Fringe 2015 - first impressions
Aug. 2nd, 2015 10:59 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
dreamsharkNo Ultrapass this year, but we did buy a 10-pass for $100 (great price break, considering that the single-show price is up to $14). So far we've seen 3 very good shows, but none that made me want to stand up and holler.
My love-hate relationship with Fringe management continues to escalate. This year's user-unfriendly innovation - NO SCHEDULE GRID! In all the past years of Fringe there has been a printed Fringe Program you could pick up at the venues that included a map and a grid. The grid has also appeared on the website (albeit sometimes in barely printable form). This year - nada. No grid online, no printed schedule. When you ask the volunteers at the desk they helpfully suggest using the grid from the Star Tribune. Which is, in fact, what we are doing, as we are one of the few households left in the Twin Cities that still subscribe to our local paper. If you do not subscribe, your only option is working your way through their online scheduling algorithm. I guess if you don't do computers and don't subscribe to the paper you just don't deserve to Fringe.
Once again, the website has been "improved" by moving around the important features and making them harder to find. But![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
minnehaha was right - the day by day schedule IS still there, just 3 levels down instead of being linked to the home page. In all fairness, once you find the scheduler it works pretty well. Response is fast and it is sortable by either time or venue. Without the grid, however, there is no way to view all the shows available in a given neighborhood other than looking through each venue individually.
So far, the highlight of my Fringe was running into theminnehahas on the patio at Sgt. Preston's (which has been renamed to something stupid and forgettable, but that's okay because the old Sgt. Preston's logo is still proudly displayed on the building). That was really fun, guys, thanks for hopping the fence and joining us!
My love-hate relationship with Fringe management continues to escalate. This year's user-unfriendly innovation - NO SCHEDULE GRID! In all the past years of Fringe there has been a printed Fringe Program you could pick up at the venues that included a map and a grid. The grid has also appeared on the website (albeit sometimes in barely printable form). This year - nada. No grid online, no printed schedule. When you ask the volunteers at the desk they helpfully suggest using the grid from the Star Tribune. Which is, in fact, what we are doing, as we are one of the few households left in the Twin Cities that still subscribe to our local paper. If you do not subscribe, your only option is working your way through their online scheduling algorithm. I guess if you don't do computers and don't subscribe to the paper you just don't deserve to Fringe.
Once again, the website has been "improved" by moving around the important features and making them harder to find. But
minnehaha was right - the day by day schedule IS still there, just 3 levels down instead of being linked to the home page. In all fairness, once you find the scheduler it works pretty well. Response is fast and it is sortable by either time or venue. Without the grid, however, there is no way to view all the shows available in a given neighborhood other than looking through each venue individually. So far, the highlight of my Fringe was running into the
minnehahas on the patio at Sgt. Preston's (which has been renamed to something stupid and forgettable, but that's okay because the old Sgt. Preston's logo is still proudly displayed on the building). That was really fun, guys, thanks for hopping the fence and joining us!
