Disney World website substandard?

[maxairmike]

Disney's biggest weak point has always been web design, and it is painfully obvious. When they rolled out the new careers website I wanted to ask what the heck they were thinking, because every single click opened up a new window. Not just a new tab (I can work with that), but new windows; and it did it across all the browsers I tried (all set up to open links in new tabs). Thankfully they seem to have done a little fixing to what was truly just lazy coding from the start. I mean, how difficult is it really to set "target" properly when you're inserting/formatting the link?

 

[ChrisFL]

Does the website still refer to SSE as the "big golf ball"? :brick:

 

[yellowb]

I remember it being more interactive

I remember music would play when you clicked on each resort, and it gave you a feeling of being there. It seems like they took a lot of that away and it became more basic.

 

[Captain Chaos]

The DVC website is horrible too.. I have now seen two different versions of it.. Just 10 minutes go i accessed a blue background DVC site and now it is either brown or maroon... And it is ugly... And logging in brings you back to the generic original site... Hopefully they are doing upgrades to their sites overall so things are improved...

 

[drp4video]

I laugh because when I go to the website it says "only one more day till my vacation at POFQ. "

I really have to tell them that I have been and am back, arriving back home from this vacation on September 10, 2011...:ROFLOL:

 

[John]

Investing a BILLION dollars in "NextGen" tech and you would think they could start with one of the most important aspects of marketing in this day and age?....just sayin' :shrug:

 

[ChrisFL]

More and more I'm starting to agree that Disney execs really DO have their heads up where sun don't shine

 

[MarkTwain]

Does the website still refer to SSE as the "big golf ball"? :brick:

You know it!

The Epcot theme park icon, Spaceship Earth, looking like a giant golf ball rising high above the horizon, welcomes you as you walk through the Park's main entrance. (quoted from here)

So inspiring.

 

[AEfx]

It's gotten better, but I'd still never use it for anything serious other than checking current ticket prices.

DO NOT book on their website if you have any chance whatsoever of wanting to change or modify your reservation. It's so much much more difficult if you originally booked online. I don't know if it's still the case, but before they made you give a second deposit and then would refund you from the website for the original later (and I had to call as they 'forgot' to process it), whereas if you give a deposit over the phone, they can move the funds right then and there to a new ressie.

 

[Thunder Kz]

I have just spent the past 2 days trying to login with my renewed passholder information. Can't do it. It gives me 2 error codes with no direction on how to fix any problems. Since I can't login, we have to call for reservations, and the ridiculousness of that electronic process goes beyond the scope of this thread. With so many talented programmers out there, it is amazing to me that Disney would allow its website to be so user unfriendly.

 

[Patrick_Ears]

Maybe that's why some people use travel agents.

 

[GenerationX]

Their site is not intuitive at all. It screams of having been built for one purpose a long time ago then having a bunch of other functions tacked on later. The redesign would be a ma$$ive effort, though, which is no doubt why it hasn't happened yet.

 

[unkadug]

They need to just dump the current web page completely and start from scratch.

That's what is wrong now...too many band aids have been applied when they just needed to start completely over with a fresh slate.

I've seen better pages designed by high-school students.

 

[lt94]

I agree with all on web site problems. But when you can,t use the site you are reduced to a phone call you all know that drill how many times have you visited from the beginning of time and stand on one foot jump three times then we will connect you to a person. LoL

 

[unkadug]

I agree with all on web site problems. But when you can,t use the site you are reduced to a phone call you all know that drill how many times have you visited from the beginning of time and stand on one foot jump three times then we will connect you to a person. LoL

Try this trick that I use at work all the time.

Anytime you get a phone tree - just dial "0" that usually gets you to a person immediately.

 

[MadMax11]

sometimes I can log in with my email address.

sometimes i can log in with my user name.

sometime i have to call WDW's technical support and explain to them the situation...and they do something on their end that lets me log in....

but, yeah...it is very surprising to me that their site is as difficult to work as it is.

 

[forevermickey]

agreed, agreed, agreed:dazzle:

 

[Alektronic]

Just another example of Disney being cheap. Outsourcing everything to a 3rd party contractor. The IT dept has been outsourced for a while now.

WDW cast computers are still running Windows XP with IE6 and if you go to a Disney website it tells you that you have an outdated browser and can't view it correctly. And to change it you need Adminstrator privileges.

 

[cslafferty]

I remember music would play when you clicked on each resort, and it gave you a feeling of being there. It seems like they took a lot of that away and it became more basic.

And, you used to be able to see a video or at least a photo gallery of each resort! Although, I must say that since they got rid of a lot of the "special effects," the website runs faster, and it doesn't make my computer freeze up like it used to!

 

[cslafferty]

It's gotten better, but I'd still never use it for anything serious other than checking current ticket prices.

DO NOT book on their website if you have any chance whatsoever of wanting to change or modify your reservation. It's so much much more difficult if you originally booked online. I don't know if it's still the case, but before they made you give a second deposit and then would refund you from the website for the original later (and I had to call as they 'forgot' to process it), whereas if you give a deposit over the phone, they can move the funds right then and there to a new ressie.

I agree with all the problems mentioned, but have always booked my WDW vacations through their website and have never had a problem making changes to it. I've changed resorts, length of stay, and got free dining after I had already booked online without it - and the operators never had an issue with it.:sohappy: