyone of the wealth of mixes available here, and also give a shot in the arm to music that may have been dormant for a while, and give fresh impetus to mixers who havent contributed for a while ?
Ok, thats my two pennith Naz.
G’luck with yer plans fella.
🙂
* matrix said best much of what I was thinking… newest mixes on top regardless of subscriber or not.
* bring the download counters back
* can we PLEASE make the dj’s artwork much bigger – this is the most boring looking site with the tiny tiny art – just my opinion of course. more wow-factor. need something to grab and interest peeps.
* Mix of the Month/Archive – hell, yeah!
* can someone also kick me in the ass to make a new mixtape for the site? – god, I’m lazy.
sends king-sized boot across the Atlantic to kick yo ass 😉
could we have something to encourage listeners to leave feedback/like mixes etc – its the best way to get people involved and encourage interaction between the mixer and the listeners – a simple message saying feedback appreciated on all mixes? or a way of prompting downloaders to comment?
With very little musical talent, I just listen to the music so my thoughts might be a little different to those who actually contribute and have made this the site I’ve enjoyed over the years!
That said, making websites better is my job, so perhaps some of this might be of use:
– There’s no reason for me as a listener to register and create an account. In all my time here I’ve listened to and downloaded mixes without havng to login
– And I don’t mean account holders have to pay or anything, just be identified on the site, and once users have logged in you can offer them tools like:
– Saving mixes they particularly like as favourites for quick access in future
– See a historical record of what they listened to, perhaps send that history to other people
– Rate mixes – even using a Facebook thumbs up system is good enough
– Follow other users who have similiar music tastes
So once you’ve started to collect this information about individual users coming to the site, you can start to think about having lists and charts on the site that show “Most favourited mixes”, “Highest rated in the last month” etc which will give new and existing users alike a focus of where to go when they come back to the site
As others have said, integration with Facebook and Twitter will help the users publicise the great content on here to a wider audience. Facebook too would help with logging in and rating mixes
Lastly, is the tagging broken? Being able to click a link and see all the hiphop mixes is awesome, but when the last one looks like it was added in Nov 2011, it makes it look like the site has no new content. More ways to generate a shorter list of things to listen to – BPM, mix length, etc I think would be useful things to have
though I like some the aspects of the “registered user” that you mention Matt — “on the other hand” when I send someone a link to grab one of my mixes — if it requires registering for the site – I’ve gotta assume MOST people will not put the “effort” into following through… I think?
I also propose that we email mixers who have disappeared from view. Chances are that some of them just need a small nudge to return to the site and submit mixes/participate again.
If we time this with the unveiling of the upgraded site it could work well for generating traffic.
Sure King Megatrip, you’re totally right asking people to give up some information will lead to some folks not bothering if the site insists on that info being given up.
But it seems to me the site could offer listening on the site to everyone as it does now, but only offer the download link to those who were signed in. Or vice versa if streaming from the site has a massive bandwidth implication.
The general point I’m making though is that registered people would see more tools and options on the site. They would more easily see the benefit of being part of the listening community – especially when all they’ve got to give back is opinion on other people’s skills!
I’d too like to kick you up the ass, 2010 was a golden mixtape year living in the Soul Society IMO!
Well interestin points raised by you all, I’m just a listenin not a d.j. I registered with Boombox purely so I could thank the d.j’s for their FREE mixes but to some people that would seems tedious? (also like the banter between regulars comments so NO need for LIKE button) Not too sure bout linkin to Facebook as lately a lot of Like sites only get thru to a small % of followers… On the followers tip “souncloud” tad overwhelmin when U follow too many…Unlike Boombox “NICE & SIMPLE” yeah most listened/downloaded mix of month quality idea. When Megatrip used to post his boomlink on his Facebook page so I could always share to Newblood, Hmm Yeah would be Awesome if Megatrip started droppin mixes “Yeti..?” RvR & Soulsociety are legendary in these parts.
Big respect to all those tryin to make this site a better place to visit, thanks to all the generous D.J’s too…
matrix and megatrip said best much of what I am thinking… newest mixes on top regardless of subscriber or not.
* bring the download counters back
* more wow-factor. need something to grab and interest peeps.
* Mix of the Month/Archive – hell, yeah!
* Email mixers like me who are not submitting.
Looking forward to changes.
* Matt’s suggestions for registered users.
* user tagging of mixes.
* tribute mixes is a great suggestion.
* Not sure about social media buttons. They create clutter and don’t really boost traffic. They are website noise.
Thanks to all djs.
guys thanks so much, worked a double week so will take a bit of time to take it all in. what a great response
My $0.02 Great comments all. Little to add but this: I suggest spicing up the site. Too dated and homegrown. Reinstall dL counters. It’s fun and encourages mixers (and for those that need it, it boosts egos). Ratings could be fun – or discouraging. Add a forum perhaps?, where people can query others about their gear, software, techniques, etc. Also the ability to chat about trends, what’s floatin’ yer boat musically, and so on. Communication. Recruitment. Get all mixes on the front page, paid for or not. And I’m not keen about having to log in to dL. Youse guys are great and I’ve been selfishly listening & tracking this site seven years now. Wish I could do what you all do so well…
I just spent 30 mins responding to all of y’all and it was eaten. will address in first week december
Sorry for showing up so late to the party… I’ve been listening for the better part of a decade now, and the one thing I’ve always wished for would be some kind of “chapter” feature. I understand the technical limitations to this, but if it were possible to skip forward to certain track changes / points of interest in the mixes, it would make the experience more enjoyable overall. Many of my favorite mixes have one or two songs here and there that I’d rather skip, but there isn’t really a way to do so.
…to be fair, it does kind of defeat the purpose of a mixtape, but you know, just throwing an idea out there that I hadn’t seen suggested yet.
Ok, trying to do this piece by piece.
DL Counters> these were discontinued when then the podcast software was no longer being supported or could be used. In fact, the site nearly closed as I’m just a hobbyist and had to get a developer in, luminocity, to migrate all the mixes to new podcasting software. This software doesn’t support download counters. They do have a premium stats service, but it costs money we don’t really have and I’m not sure if its the functionality we require.
“Why doesn’t Blubrry PowerPress include media statistics built-in?
Blubrry PowerPress does not include media statistics built-in. This is not because Blubrry has its own statistics service, although that’s a good reason by itself. Maintaining and calculating statistics is a resource and server intensive task that would add bloat to an otherwise efficient WordPress podcasting plugin. We recommend using your media hosting’s web statistics to give you basic download numbers and, if you are seeking more grandular measurements such as client and geographical information for each episode, you’re more than welcome to use the Blubrry Statistics service as well.
You may however access your Blubrry Statistics from within your WordPress dashboard.”
So those of you registered may be able to see this information already through logging in? Depending on your access rights of course.
But basically, I don’t see a method of including download stats on the listing of the mixes.
With regards to spicing up the site: Any web designers are happy to contact me regarding this. We’ve tried a forum before, it ended up being a pain to keep spam off and they encourage trolls and idiots posting NSFW material (flying penises, I kid you not), so needs someone to volunteer to moderate and admin it correctly. I know I’m not going to be that person, but will be happy to install PHPBB and give someone else admin rights to it if they want it.
As far as the order of the mixes goes, that’s fine, we can go back to a chronological ordring of the mixes. That was the only incentive for folks to donate tho, so if that goes we may need to look at making the site a historical archive (open for good, but no new material). Assorted and I agree that neither of us have the time to properly maintain a site like this, but will always keep it available – at least as an archive. Additions and the like need to come from the actual users themselves. Bong has the ability to give anyone who needs admin rights on wordpress that ability and they’ve got my blessing to develop whatever new tools or features are felt to be needed. So long as Bong agrees. I don’t need to sign off on anything. It would probably take weeks for a reply anyway. With faults, I’ll do my best to fix, but I’m not an I.T professional and I’m never online these days. So finding a techy admin/dev guy that can dedicate time to the project might be an idea!
a lot of your mix of the month ideas and cultural approaches to how we present our content should be able to be accomplished between you all. Just get Bong’s sign off.
there’s a fair bit of FB intergration already. We have a profile and an auto updated fan page. theres a fb connect login option and there’s a like feature. with regards twitter, im sure theres an easy to find plugin for that.
I’ll check back in a couple of weeks. A fair number of you have high enough wordpress permissions. Play around with them and see how they enhance/work with the site. See what works and doesn’t work. And what bong says goes. He doesn’t need to ask me either. Again, to reiterate, we’ll never shutter the site; if it became unviable to maintain, we’d leave it as an archive, but everything will still be there.
Thanks Naz. Thanks Bong.
ok good start, peeps. I did a bit too. thanks to those who made changes.
Just keep up the good work Naz…regardless of how it all turns out, I love the box!
some more of what you asked for. Hope things arent broken as I wont be around for a week or so!
experiencing a new posting problem at the moment so here’s a call for less plugins ..let’s keep it simple 😉
Yup, word. Not sure we need the widget bar on the right, just the share button on each mix.
Would be great if there was a way of randomly throwing up a mix from the archives each week.
Big case of be careful about what you wish for. I’ll do what I can when I have time guys. Looks like its a face book issue do maybe start with disabling those plugins. Death in family. Working a lot. Won’t have a proper opportunity to look at it for a week at least.
no one even try to fix this until I can get a handle on what’s going on, there’s something funky… pain in the arse, back in a week or so
Assume there’s some sort of problem with new mixes? Can’t connect to the server anymore with FTP.
i must say it looks a million times better without them facebook/share things
gp, ftp password has been changed. i’ve emailed you the new details
We’ve got an issue that’s critical that we are in talks about to try to find a way out! There will be a Xmas goddammnit!
Cheers swamp.
Anything we can do to help with the issue?
Bongs done some sterling work with Ben to fix this. We won’t be able to give the same FTP access as previously . More later, but crisis averted. Rockrockrockaway beach.
it’s not far
not hard to reach
you can hitch a ride to rockaway beach
Nice work fellas
Does that mean it’s ok to upload a mix I’ve done now then?
yes
hiya, can i get the new ftp when you get a chance – ta!
emailed u details len
Dear all, I’m just a big fan of the site – fabulous mixes consistently delivered of real quality. In fact a number of my favourite mixes that are still my go-to tunes come from this site – so please keep it up.
For what its worth, I am a designer and could see a number of ways that design wise the site could be improved. WordPress is a very flexible publishing format and can be modified happily to new designs – I could, if you wished put a bit of time into giving you some re-design suggestions if you wanted – just drop me an e-mail.
I’d suggest that you could make more of the artwork for a start – make the site a bit more visual. I Also use soundcloud and mixcloud quite allot and the options to follow people, see what mixes they’ve been listening to etc I find very useful as often the mixes that get posted will introduce me to new tunes or DJs who I will then do some research on to find other little nuggets. I think its vital these days to be able to share everything – as in each mix on all social media – and its the simplest and most effective way to expand your traffic – never underestimate the power of personal recommendation – it really is essential and a no brainer.
best wishes to all and happy Yule to this fine band of bros.
Matt
cheers matt much appreciated
will be in touch with you after the festivities
merry chrimbo