[rant] So what's with the return to the other layout, anyway?

[Nix]

But if all the members leave then there will be no one to read the ads.

This argument can go on ad infinitum and did so a couple of months back but I can't be bothered linking to the numerous threads about it.

There were many threads about the dropping membership on this site and then the upgrade to vBulletin 3 took over and there were many issues, of which one was the advertising width etc.

It was fixed for a while, but now it's back but in the interim more people have moved on or visit less.

[SpywareDr]

Sorry to hear that. So far it looks like a great helpful and polite site.

[Tuttle]

*bump*

JPnyc, can you please give us some idea if you're going to try the scroll-to-remove idea, or why you think it won't work?

I also think the index pages need to be updated -- it's hardly fair to mess with the thread pages but leave the index pages as-is.

If this is the new layout you expect us to use, why hasn't the full-width link also been placed on the forum and thread index pages?

It would be far more convenient if the ad disappeared when it was scrolled past (ie the same user interface as the old layout), instead of requiring a click on each and every page. All you need is a basic chaser script which hides the ad instead of dragging it down. Scrolling beats clicking by a long way.

[JPnyc]

I presented the idea but it didn't get approval. But if I may, why is that preferable? I mean doesn't it take longer to scroll a couple of screens down than to click the mouse once? I thought putting the link atop every post made it quite convenient to reach, no matter where you were in the thread.

I'm not sure I understand what you mean by:

All you need is a basic chaser script which hides the ad instead of dragging it down.

You mean have the scroll be the event which triggers the script instead of onclick?

[Tuttle]

I presented the idea but it didn't get approval. But if I may, why is that preferable? I mean doesn't it take longer to scroll a couple of screens down than to click the mouse once?

But you're scrolling down to read stuff anyway. With it being killed on scroll, the ad is where you want it while it's on screen, but the white space disappears as soon as it's moved past. I think it's about as close as it gets to the ideal layout of expanding every post except the one next to the ad (which I appreciate would be difficult/impossible to code).

You mean have the scroll be the event which triggers the script instead of onclick?

If you had a chaser script to keep the ad on screen (don't you dare... ), it would make a periodic check to see how far down the page the browser window has been scrolled, then reposition the ad to position+x on the page. There's various complications to create a smooth glide, but that's the guts of it.

With an ad-removal script, the periodic check would see if the window has been scrolled to lower than the ad, and if so remove it.

[JPnyc]

But you'd also have to test for screen size, because that point will be different at each res. Ok, I think I get it. I can present that idea.