This will be my last post on the topic. I have attempted to characterize my concerns with the system in a few posts and then posted alternatives that would offer more options in training but still keep the system simple and intuitive enough that people new to GLB could be successful at building dots. I have done my best to be constructive and keep the conversation constructive. It seems these changes are going to be inflicted on us regardless of the cogent and persuasive arguments that are being laid out by many highly experienced and valued customers of GLB.
To be honest, it feels like GLB is about to 'Jump the Shark' with these changes. And Catch is doing his best to be the mediator between a bad idea and the GLB customer base.
Just think about it for a moment there have been dozens and dozens of posts. On balance, there is high resistance to this change with some becoming more ambivalent and others having a 'wait and see' approach. A precious few are looking forward to the changes and it seems that some of those are doing it more out of loyalty to personalities in the game or loyalty to GLB rather than being excited about the changes themselves. And with all due regard, after having read all of these posts, there are a few calls for 'if something isn't broke don't fix it'. But the clear majority of people have asked complex questions that have required semi-complex answers.
The UI may simplify the execution of the training system, but nothing will simplify understanding the resulting impacts of that system. If you read some of the posts where people are crunching numbers, you can see the sweet spots emerging and get a sense for the decision making around the complexity of the system.
So with the above said, I urge in strongest terms that Bort and co. rethink this change. This is not simply because *I* think it is an inherently complex system and will turn off new customers and current casual users. It seems that a sizable portion of the community agrees. Moving forward with this change in spite of that outcry does two things. If the change is as frustrating as these posts have expressed, GLB will indeed lose a good portion of its user base and will turn off new customers as well. That will further be exacerbated by the multiple negative 'I told you so' posts and 'rage quit' posts that the moderators will be running around locking down in the weeks or months after the change is implemented.
Now of course, all of the nay-sayers could be wrong. I expect that Bort and co are taking this position as they move forward with these changes as is their right. They own and manage this game. But just for a moment, consider the other side and the possibility that this does bring with it unintended consequences. Can we possibly avoid jumping the shark?
Again, in the strongest terms I can muster, I would advocate rethinking this approach and revisiting many of the suggestions that have been put up over the life of these posts. In my opinion, this system as it stands will do more harm than good to GLB.
K
