The Downside to modern programming ...

[mr_lincoln]

I've been watching numerous platforms change their page layouts, program formats, functionality, page to page links, etc for quite a few years and I believe modern programming reached its zenith a few years back and is now on a continuing downward spiral.  The result is lost efficiency in completing simple tasks, reviewing data and information as part of the day-to-day internet entrepreneur business.  Many tasks have doubled the amount of time it takes to complete them.  Too many platforms have gone to a pretty and fancy look but have lost simple efficiency functionality.  Does eBay fall into this category?  Yes, as many have posted here BUT they are certainly not the only company to fall into that trap.

I Buy a lot of my inventory online, so this phenomenon negatively affects Buyers too and not just Sellers.  So instead of being able to peruse through a 500 lot online auction and create a Watch list in 20 minutes it now takes close to twice that.  That is happening to a lot of Buyers so the net result is that somebody's auction is not being reviewed because the time to do that was spent on a different auction.

The other issue is managing each unique platform.  eBay makes it easy for a Buyer to set up their funding source one time yet purchase from millions of individual Sellers.

One auction platform I work with sponsors auction houses in all 50 states so it is similar to eBay in that I enter my funding source info one time and it is used on any auction I bid on.

As companies break off from these type venues and create their own sites or use other and newer programming formats then EACH site requires a discrete Username, Password and funding source.  The newer programs also require more pointing, clicking and scrolling.   So, if I have to update or change my preferred funding source I would do it once on eBay or that other platform ... BUT for the individual auction firms it means for each and everyone. 

Then on top of all of that one has to learn the new formats because while they are similar they are not all the same.  

It is easy to see how we got here but it is hard to imagine what it will be like in the next 5 - 10 - 20 years ... but I just don't see it migrating back to a more efficient use of time through programming.

[ittybitnot]

As companies break off from these type venues and create their own sites or use other and newer programming formats then EACH site requires a discrete Username, Password and funding source. 

@mr_lincoln 

After many years selling and buying here, I am "one of those" that created my own website for sales.  Some of the things I disliked about on line shopping were intentionally left out from mine.  There are no annoying giant pop ups that fly in your face a few seconds AFTER you view the site, you don't have to have an "account" to see what is available and how much it will cost, or  to buy something,  etc.  There is a rather excellent 'key word' search, that returns what you ask for, and a normal check out that will combine all items for a reduced shipping cost.  The buyer adds the funding source only at check out and it is NOT held or recorded for 'next time'.  

Though the site is rather old school with no flashing screens, bells and whistles, and full of ads from other places, it suits me fine to be a calm easy going place to shop.  For the buyer, the interface is the same when they return.   I have pretty good Google placement without spending a dime.  The whole set up is less than $60 a year including my domain renewal.  

As "marketplaces" such as eBay, Mercari, and etsy become more expensive and draconian with regards to policies, I would predict a move from them to more personal websites. It is not "dangerous" to buy from such, as has been suggested for decades if one uses a credit card.  As a buyer, I have a program where I can select which card I want to use wherever I shop so the info is pre-filled at checkout.  I was quite dismayed on eBay that they automatically charged for a purchase to a card I had on file for "selling" seemingly instantly with no input from me. 

[Anonymous]

Boy Howdy!

[the_fancy_fox]

I have always believed that programmers should be forced to use the websites they maintain / or create.  

Mandatory six months of selling and buying here. 

Sometimes I think programmers change stuff up just to justify their jobs….

[Anonymous]

"Draconian"

10X.

[readabouthorses]

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@the_fancy_fox wrote:

I have always believed that programmers should be forced to use the websites they maintain / or create.  

Mandatory six months of selling and buying here. 

Sometimes I think programmers change stuff up just to justify their jobs….

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I do have to wonder how much of all the fiddling they do is job justification. You have to look busy or you are not necessary.  You can't look too efficient or they might cut your hours. So just a little tweaking here and a little fiddling there and oops now you've created something that might take you 2 weeks to fix! LOL

[mr_lincoln]

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@the_fancy_fox wrote:

I have always believed that programmers should be forced to use the websites they maintain / or create.  

Mandatory six months of selling and buying here. 

Sometimes I think programmers change stuff up just to justify their jobs….

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@the_fancy_fox 

-Agreed

-Agreed

-Agreed

[mr_lincoln]

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@readabouthorses wrote:

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@the_fancy_fox wrote:

I have always believed that programmers should be forced to use the websites they maintain / or create.  

Mandatory six months of selling and buying here. 

Sometimes I think programmers change stuff up just to justify their jobs….

---

I do have to wonder how much of all the fiddling they do is job justification. You have to look busy or you are not necessary.  You can't look too efficient or they might cut your hours. So just a little tweaking here and a little fiddling there and oops now you've created something that might take you 2 weeks to fix! LOL

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@readabouthorses   I agree with you as well as @the_fancy_fox  ... but I think the real key point is that programmers are often not users ... or at least not heavy enough users to realize their changes have an adverse affect.  

It's just that programming changes on this and other venues has NOT improved productivity or efficiency ... 

[mr_lincoln]

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@Anonymous wrote:

"Draconian"

10X.

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@Anonymous   You mean the programming, right?

[Anonymous]

Yes, I was concurring with the term, perhaps it was Ibn.

[maxine*j]

Another issue is that people now use so many different devices -- desktops, laptops, netbooks, tablets, handhelds, smartphones -- and it's challenging to do "one size fits all" programming for them and the variety of operating systems that run them.

What might look and work great on, say, an iPhone with its iOS may be be so hot on a desktop with a Linux OS or on a laptop with a Windows OS.  Often, the compromise is something that works well enough on all three, but isn't terrific on any of them.

Another challenge for programmers is that they're working with old (sometimes ancient in tech terms) coding and they must work around bugs from 8 years ago, or bad coding decisions made 14 years ago, et cetera, and be careful not bring entire rickety, tottering, barely-functioning sections with one small change.

And, yeah, of course programmers justify their existence by doing some what-the-heck and unnecessary programming:  Repositioning icons, changing colors, shifting fonts, et cetera.  Very few employers will hire someone to just sit at a desk, doing nothing, until there's an actual need for his skills six weeks or six months, or maybe even six years, down the road. 

From a user point of view, the endless learning curve all this puts us on can be anything from mildly annoying to positively maddening, of course.

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[mr_lincoln]

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@Anonymous wrote:

Yes, I was concurring with the term, perhaps it was Ibn.

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@Anonymous   10-4 & Thanx

[maxine*j]

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@maxine*j wrote:

"..  What might look and work great on, say, an iPhone with its iOS may be be so hot on a... 

"... and be careful not bring entire rickety, tottering, barely-functioning sections with one small change..."

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Make that ... 

... What might look and work great on, say, an iPhone with its iOS may not be be so hot on a... 

... and be careful to not bring down entire rickety, tottering, barely-functioning sections with one small change...

I am lousy at copy-editing today!  Sorry.

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[the_fancy_fox]

It’s why I use Sixbit for listing. All on one page and I can zoom through a listing. There are a few set ups but once there done listing is about as quick as it can be made to be. Great CS too. 

I tired ebays new lister and ah, no thanks.

[ms.rodriguez*]

Yes. I agree.  They need to sell for at least 6 months.  This way they can see how stupid some of the ebay updates have been.   Here is a perfect example of Ebay's stupidity in the programming department.  Years ago, I loaded the photos with my ipad and if I did not like the order, I could shift them around.  Now I can't.  I have to go to my desktop to switch the order.  If I insist on using the ipad, I need to delete ALL of the photos and then load them up in the exact order that I want.      Whoever did this last change and whoever approved both should be fired or shifted to the bathroom cleaning dept. at ebay headquarters.   

The last change to the form now takes longer to load photos using a desktop.  Why?  At the very minimum, they need established sellers sitting right next to the programmers. Of course, these sellers should be paid for their time.