Did the forums header just change?

Why change? What was wrong with the current one? I remember it changed before and it took a long time to learn how to use it. Not looking forward to that again

If it MUST be changed, please tell us why. (and please bring back post counts)

This change is the first step is a redesign to keep the site fresh and showcase the content that we have.

Showcasing content is all well and good - but exploding it all across the screen on a mouse hover is really, really irritating. Especially when it's in the upper left of the browser where the mouse has to go for toolbars and tabs.

Please change it to a mouse click.

Agreed. I don't hate it conceptually, but having it on hover is just madness.

Along the same lines, there is MUCH that could be done to mitigate the must-be-300px sidebar and how much real estate it takes up, and there's no good reason to have that header stuck on my screen all the time.

Aside from that, the current information architecture is pretty messy. What's tucked in features isn't making much sense, nor is video as a top-level item. Seems to me it'd be a sibling of podcasts. You're not showcasing content if it's just dumped out. That's a kitchen sink. But I'm going to assume that sort of stuff is being worked through.

As a veteran of these things, I would advise us here on the board to allow a little flexiblity. It'll come out OK on the other end. And I'd advise GRM HQ to not change things just because you can. Test. Re-Test. Be able to articulate the underlying strategy and listen to the feedback (Full disclosure: I have often failed miserably to do those things).

I do think you're smart rolling out your changes rather than a one-day "here's your redesign, people."

Despite those (hopefully constructive) criticisms, I think it's a good direction, and it'll be fine in the end. It's a process.

Beware of change for changes sake, rarely works out the way you want it to.

Ever look at the HuffPo? Front page looks plain and very simple. It works.

I noticed there was a redesign on the mobile site as well.

It won't let me click on the smilies now. I have to type them in the old fashioned way.

Not sure if this is still in transition, but it is pretty annoying on a mobile phone.

For those of us with less than stellar eyesight, reading on an iPhone requires zooming in regularly. When I zoom in on my iPhone 5, the header jumps to a jumbo size with an enormous "Subscribe" button and takes over about 70% of the screen size and stays there, even if I scroll down.

Reducing the screen size by 70% kinda defeats the purpose of zooming in for the visually imperfect.

Thanks for listening.

As an add, I'm still running into a problem with the header wandering all over the page on Android. Sometimes in the middle, top, bottom and everywhere in between. It seems to happen about 25% of the time, and a reload will usually send it back to the top where it belongs.