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Web Client Beta Release Notes 6/5/2015


nanphan

Idea

Hello everyone,

 

We've been working hard incorporating all of the feedback that folks have been giving us over the past couple of months. Thank you everyone for your patience as we address these problems. In the meantime, we've made it a little easier for folks to switch back and forth between the old client and the Beta that doesn't require you to go to settings each time.

 

  • Switching to the Beta while in the current client - You'll now find a "Try Beta" in the upper right header of the web client that will let you quickly switch into the Beta.
  • Switching out of the Beta & back to the current client - Go to the account menu on the bottom left of the screen & click "Leave Beta". You'll be asked for some feedback as to why you are leaving. We read these comments every day, so any feedback you have on how we can improve the product would be great. 

We're hoping to make some updates soon to improving the overall experience and will update folks soon. Please continue to flag any bugs that you are finding and we'll be sure to log them. 

 

- Nancy

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23 replies to this idea

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Leaving a discussion and clicking the opt-out button does not get rid of the black blotchy patch. I can only make it go away if I fight it to the tooth with the utmost agression. I have to nuke it, speak out, speak up, visit you (in person) and go to Evernote.

 

Looking away has never solved any problems. Aggression is a very good thing. I has moved stones and destroyed the Bastille. It will also destroy that black patch. I hate it so much.

 

But hey, thanks Mister 1451 posts. You're right: let the market speak. Let silence speak. Let's just not buy stuff, click stuff, think stuff which we don't like. Why bother.

 

Yawn.

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In one of the other threads, an Evernote employee said that an option was added to go back to the "Old" web interface quickly, without having to go through account settings. That was apparently removed, as I see no way to do it outside of account settings.

I think the original version of Evernote web is far more practical for most people, certainly myself. It uses screen real-estate to display tags, notebooks, shortcuts, reminders; notes under a notebook; and the current selected note. If I want to look at one note in isolation, I can open it up in its own window.

I do not see the advantage of the new version of Evernote, except perhaps on tiny screens, but even there, for a smart-phone, you'd want to use the Evernote App.

I hope that work on the old Evernote interface has not been completely abandoned and that it will continue to be improved for bugs, features, etc. You can also work on small changes to it to free up more screen space (e.g., maybe option to remove scroll bars from column panes, as most of use just use the scroll wheel for this).

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I have to say, I love Evernote, use it daily since more than a year, and I keep using the old version. I hate the new version.

 

SOmeone said:

Quote

Evernote is not primarily a writing tool. If I just want to write, I'll use a word processor or a text editor. The beauty of Evernote is storing and organising notes, and the new interface makes the latter harder.

 

and i totally agree!!!!!

 

it's for organization! not for writing. sure it would be nice if we could have both worlds. until then, for me the most important thing is the organization , not the writing aspects.

if you really want to change the design, then please, please, PLEASE always leave the option for people to switch back and forth between versions. 

 

thank you for such an awesome piece of software!!! :D

 

 

 

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My initial reaction when I opened the web beta was "HELP, where did all my data go!"  A big blank screen with no information is not my idea of an Evernote desktop. Click to find tags, click to find notes and click to find notebooks are in my opinion three unnecessary actions to see the information I'm used to.  Screens are getting higher and higher resolutions, why fill it with tons of white nothingness?  The OK, so maybe it is time for a refresh of the layout, but this is too much in the wrong direction in my opinion.

 

I agree with Robin above: Evernote is not primarily a writing tool,  for me neither.  I guess there are infinite number of ways that users are using Evernote. Also it seems that Evernote is moving my favorite web-app in the direction of collaboration.  For me Evernote has always been about collecting and organizing information for later search and retrieval.   I think that Evernote should make it possible for users to tailor Evernote to the individual needs.  

 

 

Btw.  I've been using Evernote since 2008 with the windows application.  Evernote was my sole reason for having a virtual Windows running on my Linux computer.  The web version solved everything for me, and is my main Evernote surface although I use the IOS version occasionally.  Thanks for making the best productivity tool available.

 

We recently changed the default landing experience so it is no longer a new note. Feel free to leave us any feedback about the experience. You can find out more here: https://discussion.evernote.com/topic/85672-web-client-beta-release-notes-6112015/.

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My initial reaction when I opened the web beta was "HELP, where did all my data go!"  A big blank screen with no information is not my idea of an Evernote desktop. Click to find tags, click to find notes and click to find notebooks are in my opinion three unnecessary actions to see the information I'm used to.  Screens are getting higher and higher resolutions, why fill it with tons of white nothingness?  The OK, so maybe it is time for a refresh of the layout, but this is too much in the wrong direction in my opinion.

 

I agree with Robin above: Evernote is not primarily a writing tool,  for me neither.  I guess there are infinite number of ways that users are using Evernote. Also it seems that Evernote is moving my favorite web-app in the direction of collaboration.  For me Evernote has always been about collecting and organizing information for later search and retrieval.   I think that Evernote should make it possible for users to tailor Evernote to the individual needs.  

 

 

Btw.  I've been using Evernote since 2008 with the windows application.  Evernote was my sole reason for having a virtual Windows running on my Linux computer.  The web version solved everything for me, and is my main Evernote surface although I use the IOS version occasionally.  Thanks for making the best productivity tool available.

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  • Level 5*

Evernote is not primarily a writing tool. If I just want to write, I'll use a word processor or a text editor.

 

This is the main point that Evernote is missing or ignoring.

 

Regardless of having, or not having, a "clean, uncluttered" writing surface, Evernote is far, far from being a even a good writing tool, let alone a "polished" tool as CEO Phil Libin stated. 

 

Why bother giving me a nice piece of stationery, when the pen you provide is leaky, scratchy, too broad of stoke, and often runs out of ink.   Get the picture???  First give me an excellent pen, and then I can write well on many surfaces.

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I decided to give the beta another try and immediately went back to the old interface.

 

Evernote is not primarily a writing tool. If I just want to write, I'll use a word processor or a text editor. The beauty of Evernote is storing and organising notes, and the new interface makes the latter harder. As many have commented eslewhere, if you've spent a lot of time setting up a hierarchy of tags, then having someone flatten them out just because it looks nicer that way is not a help. Please please please bring back the old notebook and tag hierarchies!

 

Thank you for the feedback. We have not added all of the features of the web client back in yet. Sorry for the inconvenience. Many decisions are not a design decision, but rather just features not being ready yet. 

 

- Nancy 

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I decided to give the beta another try and immediately went back to the old interface.

 

Evernote is not primarily a writing tool. If I just want to write, I'll use a word processor or a text editor. The beauty of Evernote is storing and organising notes, and the new interface makes the latter harder. As many have commented eslewhere, if you've spent a lot of time setting up a hierarchy of tags, then having someone flatten them out just because it looks nicer that way is not a help. Please please please bring back the old notebook and tag hierarchies!

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My experience with beta was frustrating.

 

"Opting" out was a challenge. Launching EN from the web kept logging me into beta where "My Account" was not accessible. Was finally able to get to it from the Windows EN "Go to My Account"...

 

Help was also not accessible through beta. Maybe I was missing features? I wanted to log in to submit a trouble ticket because the EN clipper was also missing. (Got that fixed this morning, too, after days trying to find the right "help".)

 

Web browser is Firefox 38.0.5

 

Hi Colleen, 

 

When you say "Go to My account" do you mean your Account Settings? https://www.evernote.com/Settings.action.  Thank you for your feedback. We will be adding a help link in shortly. 

 

Everytime I tried to log in to EN in a browser, it launched beta. Perhaps just me jumping into beta without realizing that all I had access to was notes and notebooks... ^_^

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My experience with beta was frustrating.

 

"Opting" out was a challenge. Launching EN from the web kept logging me into beta where "My Account" was not accessible. Was finally able to get to it from the Windows EN "Go to My Account"...

 

Help was also not accessible through beta. Maybe I was missing features? I wanted to log in to submit a trouble ticket because the EN clipper was also missing. (Got that fixed this morning, too, after days trying to find the right "help".)

 

Web browser is Firefox 38.0.5

 

Hi Colleen, 

 

When you say "Go to My account" do you mean your Account Settings? https://www.evernote.com/Settings.action.  Thank you for your feedback. We will be adding a help link in shortly. 

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My experience with beta was frustrating.

 

"Opting" out was a challenge. Launching EN from the web kept logging me into beta where "My Account" was not accessible. Was finally able to get to it from the Windows EN "Go to My Account"...

 

Help was also not accessible through beta. Maybe I was missing features? I wanted to log in to submit a trouble ticket because the EN clipper was also missing. (Got that fixed this morning, too, after days trying to find the right "help".)

 

Web browser is Firefox 38.0.5

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Leaving a discussion and clicking the opt-out button does not get rid of the black blotchy patch. I can only make it go away if I fight it to the tooth with the utmost agression. I have to nuke it, speak out, speak up, visit you (in person) and go to Evernote.

 

Looking away has never solved any problems. Aggression is a very good thing. I has moved stones and destroyed the Bastille. It will also destroy that black patch. I hate it so much.

 

But hey, thanks Mister 1451 posts. You're right: let the market speak. Let silence speak. Let's just not buy stuff, click stuff, think stuff which we don't like. Why bother.

 

Yawn.

 

Can you help us understand what the black blotchy patch is? At first we assumed you meant the notebook header that is above the note list. However, you should not see this if you've already opted out of the Beta. 

 

Nancy 

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I hate that blotchy black rectangle with the title of my notebook inside, top left. It sticks out with such brutality, it wants me to cancel my Premium account right now. I'm actually gettiing agressive.

 

Question: would Apple do such design? NO.

Would the Pirate Bay do this? YES.

 

Good bye. I may visit you one day with a similar patch over one eye... (yes, this is a thread)

 

I love the Caecilia and Gotham fonts... and I quite like the black notebook header. One day when I write my very own Evernote book, my chapter headings will be exactly like that.  ;)

 

You might redirect your impulse to cancel your premium account and focus your energy on clicking on the opt-out (leave beta) button under settings instead.

 

Apple is beautiful... I look at their apps and software every day... but thank goodness not everything is Apple-esque.

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I hate that blotchy black rectangle with the title of my notebook inside, top left. It sticks out with such brutality, it wants me to cancel my Premium account right now. I'm actually gettiing agressive.

 

Question: would Apple do such design? NO.

Would the Pirate Bay do this? YES.

 

Good bye. I may visit you one day with a similar patch over one eye... (yes, this is a thread)

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Thanks Nancy. I think it all depends on use cases and context.

 

If I were to depend on the Web client as my primary Evernote app, I'd be singing a different tune... but since I don't, when it comes to the web Beta, I quite like the aesthetics for specific use cases.

 

You'll have a lot of unhappy campers even with middle ground, trying to merge elements from both the classic and the Beta. My limited use case does not speak for the overwhelming majority who need something robust in their browsers. 

 

I've said it multiple times... and I'll say it many more: it would be great to have two permanent versions to choose from -  to be able to switch back and forth as desired. That's basically what we have right now... but just give everyone assurance that the options we currently have are here to stay, and independently will also improve over time.

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Thank you everyone for the feedback. While we know that there are many more kinks to work through, it doesn't have to be a hard black line of Beta vs Old Client. Our hope is that we can continue to improve on all scenarios and find the best of both worlds. Please continue to help us understand what scenarios are working for you and what scenarios aren't. What is more difficult and what has become easier? We appreciate all the candid feedback and thank you for participating in the Beta as well as the discussion forums. :)

 

- Nancy 

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"There are many, many more issues (bugs) and features that many of us need long before a slightly better "writing surface".

To start with, before you bother to provide a great writing surface, you need a great writing tool.  Evernote falls far short in this area.  These forums are abound with a multitude of formatting issues, copy/paste issues, erractic list behavior, missing basic features (like Find & Replace), not to mention some of the key, but basic, features that many writers need (footnotes, references, internal note links (anchors), styles (this is huge), etc."

 

I like the new web client, but the point made here is very true. Very

 

 

Agreed... but if all platforms are on a par in that respect, this is a subject for another thread. What's up for discussion here is the web beta client itself, which is not intended to right all of Evernote's word processing wrongs. 

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"There are many, many more issues (bugs) and features that many of us need long before a slightly better "writing surface".


To start with, before you bother to provide a great writing surface, you need a great writing tool.  Evernote falls far short in this area.  These forums are abound with a multitude of formatting issues, copy/paste issues, erractic list behavior, missing basic features (like Find & Replace), not to mention some of the key, but basic, features that many writers need (footnotes, references, internal note links (anchors), styles (this is huge), etc."


 


I like the new web client, but the point made here is very true. Very


 


 


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  • Level 5*

@Frank:

 

Long story short:  It's a matter of the prioritization of resources.

 

IMO, the classic, web client in full-screen mode, is, or should be, a sufficiently distraction-free writing "surface" for the large majority of people.  It should not be about having a "beautiful" writing surface, it should be about having sufficient clear space (horizontal and vertical) to compose and review your work.  Whether I'm writing on an old government gray desk, or a truly beautiful, hand crafted, mahogany desk, should not affect my writing skills.

 

There are many, many more issues (bugs) and features that many of us need long before a slightly better "writing surface".

To start with, before you bother to provide a great writing surface, you need a great writing tool.  Evernote falls far short in this area.  These forums are abound with a multitude of formatting issues, copy/paste issues, erractic list behavior, missing basic features (like Find & Replace), not to mention some of the key, but basic, features that many writers need (footnotes, references, internal note links (anchors), styles (this is huge), etc.

 

FYI, while I am not a professional writer (don't write published books, etc for my primary source of income), I have done a lot of writing over the years.  I have written many documents, mostly engineering, technical, or business documents.  They have ranged from 1 page to hundreds of pages, with an expected readership from 1 to hundreds, many even thousands.  Frankly, I have NEVER been distracted by the other computer elements (menus, other windows, controls, toolbars, etc) around me.  Just like I'm not distracted by the objects on my physical desk and office/study.

 

I really wonder about the people who claim the need this extremely distraction-free writing surface provided by the EN Web BETA.  Do they also clean off their desk, clean out their office, close the window blinds/shades, turn off all sounds???  Do they turn off their phones so they don't get any phone call nor notification beeps for email, txt msg, urgent msg, etc???  Need I go on?

 

IMO, the real distractions are phone calls, people, kids, loud noises in the office/home (including people talking nearby in cubicles), and of course loud outside noises.  EDIT:  I forgot the big one:  meetings, both physical and online.

 

IMO, learning to tune out normal environmental noise and to ignore the static visual things around you is an important still that anyone who writes, or actually anyone who wants to get work done, learns to do early in their career.

 

OK, </rant_off>.   ;)

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 however for plain writing, it's a beautiful environment.  

 

As they say, "beauty is in the eye of the beholder."  I, and I think many others, either don't see the beauty, or the advantage of it.

 

Regardless of its beauty (and form should aways follow function), I still don't really see the need.

If you open a Note in its own window in the classic Web client, you get a very clean writing environment.

 

 

 

The irony of using the phrase, "Beauty is in the eye of the beholder." Whether one likes big butts or minimalistic, distraction-free writing environments, why not live and let live? Your eye doesn't behold what mine does...  At the end of the day, it's a matter of preference... and I quite like a different flavor... something that doesn't look like a watered-down version of the desktop client. Let's not forget that I am painfully aware that many people use the web client as their go-to... and not to mention the Linux users. I'm just saying this is a decent writing environment... no more, no less.

 

Personally, I'm rooting for a permanent switch that one can flip back and forth between writing mode (Beta) and semi-heavy browsing mode (Old version). 

 

 

Here's the new web Beta version... You will notice that when one begins to type, all non-essentials are toned right down to a lighter shade of gray. What you don't see in this screenshot is that as one highlights a phrase, the formatting box - à la Word - pops up where you need it. 

 

 

Beta.png?dl=1

 

 

 

 

 

 

If you open a Note in its own window in the classic Web client, you get a very clean writing environment.

 

 

Here's the "old"/ classic web client in full-screen mode (a note expanded into its own window). Doable... but it doesn't motivate me to switch from the desktop client, which does all my heavy lifting. From my selfish perspective, when it comes to writing, what benefit would I have here over the desktop client, besides real-time syncing, (which the Beta also has)?

 

 

Old%20version.png?dl=1

 

 

 

 

 

Have you actually compared the writing experience in full-screen mode on both versions? When I'm writing, I like to be alone with my thoughts...

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  • Level 5*

 however for plain writing, it's a beautiful environment.  

 

As they say, "beauty is in the eye of the beholder."  I, and I think many others, either don't see the beauty, or the advantage of it.

 

Regardless of its beauty (and form should aways follow function), I still don't really see the need.

If you open a Note in its own window in the classic Web client, you get a very clean writing environment.

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Just a word of encouragement for the new Beta client: It's a welcome change from the desktop app, in that it's markedly different.

 

I understand that some rely on the web client and the Beta may not be the most practical... however for plain writing, it's a beautiful environment. I think there's space for both. Just make it easy to switch back and forth between the two for different use cases. Perhaps make the Beta available in a "writing mode" button. 

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