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Looking forward: MacNN, Electronista and new content
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NewsPoster
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Mar 31, 2015, 08:44 AM
 
Hello -- my name is Mike. I've been the Managing Editor at MacNN and Electronista for a few months. MacNN has been a great resource for nearly two decades, but we haven't done much to stand out from the crowd since the days when Mac and Apple news on the web was hard to come by. Maybe you've already seen some things change around here, so read on a bit, and see what we have planned for our future.

Editorial Policy

We've been doing this a long time, and many of our staffers have been using technology since before the World Wide Web was a thing. While we don't routinely run editorials, we've got opinions borne from this experience, and we're not afraid to tell you what they are. You'll see more (clearly-labeled) opinion pieces that will be thoughtful and balanced in the future, but we try to keep our news informative and fact-checked. We don't spout off ill-considered reactions just to grab clicks like a lot of sites, instead, we'd rather focus on trying to deliver solid information and insight on what's happening.

Of course, you've got opinions too, and we'd like to hear them. Wade into our well-moderated forums and comment section and let us know (respectfully) what they are!

We don't report on everything, nor are we always first. We're particularly leery of unsubstantiated rumors and claims from sketchy sites or publications. We like to focus on stories, products and companies that we think are going to make a real difference. We filter and curate issues that we hope matter to you as well, and we attempt to be as accurate and in-depth as possible. We want to make this clear: our advertising and editorial staff are completely, utterly separate, and have no interaction with each other.

Review Policy

We've been doing more reviews, and we are grateful that they seem to be very popular with our audience. We really enjoy finding some under-promoted software gems and bringing them to your attention. We aren't afraid to warn you off of a mediocre product.

We don't charge developers or companies to review their goods. We don't take "payola" to prioritize one review or another, or to skew a review. Ever. We are generally given licenses for software for review by the developer or publisher, so that we can test out the features and give it a good shakedown, but we are up-front about whether something is worth your money.

If we think something is total garbage, we'll say so, likewise, if something works well, we'll say so -- even if our opinion is unpopular. You may not like everything we have to say, and that's fine. Let us know!

We don't give star ratings to apps and games. It will either do what we want it to do, or won't. We'll discuss who would want to use the software, and who can skip it, and will discuss what we think the selling and detracting points are for the package as a whole.

The MacNN Podcast

We relaunched the MacNN podcast about eight weeks ago, with a suite of veterans. Charles and Michelle, our primary recorders, have done podcasts together and separately for some time. I was hired here three years ago, mainly on the strength of one I did. We're going to keep doing the podcast, with our experienced crew at the helm, maintaining a less reverent tone than we have on the main page.

We're going to grow it over time, we're in the process of being added to iTunes, and we hope to do things like live stream during Apple and other industry events. We're going to have guests in the future. Stay tuned -- big things are happening here.

Mac Gaming expansion

There's not much left in the way of Mac gaming reporting. I'd like to change that. Recently, I've brought on four veterans from the dearly-departed Inside Mac Gaming to help us along with this, and I hope more will join. We launched our twice-weekly Apple game roundup column recently. We'll curate the most important and interesting stories from all over the web, and bring them to you on Tuesday and Friday afternoons.

Listening to Readers

We love news tips, sure, but did you know that the current app review program for iOS and OS X is a response to what many of you said you'd like to see? Many of our changes over the last six months have been from user requests.

We're going to keep listening. If there's something you'd like to see, or an app you think we should review, email us at our tips email..

Spring Cleaning

Some technical aspects of the site have lain fallow for a while. We're cleaning these up, and its taking some time. We just fixed a nasty bug with Facebook that linked improperly to our mobile stories, so if you're finding stories through Facebook, they should all load fine now, even when displaying old content.

Staff are already popping up in our forums (which you really should register in). We're going to amp up social contact with our readers on Facebook and Twitter.

If you see a factual or technical problem, let us know! We really appreciate corrections - we work fast, and sometimes a typo or some other detail isn't done properly. We're happy to fix anything that's reported.

The Future

Apple's popularity with the mainstream has ironically made life hard for specialized new sites of all types. TUAW and IMG are gone. IFOAppleStore just shut down. Ad vendors are squeezing everybody, and ad dollars are at an all-time low. We haven't been nimble, and its hurt us in the long run, but the future isn't carved in stone.

I refuse to let MacNN and Electronista fall, and I'd like your help in my quest. Suggestions? Let me know.
( Last edited by NewsPoster; Mar 31, 2015 at 03:09 PM. )
     
OldMacGeek
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Mar 31, 2015, 10:50 AM
 
I would say do what you need to do to keep the site afloat, while at the same time keeping the advertising (and "sponsored posts" - ads disguised as posts) to a minimum.

I come here for information and news. I don't need an "experience" or whizzy Java stuff. Keep delivering great content and we'll keep delivering eyeballs.
     
climacs
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Mar 31, 2015, 01:00 PM
 
it would be nice if there was more congruity between how the desktop site works and how the mobile site works. For example, I like to read the comments. When I try to do so on my mobile phone, they do not show on the mobile site. So I click the switch to turn off the mobile site. The page reloads to the home page, even if I was on a story. So I have to click through to find the story again, then I have to click the link to get the full page to load because having to click through page-by-page is annoying. It's even worse if I switched off the desktop site while on my iPhone if i do this on a page that's on the "Electronista" site... then I get sent to the Electronista desktop home page and I have to start ALL OVER AGAIN finding the story. All of this could be avoided if I could read the comments on a story on the mobile version.
     
yticolev
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Mar 31, 2015, 01:01 PM
 
In the last two weeks, viewing this site on an iPhone 5 is almost unreadable. Sponsored word links grow larger and obscure words around them, and pop ups obscure even larger blocks of words. So I only visit on my laptop now.
     
Mike Wuerthele
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Mar 31, 2015, 01:40 PM
 
Originally Posted by yticolev View Post
In the last two weeks, viewing this site on an iPhone 5 is almost unreadable. Sponsored word links grow larger and obscure words around them, and pop ups obscure even larger blocks of words. So I only visit on my laptop now.
The word popups on scroll should be less obtrusive now. Let me know if this isn't your experience the next time you check it.
     
DiabloConQueso
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Mar 31, 2015, 01:51 PM
 
Yeah, the iPhone/mobile experience is, in my opinion, simply broken. You can't switch from "mobile" to "full" without the webpage completely forgetting which article you were viewing. You can't view comments with the mobile switch set to "on". There are quite a number of other frustrating bugs as well.

When you enter the site (macnn.com) on mobile, will you be presented with a mobile version? A single-page mobile version? The full site? How do I read and reply to comments on mobile? When I'm reading an article linked on the front page of macnn.com, and flip the mobile switch, will I end up in a completely different part of the site (e.g., electronista.com, etc)?

In my humblest of opinions, metric fart-tons of attention needs to be given to repairing the mobile experience, because, as of right now, it's nothing but an exercise in frustration -- so much so that I avoid browsing the site on mobile whenever possible, refrain from participating in the comments section (because it's nearly impossible to even get to it on mobile), and just use RSS instead.

To balance that out, though -- I do love the site's content and community and look forward to the changes in the future.
     
Mike Wuerthele
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Mar 31, 2015, 02:33 PM
 
Originally Posted by DiabloConQueso View Post
Yeah, the iPhone/mobile experience is, in my opinion, simply broken.
Yeah, we're aware. Its on the "attention to detail" fix list.

Thanks for the comments on content mix, though. I felt that it was important to at least tell everybody what the plan is.
     
DiabloConQueso
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Mar 31, 2015, 02:55 PM
 
Glad to hear it, sorry for the harsh review of that particular part.

Really looking forward to more content, and if the mobile experience is better, I'll just be consuming even more MacNN-related content and participating more in discussions throughout my day. Excellent news service, kudos to all employees and contributors.
     
SunSeeker
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Mar 31, 2015, 04:53 PM
 
I've reduced my visits to macnn and been toying with leaving altogether for some time (reasons I keep coming back are habit and the stock ticker)

Reasons I'm avoiding macnn include

Reason 1 - I am finding the tone really irritating

Example - One of the most impressive things that I really found impressed me and had me liking the item about tailor was the content about Tailor

Who will make use of this macnn article:
If you find yourself needing up to date news and want to find interesting apps and you like the author to use a patronising tone then articles like this could be worth reading.

Who won't make use of Macnn Reviews:
If you dislike verbosity and enjoy reading articles written by adults for adults then there's a chance that you won't have any use for macnn reviews at all.

Reason 2 - The goddam popups (iOS), no end of times I have found myself accidentally brushing some ad and leaping into a new tab for an item I have no interest in
These ads are scummy and don't follow normal behaviours (I see this on literally no other site I visit)

Reason 3 - Articles about garbage software - despite assurances in this post I have seen at least one review that made me begin to question Macnn integrity (this app was no ADA winner)
     
Mike Wuerthele
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Mar 31, 2015, 05:10 PM
 
Originally Posted by SunSeeker View Post
I've reduced my visits to macnn and been toying with leaving altogether for some time (reasons I keep coming back are habit and the stock ticker)

Reasons I'm avoiding macnn include

Reason 1 - I am finding the tone really irritating

Example - One of the most impressive things that I really found impressed me and had me liking the item about tailor was the content about Tailor

Who will make use of this macnn article:
If you find yourself needing up to date news and want to find interesting apps and you like the author to use a patronising tone then articles like this could be worth reading.

Who won't make use of Macnn Reviews:
If you dislike verbosity and enjoy reading articles written by adults for adults then there's a chance that you won't have any use for macnn reviews at all.

Reason 2 - The goddam popups (iOS), no end of times I have found myself accidentally brushing some ad and leaping into a new tab for an item I have no interest in
These ads are scummy and don't follow normal behaviours (I see this on literally no other site I visit)

Reason 3 - Articles about garbage software - despite assurances in this post I have seen at least one review that made me begin to question Macnn integrity (this app was no ADA winner)
Yours is a dissenting opinion on the app reviews. Despite that, I do welcome the more maturely presented feedback from your pile here:

Reason 1: Our "tone" in news and app reviews is far more neutral than you get elsewhere. This isn't going to change.

Lets discuss Reason 2: what are you seeing? We've got no ads that should shunt you into a new tab, at all, regardless of geolocation, operating system, or hardware. Could you grab a screenshot the next time you see one?

Reason 3: frankly, your accusation is way off base, and insulting. You're welcome to not like software or reviews we do, and we don't limit ourselves to ADA winners.

What app did you have issues with? If you want to talk further about it, and/or suspect one of my reviewers is taking whatever they may be offered as "payola" feel free to private message me here with any evidence you may have besides "I don't like the tone."
     
Carrier Wave
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Mar 31, 2015, 06:58 PM
 
I'm really liking your reviews and 'Hands On' articles. It's hard to find this done on on a regular basis for anything but games.

If I could make one small criticism it's to go a little deeper in the Hands On summaries. It seems like a lot of them end by saying, "Who's This For: People who want x. Who's This Not For: People who don't want x"
     
Carrier Wave
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Mar 31, 2015, 07:36 PM
 
One more thing: I'd love to see site writers discussing the apps they use and their gear setups. I think it would be interesting to see how you have your computers' docks set up, your phone home screens, what hardware you use for external storage and backups, printing, etc.
     
yticolev
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Mar 31, 2015, 11:28 PM
 
Lets discuss Reason 2: what are you seeing? We've got no ads that should shunt you into a new tab, at all, regardless of geolocation, operating system, or hardware. Could you grab a screenshot the next time you see one?

Yes, every ad opens a new page. A new page in iOS is a new "tab". The content links are somehow more sensitive (or perhaps simply more numerous) than other sites. Scrolling (in iOS by touch) often triggers a new unintended page. It is possible to set advertising links to open in the same page but that is unusual behavior and I don't think that would solve the poster's (or my own) issues.
     
Mike Wuerthele
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Apr 4, 2015, 11:53 AM
 
Okay, here's where we stand today.

Mobile: we're completely revamping the mobile experience. No more multipage stories. All on one.

Advertising: working on all this. You can help, though. We post deals, app sales literally daily M-F. Every Hands On we do has links to the iTunes or Mac app stores. When you buy, buy through us. Every penny helps. The more revenue we can realize through the deals posts, the fewer ads we need to have.

Detail stuff: the podcast landing page is being cleaned up very soon. Dead links are as well.

Thanks for the input. Keep it coming!
     
bdmarsh
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Jul 9, 2015, 03:14 PM
 
Just wanted to give a general thumbs up. First tech page I visit every day for many... many years.
I've enjoyed the more personal tone the editorial items that have been done recently
Glad the mobile will be getting some cleanup, I had generally only accessed through desktop, and not loaded from mobile for that reason.
     
   
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