Forum Software Upgrade

[Knorp]

The thing is for most threads on a forum the way it is now is the most logical. If you have the newest post first you lose the flow of the discussion because they open the thread and the first thing they read is the newest reply. Readers hence lack some of the context for the discussion, are more prone to replying in a way that takes it off on a tangent and you can get the same points being raised over and over again as they aren't aware its already been discussed. Having it with the oldest first it encourages people to atleast read the first post and generally skim through the rest so the get the gist of the discussion

There are threads where it can make logical sense to have them show in reverse order, for example if you have an image thread having the newest posted image can make sense

Thanks, Simon. I'm sure I'll get used to it in due time.

 

[KenLee]

The thing is for most threads on a forum the way it is now is the most logical. If you have the newest post first you lose the flow of the discussion because they open the thread and the first thing they read is the newest reply. Readers hence lack some of the context for the discussion, are more prone to replying in a way that takes it off on a tangent and you can get the same points being raised over and over again as they aren't aware its already been discussed. Having it with the oldest first it encourages people to atleast read the first post and generally skim through the rest so the get the gist of the discussion

There are threads where it can make logical sense to have them show in reverse order, for example if you have an image thread having the newest posted image can make sense

I respectfully disagree. I generally want to see what's new, not dig through. I tire of seeing the first post and image from X years back whenever I go into a thread, then finding and clicking the button which says Last, then scrolling down to the bottom.

On other forums it's a simple profile setting: each user can decide for themselves and toggle it whenever they like: newest first/oldest first.

I'll contribute $20 also

 

[Charles2]

I much prefer the new colours and look and feel.

I thought the old GetDPI color scheme was one of the best for presenting photos. Perhaps the staff can work out a choice, one being a darker, color-muted scheme.

 

[SimonW]

I respectfully disagree. I generally want to see what's new, not dig through. I tire of seeing the first post and image from X years back whenever I go into a thread, then finding and clicking the button which says Last, then scrolling down to the bottom.

On other forums it's a simple profile setting: each user can decide for themselves and toggle it whenever they like: newest first/oldest first.

I'll contribute $20 also

Your first line though sums up exactly why newest first for a 'discussion' thread is bad though. You are wanting to jump into a thread read and possible respond to the latest posts without even reading the original post. It turns people into that person in real life who joins a conversation half way through and unintentionally derails it because you are judging what the conversation is about only on the small amount you picked up in the latest part of the discussion and you don't know what has already been discussed

If you have already read part of the thread the software does generally remember where you were and jumps to the first unread post so its not like you have to jump to the end every time as it does it for you.

And yes generally there is a profile setting, Xenforo removed it though in XF2.0 and a few other platforms have been going that way as well. Most forum users use it in chorological order anyway and for the disruption factor the trend is more to let the forum owners decide the order a thread should be in that is best for that kind of thread rather than having users all viewing a thread differently.

And that means without going for a bespoke solution which depending on the complexity could be anywhere from several hundreds to several thousands in development costs we are stuck with the order being the same for everyone and then its a case of going with the baiscally reading a book from the first page to the last method that the majority of people are more comfortable with or the reading from the last page backwards which generally a minority of users are comfortable with (or used to)

 

[SimonW]

Gallery is now installed and all your albums imported

 

[olafphoto]

I respectfully disagree. I generally want to see what's new, not dig through. I tire of seeing the first post and image from X years back whenever I go into a thread, then finding and clicking the button which says Last, then scrolling down to the bottom.

On other forums it's a simple profile setting: each user can decide for themselves and toggle it whenever they like: newest first/oldest first.

I'll contribute $20 also

Hello Ken,

I appreciate your feedback. It appears that most photography forums are set up this way (with oldest first) for reasons mentioned by Simon. Having said that, this issue is on my radar and I will be consulting about this with the community. Also, there is a very convenient button "JUMP TO NEW" at the top of each threat. There are also other options, which we are taking into account. For now, we need to complete the entire migration process, including our final design, before we do any changes. I will keep you updated.

 

[onasj]

Generally I like the new forum, but a couple things I miss:
1) A grey or darker background is both easier on the eyes, and makes images look better.
2) I really miss seeing attached images at full window width without having to click on each one. Fewer clicks is better! The thumbnails are really too small in a photography forum to even determine whether or not I should click on an image to expand it.

Many thanks for your efforts!

 

[olafphoto]

Generally I like the new forum, but a couple things I miss:
1) A grey or darker background is both easier on the eyes, and makes images look better.
2) I really miss seeing attached images at full window width without having to click on each one. Fewer clicks is better! The thumbnails are really too small in a photography forum to even determine whether or not I should click on an image to expand it.

Many thanks for your efforts!

Thank you for your feedback. As indicated in my update, we will be installing a new darker theme later this week and work on some design changes. In terms of the image size, during the posting process users have a choice to display a thumbnail or full image. I will write more about it next week.

 

[KenLee]

Your first line though sums up exactly why newest first for a 'discussion' thread is bad though. You are wanting to jump into a thread read and possible respond to the latest posts without even reading the original post. It turns people into that person in real life who joins a conversation half way through and unintentionally derails it because you are judging what the conversation is about only on the small amount you picked up in the latest part of the discussion and you don't know what has already been discussed

I was a moderator on another photography forum for several years: you're certainly right that people jump in without taking the time to read what has already been written. This can be really annoying and time-wasting when there's a discussion going on.

On the other hand, consider a hypothetical thread like "Share your wide angle photos". Let's say the thread was started in 2008. I would like to add a new photo to the thread. I may not want to start back 12 years ago every time I visit the thread, and I may not want to see that first submission every time. I'd just like to see what has been recently added. There are many such threads where people post their latest work.

Similarly, if a discussion thread has been going on for a while, in which I myself have already participated, I don't need to start from the beginning every time. So if you have a convenient way to jump to the latest contributions, that would be a convenient and welcome feature.

Note that your What's new section at https://www.getdpi.com/forum/index.php?whats-new/ is sorted in reverse chronological order, because what's new is by definition, most recent

 

[Godfrey]

Regards the order of posts on a thread: I don't think there's any forum I've ever been on where "newest post first" was the default ordering. Unlike in a Twitter, FaceBook, or Instagram feed, threads on a forum are usually a conversation/discussion that moves from one post to the next: it's intended to move you from oldest to newest so as to articulate the discussion's logical flow.

I can see doing "newest post first" on photo-oriented threads ... that's an environment much more like the aforementioned Twitter, FB, and IG environments. However, I suspect it also means that many will look at the latest two or three photos in a thread and ignore the rest, which is what commonly happens on T/IG/FB.

My feeling is to leave it as it is, just as it was with the old forum software and every other forum I'm on.

G

 

[onasj]

Thank you. I suggest that previously posted images be restored to full-size instead of thumbnail, since our posts were written assuming full-size photos. Currently many treasured image threads and technical how-to posts shared before the update are spoiled by replacement of full-size photos with thumbnails. Overall, amazing job!

Thank you for your feedback. As indicated in my update, we will be installing a new darker theme later this week and work on some design changes. In terms of the image size, during the posting process users have a choice to display a thumbnail or full image. I will write more about it next week.

 

[jng]

I generally also prefer to go right to the last post in a thread I've been following, but don't favor posts being listed in reverse-chronological order. There are several work-arounds: either the click on the "jump to new" button or just click on the last post in the thread (off to the right). I'm also finding that the platform is basically keeping track of the last post I read in a thread and taking me to the first unread post after that. So, no issues for me (YMMV, of course).

I do, however, miss being able to move from thread to thread by clicking either "previous thread" or "next thread" at the end of each page when I'm catching up on activity across threads within a given forum.

Great work overall!

John

Hello Ken,

I appreciate your feedback. It appears that most photography forums are set up this way (with oldest first) for reasons mentioned by Simon. Having said that, this issue is on my radar and I will be consulting about this with the community. Also, there is a very convenient button "JUMP TO NEW" at the top of each threat. There are also other options, which we are taking into account. For now, we need to complete the entire migration process, including our final design, before we do any changes. I will keep you updated.

 

[Swissblad]

Looks great - thanks!

 

[pegelli]

First of all again thanks for the great work.

Personally I'm not a fan of "newest post first", I like it better the way it is now. So when that option is implemented pls. make it a choice so people can decide for themselves how they want it.

One suggestion (not a bug): When I go to "What's New" / "New Posts" it by default comes up with the filter "Unread Only". I would rather have it such that it shows all new and have the option to show "Unread Only" as a choice.

 

[darr]

I have used the "New Posts" button forever and glad it continues to work as usual.

I am now using the "Dark Reader" Chrome extension (made a post for it) and love the color scheme!
Thank you for taking care of us Olaf & Company!

 

[SimonW]

Thank you. I suggest that previously posted images be restored to full-size instead of thumbnail, since our posts were written assuming full-size photos. Currently many treasured image threads and technical how-to posts shared before the update are spoiled by replacement of full-size photos with thumbnails. Overall, amazing job!

Something to be aware of is the forum is now a responsive design, this means the design adjusts based on screen size. This means people on smaller screens be it a tablet or a phone can now use the site much better. Infact viewing websites on mobile devices is becoming the norm for sites, last year 59% of browsing happened on a mobile device, and thats a stat being dragged down by sites that still don't have adequate mobile ready sites. The site is hence likely to see more people visiting on their phone and thumbnails are more user friendly for such users. The forum will generally try and resize the image even if posted full size but it doesn't always work and it can mean you have to scroll for 10 mins just to get past an image. Even if it resizes its not creating a new smaller copy like a thumbnail does which is optimised, its loading the full image and basically just zooming out. Which can make it slow on lower powered devices and if they have limited data can eat into their available data a fair amount.

So personally I would say its better for the user posting to seriously think about if they really need to post it full size or if its fine as a thumbnail and users can then decide if they want to open the full sized one. And unfortunately there isn't an easy way to switch the imported ones to being full size without making them all full size. It will need the person who posted it initially to edit it and insert the full size version instead of the thumbnail. Again though there should be some thought on if it really needs to be full size


There is also a setting I can turn on which may make thumbnails easier. Currently if you click a thumbnail it loads up 'lightbox' and you can scroll through all the images attached in that post. It can be made so when you open lightbox it allows you to scroll through the images in the whole thread so you don't need to keep jumping in and out on every post. Not sure what the overhead is like but certainly on some threads that might work well

 

[SimonW]

I do, however, miss being able to move from thread to thread by clicking either "previous thread" or "next thread" at the end of each page when I'm catching up on activity across threads within a given forum.

You are like the first person I've ever seen admitting to use that feature (or even being aware of it lol)

I've had a quick look around and there is this plugin that restores but in a slightly different way

[Xenbros] Next and Previous Thread

Improve Your Forum User’s Experience by Giving Easy Navigation For Threads Looking for a Xenforo addon that will enable your readers to go to next or previous articThread without any Issues, also with thread thumbnail ? Look no further. Our Show...

xenforo.com

So it's certainly possible to add something similar to the old functionally. Not sure how complex it would be to add it myself, it may be cheaper to buy the plugin than paying for the time for me to code a custom version. if its something lost of people use it may be worth @olafphoto considering

 

[Jack]

Where is our gallery?

 

[SimonW]

Where is our gallery?

Under the media tab

 

[Jack]

Okay, I see that, but I used to have all of my images sorted into various sub albums. Those seem to have been lost, so it's all just one large album now. Was that a choice?