# New TUG website preview!



## TUGBrian

Ok folks...decided to open up this beta testing to a large selection of people.

Firstly I would like to thank everyone who has helped us test this sofar, some of you have been absolutely amazing in finding so many issues already!

Site is extremely close now, so im going to put up this link for anyone to look at it before we switch over...and ill take the link down later today as while technically this is indeed a live site....we want to put some finishing touches on a few items before we shut off the existing members only section and replace it!

so, here you go

http://testing.tug2.com


few notes for this:

1. this is running concurrently with the existing live site using the same data.  everything you would see on the existing site (tug2.com) should also show up here.

2. this site is (should be) fully functional, everything you can do on the existing site should be working properly on this site.  logins, ads, messages, reviews, history, wish lists, watch lists...all of it.

3. you are welcome to create new items using the new site...this includes ads, reviews, updates, everything...just keep in mind that if you create something in the NEW site...you may find it missing if you later go back into the old site and try to find it.  This isnt a huge issue, as we are extremely close to only having the new site anyway...and once that happens the old site goes away.

Any and all feedback is welcome!  you may reply here, or send emails to tug@tug2.net

Thank you!


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## Passepartout

It looks FANTASTIC, Brian. Looking forward to the 'New' TUG.


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## TUGBrian

thanks, we've really put a ton of work into it and hope you all enjoy it!


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## ace2000

Nice job Brian !!!    I like the new look of the Resorts.

The discussion forums remain the same - correct?


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## TUGBrian

yes, while we should eventually upgrade to a new version of Vbulletin (both 4 and 5 are available currently)...this is ONLY a change to the tug2.com site.

ie ratings/reviews/marketplace.


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## pedro47

Looks great and very professional.


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## joewillie12

Nice Job! Really like the new fresh look.


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## Egret1986

*Thank you to everyone involved in making this happen!*

The hard work shows.  Looks great!


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## BobDE

Very nice!


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## pedro47

Brain is this new web look going to be our Christmas gift from you and the web designer.


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## TUGBrian

ha, im certainly hoping its ready long before christmas!


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## DaveNV

Brian, will the content on the lower page change, too?  The Top 10 Resorts is nice and all, but the list is not likely to change much, since those resorts are so far ahead of the rest of the pack.  It's unlikely many folks would be able to stay at most of those.  So after acknowledging they'll never be able to stay there for the umpteenth time, they won't even view the page.

How about doing a "Featured Resort" snapshot thing, where one resort is highlighted, and it rotates on to another Featured Resort after a couple of weeks? Maybe invite Tuggers to write the content?

How about a "Most Popular Resort" feature by region? Highlight the best or most popular resort in the US West, Northwest, Southwest, Mountain, Central, East, Northeast, Southeast, Canada, Mexico, Tropical, European, Australian, "Off The Beaten Track," "Best for Kids/Adults" and so forth? Show them on the page one at a time, so things can be rotated.

I like the layout a lot, and would really enjoy having it be more interactive overall.

Dave


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## Ken555

Nice. Testing on an iPad, the only immediate issue I see is that the header doesn't scroll up automatically (as most sites do) which causes some overlap of header and info. Also, there is some screen display issue with the Google ad block on the upper right (part of the header?). 


Sent from my iPad


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## TUGBrian

good ideas there.

what version of IPAD are you using?  with safari im guessing?


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## DeniseM

How about a slide show of featured resorts, like the slide show of the TUG banner?


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## Ken555

TUGBrian said:


> good ideas there.
> 
> what version of IPAD are you using?  with safari im guessing?




Latest iPad Air 2, patched to most recent iOS. Safari. I have other browsers on the iPad and occasionally use Chrome, and could test with it if you like.


Sent from my iPad


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## NWTRVLRS

Very impressed! As someone who is in the 'web' industry, it is clean, clear and user friendly


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## TUGBrian

all good, believe we sorted the ipad formatting issue.


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## Ken555

TUGBrian said:


> all good, believe we sorted the ipad formatting issue.




Yup, better. But, you've still got a permanent header on display, which is about 15% of the available screen on an iPad. I don't think it's necessary to have a logo and links available all the time on a page, regardless of how much I scroll. There are other solutions for this which retain full use of the display for content, and I hope you reconsider the current version in this regard.


Sent from my iPad


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## anne1125

Brian, is there any way to separate Florida Gulf resorts from the Orlando area in the rentals?  It's very annoying to have to go through Orlando when you only want the gulf.

Thanks,
Anne


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## TUGBrian

if you drill down on the left hand side, you can narrow the resorts down much further to regions or locations on the gulf coast that dont include orlando.


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## marciaheitz

*TUG site*

I like the new site but I mainly want to know how to get one of the TUG signs that are in all the pics......I'd take it on vaca with me and take pics to send you!


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## Passepartout

marciaheitz said:


> I like the new site but I mainly want to know how to get one of the TUG signs that are in all the pics......I'd take it on vaca with me and take pics to send you!



Here. Just go to the last page and ask. Then after you take one on a trip, just pass the banner on to someone else who asks. http://tugbbs.com/forums/showthread.php?t=71324


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## bazzap

This new look is bright, fresh and welcoming - well done.
An iPad app really would be the icing on the cake.


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## TUGBrian

its definitely on the to-do list (an app)...its just far beyond my expertise.  probably have to find someone who does something like that to design it!


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## Ken555

TUGBrian said:


> its definitely on the to-do list (an app)...its just far beyond my expertise.  probably have to find someone who does something like that to design it!




Just make sure you use a good (and optimized) responsive template and you'll be fine with tablets and phones.


Sent from my iPad


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## truth1ness

Looks very nice! Here's some feedback I had on my first impression. 

The "Timeshare resorts" button and header should also say reviews "Timeshare Resorts & Reviews", imo. As a relative newcomer reviews are one of the big draws. Even as a member now my first thought looking at the home page was "where did the reviews section go" because it's only mentioned in the small text. 

The edit/pencil button when viewing on of My Reviews doesn't work when I click on it. 

The new photo browser is great!

Instead of a sidebar link for "Google Resort Map" perhaps just make the address on the main resort page linkable. 

It's be nice to have the top menu items drop down and disappear by hovering the mouse over it instead of having to click it open and click it closed. The way they function feels slow and requires many more clicks than necessary. Clicking on the actual navigation itself should take you directly to the first item in the dropdown like it does on most sites.

And I mentioned this in a separate thread, it would be really nice to filter only II or RCI resorts when browsing resorts.


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## truth1ness

Also, it looks like the resort codes have been removed from the resorts browse list. That was really useful to have in list view.


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## truth1ness

I like that the Top II/RCI/etc lists now include many more than the top 10 each. The more the better, imo. 

I don't like how every review is collapsed and needs to be clicked to expand it. This adds dozens of unnecessary clicks to each resort review page and adds no value.


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## TUGBrian

good feedback, ill see what we can do.

thank you.


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## truth1ness

Another big thing I just noticed, on the old site all the column headers could be clicked to sort by that column and that has been removed in the new site and clicking on them does nothing. Being able to sort by any of the columns was incredibly helpful and I really hope that gets put back in. This applies to both the marketplace pages as well as the classified and price history pages when looking at an individual resort review page.


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## TUGBrian

is now a "sort" button on the top right of all tables that allow you to choose how you want them displayed.


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## Passepartout

Truth1ness should not even be seeing reviews, unless they are currently open to non- members for website evaluation.

Jim


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## TUGBrian

possible they just havent updated their bbs profile to reflect paid membership.


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## truth1ness

Ah, I see the sort now. 

Yea, I haven't hooked up my bbs account yet, I just found the page explaining how.


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## Marcia3641

New site looks great, can't wait to view it on my iPad! I have a couple of comments/suggestions.

1. Is the only way to get back to the review home page is via the drop down at the top? I would recommend putting something on the page clickable to take you back to the resort/review homepage as a second option.

2. Is there a reason why some of the resorts names show up as' Villas at Banyan Bay, The' VS. 'The Villas at Banyan Bay'?

3. I noticed that my 'real' name vs my screen name is showing up on the review I wrote...YIKEES. And on some it's blank.

4. Wondering if there will ever be the option to search the resort reviews by ZIP CODE?

5. I don't see a legend that explains the symbols such as Gold Crown, unless I am missing it? And the symbols don't explain the designation when you hover over them.

6. What about considering an option to sort by Gold Crown, Premier, etc as two additional options in the sort drop down once you are in the review for that area, ie., USA - West|California?

7. It looks like some of the resorts without images have a blank image with the words 'resort image', is there a way to have it say something like 'no image available'?

8. I would recommend keeping the resort search bar on all of the pages.

9. Looks like 'browse resorts' and 'top tug resorts' take you to the same home page? Why the two separate choices in the drop down? Given the fact that you only have 4 options in the drop I would think it's not necessary.

Worked in marketing for 3 years and I've launched several websites platforms  so forgive me for my pickiness :ignore:


Marcia3641


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## TUGBrian

no problem with pickiness at all!

thank you for the feedback.  per the "resort image" issue, its likely the image is missing or corrupt...i dont believe it would show that if there simply was no image available at all for the review.  what resort?


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## TUGBrian

Marcia3641 said:


> New site looks great, can't wait to view it on my iPad! I have a couple of comments/suggestions.
> 
> 1. Is the only way to get back to the review home page is via the drop down at the top? I would recommend putting something on the page clickable to take you back to the resort/review homepage as a second option.
> 
> 2. Is there a reason why some of the resorts names show up as' Villas at Banyan Bay, The' VS. 'The Villas at Banyan Bay'?
> 
> 3. I noticed that my 'real' name vs my screen name is showing up on the review I wrote...YIKEES. And on some it's blank.
> 
> 4. Wondering if there will ever be the option to search the resort reviews by ZIP CODE?
> 
> 5. I don't see a legend that explains the symbols such as Gold Crown, unless I am missing it? And the symbols don't explain the designation when you hover over them.
> 
> 6. What about considering an option to sort by Gold Crown, Premier, etc as two additional options in the sort drop down once you are in the review for that area, ie., USA - West|California?
> 
> 7. It looks like some of the resorts without images have a blank image with the words 'resort image', is there a way to have it say something like 'no image available'?
> 
> 8. I would recommend keeping the resort search bar on all of the pages.
> 
> 9. Looks like 'browse resorts' and 'top tug resorts' take you to the same home page? Why the two separate choices in the drop down? Given the fact that you only have 4 options in the drop I would think it's not necessary.
> 
> Worked in marketing for 3 years and I've launched several websites platforms  so forgive me for my pickiness :ignore:
> 
> 
> Marcia3641



implemented a number of changes based on this feedback, thank you again!


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## Marcia3641

TUGBrian said:


> implemented a number of changes based on this feedback, thank you again!



Anytime :whoopie:


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## truth1ness

> 6. What about considering an option to sort by Gold Crown, Premier, etc as two additional options in the sort drop down once you are in the review for that area, ie., USA - West|California?



+1, I'd really like to filter the results to show just one exchange company. 

I'd also like to see the Top resorts lists (Top Interval, Top RCI, etc) show more. Viewing just Orlando, for example, shows around 100 properties, so it doesn't make sense that viewing all of Intervals properties around the world only shows about 45.


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## TUGBrian

believe the "top" resorts queries only show those rated above 9.0

we can easily change that though...ill just make it return the top 100 resorts in those queries.


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