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Future STO Forum Upgrade [Update: On hold for now]
pwebranflakes
Member Posts: 7,741
Hello Captains,
You may have noticed that Neverwinter has recently upgraded to a newer version of vBulletin (our forum software) -- STO will be making the upgrade in the future. We know that your forum persona is important to you, so we want to make sure you know everything that you should do before the change, as well as what some of the new features are:
These are pretty much it for the big changes. The other good news is what won't change. No posts should show as "Archived User" -- you should still be able to edit all your old posts. This is an upgrade, and functionality will remain intact, just make sure you get your signature, avatar and PMs are saved.
We don't yet have a timeline for when this will go live for STO but I will let you all know when we've locked in a date. We are still a ways out, and other games will upgrade first. I'll keep you all updated as we learn more.
In the meantime, feel free to check out the Neverwinter forums and let us know what you think of the changes -- your feedback can be left in this thread so we can make sure to consider it for STO's and other games' forum upgrade.
Cheers,
Brandon =/\=
P.S. I will sticky this thread once it's gains some traction -- some users end up missing stickied threads.
You may have noticed that Neverwinter has recently upgraded to a newer version of vBulletin (our forum software) -- STO will be making the upgrade in the future. We know that your forum persona is important to you, so we want to make sure you know everything that you should do before the change, as well as what some of the new features are:
- You will need to re-upload your signature and avatar. VB4 uses a separate database, so you'll need to add these back in once the upgrade is complete.
- You will want to save your private messages as they may be lost in the upgrade.
- You will want to bookmark any threads you are subscribed to as subscriptions may be lost in the upgrade.
- You will be able to report posts for breaking the community rules. This system worked well in the past, and with VB4, this feature will return.
- Threads that contain Dev Posts will be marked.
- Other improvements to the forum system, including some that are listed as outstanding in this thread: http://sto-forum.perfectworld.com/showthread.php?t=276161
These are pretty much it for the big changes. The other good news is what won't change. No posts should show as "Archived User" -- you should still be able to edit all your old posts. This is an upgrade, and functionality will remain intact, just make sure you get your signature, avatar and PMs are saved.
We don't yet have a timeline for when this will go live for STO but I will let you all know when we've locked in a date. We are still a ways out, and other games will upgrade first. I'll keep you all updated as we learn more.
In the meantime, feel free to check out the Neverwinter forums and let us know what you think of the changes -- your feedback can be left in this thread so we can make sure to consider it for STO's and other games' forum upgrade.
Cheers,
Brandon =/\=
P.S. I will sticky this thread once it's gains some traction -- some users end up missing stickied threads.
Post edited by pwebranflakes on
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Comments
it dosen't say that anywhere, does it? Thoose forum names are gone for most, except for a few, like myself, who were lucky enough that no one had taken their names yet.
No, it merely means they are upgrading the forums to a newer version, and giving us features back, that should have been in during the conversions.
Nouveau riche LTS member
Come join the 44th Fleet.
startrek.44thfleet.com[SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]
Not at this time, but we're working on a way to let you post as your character@handle -- it's a ways off, though, and there is no ETA I can provide. Know that it is a goal of ours, though.
Copy and paste them into a text file if you'd like -- this does not affect in-game messages; just those on the forums.
It's been around the whole time
Yes, bookmark any subscribed threads as you *may* have to re-sub. I'll add that to the OP.
----
Keep the questions coming and I'll answer what I can, or seek out more information.
Cheers,
Brandon =/\=
Soon?
A month?
A week?
A day?
My finger is hovering over the update key, hold onto your butts?
- Good that the V-B Post Report Feature is now being implemented.
- Direct Reply - good.
- Instant click to Dev Posts (PW in Top Right Corner) - real good.
- Quick Navigation at the Bottom - Very Much been waiting for this.
Though while we got in-game mail and Forum Mailboxes were not necessary, somehow I miss this.Aside from the bad choice of text, I approve. :P
My biggest hope is just that we get some parity across all platforms in terms of the 'personal expression' allowed, in other words, I'd like to have the same signature and avatar options on neverwinter, champions, and STO. I'd like to have different signatures, but I'd like to have access to the same options.
Following the last forum transition, we had no bbcode or image permissions in our signatures. That was fixed in the weeks following, but the Champions settings are still more restrictive than the STO settings (no color and centering options, and neither site allows the FONT tag anymore.)
I hope this new setup will work better for everyone.. I just hope that every game's community gets the same freedom to express themselves.
1. I noticed from the NW forums that the "Additional Options" section can not be toggled closed (reduced in size). This section can be found under the advanced editing window for making a post. Having the option to set this section to 'closed' saves more precious screenspace (especially on mobile devices) that makes using the forums a little more quicker to use. We have a little green circle with upside down triangle at present to do this. The "Topic Review (Newest First)" section (NV forums) that is displayed immediately after that section has the close toggle correctly displayed and working.
2. Will we be seeing our forum header changed to take up less screenspace?
3. I noticed that while the "Quick Navigation" selection menu at the end of thread pages (NV forums) seems to be working fine, however, the "Top" redirect button next to it does not seem to work. If we are also inheriting this, will our button work?
4. I noticed that the "Reply to Post" button on the NV forums automatically prompts the "Quick reply" mode as opposed to here on STO were clicking it brings you directly to the advanced post editor mode. Will we be moving to quick reply mode as as a default? In a situation where you may have multi-quoted a lot, hitting Reply to Post makes the entire quick reply window naturally full up, and a user has to then go to the advanced editor. It seems to lack intuitiveness, but perhaps that is just me. An option to choose your own desired default would be better.
5. Will our existing forum in-post and signature permissions/rules be changed and/or reviewed? For example
The situation at present:
Star Trek Online Posting Permissions/Rules:
Neverwinter Permissions/Rules:
Star Trek Online Signature Permissions/Rules:
Neverwinter Signature Permissions/Rules:
I think it is clear from our set of permissions/rules that STO forum users are being held in lower regard than that of other PW forum users. We're more red than green and that says it all, unfortunately. Surely the introduction of thread reporting for moderation can help safeguard against mis-use. It certainly did with the old forums.
6. I see that the NV forums also features an ignore list. For STO, will this be linked to ingame ignore lists?
Thanks.
p.s. It might be worth passing on to trailturtle that the avatar upload settings are a little odd, namely the following:
I'll hazard a guess that "19.5 KB" will be the smaller of the two in that case.
One question: when you say we'll be able to edit "all our old posts", does that include the ones that currently show up as "Archived Post"?
"Critics who say that the optimistic utopia Star Trek depicted is now outmoded forget the cultural context that gave birth to it: Star Trek was not a manifestation of optimism when optimism was easy. Star Trek declared a hope for a future that nobody stuck in the present could believe in. For all our struggles today, we haven’t outgrown the need for stories like Star Trek. We need tales of optimism, of heroes, of courage and goodness now as much as we’ve ever needed them."
-Thomas Marrone
You can actually edit these if the one you are tying it on originally belonged to you in the first place.
I wrote up a post before the PWE forum conversion and you said it looked good and then nothing happened.
We have too many redundancies and too much stuff is getting moved because nobody knows where it belongs.
We'd also like to see the devs responsible for these things actually participate in the forum sections for the stuff they manage. For example, I'm not sure the "Ship Art" sticky megathread has seen any developer action since before CapnLogan left and many of those ship models are in dire need of fixing. We know you can't spend all day posting on the forums but a quick "I agree and we'll get that on the list but no schedule promises" would go a long way to making us feel like we're not talking to a black hole.
... so hold onto your hats & avatars as the Forum Cluster Fk 2.0 is upon us .
p.s. don't say we didn't warn you in advance ...
And, will the signature/edit avatar/edit title all be in one spot (user CP, for example)?
And gosh darn it, sorry to put this here, but I've tried to change my title to Starfleet Veteran several times and it won't do it! I even changed my logo to one of the defaults to change the title and then changed back, and still it won't stay. I've been subscribed well over 1000 days now, it just doesn't make sense to me that it should be this hard.
Aliella Hawklight, Divine Oracle Devoted Cleric
"Whenever a time arises where clarity is desired, it is always wise to reflect on the sage within."
― Sereda Aleta Dailey
DaiMon Moogie, U.S.S. Acquisition
Rule of Acquisition #57: Good customers are as rare as latinum. Treasure them.
STO LTS since launch; NW player since 2014; ARC user - only when I have to put in codes for free stuff
So noted, Chicken Little.
It's a software upgrade, not migrating to a whole new forum software on a completely new PWE database. We're not changing databases (again), so Forum Handle Fiasco Mk 2 will not occur.
Bring on the Report feature; PMing individual mods with a link whenever someone posts TRIBBLE on the forums is awfully tedius.
I don't care how long you've been playing. I only care about how you play.
And remember to follow the rules.
I would rather have the ability to select a non-unique "Display Name" in place of my @handle.
Hopefully this time around, things go smoothly, and we don't end up getting tossed under the bus... again.
No rough idea at this time. Only 2 games have been switched over so far (Ether Saga and Neverwinter), and I'd like us to go last so we have time plenty of time for you guys to check out other upgrades and provide feedback for ours.
Answers:
1) I'll pass this along to the Web Team to look into
2) Possibly, but when I look at it, it's the same width of the actual forum. Are you seeing something different?
3) I'll pass this along to the Web Team to look into
4) I'll pass this along to the Web Team to look into
5) It will be reviewed, but the permissions will most likely stay as they are for most things. NWs may still be under review. We'd would like to allow for as much customization and personalization as possible, though.
6) They won't be linked in-game at the time of launch, no. That's something we'd like to do again in the future but there's no ETA.
Mr. Turtle fixed the avatar thing
If you can not currently edit a post in question, you will still not have the option post upgrade.
I do remember your post and there were some great ideas in there. I'll be looking into what forums can be merged during the upgrade. I'm still not sure which will be, though. Although many devs don't post in those forums, they are still being watched and read by the appropriate team (DOFFs by those who work on the system, Bugs by QA, etc.)
Mail will not be available out of the game at the time of upgrade. It's something we'd like to do in the future but there is no ETA I can provide.
The UserCP should be revamped. Check it out on Neverwinter and leave your feedback here.
Try setting your title from a different browser -- some browsers are causing title changes to not stick for some strange reason. The Web Team is investigating.
Cheers,
Brandon =/\=
I'm so glad that I have your assurance on that .
BTW in case you missed it , the OP included a list of "possible bad things that might happen" -- some of which pissed off long time forum users when the PW forum switch occurred .
Just because the Forum Handle Fiasco was not listed , does not mean "all is/will be well" .
This character is why I don't play my Romulan any more. Tovan Khev is NOT my BFF! Get him off my bridge!
Possibly -- you can check out the Neverwinter forums now to see what it will be like. The login box may still jump as the site and forums do not officially support mobile browsers. To get around that, hit the "Login" link that normally displays where it says (when logged out -- it will take you to a static log-in page):
Welcome, username.
You last visited: Today at 4:54PM
Private Messages: Unread 0, Total 0.
Cheers,
Brandon =/\=
LTS, here since...when did this game launch again?
This character is why I don't play my Romulan any more. Tovan Khev is NOT my BFF! Get him off my bridge!
I like the way STO does it by listing the Thread name and a blurb (rather than the whole post). This lets me skim the Dev Tracker really easily so I can find the posts that I would be inclined to read (ie, I can avoid non-game-related banter, community events that I care for, but am able to quickly pick out Patch Notes, Mechanics discussions, Dev Blogs, etc).
Not width no, I was referring more to the height, and technically not just the actual banner image, but rather the whole backdrop. It really seems to delay the start of every actual thread. Inducing scrolling. For example, viewing this thread (from the top) in fullscreen Chrome browser with default text size etc on a 1650x1080 monitor I can only read your opening post's first line "Hello Captains,".
It means that scrolling is required each time to even read the first post in a thread. Perhaps this just isn't an issue for the majority of people, but for more frequent forum users it translates into more and more and more scrolling. Its been so long since the forum change now that I've found I've adapted like the Borg and all the added scrolling is second nature. heh.. I'll stop yammering on about it as I'm starting to sound like the princess and the pea or should that be the forumite and the scroll wheel?
... aww and I was just about ready to post my new 82 x 8280 avatar to the NW forums...
Drat, double drat and triple drat! Foiled Again! =(