Forum Re-Design

[Matthew Schenker]

Good Morning,
Just an update: I removed the PM information from the header zone, since it was redundant.  I also edited the PM menu item to read "Message Center," which is more explanatory.

Still working on moving the text "UNREAD POSTS since last visit /  NEW REPLIES to your posts" to the menu bar.

Matthew

 

[Matthew Schenker]

Everyone,
Responding to member requests, I've been making some more basic improvements, which are on display over in the test forum.

Here's a run-down:
- Removed "UNREAD POSTS" and "NEW REPLIES" functions from the header area
- Set the time and date to display beneath your user name in the header area
- Created items in the main menu for the "UNREAD POSTS" and "NEW REPLIES" functions
- Removed the "HELP" and "CALENDAR" features from the main menu (members report very little or no use for these).  They will be made available in other ways.

Before I implement these changes in the main forum, please hop over to the test forum, take a look, and comment.

Here are the details for the test forum:
Address:http://www.festoolownersgroup.com/TestForum
Username: test
Password: test

Thanks,
Matthew

 

[Ned]

- Removed "UNREAD POSTS" and "NEW REPLIES" functions from the header area
- Set the time and date to display beneath your user name in the header area
- Created items in the main menu for the "UNREAD POSTS" and "NEW REPLIES" functions

Looks good.

- Removed the "HELP" and "CALENDAR" features from the main menu (members report very little or no use for these).  They will be made available in other ways.

Those people most likely to use Help are newbies, possibly not even members yet.  If they aren't members, they are unable to comment in favor of keeping Help right up front, easy to find.

Please restore Help to its former location, or at least in that lineup of buttons.

Ned

 

[Michael Kellough]

Why are "Recent Posts" missing from the bottom of the existing forum?

 

[Matthew Schenker]

Those people most likely to use Help are newbies, possibly not even members yet.  If they aren't members, they are unable to comment in favor of keeping Help right up front, easy to find.

Please restore Help to its former location, or at least in that lineup of buttons.

If they aren't members, they don't have access to help.

The question, for me, is how useful is that documentation, and is it worth occupying a prime spot on the forum menu?  I've reviewed the documentation, and my conclusion is that members can get much better help through the "Tech Talk" area, where they can ask specific questions.  Based on the numbers from the Help poll, it seems that over 80% of members either don't use this system or didn't even know it was there.  Of course, I don't want to get rid of the help documentation.  I just want to have it accessible through "Tech Talk."

Matthew

 

[Daviddubya]

I think the changes are good - cleaner presentation.  Thanks, Matthew.

 

[semenza]

Why are "Recent Posts" missing from the bottom of the existing forum?

Hi,

  They exist on my screen.  Perhaps they are collapsed on yours.  There is a little systainer icon on the right side of the grey bar that would be the header for that section. Click it to add or remove the bottom section of the page.
    I am wondering why it is on the right instead of the left like the rest of the little systainers?

Seth

 

[semenza]

Matthew ,
     I think the most recent changes look good in the test forum. I say bring em' on over.  It doesn't really matter to me , but there is a devider line missing in the main menu bar.

Seth

 

[Michael Kellough]

Why are "Recent Posts" missing from the bottom of the existing forum?

Hi,

  They exist on my screen.  Perhaps they are collapsed on yours.   There is a little systainer icon on the right side of the grey bar that would be the header for that section. Click it to add or remove the bottom section of the page.
    I am wondering why it is on the right instead of the left like the rest of the little systainers?

Seth

Thanks Seth, I've got them back following your suggestion. I really missed that list of new messages.
I never even noticed that Systainer icon and must have clicked it absent mindedly.

 

[Matthew Schenker]

Matthew ,
    I think the most recent changes look good in the test forum. I say bring em' on over.  It doesn't really matter to me , but there is a devider line missing in the main menu bar.

I'll bring the changes over soon.  Check the menu bar again.  I added a divider.
Matthew

 

[Matthew Schenker]

Another technical note (for those of you still following this discussion): I just updated the appearance of links in signatures so they look the same as links in posts and PMs.
Matthew

 

[semenza]

Hi,

     How about someone coming up with something to replace those standard message icons?  You know like that silly blue pencil.  Maybe a Festool clamp in place of the sticky thumb tack?

Seth

 

[Matthew Schenker]

Hi,

    How about someone coming up with something to replace those standard message icons?  You know like that silly blue pencil.  Maybe a Festool clamp in place of the sticky thumb tack?

Seth

The "silly blue pencil" is also known as the "standard" message icon.  Although it is pretty basic, I installed a number of Festool-themed message icons below the standard one, showing 12 different Festool images (see this discussion).  I also updated the "exclamation" and "question" message icons.

But there's always room for more!  If someone has a new concept for the "standard" icon, or any of the others, let me know.

If anyone is interested in designing some new message icons, here are the technical details:
- 24x24 pixels
- GIF format

While we're at it, on a related subject, I've been interested in creating an expanded smiley set (smileys are those animated faces you can add to your posts).  It would be fun to  have original, Festool-themed smileys.  I posted about it back in December (click here) but no one responded, so I dropped the subject.  I'll raise it again now!  Creating new smileys is more involved than message icons, since they need to be animated, but the payoff is they get used more often.

It's possible the message icons could form a base for some sort of smileys.  Maybe there could be an animation of a TS 55 sliding on a guide rail, a Kapex chopping, a Domino plunging, and more.

Here are the technical details"
- 15x15 pixels (they could be bigger horizontally)
- Animated GIF format (not absolutely necessary, but animation is how we think of smileys)

Matthew

 

[semenza]

Hi,

  Umm, yes , right , the standard message icon.  I just think the color and style doesn't fit the new forum design.  The tool icons are great , but I think a new standard one could be a nice improvement also.  Even if they are not Festool oriented, just a a more fitting color/style.  Maybe a mechanical pencil writing on graph paper?
    I like the idea of adding more smilies even if they are not Festool based. I am on another forum that has about thirty to choose from. They add a nice little spice to the posts.

Seth

 

[Matthew Schenker]

Seth,
Well, feel free to contribute a new "standard" icon.  Or if anyone else has ideas...
On the smileys, I am asking others to contribute them.  Personally, I'm just terrible at creating animated GIFs!
Matthew

 

[semenza]

Seth,
Well, feel free to contribute a new "standard" icon.  Or if anyone else has ideas...
On the smileys, I am asking others to contribute them.  Personally, I'm just terrible at creating animated GIFs!
Matthew

Hi,

  I'd love to  but I don't know how to do all the graphic stuff.

Seth

 

[semenza]

Hi,

    So what happened to the alternating pale green shading of posts?

Seth

 

[Matthew Schenker]

    So what happened to the alternating pale green shading of posts?

Hmmm...you don't see alternating shades?  I changed the code to make every other post have a kind of off-green background.
Is anyone else not seeing this?
Matthew

 

[semenza]

    So what happened to the alternating pale green shading of posts?

Hmmm...you don't see alternating shades?  I changed the code to make every other post have a kind of off-green background.
Is anyone else not seeing this?
Matthew

Hi,

  Yes, I was one who promoted the idea. I used too see it , but it does not show now.

Seth

 

[Matthew Schenker]

  Yes, I was one who promoted the idea. I used too see it , but it does not show now.

That's weird.  All this time, I was assuming it was working.
Are you saying that all the posts have exactly the same background?
Could you post a screen shot so I can try to figure this out?
Matthew