Not thrilled with new Lionel Website. I admit that I am not a huge fan of change for the sake of change. I really explored it only for American Flyer, and those of you into O gauge may have a different experience.
Pretty non intuitive as to how to find items if you know anything about trains and the catalogs seem to have disappeared (you can find a listing of the items in the last 2 AF catalogs, but not the Catalogs themselves). I can't figure out how to find the instruction manuals for older products. I can't figure out how to get the site to display the AF rolling stock from the last catalog or any of the motive power that is not "FlyerChief."
The search function seems to not be able to display more than 25 items (even when the search has found over 100 results) and, at least for American Flyer, many of the items retrieved do not all seem appropriate. This may just be a temporary glitch, and may iron out in time.
It looks like the whole function of the site is to make it easier for the person who is naive to Toy Trains to purchase a RTR Lionel set and/or add to an existing RTR set, and is not at all friendly to the older collector/operator.
It reminds me of some of the upscale grocery stores in our area where the products are scattered all over in no logical fashion in order to encourage you to spend time browsing (the "Gilded MouseTrap" concept of marketing).
It might be nice if Lionel went to two websites, one for the new person and one for the collector/operator (I'm not holding my breath waiting for that to come to pass).
I really suppose that what it means is that the days of shopping for Toy Trains with a "Wish Book Catalog" (even a virtual one) have come to an end. The site seems set up for those who shop from their smart phone and would find the concept of ordering from a catalog a concept as foreign as the upper berth on a Pullman (or a Pullman for that matter).
Just my .
Little Tommy
Okay, I have finally (after spending an hour on the website) found the catalogs. You have to click on "Explore Lionel" and then click on "Christmas Catalogs" to be taken to the "non-Christmas" catalogs.
After calling Lionel, I have found the "Lionel Support" with the videos and the Product Manuals. You have to click on an unamed icon on the upper left in which then you will find a link to all the areas on the website, and there (and only there as far as I can tell) will you find link to support.
The Search function continues to function unreliably.
Can someone in the world of IT explain to me how this stuff happens. Don't website designers test their designs before they launch them?
Pobably not.
Over-engineering seems to be getting endemic these days.
It was explained to me once concerning electronic products, (VCR's, DVD players, computers and their related articles and applications) that the problem comes from designers and engineers being more interested in showing off to their colleagues what geniuses they are than making them practical for the average user. Who knows? Maybe it's true.
What a crappy website!!
I hate it.
Not user friendly at all!
It takes some getting use to. The Home Page, I do like.
LittleTommy Okay, I have finally (after spending an hour on the website) found the catalogs. You have to click on "Explore Lionel" and then click on "Christmas Catalogs" to be taken to the "non-Christmas" catalogs. After calling Lionel, I have found the "Lionel Support" with the videos and the Product Manuals. You have to click on an unamed icon on the upper left in which then you will find a link to all the areas on the website, and there (and only there as far as I can tell) will you find link to support. The Search function continues to function unreliably. Can someone in the world of IT explain to me how this stuff happens. Don't website designers test their designs before they launch them? Little Tommy
Usually, the schedule is too tight. This is usually management (or the sales force for outside contracts) over promising. But some deliberately do this with the idea that the extra pressure on the developer will lead to more getting done faster. This usually leads to disasterous reults.
When development takes a little longer than planned because the schedule was too tight, an off the shelf component doesn't work correctly, and/or the user/client asks for changes, the project is kept on schedule (or close to it) by reducing (or eliminating) testing.
Paul
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