3.6 custom menu setup TABS = bad idea

I also find the tab layout more cumbersome. AND I am desperately trying to figure out how to add a custom link as a menu item!!!! Where did that feature go????

I just upgraded today and happen to need to add a custom menu item today to link to the project management software I am running on a subdomain. Any help appreciated thank you!

Where did that feature go????

Try looking under Links.

I agree that we seem to be moving to more and more steps. First image handling got a lot more complicated with the insertion and featured selection becoming two separate steps. Instead of Show, we now have edit which opens in a new tab?

Now this with menus. They call it simpler, but it’s not at all… I’d like to know who’s leading on these bad decisions.

I agree with the above, can’t centre, can’t do bold headings, my results are all squashed, can’t paste from Word. Nightmare.

Definition of “progress”…

“Replacing what works perfectly fine, with what seemed like a good idea at the time.”

Personally, professionally, I’d MUCH rather see progress on stability and security than truly pointless changes to the interface. Those of us who work with WP everyday for our livelihood get into a groove with particular workflows that WORK and we have a hard enough time making a living without having to relearn our core system every few releases.

If WP developers want to REALLY improve the application’s admin interface, then they could start like this: (a) develop a new control panel that let’s us customize our own visual preferences (fonts, sizes, colors, margins/padding, line spacing, cell spacing, widths, heights, etc.) for the actual WP admin interface; and (b) provide a way to easily export those settings so we can apply the SAME settings to other WP sites that we manage.

I see theme developers do stuff like this all the time – and I use those capabilities heavily. Why can’t WP do something similar?

WP – please focus on giving your USERS more control and stop replacing what works with what seems like a good idea…PLEASE !!!!

I’d MUCH rather see progress on stability and security than truly pointless changes to the interface.

You may feel that the interface changes were pointless. Many others did (and do) not agree. If you wish to influence the direction of future updates, I suggest you start by becoming involved in WordPress core development.

Clearly SOMEONE thought they were valid Emsi because they are definitely in the release. And I can see “why” they were done, my point is these changes really did nothing to improve usability or expand capabilities. They simply changed things and ended up causing more work (more clicks, more page loads, etc.) for the WP admin user.

I’m not a developer, I’m a user and designer and the only ones with voices in the WP core development are programmers. Having worked with developers regularly on many projects, I’ve learned to recognize “developer centric” changes when I see them. And the fact is there have been more and more of “those” types of changes creeping into WP with the latest releases. I’m thinking specifically of “editing” imported media items which now causes a new browser tab to open (unnecessary page loads.) Now we have new ‘tabs’ for menu items that also cause additional screen redraws. But there has been NO real justification as to why these changes were necessary, or explanation as to how they are beneficial to the end user.

From my seat, those are developer centric changes that someone felt was a “good idea” but I’m also guessing whoever approved and programmed those changes probably isn’t running multiple client WP sites on multiple off-site shared server hosting environments like 99% of the rest of us do. If they did, they would trash of all those needless screen redraw “updates” ASAP (among other things!!!)

As for involvement, and since I’m NOT a developer, I was under the impression that’s what this forum was for…???

my point is these changes really did nothing to improve usability or expand capabilities

Oh – in some instances they greatly increased usability/accessibility for those whoo not use a mouse or a graphical browser!

These are developer centric changes that someone felt was a “good idea”

No – these are user-centred changes that usability and accessibility experts decided was a good idea.

Since you’re a mod, I have to be careful with MY replies to avoid getting banned, or having my threads closed or removed entirely.

I use WP every single day for my livelihood and from MY chair and MY computer screens, these changes did absolutely nothing positive and only served to drag down (my) efficiency. I already fight with several of my client site hosting companies that occasionally block my local IP when I’m working on back-end changes or site customizations because the WP system already makes SO many server calls. So the LAST thing I need is more page loads and screen redraws when I’m working on my client sites, not to mention the additional time required FOR those screen draws and page loads. Yes they are “little” but they add up over the course of hours, days, and weeks!

However, I also recognize YOU are on the same page as the WP developers and therefore have very good reasons for taking that position…

Please help me understand what percentage of users are actually administering WP sites without a mouse or graphical browser…???

Please help me understand how opening additional browser tabs and creating additional screen redraws are “good ideas” to improve usability and accessibility – when both (of the particular functions discussed above) were never needed before…???

I don’t mind being wrong, it happens all the time. So I’d be most appreciative for you to direct me to viewable discussion or documentation that validates either of the two claim you made above.

Thank you…

Since you’re a mod, I have to be careful with MY replies to avoid getting banned, or having my threads closed or removed entirely.

Whoah there, cowboy! That was more than a little uncalled for. There hasn’t been the slightest hint of censoring in this topic.

I use WP every single day for my livelihood and from MY chair and MY computer screens

As do I.

these changes did absolutely nothing positive

Perhaps not – for you. For others, they made whole areas of the interface actually usable. You are not the only WordPress user and the needs of all users have to be balanced. You know what they say… you can please some of the people some of the time…

Just out of curiosity, are any of the admin screens now completely inaccessible to you??

I also recognize YOU are on the same page as the WP developers

Not always, no. Have you ever seen some of the “stronger” discussions on Trac? I’m actually (in a small way) one of the people who raises issues with the current versions of WordPress. But what I do realise (from long experience in web development) is that there is no way that you can please everyone in a application with a user base of over 18 million. So you try to strike a reasonable balance. Again, the moot point would be based on your answer to my question above.

Please help me understand how opening additional browser tabs and creating additional screen redraws are “good ideas” to improve usability and accessibility

What is your experience with web accessibility? Have you ever used a screen reader? Or voice recognition software? Or tried to navigate using only a TAB and an ENTER key? Tens (hundreds?) of thousands of WordPress users do every day. Their needs deserve to be met too.

I reiterate – are any of the new admin areas now completely inaccessible or unusable for you? Some of the previous screens were for other users.

Hi
I have completely got it all wrong it was me who changed the screen, when i updated I thought they had changed it. So sorry for wasting everyone time. very happy WordPresser.

Despite my best efforts at professionalism, I’ve been the recipient of “mod abuse” more than once. Them’s the facts…

You bring up some good points that I will take time to review and consider.

As for meeting the special needs of others – I completely agree and I’m on board 10000%. However, the best UI/UX do NOT accomplish that through unilateral changes that force all users into a “one size fits all” workflow funnel that suits a minority of users. Special enabling features/functions should be AVAILABLE for those who DO need them, and optional for those who do not – not change the core workflow for all users. At a broader level, this is simply good interface design protocol, but yes it does take more work – which of course is why it seldom happens as it really should.

Thanks for staying with the discussion…

Despite my best efforts at professionalism, I’ve been the recipient of “mod abuse” more than once. Them’s the facts…

I’m sorry to hear that. I went back through your entire 4 year posting history but I could not find any evidence of “mod abuse”. All I could find is a few “bumps” that were deleted a couple of years ago.

Special enabling features/functions should be AVAILABLE for those who DO need them

That kind of approach to web accessibility went out of fashion about 10 years ago for all kinds of reasons. Not least of which is that it discriminates against those with disabilities.

Any content management system is going to change over time and WordPress has been going for 10 years. Some of the changes you will like. Some you won’t. But all of them are made with the best interests of all users at heart and never on the whim of a couple of developers.

Try looking under Links.

Ah ha. Thank you @esmi

Now Custom menu = Links ?… I had to search in the forum to find where it was this featured gone and was jsut a name change?. I think more easy to understand could be Custom Links, don′t you think?

Maybe the confusion is for old users, where we use to had “Links section”, now just as a plugin, but for a new users justs “Links” is also confusing ??