[RESOLVED] Change in Forum Screen Layout (Aug 7)

[WhitPhil]

Sometime in the afternoon (EST) of August 7, the layout of the screens in VDR forums has changed.
Now added, is an advertising window on the left side.

I fully understand the need for advertising, but what this implementation has done, is fully consume 20% of my screen.
As I scroll down on a long post, the space to the left is empty and is a complete waste.

Please consider changing this to a horizontal ad window. In that way, once I scroll I do not loose any use of my screen space.

Thank you.

[Appollo14]

Gotta agree with you Whitphil, I'm running 800*600 on a 14" monitor and that bit of space makes all the difference.
I know Housen Maratouk never reads the comments section! , but if he just happens to drop by "Please give us our screens back!!"

------------------
Appollo14
http://www.appollo14.co.uk
Can we fix it...?
Yes we can....

[Compguy Pete]

Well guys... I would have to tell ya he does read this section when he comes by the site.

However something to keep in mind that this side is not new to the site. There was time when we had more crap on the side bar, and it was a bit larger. but over updates and otehr issues the side bar was lost.

Housen and I talked about this side bar.. I am as much at fault for this as he is, I thought and still think it's a good idea. Because there are some new internet.com sites and forums, we think everyone would enjoy checking out. I am moderating at the aND forum and stop in say hi, and while your there answer a question or post a question.


------------------
Compguy Pete
The Benevolent Moderator
Compguys Techweb Technical Support Portal

[Housen Maratouk]

Ummm... I just replied to stuff in here today and I read this forum almost every day .

On the issue of the nav rail, I am told there originally was one (don't know how, when, or why that changed). I will be using that left rail (most of it, not just that little bit I did now as a test to make sure it's working properly) to let you all know about other sites and forums we run. It will not be filled with anything huge and obtrusive... just descriptions of sites/forums that may include a very small image for each. The logo there right now, for example, is only 2 kb.

I hope this doesn't inconvenience you all too much,

Housen

Originally posted by Appollo14:
Gotta agree with you Whitphil, I'm running 800*600 on a 14" monitor and that bit of space makes all the difference.
I know Housen Maratouk never reads the comments section! , but if he just happens to drop by "Please give us our screens back!!"

------------------
Housen Maratouk
Editor, Online Communities
internet.com Corporation
[email protected]

[This message has been edited by Housen Maratouk (edited 08-07-2000).]

[WhitPhil]

Can you not change it to a Horizontal rail that appears at the TOP of the screen.

Do the calculation. It really does consume 20% of the available screenspace and as you scroll down into a thread, guaranteed there will be nothing in the vertical window except white.
To me that is not a good use of screen space.

If the bar is at the top, it is still visible to the general community to use as they wish. And then it disappears as I move down.

Please reconsider the implementation.

[This message has been edited by WhitPhil (edited 08-07-2000).]

[Housen Maratouk]

As I said above, that space will not be white for long. I have to tweak the layout and make sure all is well before I start making full use of things. As for using a horizontal bar, there are two reasons that this is not terribly feasible: one aesthetic and one pragmatic.

The aesthetic reason is that I looked at it both ways and found that adding a bar that thick and putting ads along it was ugly, especially when added to what already has to be put at the top and bottom of the page. The pragmatic reasons, however, were of greater to concern to me.

The first is that because the left rail scrolls down the length of a page naturally, it allows me to fit more in there. Making you all scroll over to the right just so that I can fit more stuff in there is more than just unattractive... it's unacceptable. The second is that stuff at the top and the bottom are more easily missed and disregarded.

I know that some, maybe even most, of you want no ads or links at all and just want whatever we put to be out of the way; but I do think we have a lot to offer at our other 125 sites and related forums, much of which you are simply not aware of. I promise not to let things like this get out of hand and add loads of lag to your browsing experience; but I think that this is a reasonable, and reasonably unobtrusive, use of the screen layout.

Take care,

Housen

------------------
Housen Maratouk
Editor, Online Communities
internet.com Corporation
[email protected]

[This message has been edited by Housen Maratouk (edited 08-07-2000).]

[Appollo14]

Housen and others,
Just to clear up my last post - the remark about you not reading this site was totally tongue in cheek (I had already read http://discussions.virtualdr.com/For...ML/000179.html ). I have seen you posting in many of the forums that you operate and must say that I, and I suspect many others, appreciate the way that the new Admins do involve themselves in the day to day running of the board.
Now, if you must stick with your plans for the side bar to stay could we please turn this post into a fund raiser so that I can go out and buy a larger monitor - maybe you could sponsor me for things like;
(1) Most idiotic responses to a problem - say £10.00!
(2) Most posts by an individual to contain a spelling mistake - say £5.00 per mistake!
That'll do for now. I'm off to price up a new plasma screen on ebay!!

------------------
Appollo14
http://www.appollo14.co.uk
Can we fix it...?
Yes we can....

[Ghouldini]

I came here in Oct'98. I don't recall there ever being a side bar. The bar IS needed in this case because that new forum has no link in the table of forums Vdr. But soon as you add that forum to that list, or somewhere else like hardware or something, then it can go. Just add the little link to the list at the top of the page with the others. I find it annoying. Not the link, the side bar. Everywhere I have seen this in other forums I found it annoying also. It is the space left for us to use (as we see it normally) being shrunken. If you widened my monitor 2 inches on the left it would not bother me at all. I use a 15" monitor. Unless you are going to put dancing ladies (minus apparel) in that space, thumbs down.
Maybe we need another petition thread

[Steve R Jones]

I really really hate the new side bar. I think it will be worse when the "white" gets filled in.

As a compromise, can you make it disapear once a user has enter a paticular forum?

[Shey]

C'mon! I, too, am annoyed with the new layout. I can see having one, say on the front door page, but, having it on all pages, including the 'Post a Reply' page is really overdoing it.

Yeterday I clicked on it and typed in a driver I was looking for and I was told there were results, but no link to locate? I'm sure this will work eventually, but,

Please consider just having it at the front door.

Thanks,

Shey

[Housen Maratouk]

It's not that simple (or perhaps not that complicated). UBB has you designate a site template that is used on each page it generates. I don't have the ability to decide all topic pages should look one way and all thread pages another and so on.

Sorry, folks... but the left rail is here to stay. It's the best way I could come up with to inform members about our other sites and forums and it really isn't that obtrusive once you get used to it (it's always been a permanent fixture on other forums).

Housen

------------------
Housen Maratouk
Editor, Online Communities
internet.com Corporation
[email protected]

[TOM-2-ak]

I have to agree. The side bar looks awful. I don't know how bad the the other designs looked but they must have been pretty bad!

I can live with it.... I just wish I didn't have to!!!!!!!

Could the not be a link on every page that points to a new page (Non BB) that contains info on all of internet.com's sister/brother sites? Would that not be a good compromise?

I am not too bothered I use a 21" monitor but I do feel for the 14 inchers! (I never thought I would hear myself say that phrase!)

I like the idea of being paid for mistakes and stupidity.... Not "Who Wants To Be A Millionaire" But "I am going to be......"

Tom

BTW.... Why is the a Smilie limit?????? They cannot take up that much room!!!!!

Tom

[mikek147]

If you're going to keep this side bar, how about putting at least one space character of margin between the window border and the start of text. Right now it looks rather amateurish. It should look like the Home lable at the top left of the screen. -mk

[snarkie]

See also

http://discussions.virtualdr.com/For...ML/000184.html

On same subject.

]"


------------------
Alfie

[manunkind]

Thank-you Whitphil! I was just going to make a post in the Win98 forum regarding this. If it HAS to stay, can it be on the top or bottom??? Makes everything too crammed up. It looks like a 12 year old designed the site.