Updates

Okay - it's time for some quick updates. We're plugging away on the to-do list (plus other bugfixes in general), but here are a few new things released in the past few days:

• Module transparency can now go all the way to 100% (though we cry just a little bit inside whenever someone puts fully transparent, hard to read text on a crazy background)
  
• You can now right (or middle)-click on videos to open them in new tabs, or in new windows
  
• Playlist titles were getting truncated a little too soon before - should be longer now
  
• Grid view should now always work in IE
  
• And a few other bugfixes
  

Also, as promised, we wanted to call out some of the more fun designs we saw using the new transparency settings. In no particular order:

• BirdKid8's channel - just wow
• WeAreProEU's channel - a great use of a single large image
• FlashFacilitoTips's channel - nice shadows framing the video navigator
• 0zmovies's channel - very creative use of the background to add a "custom" module, and a subliminal "subscribe!" command :)
• LaukkuTheGreit's channel - a simple but effective gradient
• DiscoveryChannel's channel - transparency is taking us under the sea
  
• IceflowStudios's channel - no stranger to this blog, and now updated with a new theme
• muzik4machines's channel - another blog regular, updated with a wild theme
  

Release date changing

Time for another update on the upcoming new version of channels. We want to give you a heads up that we're changing the day on which we'll move all remaining channels over to the new version. Why? Well, July 15th is almost here, and we realized that we still have a few bugs and things left on the to-do list.

Specifically, here's what we plan to do before we roll the new version out to all remaining channels:

• Fix some browser-specific layout bugs - in particular, IE6 has a few issues right now
• Allow you to default your channel to "grid" view
• Allow you to re-order your uploads & playlists
  
• Some other small things, including fixes for some of the other bugs you've helped find (such as grid view not always working in IE)

So when's the new date? That part's a little trickier - rather than try to predict it, we'd rather focus our time on taking care of the above list. But we'll announce the new date no less than 2 weeks before it happens - and yes, it's still coming this summer.

Keep the bug reports and feedback coming...

Transparency

Super quick update: We've now added transparency settings. Try it out under the "Advanced options" in the "Themes and Colors" section - and be sure to call out any designs you're particularly proud of in the comments. We'd love to show it off in the list of channels on the right hand side of this blog. In fact, you can now modify two different levels of transparency: One for the modules, and one for the wrapper. (The wrapper can even be completely transparent.)

Also fixed: The bug that occasionally caused Firefox / Chrome / Safari to crash.

More channel updates

As you've probably seen over at the main YouTube blog, we'll be coming out of beta soon and moving all existing channels over to the new design. But that doesn't mean we're all done with updates and bug fixes yet. Your feedback and bug reports have been invaluable in our ongoing development, and it's about time for another round of "here's what's new, and here's what's coming."

So what's new?

• Speed improvements - there were some reports of channels running a little sluggishly in a few cases. Let us know if you notice a difference. We might have a few other tweaks to play with here, too.
• Fixed the bug where scrollbars would sometimes break when an ad appeared
• The search box is now visible within the uploads section, no matter your background color
• URLs are now autolinked in the video description (and still coming for all channel descriptions)
• Lots and lots of other bugfixes

And what's on the todo list?

• Transparency - yes, we've sorted through a few of the stickier issues, and we now expect to offer transparency options before we move all remaining accounts over to new channels
• Custom ordering of uploads & your list of playlists
• Letting you default to either player view or grid view
• In-line branding options for partners (no need to go off to a separate page)
• IE 8.0 bugfixes - some things look a little strange right now in IE8
• Full screen controls
• Showing the upload date in the video "info" area
• Showing the video length in the thumbnail
• Other assorted bugfixes, many found thanks to your reports
• And more...

Thanks everyone - as always, drop us a line in the comments with your bug reports and feedback. Don't forget to mention your channel name if you have problems with your channel specifically. And for those of you in the US - happy 4th weekend!

-Brian