Not regally. You visit STW and you visit that site and probably looked at your property.

Well, yes and no. Obviously I visit STW but the “Bien d’Ici” site holding the advert in the side column I’ve never been on previously (never heard of them). I’ve looked at the advert on the estate agents site we’ve put it on sale with but only on that one.  I guess the dreaded cookies just end up linking everything.  Anyway, sorry to go off track on this one.

Exactly how it’s popped up. Good luck with you sale.

A couple of people have mentioned “freeloading” now. There’s nothing wrong with being a Free Member if that’s what you choose to do, despite the protestations of like two people (“shouted down”? Oh come on).

Think what you like, I’ve taken enough shit over the years to know better.

So there’s an autoplaying video on every page of every thread….. Where do I send my invoice for the unrequested use of my data?

Having a video on every page is somewhat annoying but autoplay is extremely irritating.

Having a video on every page is somewhat annoying but autoplay is extremely irritating.

Whilst it doesn’t directly impact me as a paying member it would certainly be enough to ensure I stopped visiting if it did impact me.
There’s an extent to which I think free users get what they pay for but some things I personally think are a step too far and I think are likely to lead to the loss of users (based on my own stance obviously) and that really does effect me.
Ads etc shouldn’t* make the site unusable or undesirable to use (even if paying does make it better) auto play does both those things IMO and I’ll (personally) be voting with my feet if it stays in place because I do think it’s unreasonable.

*I get there are occasional ones which really do screw things but it’s not a conscious effort to put those particular ads in place like this.

I see the autoplay videos are back but I can’t see the preferences setting to turn them off. Can anyone point me in the right direction?

I’m not seeing them yet…

Perhaps it was temporary, I was getting a OneUp seatpost promo in every thread but they have gone at the moment.

Autoplaying videos is terrible web design. I know it’s a cliche but this site is getting like a local news website. Why do it?

Autoplaying videos is terrible web design. I know it’s a cliche but this site is getting like a local news website. Why do it?

They need to stay solvent and pay the wages.  Ad revenue is part of that.

I see the autoplay videos are back but I can’t see the preferences setting to turn them off. Can anyone point me in the right direction?

They are back for me too. I’ve tried to find a setting to stop auto play but can’t find it.

Are the settings to remove auto play only for paying customers? Do the freeloaders not get an option to disable them?

But making a website so painful to visit that it makes people think twice about doing so is not the way forward.

Are the settings to remove auto play only for paying customers? Do the freeloaders not get an option to disable them?

I can’t find them either.

Oh no, stw is no longer work friendly 😂

Best I’ve managed is I’ve muted the video and this keeps my setting moving from thread to thread. It even saves this if I close the browser down and re open it.

If anyone works out how to disable auto play, please can you tag me? Thanks

If anyone works out how to disable auto play, please can you tag me? Thanks

See mark’s post. As a free user you won’t have the option as I read it.
That being said scotroutes isn’t a free member and seems to currently have the same issue.

Well, maybe I just can’t find it.

Why do it?

Why do you suppose a commercial website does anything?

But making a website so painful to visit that it makes people think twice about doing so is not the way forward.

It may well be if longer-term net revenue goes up.

Can I just say that when stuff like this is implemented, surely it would be better for Mark to post a warning/explanation before they implement it, rather than waiting until he has confused/irritated/alienated the people paying his wage bill & then putting something up. This was absolutely guaranteed to annoy people

It may well be if longer-term net revenue goes up.

Well if it forces some people away then that may not happen!

I thought the excuse for this was just to save on some back office work?

I no longer come here for the bike forum, just the “chat” and that’s certainly not what it used to be.

Things like this (autoplay) may be counterproductive.

Trying to force me to pay by making the site “worse” just isn’t going to work and probably won’t for others.

They need to stay solvent and pay the wages. Ad revenue is part of that.

Making your website terrible to persuade people to pay to make it less terrible may not be the genius business idea they think it is.

scotroutes
Full Member
Well, maybe I just can’t find it.

Not just you I couldn’t either but they seem to be gone again this morning.
Still I found another button to press instead.

Can I just say that when stuff like this is implemented, surely it would be better for Mark to post a warning/explanation before they implement it, rather than waiting until he has confused/irritated/alienated the people paying his wage bill & then putting something up. This was absolutely guaranteed to annoy people

Yeah, but you can’t gauge how annoyed until you try. All these changes are carefully calculated decisions to see how far they can push and get away with. It grates but I do understand it. I do worry when it’ll be a step too far and that’s from a continual subscriber from the first couple of issues.

See Bikeperfect as an example of too far. Went on the last day to check a group test and left after that. Auto play video constantly resetting to top of page, random ads all through posts. Truly awful. Tend to have a look at it once a month, where as I’m here a couple of times a day.

However you slice it, I have no doubts that Mark will be monitoring the site statistics very closely.

Can I just say that when stuff like this is implemented, surely it would be better for Mark to post a warning/explanation before they implement it,

Back when I was a moderator I tried to plug that gap, but most of the time we were as in the dark as everyone else. It got better when we were granted access to the devs’ to-do list but there were still instances were outside influences (like say Google changing something) which meant dropping everything and making a possibly unpopular change like yesterday.

Mark once said that he stopped posting because every time he did he got mauled. Historically at least, the Techs rarely read the forum because of all the negativity about what is, after all, their day job. Whether any of that is still the case, I couldn’t say.

I don’t blame them for not reading the forum – well aware this is Mark’s ball, but this username is completely bought into this forum – it is like family for many. As such, they have, or feel they have, a real bond with it.
Any changes and of course things will kick off, that is what happens when you change something that is working very well for many people.
What could help – no idea if it would though – is some.sort of early engagement group. A group of users (by invite) who get into discussions with Mark and the Devs to discuss ideas – not necessarily to steer the decision but gives the office team and idea of how things might land…which might help reduce some of the anger that gets expressed by many folk when things change.

The autoplay thing is going to be a killer for several – many of us sit with a.wondow.open at work so having video playing and sound is going to stop that…for others, this will be a data muncher – not everyone connects via WiFi. I understand why it needs to be done – make complete sense to utilise what is already working and reducing further work to.add YouTube links, but it will have an impact. With any luck user numbers will increase, but going by experience of this kind of stuff at work…it isn’t likely and if it does then it’ll be after a reasonable chunk of time.

They’re definitely not ads though…

Userbase not username!

it is like family for many

If that were the case, social work would have long been involved.

TBH I(‘ve no idea why in fks name this thread is still going. Vids put up. Disapproval expressed, vids removed. End of story.

Vids are still there tho?

At least make them muted.

Has anyone figured out where in settings/preferences you can turn them off?

(They’re back for me)

Try emailing Mark?

Seems a bit OTT.

No videos are showing for me (when logged in).

@bearnecessities nobody else has made any comment or commitment about having an opt-out option. I don’t think it’s OTT to ask if, where and when this will appear.

@bearnecessities I don’t think they’re back yet. If/when they do I’d think the option will be under ‘preferences’ in your account.

I am intermittently seeing the video ads this afternoon. It wouldn’t be so bad if they didn’t auto play but I guess that is needed to rack up the play count despite them only playing long enough for me to find the pause button

Thanks @funsponge 😀 & @scotroutes

Emailing the site owner is a bit far in my opinion; the videos are sodding annoying, whenever they crop up, so I’ll be turning those buggers off as soon as it’s possible and that’s all I was after knowing.

I don’t expect a hotline to Mark and I don’t blame any of the decisions he makes, whether I like them or not – **** being in his position.

Just to see whether I’m special, is anyone else getting the video after the second post here?

What the hell is Dubstep?

Nope

I have not seen any videos either on my phone with duck duck go as the browser or on my desktop with firefox.

Do some browsers stop autoplay vids by default?

Full members currently shouldn’t see them.