SNOWEST FORUMS: The official "What's gone wrong with this site" thread

[bigdarrin]

Well, I just found another one, when replying, it would be nice to be able to size the text box to how big I want. When linking photo's, it can be a mess, especially after previewing them, when the photobucket links turn into photos. Sometimes the box can be very small, and require lots of scrolling... --snipped for brevity--
Just some thoughts..

--more clippage for brevity--



Thanks, never hit that button before, I always wondered what button it was referring too to enable it. It would still be quicker if it was just enabled by default though.

To Ruff: I was going to tell you that the reply window is resizable. But I went and checked with Firefox and found that it isn't. I'm running Safari on a Mac and it is resizable. Interesting.

To Alaskan: The quick reply is an interesting beast. One of the options that we selected when we set the forums up is for the users to be able to select the way threads are viewed. Most of the users, it seems, view them linearly, whether ascending or descending. This means that the whole thread displays in the order that the posts were made. One option is to have them "threaded" where each reply to a particular post is shown as a reply to that post, not just to the thread. If that option were turned off, the quick reply button would be unnecessary. But with that option turned on, the software needs to be able to keep track of which post it is to which you are replying.

I'll leave it up to Christopher and Brian as to whether that gets changed or not. Just trying to explain why it is the way it is.

Darrin

 

[Brian]

The speed thing........ yeah it's been addressed, but you say useage is up... maybe compared to 6 weeks ago but not 40 weeks ago. I've been using IE since the beginning of time and it's never been this slow regardless of the time of year or speed of the internet (dialup..). The top of the page loads almost instantly, then the rest of it slowly comes up. I attribute that to the "change".

Usage is up compared to 40 weeks ago. We have a lot more members now. Also, if the "top of the page" is loading instantly, but the rest of the page is loading slowly, it's time to switch browsers. That's definitely a symptom of some of the changes, and moving to something that can process javascript a little faster will help.

I will look into this further and try to find MORE places where you can shut off some of the extras.. Perhaps I can implement some sort of "turbo mode" where all the extras go away completely. You'll be missing out on a lot, but it will go faster.

What is the meaning of the bars??? Does anyone actually reference those for anything? I can remember looking at the colored boxes and thinking wow, that person spent a lot of time in the "max" thread or wow, that person must not like Obama... but these new things??? Just don't get it.

The purpose of the bars is two fold.

1) To show you how active a person is in the forums
2) To show you how "respected" a person is in the forums.

Or, put another way.. The first one shows you the quantity of their work, and the second shows you the quality of their work. In any online community, understanding who you can trust and who you can't is a valuable tool. The best online communities on the internet all have similar systems (slashdot, digg, etc.)

Too many subforums...

This one really confuses me in terms of the overall impact on the users. The reason I'm confused is: Why do you care how many sub-forums there are?

You can browse ALL forums at the same time (this is what the "New Posts" section is for at the top) OR you can browse the major topic areas (it will combine ALL the posts from ALL the sub-forums into a single view)... So what harm does it to have a little extra organization if you can still view all the posts with the same number of clicks?

So far, nobody has been able to explain to me why sub-forums are making them miserable. Just that they, somehow, are. =)

Swap meet.... we need a feedback section and required information on all for sale items. I saw a sled I was interested tonight, no joke, and when there was no location, phone number or pics, I moved on.

This is coming!!

Quoting with pics, can you make it so that when someone quotes a person that has a 1/2 page of pics, the pics aren't included?

That's been a problem since day 1... but I'll put it on the list and see if we can come up with a solution.

Last but not least.... PLEASE......... BRING LOTS OF SNOW THIS YEAR!!! The rest can be ignored if you can just work on this one that fine with me.

This will take a little extra coding, but I'll see what I can do.

One more thing... how 'bout some more emoticons???

Good idea. Let me see if I can get them plugged in.

 

[Brian]

When I log in and go to a particular forum, every thread with a new post since my previous login is shown (correctly), but every thread made BEFORE my previous login shows "no new posts". Shouldn't the older threads show as unread (with new posts) if I haven't ever read it? That's how it works on other forums.

This is a nasty thing that vBulletin does. I've been fighting this one for a long time and have YET to come up with a good work-around for this. Nevertheless it's now on my list and will stay there until we come up with SOMETHING!

Also, when using the "Browse All" feature, there is no indication that I have posted in a thread. But, if I go the the actual sub-forum that contains the thread I posted in, it does show that I've posted. Since I prefer to use the Browse All feature, it's very frustrating when trying to keep up with threads I've posted in.

Another amen on this one.. vBulletin marks a thread as "unread" even if it's YOUR reply to the thread that was the most recent. VERY annoying. Also on the list now.

Also, if you insist on having so many sub-forums, could you please show what forum a thread is contained in when using the Browse All feature. Since people are now posting in "catagories", I've noticed that the title descriptions have become more vague, probably because the posters think that everybody looking at their thread knows what kind of sled they're talking about just based on which forum it's posted in. And, I've also noticed several multi-sub-forum posts with the same title, which can be frustrating. Those posts would be easier to follow if I could tell which sub-forum they are posted in.

GREAT suggestion. This is now completed!!!!!

Please tell me you're working on the compatibility problems with IE (not just the speed issue, but things like user profiles not having full functionality). I know you (and a lot of other people) think Firefox is better. But, there are those of us that don't have a choice regarding which browser we use in certain places... like work. I can get online for personal use at work during breaks, but I can't load "non-authorized" software (including a different browser) on my computer at work. Besides, even though I have FF and Chrome loaded on both my XP machine and my WIN7 machine at home, I am apparently one of the few that thinks IE8 is actually a pretty good browser.

I don't believe for a minute that having IE "not work right" is acceptable. 70+ % of internet users are on IE, thus we need to address it. The suggestion to use Firefox is more of a short-term workaround than a long-term solution.

I think you need a legit FAQ section. And the very first thing I recommend putting in it is a comprehensive tutorial on how to do more than just a basic search. After that, you could put things like... descriptions of all the features available on the forum and how to use them - interpret them - disable/enable them - etc... You could have topics like "posting pictures", "experience points", "user profile", "shout box", "multi-quoting", "customizing how you view the forum", "the garage", "calendar", etc., etc., etc.. And there should be a direct link to the FAQ on the top of every page. Don't bury it in a drop down menu.

This is a good suggestion. Are you volunteering to help us create this? =)

You should also think about making a sled brand FAQ that's shown in the sled brand sub-forums. In this FAQ there could be a model description/manufacturer timeline, common abbreviations, tech articles or links to popular/helpful tech threads.

Great idea. Is this something you want to help us tackle? =)

And, some may disagree, but I still think it would be a good thing to allow users to provide feedback regarding the worth of another user's posts. As it stands now, the "experience points" system may lead some casual readers to mistakenly think that a user knows what he is talking about based on some ranking system affected by how many pictures he posted, or how long he's been here. I know the rep system was in no way perfect, but at least the big red bar by a members' name was a good indication that you might take what they said with a grain of salt.

The "Thanks" system was initially meant to help with this -- but it falls short because you can't vote negatively on a post. This weekend, I intend to rip out the thanks system and replace it with something more similar to what sites like slashdot and digg use for voting on posts.


Well, that's all I have time to type up at the moment... I'm sure I'll think of more. Thanks for asking.[/QUOTE]

 

[Idcatman3]

Minor gripe, but "Arctic" has two C's. Every time, not every other time.

 

[Brian]

I would like to see the "quick reply" just work without having to select a post.

Agreed.. Let me see if I can fix this.

The search is terrible on here. We need an improvement. Specifically a seach that looks for all words, not any words.

Amen, brother. I actually wrote my own search engine for VB some time ago for another project. My intent is to bring it here eventually, but I'm fearful of making the site even slower.

User ignor features. This is about the only thing I miss from fusetalk.

Good suggestion. I'll put it on the list.

So if you are the code monkey, what is Christopher's job? So far it seems like "whipping boy" is the most accurate.

Whipping boy accurately describes christopher's role here, yes.

 

[Brian]

Brian, please remember that some of your members have a hard enough time turning on the computer and/or are on dial-up. So installing a different browser is not a option for them, so all the IMPROVEMENTS that have been made are of no use for them. The issue with with IE needs to be fixed.

I have changed to FireFox days ago and enjoy it, but I was on the night that we hit the 4400 and at times FireFox is slower than it was that night.

Also, last night it would kick me back to the main menu when I was trying to read a thread without touching a thing.

KSH

Understood -- your point is valid. Telling people to just install firefox is more of a temporary workaround than a long-term solution. The speed problem is my top priority.

 

[Brian]

Trash the shout box, Or have a certain link for it. Anoying. The scroling thing, The damn shout box makes me mad then I tell someone off. The bars under our name, this is stupid. Get rid of them or go back to our old system. Anyone that likes change, Wait for our new health care system.

Why don't you simply turn both features off?

Click UserCP on the top, then click Forum Options, scroll down to the bottom and disable both of them. Voila!

 

[ruffryder]

Minor gripe, but "Arctic" has two C's. Every time, not every other time.

ha ha... doh! You are not supposed to give them easy fixes....

As to the seperation of the forums.. The "Browse All" seems to have limited functionality, and the stickies are not stuck.

One point that people are trying to make is that the info they go searching for is now in a smaller place, even though there knowledge or expertise is not limited to that smaller place. Therefore, you are limiting the potential amount of knowledgeable people seeing a post.

ex... If I used to ride 2 stroke yamaha's for years, but then bought a 4stroke and now have a turbo on it, I would have potential knowledge of the 2 stroke, the 4 stroke, and the 4 stroke turbo sections, but I would only be visiting the 4 stroke turbo section regularly...

I think the above is the issue... I think people sometimes happen upon a thread that interests them in which they know the answer or are able to help find the solution. I doubt many people go out there looking for ways to help other people, especially if it was something they USED to be interested in.

My big question that has still yet to be answered is what is the point of the main Brand heading? What is it for? Why not make that the "Browse All"? Or is it supposed to be a general forum for a specific brand?

 

[Brian]

1. Can the thanks listings in each post be turned off or hidden? Or at least have the individual user have the control to do so? It just adds to the amount of things that have to be scrolled through and it’s not something that all of us use.

I'm actually going to trash the thanks system and move to something a little more... useful... this weekend.

2. How much are these new servers that you are talking about? Are they a few thousand or a million (I’m not in IT so I really have no idea)? But if they are a few thousand how about a Snowest Fundraiser because if we have 10,000+ active members and you need to raise a few grand to make this place run a lot quicker I’m sure a lot of people would step up and donate a few bucks to spend up the process (pardon my pun).

$5,000 to $10,000, depending. We're looking into our options for coming up with the cash.

But Brian I have a direct question for you………...If you were to turn off the experience system, the shout Box and the thanks system until new servers are installed would the system not run faster just because there is less things running in the background? This may be a viable option in the short term. I’m sure that having all these options running are wanted by Snowest but if the server is running slower because of them (which it has to be) then maybe turn them off for the short term. Because after all they are options and not required for the Snowest forums to operate.

Actually, these three things are contributing very little to the load on the server. One of the key issues, after doing some serious sampling last night, was the Live Topic feature (the thing that lets you watch a thread grow in real time -- very cool toy)... So I've shut that off for now and I'm looking for more "big fish" that are causing issues. Identifying the SPECIFIC culprits can be a little tricky, but when we do, we'll weed them out.

 

[Brian]

As to the seperation of the forums.. The "Browse All" seems to have limited functionality

Can you be more specific about this?

One point that people are trying to make is that the info they go searching for is now in a smaller place, even though there knowledge or expertise is not limited to that smaller place. Therefore, you are limiting the potential amount of knowledgeable people seeing a post.

ex... If I used to ride 2 stroke yamaha's for years, but then bought a 4stroke and now have a turbo on it, I would have potential knowledge of the 2 stroke, the 4 stroke, and the 4 stroke turbo sections, but I would only be visiting the 4 stroke turbo section regularly...

I think the above is the issue... I think people sometimes happen upon a thread that interests them in which they know the answer or are able to help find the solution. I doubt many people go out there looking for ways to help other people, especially if it was something they USED to be interested in.

It seems like this is a non-issue is you can browse all posts related to a specific brand at the same time, right?

My big question that has still yet to be answered is what is the point of the main Brand heading? What is it for? Why not make that the "Browse All"? Or is it supposed to be a general forum for a specific brand?

I agree this is confusing. We may be able to make that main-brand heading the browse-all (which would be a lot more intuitive). Let me see what we can do.

 

[Brian]

Minor gripe, but "Arctic" has two C's. Every time, not every other time.

haha.. this is fixed now.

 

[ruffryder]

Can you be more specific about this?

You can't search.. There are no results for anything when under browse all. This is using the "search this forum" selection.

It seems like this is a non-issue is you can browse all posts related to a specific brand at the same time, right?

Very true, but why? Especially when I know where all the info I am looking for, is located in a subsection. Why would I go someplace else?

The main brand heading will show you ALL posts in ALL sub-forums related to that brand... So it IS the browse-all.

It doesn't look like that to me. I opened up the Yamaha section in a new tab and compared that the the browse-all. They are not the same.

 

[Scott]

How to shut off some forum features that you don't like to see:



http://snowest.com/forum/profile.php?do=editoptions

I found some things here that I hadn't checked....or also unchecked.
People had asked that sigs, images, avatars etc be turned off so it runs faster...here is their solution. Uncheck the boxes down at the bottom under "thread display options"

Go down further to disable the rainbow boxes and shout box.

Thanks for the tip Brian.

Brian, can we have the option to see more than 50 posts per page?
Also, I can only see a max of 20 threads per page when I go into any forum. Can we lengthen that out to say.....100?

 

[NorthMNSledder]

OK Brian..Now stop answering posts and get back to work


But truly thanks for answering all the questions directly and letting us know a little more about what is going on.

 

[girlpowder]

Okay, I was just getting used to thanking peeps and it's gone. What thaaaa? OKAY, NOW IT'S BACK.
Did I miss something? Not that I don't like thumbs up and thumbs down. Can we tell who gives us ups and down's???

 

[triple]

Anyone who complains about the forums or moderators should be linked right over to this thread. I do have a little issue with the vast number of new moderators. I thought that Big D and the early crew had the right mix of "kick 'em in the arse" and "just let it go...it's not hurting anyone". I like the idea of the political stuff moving over to it's own sub group. I don't understand the rest of the sub groups in things like Fouled Plug. It makes it hard to find everyone now.
I haven't had a single issue with speed. Unfortunately, I don't have time to go through it all and screw around with turning certain things on and certain things off. THis thread is the best idea yet. It's nice to get someone coming back and replying about each of our little issues.

 

[TheFlyingFynn]

Actually, these three things are contributing very little to the load on the server. One of the key issues, after doing some serious sampling last night, was the Live Topic feature (the thing that lets you watch a thread grow in real time -- very cool toy)... So I've shut that off for now and I'm looking for more "big fish" that are causing issues. Identifying the SPECIFIC culprits can be a little tricky, but when we do, we'll weed them out.[/QUOTE]
Please dont take away the "Live topic" feature thats the best thing you have added so far. I would give up everything else before that feature.

 

[Abominable]

How about reducing the time delay between posts to 10 or 15 seconds instead of 30? That would be great!

 

[Ex-Member]

Protip: Since you're all using firefox because it's a better browser, get the "" plugin. Adds a dropdown to the Reload button to automatically refresh the page every x minutes/seconds.

 

[ruffryder]

Protip: Since you're all using firefox because it's a better browser, get the "ReloadEvery" plugin. Adds a dropdown to the Reload button to automatically refresh the page every x minutes/seconds.

aren't we talking about server load? Seems counter productive to be reloading a page all the time, especially when not needed...