you are correct

+1

You mean partly open beta stage, as your smart server detects that I'm on Linux and removes the download button for it before I'm able to press it? :P

I'm hardly surprised. They've built the library and shelf as tools for people to manage, find, and download their games. The changes they have recently implemented (arguably) enhance the ability to accomplish these goals. There's just one problem - they've ruined the use-cases of "admiring my shelf" and "arranging boxes". They've almost certainly done so unwillingly, not even considering that some people saw manipulating the old interface as its own reward, not just a mean to an end. When asking themselves "What could our users want?" in order to optimize, the answer of "look at boxes" has probably never crossed their minds.
It's like the Windows "Start" menu. It's an old clunky remnant of a forgotten age, and yet people want it. They have keyboard shortcuts, taskbar pinning, Windows_key->type_a_few_letters->press_enter... They still want the Start menu. It IS the best and fastest way of accomplishing tasks for them, simply because it's the way they know and want to use.
I guess this showcases why having a UX expert on your team pays off.
I sincerely hope they address the issues, especially since providing more options for sorting and filtering shouldn't be the most time-consuming features to implement... Besides - it's naive to assume that they'll just sit on their laurels and stop enhancing the Galaxy client altogether. They have the tools, the manpower, now they also have insight into what people want...

Since there are a LOT of people against the dropdown menus on the game cards in My Account, myself included, I have created a wish to help GOG understand it needs to change.

http://www.gog.com/wishlist/galaxy/remove_dropdown_menus_or_reduce_as_much_as_possible_on_game_cards_in_my_account

I loved Happy Fun Ball. Thank you.

I absolutely think it will make a difference. It won't stop all the complaining (there will always be *those* peoople) but it would stop a fair bit if they were clearer about what else they intend to deliver. To anyone that knows how software releases work, it's clear they are delivering these changes in small, usable chunks, but to anyone else it's just going to look bare and poorly thought out. My example about the friends list is probably one of the more obvious things. There is no way they intend to leave it as is, but most people will never know that unless they talk about it.

The *worst* thing you can do is splash flashy headlines all over the place about your awesome improvements and set people up to be dissapointed. Get people excited about what is coming and be honest about what they are getting with each delivery....be candid and honest - I have to think that would hold currency with a lot of people in this community.... way more than will be impressed by a flashy headline and uptalk about improvements...

the part about the taskbar sorta proves my point. Some technical people honestly don't seem to understand why people who are less technical want a feature and can sound a bit condescending in the process. Yes, there are all sorts of ways to do things with a computer. However, different people honesty learn, think, react differently. some prefer touchscreens, other prefer shortcuts and commands, other use taskbars and menus. I reject the notion of there being one true way to interact with a computer, just different ways that feel more natural to different users.

Also, it's not just arranging boxes. As it stands, there is no way to put series in actual chronological order. I bought the blackwell bundle last christmas, but haven't played it yet. I have a large backlog. Now, I literally have no idea what order to play the games in. I would just normally click on the title and go to the store page, but now there is a drop down menu that does not include a link to the store for unbundled games. It's easier to just go to wikipedia than to use anything gog has given me if I want to make sure I am playing an adventure game series in the correct order. People who are assuming it's just ascetic issues are missing part of the point. In terms of functionality, the website is now more difficult to use for some of the common tasks I would use it for. I do not find it unreasonable that the gamesite I bought my games from should give me some clue as to the order in which to play them at a mere glance. It has nothing to do with it looking like a box, rectangle or trapezoid. None of my issues with the new system have anything to do with virtual boxes. It's all about functionality that was removed because some techie had the new way make sense in their brain and they never actually stopped to think how anyone else's brain worked.

Also, i am not in anyway really talking about galaxy funtionality because I am not going to use it. I am talking about website functionality. That is what I care about because that is the part of their service I will use. they can upgrade galaxy all they want. I don't use steam and I won't use this. the fact that there is already a game where the multiplayer is galaxy only saddens me (double dragon trilology), because that is just a different form of drm.


edit: If you are one of the people who did like arranging on the shelf that is fine. For some people that is the experience that they are lacking. for me, it's not about that. I understand how the people who liked arranging the shelf feel and I do consider their side valid. On my first read I think I misread your intent. I felt like you were being dismissive of an earlier post I made about the parts i dislike and why. I was specifically stating the functional ways in which my experience was hindred. Upon a rereading I think I misread your intent. If so I'm going to say sorry.

This.^ Oh so much this...^

I like some of it, I don't like some of it, but...

...+1 to this.

This has likely already been mentioned a lot, but I'd like to cast in my vote for the ability to show off your game library, aside from the wishlist, if one chooses to.

So in general, some of this has been said before and better by others. Even so...

Reasons I miss manual sorting include, but are not limited to, the following.

When using the default Title sorting layout:

Deus Ex 2: Invisible War is shelved before Deus Ex: Game of the Year Edition, although it's after it in the series.
Icewind Dale 2 is shelved in front of Icewind Dale, but comes after it in the series.
Thief Gold is shelved after Thief 2 and Thief 3, even though it's actually the start of that series and should be listed first.
there are other examples of this.

I would assume this happens because the later games in series have a 2 or 3 after their title and thus going by "Title" order titles with numbers would be placed before the same titles without a number. Except that there are contrary examples to this logic!!!

Fallout is shelved before Fallout 2, but does not have a 1 in it's title.
Syberia is shelved before Syberia 2, yet it has no 1 in it's title
Deponia is shelved before Deponia 2 and Deponia 3, even though there is no 1 in it's title.

TAGS AND FILTERS!!! I like having them. Thanks for putting them in. BUT...they don't solve the series shelving order problem. Even if I make tags for specific game series they are still only sorted by title or purchase date. And if I've bought a later game in a series before the first one, as can happen, it doesn't ever solve the problem of sorting the series into it's correct order.

Good sirs!! This cannot stand!!! FIX IT FIXIT FIX IT!! Please fix it. I most humbly request something be done to fix it, and that games in a series be able to be sorted in correct order regardless of their title format or when I purchased them.

Thoughts and suggestions to GOG....

-perhaps promise to implement manual sorting in the future, when it becomes possible and within your reach again?

-Can you somehow add an invisible "1" to games at the start of a series that need it, so the series can show up in the correct order?

-even if manual sorting can't be implemented yet under "tag" or "filter" views, at least return it to the sorting options when in the overall view for the entire collection? Then we can manually sort that view as before?

-add a sorting option for original publication date of games, so there can be a true layout of newest published games to oldest published games.

that is all. Thanks for reading this far. It's all ultimately secondary to continuing to provide and support quality DRM free games from days gone by and yet to come. But returning some form of manual sorting or even just fixing the sorting order of games in the same series would improve my user experience.

-edited for clarity.

So, since it's MY ACCOUNT, is there any way I can get MY ACCOUNT back to the way it was before I just rolled in here tonight and discovered everything all gone to hell???

Al I heard with the upcoming Galaxy release and changes was how everything was OPTIONAL. Well, I want my OLD MY ACCOUNT BACK. You know, simply click on the game on the shelf, and then the store card page is RGHT THERE as well as the GOG Downloader being RIGHT THERE.

There's been an old saying that's been around for centuries GOG. If it ain't broke, don't fix it. The old MY ACCOUNT page wasn't broke. Why did you "fix" it?

Oh well, no choice but to vote with my wallet I guess....