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

Sorting, ads, and more

It's about time for another beta update. As emoes guessed in the comments of our last post, we're getting closer and closer to the full launch for all users - though we were surprised to learn that hundreds of thousands of users are already using the new version of channels. Once again, your feedback and bug reports so far have been amazing - you've helped make the new version of channels better, faster, stronger over the course of the beta.

So what's new this week?

• Ads - partners, you've been asking for it: You can now have the full range of ads on your channel
  
• Sort controls - sort by most viewed, date added, or highest rated (yes, this was buggy for a few days, but should be fine now)
• Ratings stars can now be clicked
• Counts for the number of videos in each section (when in "All" view)
• When playing a video, the video title now links to the non-channel video watch page as well
  
• And, of course, bug fixes - including one where thumbnails were "pushed down" and had some black borders, rating stars rounding down, and more
  

And what's still coming?

• Ability to reorder your uploads, or your lists of playlists
• Making URLs autolink (in both the video description, plus the channel profile area)
• Showing the upload date in the video description
• More bugfixes (including fixing the scrollbar when ads appear, turning the search box background white within uploads, and making sure "autoplay the next video" only applies when playing a playlist)
• And more...
  

Keep the feedback & bug reports coming...

-Brian

Comments, featuring lists of playlists, and more

Hello, intrepid beta testers - we've been hard at work and have some updates to share. In no particular order:

• You can now view a small number of video comments as well as leave a quick comment of your own - just click the "Comments" tab when watching any video
  
• The font size is now a little larger when browsing through videos, thanks to your feedback
• You can now make the list of your playlists your featured content set (e.g. the new White House channel)
  
• New "share" controls underneath the video
• Fixed the bug where you couldn't show certain playlists
• The endless loading circles should now be gone (heads up, patrickometry)
• There shouldn't be any more channels with messed up layouts - please shout if yours is still broken
  
• There's now a search box when looking at "Uploads"
• Lots of other bugfixes
  

And, of course, there's still plenty we're looking at:

• Transparency options (still tricky!)
• Advertisement support coming soon, of course (heads up, partners)
• Ability to rate the video from the channel
• Sort controls for uploads (especially most viewed)
• Counts for the number of videos in each section
• Order controls
• Making URLs autolink
• And other bugfixes (such as the list of subscribers / friends wrapping to an extra line in some browsers)
  

Once again, keep the great feedback and bug reports coming!

-Brian

Putting the "updates" in "here are some updates"

More channel updates have been released since our last post:

• Honors are back
• Video thumbnails are now a little larger based on feedback
  
• More interaction options underneath the video player, including a more prominent link to the standard "watch" page
  
• You can now feature a video by URL
• Plenty of bug fixes (e.g. most people with buggy / broken layouts should now be fixed)
  

A few of the things we're looking at, based on your feedback:

• Transparency options (this is a bit tricky to do, so no promises)
• Ability to rate & comment on the video from the channel
• Sort controls for uploads (especially most viewed)
• Counts for the number of videos in each section
• Letting you show the list of your playlists as your "Featured Content Set"
  
• Order controls
• Making URLs autolink
  
• And, of course, lots of bug fixes thanks to your reports (including letting you go back to featuring your latest video once you've featured by URL, showing annotations in the featured video, and the "infinite circle" problem where videos don't load when you scroll down - thanks Chris, Patrick, muzik4machines, and others)
  

And, for partners that have asked - yes, ad support is coming soon too.

Keep the awesome feedback and bug reports coming,

-Brian

Changing the channel

Okay! Things are moving along - your feedback has been invaluable and we've made a number of changes to the channel beta over the past few weeks in response:

• The subscribe button is now yellow again :)
• You can now choose a featured video
• Lots and lots of bug fixes (and slyth66, your channel should be good now!)
• You can now link directly to a specific video & a specific playlist on your channel - just copy and paste the URL you see while playing the video you'd like to link to - here's an example from vlogbrothers' channel
  

Some other things that are coming soon:

• Bigger thumbnails & fonts on the right hand side - we're going to try this out, thanks to your feedback that the list of videos might have been just a little too small
  
• Honors
  
• Some more interactivity underneath the currently playing video - we've especially heard your feedback that you'd like comments to be better integrated
• Other minor bug fixes
  

We've also added a few more channels to our list of "Our favorite new channel designs" - check them out on the right hand side of the blog.

Finally, we're happy to announce that we're getting closer to a full release to all users - and you can now opt-in to the channels beta by simply visiting the old Channel Design page. So, the question is: What's left that you absolutely-must-have-on-your-channel-or-else-you'll-totally-lose-it?! Let us know in the comments!

-Brian