New Forums Feedback

angrysprite

I know that things are (hopefully) still in flux and that the switch-over to the new forums is (hopefully) incomplete and more work needs to be done.

However, I think it only fair the ARC devs get a little feedback, wanted, unwanted or otherwise. Here's mine.

Short and simple: I dislike what I am seeing right now. I am referring to the old V-Bulletin style; full browser width display make the posts harder to read (newspapers use narrow columns for a reason); the fonts are tiny (sorry, I'm an old-HAMSTER) and the color scheme is rather muted (which is okay, but I'd rather light text against darker background).

I know these are my own perspectives and preferences only, but just wanted to say so.

Also, I attempted to reply to a post, with quote option. After about 15-seconds of spinning busy-wheel I gave-up and just close the tab (I open threads in new browser tabs for convenience).

Sine it was announced in the ARC blog that customer-facing side of the forums weren't supposed to change, I also understand that was the plan and not a promise or guarantee (and that blog post is months old and things change).

So here's hoping the migration simply isn;t completed yet and work continues and things will go back to the way they were (in presentation anyway) and if not, then I shall begrudgingly continue on.

Oh, and a BUG: Previewing the post erases the post (I had to select/copy the preview text and paste into the edit box to prevent losing this diatribe). LOL

angrysprite

I tried to EDIT post - but the system just seems to hang (the same as it did when trying to reply to a post with a quote) so I am 'replying' to my own post. Please consider this an "edit":

I thought it only fair to mention I am viewing these forums on Mac OSX Safari Version 7.0.1 (9537.73.11) (Not through ARC or on my Winblows PC). Also - I figure you may be doing something under the hood right now (it's 4 A.M. Here and I am in Pacific TZ) as I did a page refresh and the display (presentation) width of the forums have narrowed to a more-easily readable width.

THANKS! (At least I think it was you. That or there are still some stability work to be done).

demidogz

Let's see...

BEFORE:

>> Previous forum layout matched the game site

>> Color scheme was suitable

AFTER:

>> Layout looks kinda... idk what word to use for this

>> Color scheme sucks big time

>> Minor tech problems here and there

angrysprite

Let's be fair, now... LOL A switch such as this is a MASSIVE undertaking and I respect the workload (and eggshell-walking) it involves. I've done such projects myself. Also - am am seeing elements of Neverwinter start to appear even now as I use these forums and also let us not forget: there are what, 12 different games that have to have matching themes?

I suspect (read: hope-and-pray) we are just early into the forums and though they are functional for the most part, the work is continuing under the hood in the background.

My complaints regarding presentation seem to slowly be repairing themselves as I continue to peruse. The functionality side (editing, replying with quote, etc.) is another matter.

demidogz

True, but why change it at the first place?

Must be that "convenient gaming platform, ARC" :rolleyes:

angrysprite

True, but why change it at the first place?
Must be that "convenient gaming platform, ARC"

Yes, and no. Yes it's an ARC thing, but no it's not the primary reason (I suspect). But rather to bring all the different forums under a single system and 'roof' = much easier to maintain, pass out news and updates and all that stuff. ARC just happens to the 'roof', or "umbrella" all this is being placed under (I expect a rebranding of PWE into ARC - which is fine by me).

@ DEVS: ADDITIONAL GLITCHES in FORUMS:

I control-click thread links from the "New Posts" listing, and they always open in the sloppy, crappy, default V-Bulletin full-width presentation (full browser width, with is 19" on my screen) and I have to hit the REFRESH button to get the page to reformat into the narrower, easier to read format.

REPLY and REPLY WITH QUOTE buttons under specific comment posts are still hanging. I have to rely on "Quick Reply" box, which is okay, but not my normal routine. :-)

howitzer001

My feedback is I don't like this. It looks generic and not the type of design I would expect from a gaming company or a larger scale MMO.

rhoric

As I mentioned in the topic in the general forums. This color scheme is to match the arcgames website so the all the forums will match the website. The old neverwinter website is gone and there is only the arcgames.com now. yes there is some glitches and that happens sometimes with forum software (being a former forum software tech support admin) even my own forums had some issues back in the day. So it can happen to the best of us.

The only problems I have is the avatar and signature uploading and quick link for avatars is not working. The work around for signatures is to use the image bbcode tags [img][/img] with the image url like we had to use back in the day.

Edit post button hangs for me using chrome on windows, which is not a big deal for me cause I rarely have to edit a post.

Have to double click Reply With Quote to get it work.

angrysprite

Yes it's finicky right now, but slowly improving. The difference I see right now (about 1:30 P.M. Pacific) as compared to when I started the thread this morning is virtually night-and-day. Much better look now (and getting used to the new color scheme). The composing box is finally displaying black text-on-white (rather than black-on-dark-gray) and the view-width is finally maintaining a stabilized format.The edit post is still FUBAR (I get the same hanging) - haven't bothered trying the reply or quote buttons yet.I know it's a massive undertaking, what they're doing, so I'm not whining about it all (a little time can do wonders).Though I suspect I am going to be correct in presuming a rebranding from PWE into ARC. Oh, and as for the muted color scheme (gray and dark-whites) - I vote two thumbs-up. It took a long time to get used to that hideous Neverwinter red and Star Trek blue. I certainly prefer this "chrome" look. Old fashioned as it may be, I feel it does justice for readability.

angrysprite

Edit to add: it *STILL* ignores line-breaks/carriage-returns and creates one big blob of a paragraph! LOL

kallethen

We went through similar pains over on the CO forums. Color scheme aside, it's a lot better there than when the change first hit.

rhoric

Check your forum settings to see which one of these you have selected.

Enhanced Interface - Full WYSIWYG Editing
Basic Editor - A simple text box
Standard Editor - Extra formatting controls

I had the enhanced interface set and so you had to use the <br> html code to get your carriage return but I have since switched back to the standard editor so it does it automatically for you. You might need to switch it to another setting first then save it then switch back to get it to accept it.

angrysprite

rhoric wrote: »

Check your forum settings to see which one of these you have selected.

Enhanced Interface - Full WYSIWYG Editing
Basic Editor - A simple text box
Standard Editor - Extra formatting controls

I had the enhanced interface set and so you had to use the <br> html code to get your carriage return but I have since switched back to the standard editor so it does it automatically for you. You might need to switch it to another setting first then save it then switch back to get it to accept it.

Hey! I didn't think of that. So that makes this a test as I say thank you for the suggestion!

If it worked, then this is a new paragraph. LOL Which would leave the only remaining glitcharoo for me the "Edit Post" hang-up and the requirement to click the "Reply With Quote" button twice to make it work. Rock-on, thanks Rhoric!

rhoric

yep it worked. Just a few more fix ups then we should be good to go. gonna go and check avatar linking.

rhoric

Avatars are working again, you just have to re-upload it. Still have problems editing posts.

angrysprite

I think things are mostly back to normal again. I haven;t experienced any show-stoppers or serious glitches.

Kudos all of you at ARC/PWE for a job well-done. Certainly it was probably more work and took a little longer than anticipated, but it looks like job accomplished successfully. My only complaint is to make to main navigation (Home, User CP, Search, and New Posts links) into larger buttons that span horizontally lie before. Right now they're a bit tiny and vertically oriented.

Overall: thanks you guys!

rhoric

Yeah everything is working for me now. I knew it was just a matter of time before things got fixed.

beckylunatic

It's unfortunate that the eccentricity of how the forum considers posts/threads/subforums "read" didn't change with the update.

I can mark a forum as "read" but topics updated after I do so will continue to bounce me to "new" posts based on the forum's own timer for determining this, not the point in the thread I have actually read up to.

I cannot choose to leave something "unread" based on not getting around to it, because after a certain amount of time has passed from my most recent visit, the forum will mark everything as "read".

Am I overlooking a setting that I could use to change this behavior? It's completely different from every other forum I frequent.

angrysprite

beckylunatic wrote: »

It's unfortunate that the eccentricity of how the forum considers posts/threads/subforums "read" didn't change with the update.

I can mark a forum as "read" but topics updated after I do so will continue to bounce me to "new" posts based on the forum's own timer for determining this, not the point in the thread I have actually read up to.

I cannot choose to leave something "unread" based on not getting around to it, because after a certain amount of time has passed from my most recent visit, the forum will mark everything as "read".

Am I overlooking a setting that I could use to change this behavior? It's completely different from every other forum I frequent.

It took me a while to figure this point out - here's how to jump to genuinely "new" posts in a thread: look at the thread list - at the far left of the title of the thread is a tiny graphic that appears orange-ish with tiny downward chevrons... clicking on THAT tiny little bug should jump you directly to the first new post in that thread (or at least, what the forum thinks is the first new post since you've last visited that thread).

If you hover your pointer over that icon the hover-text should say "Go to first new post" (in this thread). Unfortunately it's so darned tiny I usually just ignore it and o to the thread proper, then scroll through it.

OH, and as soon as you enter (open) a thread all messages in it are marked as read. Any messages added after you open it are "unread" unless you hit the refresh button (then they all become "read" again).

tribalsage

Hello,

I'm having an issue with the forums. I was looking for a default skin and I tried the mobile one and now I can't get back to the way it looked before, can someone assists please?

beckylunatic

angrysprite wrote: »

(or at least, what the forum thinks is the first new post since you've last visited that thread)

That's my problem. I use this feature, and it jumps me to what the forum still considers "new" posts, not posts that date from the point I had read up to.

In a thread that was very busy overnight, this can amount to a whole lot of pages, in which case I'm better off clicking the last page and scrolling to find where I left off.

It lacks the functionality of other forum software that can actually remember where I read up to in every thread I have read.

Hrm, now I am having problem with editing.