Tonight and over this weekend I'm making a few tweaks and changes to the forum. I have archived all the RPG boards into a new section called RPG Archive (at the bottom of the forum). Perhaps sometime in the future we will start this up again. (My real dream would be to do some type of all audio production. But yeah, when I have some "extra" time). Those of you with RPG style banners might want to change those. You can keep them if you want, but a change might be kind of good since the RPG is currently stored in Carbonite - for now.
I also moved the Member's Only Section up into the Crew Lounge area (seemed to fit better). I'm also going to tweak the layout and look a little. Hope to work on this during the next couple of days. Anyway, just wanted to keep you all informed.
Thanks for your continued support and participation as we approach the 5 year Anniversary of "Treks in Sci-Fi."
ooOoo, I'd like to do the audio RPG, but I'm afraid my experience pales in comparison to many of the podcast giants :Bow: around here.
Thanks for keeping us informed. :)
King
Thanks Tim. Hopefully all the tweaking will go ok and make things more interesting on the forum.
The site looks cool. Kind of a shock when I brought it up though! The familiar black theme is now brighter! I like it...thanks Rico!
This isn't it at all....work in progress.....
Oh, the daily babes are gone. Sigh... :)
Rico, since you're working under the hood, can you check to see if there's a lite/mobile/iphone theme or layout that can be switched on?
I often use http://www.treksinscifi.com/forum/index.php?;wap2 (http://www.treksinscifi.com/forum/index.php?;wap2) which is really nice (most prolly don't know about it as there's no link to it) ...... But many of these community portals also have another mobile option with more features -- usually with an apple like format that seems to slide as you click thru.
For example on asoiaf.westeros.org if you change the bottom-left-most dropdown menu to IP-mobile
Thanks!
Can you make the most recent thread box larger?
Cool - babes are back. Will the shoutbox be brought back? So far it looks good.
Still a work in progress. But, I will work on your suggestions. Learning the new Simple Portal Tool I integrated in today.
Perfect, thanks!
Ok, I've done enough for today. Getting close to what I want, but still have some things to do.
- One thing to make note of, there are two tiny little buttons just above the right side column. These allow you to collapse the left and right columns to fit your screen better when needed.
More fun to come still!
Lookig interesting so far. Only looked in the phone so far. I'll get into a big screen for a look around later on.
Quote from: Feathers on July 25, 2010, 05:13:35 AM
Lookig interesting so far. Only looked in the phone so far. I'll get into a big screen for a look around later on.
Hopefully you can easily close off the left and right side columns to make it more "phone friendly" too. I'll still look and see if I can find a more mobile template for you mobile users. I just have no way of really checking that myself.
And please post any issues or troubles with the new stuff here. A few things I know I still need to do:
- Fix spoiler tags
- Integrate Chat back in again
- Integrate the Arcade back in again
P.S. Has anyone been using the Arcade much? Also, please post and test the new Shoutbox too (left column area)
Closing down left and right was the first thing I did on the phone and it worked fine. The only issue with that, I guess, is that the settings are probably remembered by user rather than by device so I'll need to open it out again when I hit a desktop somewhere.
Still, better as it is than as it was!
p.s. I see a 'This shoutbox does not exist' message and the Members List and Modify message page formats are somewhat screwed up.
Yeah - I don't see it either. :(
WHOOPS!!!
I had some permissions set wrong. All the extra goodies should now be visible to all members (hopefully). I added a lot more last night and had the settings wrong. DOH!! Learning this new Portal tool still.
I am liking it better, but is there anyway to reorganize the two sides ourselves or is that up to you?
As for "Mobile" TSF, it is definitely better now that we can hide the two sides of the forum. Opens up the space. Would be nice if you could install a mobile template, but this is good enough for now. I envy you iPad users, you don't have a problem at all. :(
King
Quote from: Kingisaaclinksr on July 25, 2010, 11:42:03 AM
I am liking it better, but is there anyway to reorganize the two sides ourselves or is that up to you?
As for "Mobile" TSF, it is definitely better now that we can hide the two sides of the forum. Opens up the space. Would be nice if you could install a mobile template, but this is good enough for now. I envy you iPad users, you don't have a problem at all. :(
King
All you can do is close or open the left or right sides. Layout is up to me.
- Still working on a mobile friendly version.
Quote from: Rico on July 25, 2010, 11:46:32 AM
Quote from: Kingisaaclinksr on July 25, 2010, 11:42:03 AM
I am liking it better, but is there anyway to reorganize the two sides ourselves or is that up to you?
As for "Mobile" TSF, it is definitely better now that we can hide the two sides of the forum. Opens up the space. Would be nice if you could install a mobile template, but this is good enough for now. I envy you iPad users, you don't have a problem at all. :(
King
All you can do is close or open the left or right sides. Layout is up to me.
- Still working on a mobile friendly version.
Ok, was just wondering. Has streaming your podcast always been there or did you just add it? Not that It'll change my habits because I still listen through iTunes/iPod.
Otherwise this is a nicely enhanced interface from before so thumbs up from me.
King
The little audio box for the podcast is new and a test. I'm still not done with all this.
- But I'm getting there!
-- Spoiler boxes should be up and working again as is Chat (via the Fun Stuff box)
Posting from mobile device, it's "better", idk what true mobile forums are supposed to look like or function, but it seems like it should be better than this.
Anyone have a better opinion?
Mobile-wise this has always been fine for iPhone but was very small and fiddly on Palm or Windows Mobile. Given that I'm not using those two any more, for me it's been fine as is.
The suppression of the side bars is an enhancement but I was coping well without :)
You will have the option of choosing from a couple of theme templates soon to view the forum. That way you can decide what works best for you on your current device.
So I see.
It seems to be changing every time I refresh the page at the moment. I'm getting dizzy! (Looking on phone and netbook Firefox for the fun of it)
I have to jump around and change things a lot when testing. I could close the forum and set it to maintenance mode for awhile to shut access off - but where's the fun in that? ;)
just wanted to (re)post the link to a mobile/wap version at http://www.treksinscifi.com/forum/index.php?;wap2 (http://www.treksinscifi.com/forum/index.php?;wap2) .... It works great for general reading and posting (including new replies and posts since last visit) plus private messages.
I think an ideal "fancy" mobile site would be like the westeros board I mentioned above.
Also, for those with phones, opera mobile does a good job with the standard treksf theme/layout as does the nokia browser, just takes extra time to focus on what you want - opera being better as it auto snaps to the column as you scroll.
Ok, things are in pretty good shape on the forum. A few little things to do still but I'm happy with it so far. Again, please post if you have any issues or see something acting odd. Also, don't forget about the two little buttons above the right hand column. Use those to close the left or right column or both - if you need the space on your screen.
-- whew - lot's of time this weekend on this (time for a beer) :cheers
Quote from: beer on July 25, 2010, 01:55:20 PM
just wanted to (re)post the link to a mobile/wap version at http://www.treksinscifi.com/forum/index.php?;wap2 (http://www.treksinscifi.com/forum/index.php?;wap2) .... It works great for general reading and posting (including new replies and posts since last visit) plus private messages.
I think an ideal "fancy" mobile site would be like the westeros board I mentioned above.
Also, for those with phones, opera mobile does a good job with the standard treksf theme/layout as does the nokia browser, just takes extra time to focus on what you want - opera being better as it auto snaps to the column as you scroll.
I tried Opera Mobile on the iThingy, terrible browser compared to Safari which has been better experience.
Anyway, good job Rico. :)
King
I really like the new layout, colours of names and all the other little bits and pieces. Well done!
One problem I see on all platforms at the moment is an overlap of the third column onto the second in the Modify Message window when you start to reduce the window size.
I've attached an image.
Edit: OK, I haven't seeing as it doesn't seem to want me to.
Edit Edit: Got there! FWIW the members list page also does the same sort of thing.
I'll have to look into this later on Mike. I'm on sad, old IE 6 here at work. A few questions:
- Please make sure whatever browser you are using has had all of it's cache deleted. I made a TON of changes over the weekend. So make sure you are not still seeing some old code. For example, the member's listing page should not show either the left or right column at all by default now.
- Please list the resolution you are viewing things in. If this issue is still all on your phone, I doubt I can do a lot about it. The new format, sizing, etc. is not optimized for mobile use. I'm noticing it has a few little issues even on this low res. monitor at work.
But, I'll keep checking things and tweaking. I'm still not done. It's a long process.
I do see it on the phone but that's irrelevant since I'll turn that column off.
The screenshot above is from IE8 at work and I see the same on Firefox 3.5.7 (which I'm using now). Given that I only configured this browser ten minutes ago, there's no caching involved here.
Resolution is slightly complex since I'm using a dual-monitor setup laptop. We're talking 1280x800 and 1280x1024 which is the maximum this thing can drive.
Looks like IE6 (which we also have here) clips the end of the smilies and text entry box while IE8/Firefox tries to display everything overlaid on top of one another.
I'm not that big a fan of the clipping either but it looks better than the overlaid version.
I should add that this is only an issue because I'm unwilling to run this full screen in the office. If it's not a simple switch somewhere then don't spend too much time on it.
Ok, good to know. I did notice the clipping (when posting messages too) on this low res. monitor at work. I'll see what I can do.
P.S. The members list though should not show the left or right columns.
Quote from: Rico on July 26, 2010, 06:14:40 AM
Ok, good to know. I did notice the clipping (when posting messages too) on this low res. monitor at work. I'll see what I can do.
P.S. The members list though should not show the left or right columns.
Sorry, no it doesn't show the columns but it does overflow the right border when the window is compressed too far.
The only thing I'd say is it would be nice if the "Users Online" list could be changed to a comma-delimited list instead of a more vertical list it would give us more vertical space. When there are a lot of people logged in at once. Right now with 5 people online it takes up a little over 200 vertical pixels. If we have 10 or 15 people it would take up a lot of the initially viewable page.
Quote from: billybob476 on July 26, 2010, 06:35:07 AM
The only thing I'd say is it would be nice if the "Users Online" list could be changed to a comma-delimited list instead of a more vertical list it would give us more vertical space. When there are a lot of people logged in at once. Right now with 5 people online it takes up a little over 200 vertical pixels. If we have 10 or 15 people it would take up a lot of the initially viewable page.
Completely agree Joe. I'm actually still working on that. I made a post with the Simple Portal folks to get some custom code help to do that. For now, just collapse the members online list when not using it. I may just drop it until I can get the right code setup.
- Mike - when I look at the members listing I don't see it cut off that way. But I'll check it more later on.
P.S. Thanks for the comments guys. I still have more to do and want to tighten things up a bit. I'm not happy with the name colors yet either. Trying to find colors that look ok both on light and dark backgrounds. I'm also toying with moving the forum to SMF 2.0. But I have to think on that and do more serious tests first.
Quote from: Rico on July 26, 2010, 07:09:11 AM
- Mike - when I look at the members listing I don't see it cut off that way. But I'll check it more later on.
IE6 seems to handle it more cleanly, clipping the display once the boundary of compression is reached.
Quote from: Rico on July 26, 2010, 07:09:11 AMP.S. Thanks for the comments guys. I still have more to do and want to tighten things up a bit. I'm not happy with the name colors yet either. Trying to find colors that look ok both on light and dark backgrounds. I'm also toying with moving the forum to SMF 2.0. But I have to think on that and do more serious tests first.
Well, if you're looking for a select group of users to abuse a trial installation...
:D :D :D :D
Ok, a few more things. I've altered the blocks in the right column. They will vanish when you are "inside" the forum. Once you are back to the main forum index page they will show up again. Hopefully this will be a nice way to give more spacing when you are reading posts, making posts, etc. without having to collapse any columns all the time on your own. I also moved the users online to the left column. And a few other little things.
For those interested:
I am STILL working on the new setup for the forum. It is a lengthy process of trying and testing new features and so on. And my time is limited. A couple things I'd like to point out:
- Shoutbox: Please do NOT post links, images, videos, etc. here. This causes issues with the box and creates the need for people to scroll side to side. This isn't a problem with this Shoutbox, this is a problem with posting things like the above in it. The old Shoutbox had the same issue.
- Left and Right Columns - I'm still working on the layout a bit. Keep in mind I'm trying to balance this for ALL users and a variety of screen resolutions. You can close off one or both columns with the small buttons over the right column. I am also trying to give members more space when "inside" the forum by closing the right and top column during that time. But again, this is still in flux.
- Bugs/issues - please continue to report those here. Always helpful.
Finally, please hang in there for the next week or two while I get this all worked out. I wanted to both sort of 'refresh' the look of things on the forum and add a few new & fun features. In the interim, thanks for the support and your patience.
Thanks for all the work on the forums Rico, I know from past experience, doing all those changes takes a lot of time to get right. Tweaking and getting modules to work can eat up a lot of time, what you have implemented so far looks great.
I like the new look. One minor issue for me is that the shoutbox is truncating (I use Chrome).
Quote from: Bromptonboy on August 01, 2010, 07:35:22 AM
I like the new look. One minor issue for me is that the shoutbox is truncating (I use Chrome).
Truncating what? Links??
No, it's windows inside windows. I am having the same issue.
Quote from: Blackride on August 01, 2010, 08:36:42 AM
No, it's windows inside windows. I am having the same issue.
?? I'm not following. Can you do a screencap and post the pic? I don't see this in Firefox. I see scroll bars when links have been posted.
Everything looks good to me! Except...voice command isn't working any more. I just keep saying..."computer...computer..." and it won't answer! :) :P
You have to use the mouse!
Ok billybob, I tried talking to the mouse, but he won't answer either :)
Quote from: QuadShot on August 03, 2010, 09:10:24 AM
Ok billybob, I tried talking to the mouse, but he won't answer either :)
Perhaps he wants a better mouse house to tell tales from?
:) HA!! Good one Feathers, good one!!
I have added a theme changer to the right column. Kind of in test mode right now. A few things to keep in mind:
- Don't check the permanent box if you are unsure you want the theme or not. If you don't check the permanent box it will default back to the normal look when you come back (if your browser cache is cleared).
- Not every theme will look perfect given the current layout. But most should be ok. I don't really plan on tweaking a lot of the other looks. At least not right away.
- The MAIN reason I want to try this out is because of the Mobile Theme. I want users with iPhones, Driods, iPads, etc. to give this a try. I want to see if this helps you view the forum when on a more mobile device.
Anyway, please test it out and give me feedback here on this.
Ok, so I gave it a try. I'm sure on my end the forum is even better due to the retina display so those that don't have iPhone 4s probably should chime in.
Compared to using the Enterprise version, the mobile version is faster and snappier. Which is good considering this is just mainly text with some background we're viewing. An issue I noticed with the enterprise version is that it liked to bring me back up to the top of the page for w/e reason while the page was still loading. So I'd have to wait until the page fully loaded and that took about 3-5 seconds depending. It was only a minor annoyance. With the mobile version I don't have to wait till the page is fully loaded before I start scrolling and the pages load very quickly. So for speed, the mobile version is definitely better.
Visually, there is no difference besides the color scheme, which is easier to read on mobile devices. The mobile version is easier to read due to the white background and black text. It would be nice if there was some way we could make more space. A suggestion I throw out is that the left column should disappear while we are viewing a thread. This would increase the space available to us. Of course iPad users should be happy either way ;). Possibly another one would be the ability to hide the signatures while in mobile version (via option of course).
There you go Rico :)
King
Thanks for the info Tim. Glad it seems better for you on Mobile Devices.
P.S. You shouldn't see any of the Sidebar stuff when in TSF Mobile Format. Are you seeing that still? I don't.
Quote from: Rico on October 09, 2010, 10:30:55 AM
Thanks for the info Tim. Glad it seems better for you on Mobile Devices.
And now to have my derp moment. If I press that little button on the top right corner that you so nicely provided, I can make the left column disappear.
:old_bash: So there you go Rico :)
King
Quote from: Kingisaaclinksr on October 09, 2010, 10:33:07 AM
Quote from: Rico on October 09, 2010, 10:30:55 AM
Thanks for the info Tim. Glad it seems better for you on Mobile Devices.
And now to have my derp moment. If I press that little button on the top right corner that you so nicely provided, I can make the left column disappear.
:old_bash: So there you go Rico :)
King
Yes, you can always collapse either column side with the buttons. But as I said above, if you switch the theme to Mobile Format you shouldn't be seeing either side column. That's one of the points of the Mobile Theme.
Quote from: Rico on October 09, 2010, 10:34:59 AM
Quote from: Kingisaaclinksr on October 09, 2010, 10:33:07 AM
Quote from: Rico on October 09, 2010, 10:30:55 AM
Thanks for the info Tim. Glad it seems better for you on Mobile Devices.
And now to have my derp moment. If I press that little button on the top right corner that you so nicely provided, I can make the left column disappear.
:old_bash: So there you go Rico :)
King
Yes, you can always collapse either column side with the buttons. But as I said above, if you switch the theme to Mobile Format you shouldn't be seeing either side column. That's one of the points of the Mobile Theme.
Oh well, they still show up under the mobile format.
King
Quote from: Kingisaaclinksr on October 09, 2010, 10:42:59 AM
Quote from: Rico on October 09, 2010, 10:34:59 AM
Quote from: Kingisaaclinksr on October 09, 2010, 10:33:07 AM
Quote from: Rico on October 09, 2010, 10:30:55 AM
Thanks for the info Tim. Glad it seems better for you on Mobile Devices.
And now to have my derp moment. If I press that little button on the top right corner that you so nicely provided, I can make the left column disappear.
:old_bash: So there you go Rico :)
King
Yes, you can always collapse either column side with the buttons. But as I said above, if you switch the theme to Mobile Format you shouldn't be seeing either side column. That's one of the points of the Mobile Theme.
Oh well, they still show up under the mobile format.
King
Really?? They don't for me when on my PC. Any way for you to take some kind of screen picture of your iPhone of that and post it?
Here you go, in Portrait view.
(To those that ask, yes, that is one bar of signal. It's because there is a deadspot in that certain part of the room that even my Verizon phone has trouble cutting through, stupid metal roof.)
King
Huh? That's really weird. Can anyone else check this on another mobile device? Also, Tim can you try it with that theme on a computer and see what it looks like for you there?
It's the same on my PC.
King
Quote from: Kingisaaclinksr on October 09, 2010, 11:07:01 AM
It's the same on my PC.
King
Really? What browser do you use?
Quote from: Rico on October 09, 2010, 11:12:11 AM
Quote from: Kingisaaclinksr on October 09, 2010, 11:07:01 AM
It's the same on my PC.
King
Really? What browser do you use?
Firefox......um....the non-beta version.
Just tested Chrome as well, same there.
King
Oh, I see what's going on I think. When I pick that theme, it starts off with the left and right column closed for some reason. Even though they are open when I switch from the default theme. I guess no big deal. As long as you know you can close the left and right side columns if you need the space.
Quote from: Rico on October 09, 2010, 11:15:36 AM
Oh, I see what's going on I think. When I pick that theme, it starts off with the left and right column closed for some reason. Even though they are open when I switch from the default theme. I guess no big deal. As long as you know you can close the left and right side columns if you need the space.
Yeah, at least we have the option to close them down and the mobile version does fix the loading "bug" that the enterprise theme has.
King
Quote from: Kingisaaclinksr on October 09, 2010, 11:17:36 AM
Quote from: Rico on October 09, 2010, 11:15:36 AM
Oh, I see what's going on I think. When I pick that theme, it starts off with the left and right column closed for some reason. Even though they are open when I switch from the default theme. I guess no big deal. As long as you know you can close the left and right side columns if you need the space.
Yeah, at least we have the option to close them down and the mobile version does fix the loading "bug" that the enterprise theme has.
King
You should be able to close the columns in any theme. The Enterprise theme isn't really "bugged", it's just got more to load. Same as some of the other themes. The Mobile theme is streamlined for mobile use when connection speeds are not optimum.
Right, right, of course.
*waits to hear what other mobile users say*
King
I've been using the X-MAS theme for a while now - just found it's simplicity and colors good for my tastes. You'll notice I nicked a graphic from the theme for my 'winter is coming' avatar :)
For those wanting to keep an eye on their data use, or just want the most basic of treksf experiences, check out http://www.treksinscifi.com/forum/index.php?wap2 (http://www.treksinscifi.com/forum/index.php?wap2)
Attached: how I generally view the forum on my mobile when logged in...
Isn't it a bit early for Christmas? ;)
Quote from: Rico on October 09, 2010, 01:34:56 PM
Isn't it a bit early for Christmas? ;)
True, but that cabin in the theme looks so cozy I just couldn't resist! :)
Here's how the most basic theme looks.... I don't remember how I found it - a couple years ago - used it when paying for data by the kb.
Added one new Halloween theme to the forum called: Halloween Night.
Ok, I've added a Media Gallery to the site. If you click the little MEDIA button in the top menu bar it will take you to a media gallery. Just getting this started. Could some of you please try to add pics or videos to some of the albums I put up in there? Let me know how it goes for you.
Thanks!
Didn't we have galleries many years ago???
Quote from: Geekyfanboy on October 17, 2010, 04:42:43 PM
Didn't we have galleries many years ago???
Yeah. The new one I'm trying is built in sort of already so I thought I would give it another go. You can put up pics and embed videos too. We'll see if there is any interest or not.
Quote from: Rico on October 17, 2010, 03:50:23 PM
Ok, I've added a Media Gallery to the site. If you click the little MEDIA button in the top menu bar it will take you to a media gallery. Just getting this started. Could some of you please try to add pics or videos to some of the albums I put up in there? Let me know how it goes for you.
Thanks!
That was easy - I uploaded an audio file.
Will new posts in the gallery appear as thumb nails on the recent images area?
This has potential, I don't think we could post audio clips before.
The recent post images are separate from the Gallery images. But if the Gallery starts to be used more I can add a little widget to show images posted there too. For now, just kind of testing things out and seeing how it goes. One of the things I like about the Gallery is you can post links to videos too, audio, and images all in one place. It's a nice little file system, for those that want to use it. Anyway, we'll see how it goes.
I've yet to find the gallery. I assume it's not hidden somewhere obscure so it must be staring me in the face which is why I can't see it :(
Edit: OK, found it now. Back to the 'normal' forum view and press the blindingly obvious button at the top of the page!
I tweaked the Book/Comic board and added writing to it. For those with writing in their blood and projects this can be a place to share that. Thought it fit in well there.
As a slight technical heads up, if you post pictures as attachments, it helps if the picture name isn't too long. When the recent pics appear in the left column, if the picture name is long it tends to shift the column and you have to scroll. It's not a huge deal but it will help make pics stay centered better in that recent pics area.
- thanks
Since we are coming up on six years of TSF, I'm planning on updating the main webpage some. I also may alter a few more things on the forum too. Just need to find some time. :)
Is it me or did the shout box go away?
It's you! (Little button at the top right should bring it back if the whole column has gone).
Quote from: Feathers on September 04, 2011, 12:22:10 PM
It's you! (Little button at the top right should bring it back if the whole column has gone).
Weird, how did I manage to do that? Cheers Mike.
Not a problem :) At least I understood your question this time! :blush
Added a new Halloween theme tonight!
it's nice! very halloweenish. (we need to make that a word)
Tweaked the forum a bit today and did a lot on the main site too. The main site isn't done yet - but it's getting there. Some links still need to be adjusted, etc. check it out when you can....
http://treksinscifi.com/podcast_notes/ (http://treksinscifi.com/podcast_notes/)
Looks very good. Love the Trek News section. How you find the time for all this I'll never figure out.
Quote from: Jobydrone on April 01, 2012, 08:32:35 PM
Looks very good. Love the Trek News section. How you find the time for all this I'll never figure out.
Thanks! Still got some more to do, but it's coming along. Oh, where do I get the time? I have a time machine - of course! :)
Quote from: Rico on April 02, 2012, 05:25:09 AM
Quote from: Jobydrone on April 01, 2012, 08:32:35 PM
Looks very good. Love the Trek News section. How you find the time for all this I'll never figure out.
Thanks! Still got some more to do, but it's coming along. Oh, where do I get the time? I have a time machine - of course! :)
I actually think it's a time turner, it also lets you get to class on time!
I keep moving over to the wrong side of the screen to click "show replies to your posts" since the upgrade. It reminds me of when I first got my iMac and kept moving to the wrong side of the screen to close windows ;)
Quote from: Jobydrone on April 03, 2012, 12:41:02 PM
I keep moving over to the wrong side of the screen to click "show replies to your posts" since the upgrade. It reminds me of when I first got my iMac and kept moving to the wrong side of the screen to close windows ;)
I'm doing that too but I like the tweaked look overall.
Funny thing is this is basically how the forum used to look :)
Quote from: billybob476 on April 04, 2012, 07:08:41 AM
Funny thing is this is basically how the forum used to look :)
Yep - we had a long stretch of this style and I was kind of missing it. Plus it's fun to change things up once in awhile.
Tweaked a few more things on the main page today.
http://www.treksinscifi.com (http://www.treksinscifi.com)