Google have stripped down and improved the YouTube video page design. More about it at this ReadWriteWeb article: http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/youtube_gets_a_makeover_launches_new_video_player_watch_pages.php
I like it - it's much cleaner. The right hand side is all related videos and a 'featured video'. There's a pull-down menu for choosing what resolution you want to see it in - up to 1080p. There are two separate buttons to let you see it in it's intended resolution and in fullscreen. The Share options have changed - much simpler and clearer. Bad points: The 'More Videos by this User' panel is now even more hidden away - it's now accessed via a link at the top of the page, next to the channel name, saying "34 videos >>" There's no more 1-5 ratings, which is probably a good thing - but they've replaced it with badly weighted "Thumbs Down" and "Like (Add To Favourites)" buttons, which I think raises the bar for saying you like something rather to high. Maybe I like something, but don't want to add it to my favourites? But I can imagine a lot of YT morons just clicking Thumbs Down on a video five seconds in and then clicking away. The biggest problem with their pages, of course, is that they still haven't done anything about the comments. They should filter for obscenities better, and not just allow flagging for spam. Kids love watching youtube videos of cartoons and cute animals - but even cartoons have just unbelievable angry hateful comments beneath them. I don't really want to have to stop my daughter watching funny things on YouTube when she learns to read. I don't want her exposed to that level of hate. I don't want MYSELF exposed to it, for god's sake. Google need to sort this out NOW, since Chad Hurley and Steve Chen clearly never gave a shit. You can join the experiment by clicking on this link: http://youtube.com/watch5?enable=1&next_url=%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DjqxENMKaeCU and you can opt out again by clicking here: http://youtube.com/watch5?enable=0&next_url=%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DjqxENMKaeCU Rupert http://twittervlog.tv [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
