Does anyone still miss the old Audiogon format?


I don't know about other Audiogoners but I'm still missing the old Audiogon format. It has a few shortcomings but they can be addressed and fixed to work just fine within the old format. What I miss the most is the "human side" of the old format vs. the new one which I found so "cold" and "impersonal".
audiomax
I recently discovered that Audiogon will not allow you to send your e-mail address in messages. And they do not give you any e-mail notification of this (which I get when a new mesage is received). I happened to look in my inbox the other day to see almost all of my messages over the last month were not sent because I had included my e-mail address (since e-mail seems to be far more reliable than the new Audiogon).

How frustrating!
Guys, you listening? At least the less traffic part or is this model working? As an observer and from a SELLER's view I see this too. You have a golden goose, don't kill it, improve it. An opening for suggestions maybe?
I do miss the old format as well. It was a lot easier to leave feedback when you completed a transaction. There was the step by step process. Now when a sale completes it is more of a chore to leave feedback. Before it felt a lot more seemless.

Another gripe I have is I have to keep logging into the site. I log into the forum. Then when I want to go into the marketplace I have to log in yet again. I've experienced this with IE8, IE9, Google Chrome and Firefox.

Last gripe is the uneven moderation in the forum. I'll make a post and then it may post 12 or 16 hours later. Information posts I've sent into threads get denied yet I see threads where people are asking for prices on gear. Totally mind boggling.
With the new format and the communication protocol between members, and the way that you're allowed to post your ad,etc..I'm sensing that there's always a "big brother" watching over my shoulder as if I'm about to do something wrong and will get slap around...
I know I am in the minority, but I am OK with the new site. I like the new capabilities that have been added, like being able to sort the results of a search and being able to search by distance from my zip code. I also like having the seller's location displayed on the main screen. I am hoping they will add some other features, including multi-level search and being able to search the New Today listings.

My guess (and it is just a guess) is that if there is any drop off in traffic (and I think Audiogon will tell you there is no drop-off) that drop was from recreational browsers, not from people looking to buy. Personally, I have no problem finding what I am looking for with the new system.

It looks like there is a lot of equipment going up for sale every day. It would be interesting to know if overall sales are up or down, although the economy probably has more effect on that than the site. If people are buying somewhere else, it would be nice to know where. I really have not seen any other site suddenly springing forth with massive numbers of offerings.