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Kura
Jan '15

I know there are several threads similar this, but it seems to be very hard to find one that hasn't managed to derail it into and bunch of other things already.

I just want to get it out there that I'm posting this as a READER. I like reading comics, I want to find more comics to read and recommend to my friends, and I want to be able to support other creators cause I know just how great having support is. This is NOT a "I demand my comic get more screen time" issue. This is a "I am having trouble using your site to find new stuff to read" issue.

As stated above, I am having a very hard time finding new stuff that would interest me to read on this website. I have a list of comics that I follow and read, but this list was not made by me actually finding the comics on this site, it was made by being redirected to this site from other places I followed the comic (smack jeeves, inkblazers, tumblr for example) and NOT through any means of searching on this site. Which is very disappointing, as I want to find more series to read specifically on this site. I've already been brought here, the artists did their job in bringing in traffic, but it feels like the site needs to do a better job at keeping this traffic or helping spread it's views to other series (which I very much want to do, read more series)

It feels like I have to jump through hoops to find anything I'm looking for, simply looking for 'recently updated' is a multi-click issue, and not even an option on the phone app (unless there is one and I'm not finding it, which is STILL an issue as it should be easy to find) because I draw comics of my own my free time is limited and I do not have time to play around with this site. I want to be able to read on my breaks or while eating, and so far all my time here has been spent just TRYING to find something to read with hardly any of it being me actually getting to read anything.

A lot of the categories that you have the option to sort comic titles into either load slowly, or don't load at all (this even more of a problem on the app)

The stuff featured on the front page (for the web version) is very limited and seems to not give me what I am looking for at all. I don't mind gag a day comics but I would much rather be investing my time in story driven comics (plus I already get spammed with gag a day recommendations with the e-mail AND app) , and though new and noteworthy does feature such titles there I would much rather be given a recommendation of much more established series that is not new and has been around a while. Series that I can trust will continue to update, has enough plot to get me invested (not just interested) and will (hopefully) not drop off the face of the earth (as many newly started webcomics have the habit of doing)

The descriptions for the comics are hard to read either because they keep twitching out on the side bar or, in the case of the phone app, they do not show the entire description. I like to read the description, I want to know what this comic is about before I bother investing time in it.

And though this is a little bit off topic and a complaint that is more 'community opinion' directed. I'm not entirely found of the 'page based comics don't read well on the phone and should be avoided' message I seem to get when reading through the forums. I understand this complaint when the font gets too small or if it's a double page spread, but there are good amount page based comics that I read on this site on my phone, and they look absolutely lovely on it, I even like reading them better on the phone than I do the computer (as long as the font is not to small) it's just a lot nicer to see the whole page on the screen instead of half of the page or only part of it. While actually navigating transitioning from page to page is very easy and perfectly fine with me having absolutely no problems or challenges reading it, in fact I find the comics done in this style are actually at lot easier for me to tell what's going on in a scene than if I'm continuously scrolling and trying to pay attention to when the next relevant image and or word bubble is going to show up. So it boggles my mind that such comics will miss out advertizement opportunities when then actually read really well and nice on the phone.

Anyway, that is my feedback on the site. I do hope that I remember everything I wanted to say in regards to the issues I was having. I do not mean to complain, I just want the website and app becomes much more user friendly so that I can enjoy the site more and not be as frustrated with it, as I do like it here.

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    Jan '15

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    Jan '15
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keii4ii
Jan '15

This isn't true. Grapple Seed uses a page format and it was featured on the front page. :slight_smile: The comic just has to be easily readable on the phone to meet that requirement, I believe (so no horrendously small fonts).

I agree with almost everything else you said, though. I've only found new works to read on the New and Noteworthy section, which isn't enough. Either that or comics I followed from external sites. Tapastic does a great job at making it an effortless, pleasant experience to read the comics that you're already following, but to actually FIND comics is a different matter at this time, unfortunately.

brightshinyface
Jan '15
1

It's true that apart from the very big ones, it's a bit hard to sort your way through what tapastic offers. However, this is an art that can be acquired stuck_out_tongue

What I've done at least once :

-check the collections ;
-new and noteworthy as mentioned is a mine, though they're, well, new, and often just at their beginning ;
-check the rankings (by category or not + I had no trouble with loading time, but I don't use the mobile app) : I've actually discovered many series that way, digging to the 30th page, first judging the book by its cover (icon + title), then checking some episodes + description (I haven't found reading descriptions too hard, again I don't use the mobile app);
-stalking some of your favorite artists' reading lists when they're also big readers, you may well have similar good taste ;
-one of my favorite webcomics, found by the precedent method (it was on Strontium's list, if I recall correctly), had only 30-40 subscribers, so I checked their reading lists, thinking they had proved they were at least not too badly informed ;
-then, obviously, the forums and topics such as yours, which often offer some welcome explication on their choices.

Strontium
Jan '15

You found a favorite webcomic form my list?! I'm having a proud moment. Which was it?

To add to the actual conversation, I don't mind "wiki walking" around the browse/by date feature but for people with less time to kill and less patience, that's not a reliable option. The staff has mentioned incorporating the tags we tag comics with into a search system which I hope will make comics easier to find, for now you just need to grind like brightshinyface has outlined

brightshinyface
Jan '15

(( Demon's Mirror : ) (it had just been updated, so it was welcoming me on your page with the huge horned and bearded red face of the master) ))

MylCreates
Jan '15

I usually see comics in the "Popular Comics" section since that updates daily or I look through other readers reading lists.You're right as in it does require jumping through more hoops however, and Tapastic is probably more heavy on the gag-a-day popularity where as you'd find more long-story type comics on Smackjeeves just because the layout encourages it. But going around the community or other readers and asking them for particular recommendations is probably a really good way of discovering comics that fit you.

If you haven't heard of these series already, I'd recommend them:

getsuart
Jan '15

I use the popular comics, collections, artists' reading lists. And sometimes, I use the browse with all genre, and sorted by dates. I don't know why, I just like to see new comics or comics that I know have just been updated.That's how I found some nice webcomics that were unknown before being in the new + noteworthy section ! smile
But i must say taht I often click randomly, because I like to be surprised by the story or the images (or both).