White Fox Posted April 2, 2008 Share Posted April 2, 2008 We are making some small changes here in forums order, etc. This may involve further changes as we move forums around to get the order we wish, etc. In short it involves a little bit of experimentation. Please excuse any inconvenience it causes. We will be finished shortly. If you like the changes or dislike them, please let us know. Such comments go a long way here in our making these decisions. White Fox Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JGalanos Posted April 9, 2008 Share Posted April 9, 2008 I think tonight's forum arrangement sucks. They seem to be jumbled together haphazardly/thoughtlessly at the top (IMHO). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ReFur Posted April 9, 2008 Share Posted April 9, 2008 JG, are you saying the order is the problem? Part of the problem I, and a few others have had, is we hesitate to use the forums that show at the bottom, since many never scroll down to look. They in affect do not exist. We did eliminate the Marketplace as well a few weeks ago. I am not sure if we can change the order. What order were you thinking? ...or, is it you don't want your cheese moved? Linda Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JGalanos Posted April 9, 2008 Share Posted April 9, 2008 (edited) It's early so my memory may be a lil fuzzy, but as I recall the forums used to be kinda sorta logically arranged. There was a section for discussion, there was a section for photo links, etc. There were no more than three forums per section, so the screen was easy to view and navigate visually. Now there are 6 or 7 forums all in one section that include discussion and photo links, etc. It appears to be less organized and harder on the eyes based upon my experience to date. Additional input before I head to the office ... I try to keep up with the forums but my time is often limited to small chunks so with the old set up I found it easy to plan my "attack". In the a.m. I could check one category of forums (I have found the "View posts since your last visit" function isn't 100% reliable so I will usually open each forum and look for posts I may have missed) and in the p.m. check another category of forums and be relatively comfortable I have not missed anything. With the new set up, it is not as easy to divvy up the forums and remember where you have and have not been (without pen and paper!). So, no biggie ... I'm just whining because from my perspective we have gone from a more sensible to less sensible layout. My eyes ... My eyes ... Edited April 9, 2008 by Guest Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
White Fox Posted April 9, 2008 Author Share Posted April 9, 2008 Folks, please give us your thougts on this. Which arrangement did you like? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
White Fox Posted April 11, 2008 Author Share Posted April 11, 2008 I would still like to see feedback from other members on this issue. You probably noticed that a few days back there were more forums in one row with less areas to look at. You will see JG's post above commenting on the new set up. Do you agree? Do you disagree? We have to make a decision on this very quickly. However, I would like to hear the opinions of more members on this. Do you find it easier to use the site the way it is now or the way it was before. Please let us know your thoughts. We want to consider your input, so remember, if you do not give us input on this, your opinions won't count. J Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FurLoverinFL Posted April 11, 2008 Share Posted April 11, 2008 Please keep in mind that at the end of the day, whatever decision we make will not please everyone. That's just a simple fact of life regardless of what decision anyone is making. Some are happy, some are not... oh well... FLinFL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ReFur Posted April 12, 2008 Share Posted April 12, 2008 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Who_Moved_My_Cheese Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JGalanos Posted April 12, 2008 Share Posted April 12, 2008 Apparently I'm the only non-mod whose eyes cross while perusing the busy new forum format. My concern/issue with the new format is the layout. I have six different forums listed under Discussion Forums -- Four that I would consider discussion forums and two that I would consider photo/video forums. The forums aren't logically stacked on top of one another -- The photo/video forums are wedged between the discussion forums -- But even if they were logically stacked I still have an issue with the sheer number of forums grouped together. The new screen is just too busy ... The forums kinda blend together and have all the charm of a run on sentence. I think the number of forums per section should be limited to a max of four -- Any more than that is just too busy for my tired ol' eyes. (I'm assuming the Pub was placed on the bottom because it is the only forum that is not directly fur-related ... But given that it is a discussion forum I still think it belongs with the other discussion forums.) Call me a stick in the mud, but I really prefurred the previous arrangement where you had true discussion-oriented forums together and photo/video oriented forums together. I'm no graphics expert, so I'm not sure what is feasible ... But IMHO we have gone from a reasonably well organized format to a semi-mess. (As an aside, FFG's forums are logically organized similar to the old Den format and I don't see them jumping on the "let's create a lil chaos" bandwagon.) Regarding The Marketplace, I don't think it was very well understood. There seemed to be a lot of rules and regulations re: what was and was not an appropriate post. So I'm not sure if the lack of Marketplace forum traffic was due to the location of the forum or whether it was due to a percpetion that posting there was more trouble than it was worth. I think if most folks had something to sell they probably posted it on ebay and placed a link in the ebay forum versus using the Marketplace. P.S. Glad to see the site "entrance" is being re-worked ... And that the background photo was left alone. Love the Grosvenor photo ... But the text had become a bit dated. My eyes ... My eyes ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wallee Posted April 13, 2008 Share Posted April 13, 2008 JG and all. Re: the photo forum. We moved it for a couple of reasons. We were getting a lot of photo link posts in the main forum area which should have been in the photo forum, and we felt that being as far down the page as it was that people either didn't know it was there or felt that down so far a post would get overlooked. The other reason for moving it was with the introduction of comments in the gallery and our desire to not have discussions in the gallery comment section, moving it up would hopefully encourage use of that area for discussing gallery photos. It seems to have worked in part at least. We seem to have increased traffic in that forum. Thanks for giving us some input JG. Any other members have any thoughts on the forum realignment? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JGalanos Posted April 13, 2008 Share Posted April 13, 2008 Thanks for the info, Wallee. It may just be me (I'm due for an eye check-up!). I think I'll dig up one of WhiteFox's posts re: changing the screen view and see if that helps reduce the "busy-ness". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wallee Posted April 13, 2008 Share Posted April 13, 2008 You can change "board styles" in your profile if that's what you're referring to. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ReFur Posted April 13, 2008 Share Posted April 13, 2008 I used the basic style but the gaudy green just got to me. So, just switched to another style to soften the look. Again, JG go to your profile and look at the options. There is a drop down there that allows you to select between a few "looks." Just change it and save and it will be the new look when you are logged in. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
White Fox Posted April 13, 2008 Author Share Posted April 13, 2008 Once again, we want to consider everyone's ideas on this change. If you have any preferences on how things will be then, "Speak now or forever hold your peace"! It may stay as it is or it may be changed back. We do not yet know. When the decision is made please do not come back to us and say "What are you doing, I liked it so much more the other way!" And JG. Yes, you can change styles right now. Unfortunately this option will not be here a long time as when we change to the new board programming in the not too distant future there is only one style. It is the one used right now in our Archive. (I personally find it very harsh as well but there are no other options.) For now I use Aluminoid. Every style is I think used by at least one of our mods. W Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JGalanos Posted April 14, 2008 Share Posted April 14, 2008 FYI -- I switched to the style you use, WF ("Aluminoid") and it is definitely easier on the eyes. I actually prefurred the (brighter) layout of the style I had been using with the old Den format ... But with the new format I find "less bright" is best. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted April 14, 2008 Share Posted April 14, 2008 JG; I use Aeolus for that same reason. OFF Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zaphod_bee Posted April 14, 2008 Share Posted April 14, 2008 I use aluminoid as well from the beginning on and find it very easy and nice to read. ...and I have experiance in reading beeing a lurker for almost two years before starting to participate !! (So for me: anything near aluminoid is quite appreciated ..) Zaphod_bee Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JGalanos Posted April 17, 2008 Share Posted April 17, 2008 I can't seem to keep my mouth shut. I like the new forum layout ... But I found one thing a bit confusing. There is a Wool ebay/Marketplace forum at the bottom ... But the Fur ebay forum at the top is in a section titled "Fur and Wool". I think if I was a "Wool" person I might be confused where to post. Keep up the good work, guyz n gals! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
White Fox Posted April 17, 2008 Author Share Posted April 17, 2008 JG Yep, that could be a bit confusing. Reason for the title is that the Pub is now in that area. The reason the Pub is there is that this is still a very busy area with the Ebay forum. So members can easily see it there. But the Pub is also a "Dual Forum". That is, it is for both the fur folks and the wool folks. So it's location makes it easy for both the wool and fur folk to see. (versus difficult for wool folks as it was before.) Thus the title of the Special Forums area. One forum there is both fur and wool We may think of a better title, but til we do, we are simply telling people that there is indeed a forum in there for both the fur and wool members. This change is actually to bring things into line for a new upcoming PhP forums layout. It will not be here for awhile yet. But we thought you might like to get used to new things "one step at a time". We do not know for sure when this next step to PhP3 will take place, as not all programming is developed for it yet by the PhP and other programmers. Chat for one is still a problem along with possible problems in linking our Gallery to the site. W Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JGalanos Posted April 18, 2008 Share Posted April 18, 2008 But we thought you might like to get used to new things "one step at a time". "Highmaintenance" is my middle name. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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