New EAA Web Site Splash Page

[Hal Bryan]

I agree, the old page had the new "news" articles front and center, I still haven't found a good place to find them on the new one.

Thanks to all ongoing for the feedback. As you've seen, the 4 "feature item" blocks on the home page aren't changing all that frequently. This will change a bit over time, especially as the "we have a new website" story is no longer news - then you'll start to see other news items that merit the exposure pop up there.

That said, to see the news articles, just click on "News" on the menu bar. They're all there, one click away.

A couple of points for everyone to consider:

The overwhelming majority of traffic to EAA.org comes from search engines, social media, and direct links to stories from newsletters like e-Hotline, bypassing the front page altogether. Of the traffic that does hit the home page, the overwhelming majority of that traffic is made up of new users who have never been to the site before. When going through the redesign process, we asked ourselves what we wanted a new user to see: an orgy of ads and a massive not-well-organized list of news stories like on the old site, or a simpler, cleaner destination that says a bit about who we are (we build airplanes, we fly young eagles, we love flying, etc.) and then offers a reasonable set of navigational tools to find the rest of what you might want.

One other thing, many links do not display in IE8, like on the blogs page, I see no links at all in IE8 which is what is on my work computer, which is locked down so I can't put another browser on it.

Sounds like you're running IE8 on Windows XP at work?

[krw920]

Sounds like you're running IE8 on Windows XP at work?

Not quite that bad, IE8 on Windows 7!

[Hal Bryan]

Not quite that bad, IE8 on Windows 7!

Hmm - that's odd, I've only seen the behavior you described un IE8 on XP. That said, IE8 is three versions old. I understand you can't change browsers on your work PC, but can you at least update to one that is reasonably current?

[Blue Chips]

that says a bit about who we are (we build airplanes, we fly young eagles, we love flying, etc.)

Just for the record, not all members of the EAA build Airplanes !
Some actually build Rotor Craft, you know, like Helicopters and Gyro Copters.
"Airplanes" seems to be the mindset of EAA, not entirely but for the most part likely due to Airplanes being what the majority of it's members are interested in, myself, I love all experimental types but Helicopters are where my big interest towards flying are, so there is at least one that is building a helicopter and It's very quiet here

Ken

[Hal Bryan]

that says a bit about who we are (we build airplanes, we fly young eagles, we love flying, etc.)

Just for the record, not all members of the EAA build Airplanes !
Some actually build Rotor Craft, you know, like Helicopters and Gyro Copters.
"Airplanes" seems to be the mindset of EAA, not entirely but for the most part likely due to Airplanes being what the majority of it's members are interested in, myself, I love all experimental types but Helicopters are where my big interest towards flying are, so there is at least one that is building a helicopter and It's very quiet here

Ken

Wow, Ken - you have me dead to rights on that one. As someone who aspires to build a gyro one day, I should know better! I'm usually pretty good about saying "aircraft" and not just airplanes.

Just a slip of the keyboard, I promise...!

[Blue Chips]

Well... OK

[rleffler]

Hmm - that's odd, I've only seen the behavior you described un IE8 on XP. That said, IE8 is three versions old. I understand you can't change browsers on your work PC, but can you at least update to one that is reasonably current?

Unfortunately, that's out of many corporate user's control. Many corporations have critical applications that haven't been maintained to current HTML specifications. In many cases, there just wasn't budget to do so. One of my previous projects was to upgrade a major automotive manufacturer from IE 6 to IE8, even though IE10 was just being released at the time. Yes, they were still on XP at the time too!

Having maintained a web site for ten years that supported millions of users, I was always surpised by the stats on OS and BROWSER types used. At least for the site I managed, it showed that users tended not to upgrade. They ran forever what was on the computer when it was purchased. The bane of web developers. Do they stay within the installed base, or do they incorporate new technology that may cause users some grief? There is no good answer to that question. What ever decision is reached, there will be a percentage of folks that have a different opinion.

bob

[Hal Bryan]

The bane of web developers. Do they stay within the installed base, or do they incorporate new technology that may cause users some grief? There is no good answer to that question. What ever decision is reached, there will be a percentage of folks that have a different opinion.

bob

Well put, Bob.

We were surprised by our stats as well, though in a different way: over the past year, about 6% of the visitors to EAA.org were combined XP / IE8 users. In addition, that number is trending down - in the month before the new site launch, it was less than 4%. Still not zero, but a reassuring trend to be sure.

[Bill]

Well put, Bob.

We were surprised by our stats as well, though in a different way: over the past year, about 6% of the visitors to EAA.org were combined XP / IE8 users. In addition, that number is trending down - in the month before the new site launch, it was less than 4%. Still not zero, but a reassuring trend to be sure.

Maybe EAA members are more intelligent than your average browser user!

I think of knuckles dragging on the ground when I talk to most computer users (Oh, do I really need a password for my accounts, including the admin account).

[Tcraftpilot]

Hi guys, perhaps I have missed it. There used to be a way to search for area fly ins by entering an airport identifier then selecting a search radius. Have I missed that or are there plans to put that back in? I find searching the fly ins on the new site a huge hassle right now. Otherwise looks great! Thanks

ryan