POOR User Interface in True Image Home 2011
I've been using True Image since 2004. Over the years, I've bought and used True Image 7.0, 8.0, 9.0, 10.0, 11.0, 2009, 2010, and now 2011.
Every new version seems to come with a dramatically modified user interface. Settings are moved around into different menus, screens look completely different, etc. My questions is... Why? Why do we need to completely relearn the user interface every year the product is upgraded?
I am finding this 2011 user interface to be a BIG STEP BACKWARDS. Acronis calls it a "Redesigned user interface and usability enhancements, based on the results of usability testing, make Acronis True Image Home 2011 easier to use than ever before." Really?
In True Image 2010, there was a page call "Tasks and Log". It had a nice, clear list of your scheduled tasks (my machine has 4 unique scheduled backup tasks that run throughout the week) and a calendar showing the status of past and future tasks. For a given calendar date, a blue color meant "scheduled", green meant "completed with no problems", and red meant "failed task". Nice. With one glance I could see the status of past and future backups and confirm that my 4 backup tasks were listed and ready to go.
In True Image 2011's user interface, my nice, neat list of 4 scheduled tasks is gone. My calendar indicating backup successes and failures is also gone. Instead, True Image 20011 vomits everything into one big messy, confusing window called the "Backup Explorer" and labeled "My backups". Scheduled tasks are mixed up with completed and failed backup tasks. Past backup tasks that are listed don't even have a date, you you have no idea when they actually occurred. What's the point of listing a backup if you don't tell me when it last ran?
On my machine, the Backup Explorer window currently has a confusing list of 22 entries, each with various messages and buttons like "not backed up yet", "recover last version", "back up now", etc. I have to hunt and hunt to find my 4 scheduled backups in this long list. And I can't seem to get rid of this mass of information. Why do I need 22 entries - and growing - of useless information?
Deciphering this list is painful. I've tried to like this thing. I've tried to get used to this thing. But, to me the Backup Explorer list is just a big mess.
Why not make scheduled backups a DIFFERENT COLOR that completed tasks in the list so they can be easily found? Better yet, why didn't Acronis keep the schedule task and calender SEPARATE from the list of completed tasks?
Come on guys, give me back the 2010 user interface. In the very least, can't legacy users elect to have a "classic" interface instead of this new inferior one? Once you have a reasonable use interface STOP CHANGING IT. In the future, add valuable features instead of shuffling around all the menus and windows every year and calling it "an upgrade".
I feel cheated for having bought this latest 2011 upgrade. It's a $30 fee to make my back up experiences MORE DIFFICULT.
I agree 100% - the interface in 2011 Home is a (poor) joke. The most helpful tool for me was the calendar with a quick view of all my backups and an easy detection of failed ones. Now there is nothing but a "log file" entry under the "help" button??
Usability = ZERO, Improvement = ZERO, Stupidity of this = 100%
The reason why the interface changes every time is that the same functionality is being presented in a different layout.... hiding the lack of new functionality.
Thomas
I'll add my voice to this. Acronis made a very bad call on using a very bad interface. It is inconsistent and very non-intuitive. Back in the days, deleting a backup job wouldn't also delete all your backup files. Now it does!!! Had to learn this the hard way.
Thumbs down to you, Acronis, but I doubt you care...
Agree that they do not care (they never did in the last 5+ years that I used the software).
With this crappy version though, I had enough and as they have the "30 days money back" guarantee, I will take my refund and continue to use my 2010 version - that does all I need it to do and actually better than the latest beta release.
Marc,
Here is some help in deleting single parts without deleting the whole. To recover your deleted backups, you might be able to use a free program such as "Recuva." or other free programs with that capability.
Deleting backups and backup versions
You may want to delete backups and backup versions you no longer need. Acronis True Image Home 2011 stores information on the backups in a metadata information database.Therefore, deleting unneeded backup files by using Windows Explorer will not delete information about these backups from the database, and Acronis True Image Home 2011 will consider that they still exist.
This will result in errors when the program tries to perform operations on the backups that no longer exist. So you must only remove obsolete backups and backup versions by using the tools provided by Acronis True Image Home 2011.
To delete an entire backup:
On the main screen, find the corresponding backup box, click Operations, and then click Delete backup.
When you delete an entire backup, all its versions will be deleted as well.
To delete a specific backup version:
On the main screen, find the corresponding backup box, click Explore and recover or Explore all versions.
In Backup explorer, right-click the version you want to delete, and then click Delete version.
When you delete a backup version, please remember that this version may have dependent versions. In this case the dependent versions will be deleted as well, because data recovery from such versions becomes impossible.If you delete a full backup version - the program will also delete all subsequent incremental and differential versions till the next full version.
If you delete an incremental backup version or a differential backup version - the program will also delete all subsequent incremental versions till the next full or differential version.
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Robert,
Here is some help in managing the list of backup tasks. The current 5519 build offers only single items delete of tasks from the Operations button and that is a pain. The newest release has added more choices but you will have to wait to the next release.. Sometimes the easiest way is to delete them all then only create the new tasks for the few current ones.
I am a new user of ATI 2011 and I actually like the interface. I am a home user and I like to understand and control what software does on my machine. Previously, I was using another back up solution with plenty of advanced features. I have to say I find enormous value in simplicity, even at the loss of control. One condition though: I want to trust the software will work properly in a true "fire and forget" mode.
So far, ATI 2011 as delivered on the core value proposition. I was able to schedule the mix of backups I wanted (and trust me, I know exactly what I want), to verify they completed well, and to restore several times from them on a Windows 7 ultimate 64bit machine.
There are ways to improve significantly the UI and even to simplify it further, in my opinion. For example:
- the file backup feature seems to be "demoted". It looks like only a disk or partition can help you "recover from disaster". There should be a way to combine the UI at the "what to back up" level and indicate at that time the essence of the trade-offs of each backup type if necessary.
- similarly, the UI makes a big difference (ie a different "mode") between disk and partition that seems unnecessary, unless there is a hidden trade-off.
- similarly again, it is unclear why the continuous backup is a different type of backup altogether. I am trying it instead of the Microsoft system restore function that I don't trust at all. I have to say that the way this is explained in the help section, I tend not to trust that backup as much as the image ones. So I didn't try a restore yet. Why isn't this just merged with the other backup types. After all, although the underlying technology and process is different, given the conditions are right (which the software can determine), it is just a question of preset scheduling and automatic cleanup.
- the timeline explorer is ridiculously complicated and confusing. A simple "tick" sliding time line would be a much better way.
- the logs are detailing some obscure or secondary steps, but don't indicate clearly what completed right at what time, or what failed if anything.
- when there is an error, the error dialog box shows a complicated error code but you cannot click to launch a browser and initiate the search, and you cannot copy the error code to faciliate the search. Most searches I did failed for ATI2011 but some worked when I looked further in the kb online.
More minor annoyances:
- the backup type indicates "custom" (which doesn't tell me anything) and then a link summarizes the type. Just put the summary link where "custom" shows up.
- the back up list repeats the time when the backup started which is redundant with the scheduled time. Once in the updated field, and once in the green or orange bar that indicates status. BTW, the completion time would be more useful, in my opinion.
- the schedule link doesn't indicate the time of schedule.
- the explore and recover button changes its label maybe depending on whether prior versions exist or on the kind of backup (not clear to me). This is unecessary. The "explore versions" should be in the explore window
- the UI insists on selecting a /My Backups/ folder and a default file name when you *modify* a backup instead of remembering the folder and file naming when the backup was set up.
- if you have a post command that puts your computer to sleep, the time of completion of backup is wrong (right now, it is the wake up time)
- the way the backup options are displayed and accessed in the backup definition window, they seem to be "common settings". But usage confirm they are specific for each backup. I am still not sure if this is entirely true. In this context, it is unclear what "default settings" mean. Why not use sliding panels in the backup definition 1) what to backup and where 2) backup type 3) back up options 4) schedule 5) version management
Mostly, there seem to be several of bugs left that are annoying:
- I cannot backup encrypted files in a decrypted state (not a showstopper, since I continue using a continuous file backup solution on top of Acronis)
- It seems that the error message "the backup couldn't be added to the backup list" pops up when you modify a backup that has not been run yet (the changes are properly saved and the backup runs OK)
- Depending on what you do, some changes (eg autocleaning) don't stick
- Editing the back up name is jerky and needs to be done everytime you modify the backup
Pat L,
In order for your suggestions to have a better chance of being seen, you might want to post a link in the Wish List
pointing to your posting.
http://forum.acronis.com/forum/15763#comment-50246
Link to wish list below
http://forum.acronis.com/forum/3118?page=3#comment-50245
Grover, I don't want to delete the backup files. I want to delete the backup job (not the files). I know how to do that now, but when I just upgraded fresh to ATI 2011, the change in behavior was not a nice surprise. Deleting a backup job also deletes all backup files. Wasn't even warned of that.
Marc,
You need to select the 'remove from list' option, which is (in 5519) off the more... option
Marc,
Yes, this could be another "gotcha". Very few users would know to click the operations tab and choose the "removed from list" as a means of getting rid of the unwanted task.
Marc,
You need to select the 'remove from list' option, which is (in 5519) off the more... option
I know that. That isn't my point. They changed the behavior of "delete backup" and I got caught trying to do what I usually did with previous versions. I know very well how to do that properly today.
I have had previous versions of ATIH and 2010 worked real well for me. IT wasn't a perfect UI but it worked. I bought ATIH2011 recently and it was a total shock and a turnoff. I agree with previous comments in this thread. The UI is non intuitive, completely unhelpful, clumsy and some things are buried deep. I cant find anyone else commenting on this but mine is very slow when creating or modifying backup definitions. I can click a box and it will "go away" for up to a minute at a time. The pointer shows the hourglass and the title bar shows "Not Responding". It has taken me a long time to set up my backups because of this. I checked CPU usage when this was happening and not much CPU at all. This slowness is not because I have a slow machine. I have quad core and 4GB of memory. It has no trouble with video processing. I am using the latest build 6597. I also had this trouble on the two previous builds.
Then I get a problem with editing backup definitions. IT cant save the modified defs. It says it cant find the file and it gives out an error code that cant be found in the KB. The way forward is to delete the old def and make a new one. I have had it for 13 days now and I'll try for another week and then go for a refund. This is just one dog of a product.
Hi,
I'll add my voice to this.
Over the years, I've bought and used True Image 9.0, 10.0, 11.0, 2009, 2010, and now 2011.
Each new version becomes less and less practical and efficiency, where is the interface of V10.
Acronis made with 2011 a very bad call on using a very bad interface. It is inconsistent and very non-intuitive.
I have used TI through several version, with my working version being 2009. I decided to take advantage of the Christmas family pack offer for 2011, since I will be upgrading to WIN7 soon. I do my backups manually rather than schedules, and that is easy in 2009. By comparison, it seemed to take considerable, sometimes non-intuitive steps to accomplish the same thing in 2011. Perhaps there is an easy way, but I did not find it. Also, the interface was VERY sluggish. Finally, I used my 2009 recovery CD and rolled everything back. For now, I will wait for the next update of 2011, and spend more time with the manual. Sometime, new is definitely not improved.
Long ago I developed a simple "management" solution for using Acronis to backup network pc's. All the hard drives are split with the main system partition and a clone partition. The clones are scheduled locally and done from one partition to the other. This alleviates the problem of multiple schedules for machines cloning to archive drives across the network - this also alleviates any need for a "management console". Also, this enables me to schedule them all to clone at the same time without network traffic issues.
The obvious weakness is that if the physical drive fails I'm dead in the water. That is overcome by writing a simple batch file that copies the clones to archive locations elsewhere. The batch file is written such that it waits until one is copied before executing the next one - thereby controlling network traffic. Quite frankly the interface scheduling capabilities of Acronis 8 were sufficient for this simple yet effective system. I've continued to update Acronis only to be compatible with newer Mobo's, controllers, etc.
Acronis could solve this dilemma (the need to create increasingly complex/non intuitive interfaces counter to the desires of their users) by having three interface modes to choose from:
1) Simple mode (I don't mind being called simple - KISS theology works for me)
2) Intermediate mode (perhaps based on 2010 type interface)
3) Advanced (otherwise know as Guinea pig mode)
Mode 1 could only be changed every 5 years and then only by a factor of 20%
Mode 2 could be changed every 3 years by the same 20% factor
Mode 3 could be changed as often as Acronis needs, to insure the people with the "Cool New - but useless Interface" responsibilities can keep their job.
I upgraded to 2011 from 2010 about 3 weeks ago and, as others, have used TI since the early 2000's.
This interface is truly horrible. Confusing, non-intuitive and cumbersome. I could echo many of the previous comments. Luckily, I only back up my home computers 2 -3 times a week so muddling through it is not as bad as if I would have to use it extensively.
However, it's bad enough that I felt compelled to seek out this forum to post my disappointment/disgust. I agree that the constant changing of the interface over the years has added little to the program, creates confusion and has constantly gotten worse.
I probably won't be convinced to try a future version unless the interface improves drastically. I am currently exploring alternatives.
The point is that while I've been loyal to the program and each revision, the company hasn't shown the same consideration to me and other long term customers.
On a positive note (and the reason that I've stayed with Acronis), while 2010 was pretty unstable for me, over all the years, I've always been able to recover previous back-ups - something I do with regularity (for various reasons).
[quote=Robert Trent]
I am finding this 2011 user interface to be a BIG STEP BACKWARDS. Acronis calls it a "Redesigned user interface and usability enhancements, based on the results of usability testing, make Acronis True Image Home 2011 easier to use than ever before." Really?
In True Image 2010, there was a page call "Tasks and Log". It had a nice, clear list of your scheduled tasks (my machine has 4 unique scheduled backup tasks that run throughout the week) and a calendar showing the status of past and future tasks.
[quote]
This is my Opinion too. The Interface is horrible.
Where can I find, when Backup-Tasks are starting, what thea are doing and so on ..
This is a question I have too. Where do you find the log? So far I have been reading the emails with a full log attached. I use Gmail to filter the emails to detect if the task finished successfully. There is a trap when backing up email. You can have Acrronis tell you the task was successful but in the log it can fail some steps.
With an intuitive UI it would be no trouble to do all of this but the UI of this PoS is so slow that anything you do is just painful. I guess I may have to read the manual. I wonder if it will have a tip in there on how to speed up using the UI?
Bob,
The log is found under Help\Logs .
Bob,
The log is found under Help\Logs .
Colin, thanks for that. I guess I may have found it when I went looking for Help.
Hello,
I completely agree with the subject.
The new interface is very poor compare to TI-8, 9, 10, especially in the list of tasks mixed up with the backup list.
More, some task schedule like "every x weeks" disappears..
This 2011 version is a regression from the user interface point of view...
Jean
I would like to add my two cents. This thing is simply to complicated and non-intuitive to use for someone who just wants a backup system. It tries to simplify but manages mostly to obscure what is actually going on and what needs to be done. I got 2010 to replace a package that I could never understand. I thought I got 2010 to work; but in retrospect (sorry about that) I could not get a recovery to new hardware.
I keep having unintended consequences.
When one of the backups runs it uses 100% of my 8 cores. Nothing else works. I am not actually sure what was running. A scheduled differential partition backup or the continuous backup. With task manager I can reduce the process priority and at least use the system. But that goes away the next time it runs. The priority was "normal" when I set up the scheduled task. I am sorry, but how can 100% of all cores be "normal". I have set it to low now and will see what happens. Although I have all sorts of tasks created that I had not intended and am looking at starting over from scratch. But I am concerned I might delete some backups that predate recovering my system that I don't want to lose. One of the threads I have read confirms the extremely high probability of doing just that by deleting all associated files automatically if a scheduled task is deleted. For crying out loud. You don't screw with data without warnings.
Help is not helpful. Constantly using terms that are not intuitive. Assumes a skilled user to understand help explanations. And they would not need help. Help should never be written completely by a highly skilled user of the specialized software being addressed.
The explanation and separation of disk and partition backups has me utterly confused. What i the difference. Scratch that. I don't care. What I need to know, and the only things I need to know really, are am I making a backup that will restore a system that had flames coming out of it and can I get back several versions of changed files individually. That's it. Really simple to use. No nebulous statements trying to detail alternatives. And while I am at it the software should make it simple and obvious how to use my own names for the backup files.
Right now I have essentially zero confidence that my system could be recovered if it failed.
I really hate this.
All I want to do:
1 - Periodic manual full backup then differential with periodic new full backups of all my partitions to an external usb drive. I should also be able to do that to a network attached drive so I can have a drive physically secured from theft and maybe fire.
2 - Weekly full and then differential backup of all my partitions to an internal drive. What I thought I had with the default versions thing. No longer sure that is happening.
3 - continuous backup of my boot and selected data partitions. This should be the same full/differential/full scheme I guess.
It is simply not clear to me how to accomplish this and it should not be hard. And whatever I do can't consume all my cpu (I have not found any way to set priority of the continuous stuff).
I really really hate it. I have spent hours. This is not what I intended.
There is no doubt that Acronis TIH 2011 is huge time waster. Most of that time is wasted on navigating the User Interface.
One thing is certain in life.... Software companies, developers and programmers like to "improve" things in order to extract more money through upgrades.... Well here's a classic case of the old addage if it ain't broke don't fix it.
ATI Home 2010 worked for me (well the last version did anyway) but I will not be going anywhere near 2011 as in their pursuit of "improvement" they have created a, (in their lovely marketing speak) horrible user experience.
We could all forgive them if it worked - and I'm sure that the new people who use this version 2011 for the first time won't be hurrying back.
The people who decided to change the UI need firing. (I can imagine the meeting where they put forward the idea using words like innovative, clean, fresh, new, simple..... they forgot the word crap though.
They are unfortunately not the same company as they once were - key people have left and after seeing their latest offering with 2011 I can see why.
Marc,
Yes, this could be another "gotcha". Very few users would know to click the operations tab and choose the "removed from list" as a means of getting rid of the unwanted task.
It was a 'gotcha' for me :( I accidentally deleted the majority of my backups .
You fool, I hear you say. Well, I have my TrueImage backups mirrored on three separate HDD, and TI manage to find them all and delete them too!
Managed to save a couple, but I am not a happy bunny!
I am now back using TI 2010.
It seems unanimous! The current GUI was a step backward. What is the point of screen shot at backup? It seems that the goal was to fill the entire screen with lots of white space and silly graphics instead of simple lists for tasks, logs etc like the 2010 version. Let''s face it. Backups applications are not sexy and do not need fancy gui's. Just lists and options in an orderly fashion make sense.
I vote bringing back an option for the classic 2010 look.
Acronis please listen to your users. The product has saved me several times. Concentrate on that part and fix the gui ands then leave it alone.
I too hate the 2011 User Interface. Apparently enough others dislike it that today I received an emailed "Acronis True Image Home 2011 User Interface Satisfaction Survey" to request my feedback. I successfully submitted my answers.
Having updated each year, the transition from 2010 to 2011 required complete relearning how to create a task. The logical work flow in 2010 was replaced with randomly placed non-intuitive links that required additional navigation to find settings.
I was so disappointed in 2011 that I uninstalled it on both my wife's and my computer and reinstalled 2010. Below are comments on the initial release. Some may have been addressed in the newer release.
User Interface design shortcomings:
1. Task and files are displayed in a menu block - I create new tasks each month and have files going back over a year. I also have other one-of-a-kind archives. Acronis 2011 gives me two choices; either keep all the menu blocks (perhaps 20) with the resultant clutter; or delete them and access my backup files outside of Acronis using Windows File Explorer. Acronis 2010 had files and tasks separated so this wasn’t an issue. I believe this approach has seriously slowed down the startup of 2011.
2. Creating a new task required multiple links – In 2010 I could go through a list and make sure everything was configured. In 2011 I have to hop around to select what drive to backup, Exclusions, Destination, Schedule, Backup scheme, Backup name, Disk backup options. There is no work flow! Some are checkboxes, some are links, some are dropdown menus, and other you type in the box. Without reading the manual or clicking the obscure help (?), I had no idea what to do. Notice that once you’ve created a task, you can’t review the setting without clicking each link and drilling down in the menu. It’s a confusing mess.
3. Who would expect to find the Welcome screen, Log, Update backup list, and Generate system report under “Help”? These should be on the Tools and Utilities page.
Things I can’t do in Acronis 2011 but could in 2010:
1. Task Names – You can’t give the task a separate name from that used in the file. I can’t call the task “Daily Backup” which is meaningful to me and name the file “2010 @ date.” See the 2011 User Interface in "task_names.jpg" attached. Which backup set is which?
2. Disable/Enable – In 2010 you could disable a task without losing the settings. Later you could enable it and return to the original settings. You can’t do this in 2011. For example if I have a task that runs Wednesday at 11am and want to skip a scheduled backup, if I click the “Do not schedule” button all my settings are erased.
3. Delayed Schedule – In 2010 you could create a task and schedule it to run later (i.e. 2 weeks). This would allow me to create my daily backup task on Monday and schedule it to begin running on Wednesday or create my weekly task in October that will begin in November.
4. Backup Status – In 2010 you could see a 3-month calendar with all backups and their scheduled/success/fail status. In 2011 you can only view one task at a time with far less information. See the 2010 User Interface in "2010_ui.jpg" attached.
5. Backup Files – In 2010 you could see all backup files grouped by task with their file name, time stamp, type (full, incremental, etc), rating, and path. In 2011, only one task can be viewed and the day and time is all that’s shown. This confusion caused me to accidently cross up my daily and weekly backups. See the 2010 User Interface in "2010_ui_2.jpg" attached.
Bugs in Acronis 2011:
1. If you clone a task, and changed the name it creates a file with the old file name.
2. Validation – Validation is on by default. If I open Custom, go to the Advanced tab, and open Validation, and click “Once a month” and change it to “Do Not Schedule” it will stay for the task. Check marking “Save the settings” as default has no effect; the next task will open as “Once a month.” Other settings such Performance and Notification are kept as default but not Validation.
3. Acronis regularly crashes when I use “Explore and recover” to view the backup contents. The cute little boxes with the weekday and time stamp are buggy too. Putting my mouse on one pops up a dialog saying there are two versions which is nonsense. When I remove the mouse pointer, the time stamp disappears.
I bought mine through Cleverbridge eCommerce who offer a 30 day money back. I still have a week left on that and I think I will get my money back. No product this bad is worth paying for. I got the Plus Pack thrown into the deal as a sweetener. I haven't bothered to install that yet. If it's anything like ATIH 2011 then I got it for the right price ($0). I have not posted beyond this forum on this product but this changes today. I bet that there are plenty of other dissatisfied users out there that have not come forward yet.
Add me to the list who hates the new UI of the 2011 product. I too have been using True Image through many versions - back to 6.0 I think. But I might forgive a bad UI if the product actually worked - for me, it doesn't. The UI crashes, backups fail for no obvious reason, and many aspects of the program simply ignore settings.
What's more amusing is that this morning I received an email from Acronis asking me to fill out a survey about the new interface. I filled it out in detail only to find that it would not submit. Looking at the URL for the survey I see "PREVIEW_MODE-DO_NOT_USE_THIS_LINK_FOR_COLLECTIONS". Of course, the email comes from a "noreply" address so there is nowhere to complain (except here, and my experience is that Acronis doesn't respond to these.)
At this point I am going to uninstall the 2011 product and reinstall 2010, which worked fine, and will think twice about paying for future upgrades.
I too don't like it. I just today purchased the latest version after being pounded with e-mail offers for months and now i find it has less information available as to the compleation of past backups. the old version had a calendar with colored squares indicating sucessful completion errors or yet to be performed backups. everything is difficult to locate and operate. Why keep changing it on every version change. Performance improvements are welcome but it has to remain useable.
Steve
Is anyone at Acronis reading this thread?
Where do i find the info on the 30 day money back gaurantee? I want to go back to the 2010 version too.
To obtain a refund within 30 days of purchase, Contact customer support with your invoice number and date, etc. You can contact customer support via the main Acronis web page or via the support button in upper right corner of this webpage.
You can add me to the 2011 UI haters.
Me too!!
Not only is the 2011 interface a badly designed load of rubbish, it also has useful information hidden in obscure places or is missing entirely.
For simplicity and ease of use the old Version 10.0 was by far the best. In fact even earlier versions were easy to use.
Why on Earth have the logs been tucked away in the Help access page? Version 10.0 and before had a simple and very useful operations log which showed all the backup operations in time and date order. The time was that of completion of a backup, as the start time of a scheduled backup is known to the user it was easy to see if problems were developing. I could glance at the log to see when the last HDD restore had been made because the start time was displayed.
Mounting an image from the secure zone is the only way to explore and work with it. However do not try to mount from the TI main screen because the system goes into a loop and the only escape is a forced re-boot.
Secure zone images can be mounted from Windows explorer but the images on the zone drive no longer show the time and date of creation or their size. So one has to guess which Icon may be the correct one!
I believe that TI 2011 V6597 should suffer the same fate as the first version of the old version 9. For those who missed the Fracas it was expunged from the records and was replace by a new version which worked.
I have been a software developer for nearly 40 years and a True Image fan since its first release. I rarely come onto another software company's site and rant, however Acronis really deserves to be ranted at. I have personally lost data from a hard disk crash because of my own error in re-setting up my backup job and making a simple mistake.
TI 2010 actually had a very usable interface that could be navigated by anyone familiar with software. TI 2011 is an abortion. The cutesy animation of the backup type is not enough of a reason to hide the meaningful stuff.
For some reason, Acronis did what Microsoft seems to do with every release and "simplify" (read "dumbify") their interface with a completely new look. Their new interface is so obscure that you have to be a detective to find access to "normal" features expected of any backup program. What were they thinking? Whatever ever happened to "if it ain't broke, don't fix it"?
New users of TI 2011 will likely deal with it because they have not seen how good it was before. But as can be seen here, previous users are disgusted.
If anyone from Acronis is listening: Please swallow your pride and bring back the old UI, or at least make it an option.
I agree with all, the 2011 interface is horrible. Has anybody tried to include a comment before the backup is started? This used to be easy with 2010, now I can't find a way to do it. You can add or edit a comment after the backup is completed but then you are given an editing box that only holds about three words. Then when you browse through backups you only see a part of the comment line, no way to view the entire comment. Screen shot, what good is screen shot when all you get is a shot of the horrible acronis interface window. I used to recommend this program to other people, never again. I am now looking for another backup program. Apparently internal forces are trying to destroy this company.
Hello all,
Thank you for your comments and for being sincere in your feedback.
I assure you that all your comments have been forwarded to the Management team. It's important for us to know your opinion, and with the help of your comments we've already convinced Development team to reconsider returning to the old GUI or at least making GUI more convenient. I don't want to set wrong expectations and I won't promise you anything, but you should know that all your feedback does make difference.
Please also don't hesitate to share it with our Management team directly.
Should you need anything else or have any further questions - feel free to contact us at your earliest convenience, we will be happy to help you!
Thank you!
I'm glad management is listening to our comments. I sure hope development simply puts the 2010 interface back in 2011 and doesn't try to salvage the 2011 design. What I really want and expect is a bug-free, user-friendly, program that reliably backups up my data. In the meantime my wife and I are continuing to use 2010.
I came to the forum to see if TrueImage 2011 was worth an upgrade. I have purchased many, many licenses over the years -- for my employer and for my family. For 2010 I was sufficiently unconvinced by some of the changes to upgrade only one license from 2009, for my own machine. The splitting off of the Plus Pack (which Microsoft tried a long time ago) seemed a wearying, cynical bit of consumer surplus extraction (instead of engendering word of mouth and loyalty incl. automatic upgrades).
Reading this horror story above has put me off, as has the story of the buggy latest update to 2010.
The contrast with my experience running BackInTime (free) on Ubuntu (free) is startling* -- total simplicity and reliability, never mind the price ($0).
As long as I run Windows I will probably use Acronis but my reluctance is increasing. I looked for a simple comparison of features on the web site between 2010 and 2011 and didn't find one. I think there used to be one but I couldn't find it now. It seems that the attempt to wrap something as complex as the Windows desktop in idiot-proof simplicity may be as doomed as Windows, but it can't succeed at all if the execution is so awful.
*Never mind too: Dropbox, Ubuntu One, or the ability to change Linux distribution by keeping one's home directory on another partition.
I, too, cannot stand this. I came from TI-11 to TI-2011 and the "culture shock" is enormous! I do not like this interface.
I've switched back from 2011 to 2010 because of the terrible User Interface. (See my detailed comments Tue, 2010-12-21 18:14) If Acronis updates the UI in 2011, should I install it? My decision will depend on the following:
- What are the general comments by those who install the updated 2011?
- What is the UI like? Is it as least as usable as the UI in 2010 which I’m using now?
- Do the features and flexibility of this 2011 justify moving from 2010?
- Is the User Guide updated?
- Are their fewer important bugs and issues in 2011 than in 2010?
- If I don’t like this 2011 and choose to return to 2010, am I willing to deal with the fact that 2011 backup files can’t be opened with 2010. (I assume they can be opened with a 2011 Bootable Rescue Media.)
- Am I willing to deal with potential installation issues with 2011 and issue if I return to 2010?
I agree that the GUI of TI2011 is horrible. I will not buy another version of True Image from Acronis until they fix the GUI. It's that simple.
I wish that I had read comments from 2011 users before up?grading from 2010.
At present i would not recommend anyone to move from 2010 as the new version is so... much slower and seems less easy to use and in some areas seems to have a mind of its own.
I am very likely to switch back to 2010 and only wish that I had discovered that the problems (of slooooow processing) appear to be inherent in the program whereas I had been attributing this to probably other problems or other processes causing this.
It has taken me more than 30 days to realise this otherwise I would definitely be demanding a refund. By the way I am using the latest version as at 13th Feb 2011.
Since I upgraded to ATI 2011, using it has become a nightmare (I have used all versions since the beginning). I keep my fingers crossed hoping that I will be able to retrieve a working backup if I ever need it.
Notifications are not working anymore. Test nearly works but sender appears as @something.com, no subject can be supplied. When I save the settings it asks for username and password and refuses to save these.
It's a complete wreckage. No more clear log and planning calendar. Almost forces you to use My Backups folder.No option to save perrmanent settings: you need to start a backup and only then you can save these parameters for all tasks.
I have heard no reaction from Acronis about all the complaints that appear across many forums. Has the guy in the marketing who changed everything been fired? Is there some hope that we will get a real user friendly interface, at least that of previous versions?
Please issue a workable 2011 and a half vesrion. I won't wait for 2012.
Why are manyof us rated as "Beginner" when most have used Acronis for years? Probably because we have been the silent majority only now driven to comment. I can only agree with all the foregoing posts - 2011 is a nightmare compared to 2010. I have two queries in the system at present & was promptly directed to the automated answering system which was of no help at all. Unless they can be answered quickly while giving easy to follow directions, I too will be asking for money back & reverting to 2010. There is absolutely no reason to annually change interfaces to such an extent that it requires experienced users major time & effort to readjust to a system which may have some improvements, but which could be easily incorporated into an existing interface with minimal changes. Not only that, but the "improvements" often seem to come at the expense of simplicity & adequately working systems.
Graham,
Most forums I'm a member of have ways of stating how many posts a user has made, in that, this forum is no different.
Sorry Colin. I think you missed Graham's point.
He was not complaining of his beginner status. He was complaining that Acronis has now driven him to complain. Have a look at his registration date.
This symptomatic of how complaints are treated on this forum: no answer or wrong answer.
He was not complaining of his beginner status.
Aah OK.
Have a look at his registration date.
Noted; today.
This symptomatic of how complaints are treated on this forum: no answer or wrong answer.
I didn't answer this bit because Graham stated or I thought he stated he has two tickets in the Acronis system, and he didn't give much meat as to his particular problem. Perhaps I should have mentioned that if Graham posted his ticket number(s) here in the forum, one of the Moderators would be able to pick it up and see where he was in Support World.
Please, gentle-people. Let us keep the discussion on the real topic and avoid maligning each other.
My earlier post (under my real name) also just "ranted" about the horrible interface, as I believe there are too many issues to just pick one or two out as the big UI mistake.
I finally uninstalled 2011 and went back to 2010 (not hard to do), which has been working flawlessly. And the 2010 UI couldn't be much easier to use considering all the options and flexibility they offer.
If Acronis really wants to have a version of their software that hides most of the complexities of what TIH does from users (or buries the options so that users don't need to make more decisions than may be necessary to "just back up a system"), let them create a "simple" mode for TIH or create a new product. Then design that mode to work like Apple's "Time Machine" backup application. That program, is about as simple as it gets: plug in a removable drive, and when it is detected by the O/S, click "Yes, use it for backup." No decisions...and it just works.
The common message of this thread is clear. The new UI has not been received well and we simply want Acronis to listen, and then respond with a reworked UI closer the 2010 UI that most of the posters here agree was really quite good.