editor Posted July 4, 2009 Share Posted July 4, 2009 As you can see, HAIF has gone through a significant upgrade in the last 24 hours.There are many new features for you to explore.Some of the old features have disappeared, but will reappear over time as I convert them to the new system.Please take some time to explore the new system, kick the tires, and let me know about any bugs you may find.Hopefully I'll be able to shake everything out in the next week or so.Your patience is appreciated.I'll post updates in this thread. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
editor Posted July 4, 2009 Author Share Posted July 4, 2009 User level icons (Billboard, Bridge, Factory, Hospital, etc...) have been restored.Live radar now appears in the navigation bar. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedScare Posted July 4, 2009 Share Posted July 4, 2009 User level icons (Billboard, Bridge, Factory, Hospital, etc...) have been restored.Live radar now appears in the navigation bar.Is the 'View New Posts' key replaced by the list of new topics on the upper right hand side? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
editor Posted July 4, 2009 Author Share Posted July 4, 2009 Ads deactivated for subscribers. If you're a subscriber and you still see ads, PM me and I'll fix it.Ads deactivated for HAIF Moderators. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
editor Posted July 4, 2009 Author Share Posted July 4, 2009 Is the 'View New Posts' key replaced by the list of new topics on the upper right hand side?No. The View New Posts has been replaced by View New Content which is kind of in the middle of the screen just below the navigation bar. This is because it has the capability to now report new content from across HAIF including blog entries, new photos, etc...I know it's a little hard to find, but so was the last one. I'm going to move that to a better place (it's on the list).Also, note that the Recently Added Topics sidebar has a little X above it. You might enjoy playing with that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JLWM8609 Posted July 4, 2009 Share Posted July 4, 2009 Lookin' nice! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
foxmulder Posted July 4, 2009 Share Posted July 4, 2009 User ranks is missing!!! Is this still that phpb stuff? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
editor Posted July 4, 2009 Author Share Posted July 4, 2009 User ranks is missing!!!It's on the fix list.Is this still that phpb stuff?I'm not sure what you mean. We've never has phpb. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
editor Posted July 4, 2009 Author Share Posted July 4, 2009 Updated blog settings.Updated posting settings.Updated gallery settings.Facebook integration activated. You can now link your HAIF and Facebook accounts. When you update your status on Facebook, it will update in your profile on HAIF. When you update your user picture on Facebook it will update your avatar on HAIF (or maybe your profile picture, I'm not sure which). New members can now login with their Facebook account instead of creating a separate HAIF account. Hold on... I broke that last one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
editor Posted July 4, 2009 Author Share Posted July 4, 2009 OK. This works now. It actually does more than I previously thought.Facebook integration activated. You can now link your HAIF and Facebook accounts. When you update your status on Facebook, it will update in your profile on HAIF. When you update your user picture on Facebook it will update your avatar on HAIF (or maybe your profile picture, I'm not sure which). New members can now login with their Facebook account instead of creating a separate HAIF account. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
editor Posted July 4, 2009 Author Share Posted July 4, 2009 New feature: GravatarsNew feature: User reputation system. New feture: Users can rate individual posts. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trae Posted July 4, 2009 Share Posted July 4, 2009 Very nice upgrade here. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Subdude Posted July 4, 2009 Share Posted July 4, 2009 Can it be set like the old version so links open in a new tab? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UrbaNerd Posted July 4, 2009 Share Posted July 4, 2009 No. The View New Posts has been replaced by View New Content which is kind of in the middle of the screen just below the navigation bar. This is because it has the capability to now report new content from across HAIF including blog entries, new photos, etc...I know it's a little hard to find, but so was the last one. I'm going to move that to a better place (it's on the list).Also, note that the Recently Added Topics sidebar has a little X above it. You might enjoy playing with that.Will it have the good old "mark all topics as read" feature? As of now, I have over 18,000 posts that come up when I use the function.That little bit aside, it's looking pretty slick! I must commend you for all the work you do for this site! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheNiche Posted July 4, 2009 Share Posted July 4, 2009 It's not that I don't appreciate the extraordinary amount of effort that you've put into this, but the new design aesthetic doesn't feel right to me.It brings to mind a post that subdude made a while back that was critical of a design trend towards "bloated" consumer goods. Specifically, I recall that he made a comparison between a blocky, compact 1970's-era cloth-upholstered sofa and a cushy, bloated modern leather sofa that looks like it has the capacity to swallow you whole. That's immediately what came to mind when I logged on after this update.Again, though, I do appreciate what you're trying to do and all the effort. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Porchman Posted July 4, 2009 Share Posted July 4, 2009 On first look, I like it. MMM. New forum smell. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cottonmather0 Posted July 4, 2009 Share Posted July 4, 2009 It's not that I don't appreciate the extraordinary amount of effort that you've put into this, but the new design aesthetic doesn't feel right to me.It brings to mind a post that subdude made a while back that was critical of a design trend towards "bloated" consumer goods. Specifically, I recall that he made a comparison between a blocky, compact 1970's-era cloth-upholstered sofa and a cushy, bloated modern leather sofa that looks like it has the capacity to swallow you whole. That's immediately what came to mind when I logged on after this update.Again, though, I do appreciate what you're trying to do and all the effort.Yeah, my first inclination is to agree with Niche. I think some of the promised functionality sounds promising, but the design and interface so far just feels... bloated. Good word for it. I surf a lot on my netbook and the netbook is fighting back this morning, I think because of all of the graphics. And cluttered, too. Lots of pictures and content but it's just kind of scattershot and hard to read, actually. I'm not sure how much of that is just being unfamiliar with it and how much is actual preference for the old style.Definitely going to keep an open mind, though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
travelguy_73 Posted July 4, 2009 Share Posted July 4, 2009 (edited) When i go to View New Content, it lists 18k posts. I thought it might move down to a more accurate number the second time I used this function. , but it didn't.I do have questions, though: Under the old style, I could View New Posts, then click the icon next to the title, and it would take me to the first unread post in the topic. I don't see that now (the folder icon next to the title doesn't seem to do anything). Will this feature be turned back on? It's very convenient!The HAIF HD screen (http://www.houstonar.../haif/index.php?) has too much going on at the top, the pictures and text are just too big and too spaced out, IMO. It takes up practially the entire first screen, and I feel like many visitors will see this and never scroll down to the actual content.I haven't tried accessing this on our iPhone or Bold, so hopefully the larger text will format properly on those tiny screens, LOL. Edited July 4, 2009 by travelguy_73 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
editor Posted July 4, 2009 Author Share Posted July 4, 2009 HAIF:Now back online. Access from http://www.houstonarchitecture.com/haifnow.php or from the HAIF:Now link under HAI Extras at the bottom of the page. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
editor Posted July 4, 2009 Author Share Posted July 4, 2009 User ranks fixed. (This is a bug affecting several hundred other fora and is an official system bug. I found the fix myself, thankyouverymuch.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IronTiger Posted July 4, 2009 Share Posted July 4, 2009 The interface is pretty bloated. It screams HAIF HD in large, huge letters across the screen. And I thought Houston got rid of its most obnoxious billboards. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lockmat Posted July 4, 2009 Share Posted July 4, 2009 Looks awesome Ed. Thanks.Even good things are hard to adjust to at first sometimes. This might be one of them for some HAIFers. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arisegundo Posted July 4, 2009 Share Posted July 4, 2009 (edited) The big banner is more interesting to look at than the odd empty space with a tiny text ad in the middle that I used to see. I like it. I guess it could be made collapsable for the no-ads folks, or something Edited July 4, 2009 by arisegundo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedScare Posted July 4, 2009 Share Posted July 4, 2009 Clicking on the title of the thread appears to take you automatically to the first unread post. Instead of having the option to go to the first post or the last like the old format, this one takes you to the first unread. It is not obvious right at first, as you have not opened the thread before in the new format, but it does do it the 2nd time.I sure miss the list of new posts that we used to have. I'll agree that it is overall much more attractive than the old one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
citizen4rmptown Posted July 4, 2009 Share Posted July 4, 2009 Yes, there is a lot more clutter, but i like it very much. It looks modern. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SchwinnChopper68 Posted July 4, 2009 Share Posted July 4, 2009 (edited) I sure miss the list of new posts that we used to have. Try either of these. #1 seems way more accurate. #2 missed some posts #1 had. #2 is View New Content (top of page in the middle) #1 is at the bottom of the page HAIF Now directly under HAI Extras #1 appears to default to the server time not the local time as in your profile.1. http://www.houstonarchitecture.com/haifnow.php2. http://www.houstonarchitecture.com/haif/index.php?app=core&module=search&do=new_posts&search_filter_app[forums]=1The maps feature seems to be gone. I sorta would like the option to switch back to the old style skin if so desired if that option is available under IP Board. Edited July 4, 2009 by SchwinnChopper68 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lockmat Posted July 4, 2009 Share Posted July 4, 2009 (edited) The "Most Active In" feature is back - woohooIt seems after posting in a thread, when you view New Content, it's now completely gone from the list, opposed to the old way where it was simply "Already Read"Will the button "View Top of Page" be making a comeback? The Home key is working fine for now Edited July 4, 2009 by lockmat Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedScare Posted July 4, 2009 Share Posted July 4, 2009 Actually, I find that as you read a thread it does drop off the New Topics list once you refresh. I'm already down to 18,140 new topics to go. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Highway6 Posted July 4, 2009 Share Posted July 4, 2009 (edited) Testis 1.2.3.Sigs are a little out of whack.Also.. After typing the first line of this post, i went to my profile settings.Upon returning to "Vew new content" ... This thread had dissapeared from the list completely. I had to get back here by viewing my last post thought my profile.I don't envy the barrage of bugs and quirks you're getting from all sides at the moment... Great job with all the hard work. Edited July 4, 2009 by Highway6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flipper Posted July 4, 2009 Share Posted July 4, 2009 2 things that jump out at me. You can't skip to the last page of a thread without going into the thread. The "sub title" of a thread isn't below the thread title.Sweet upgrade though Ed!flipper 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SchwinnChopper68 Posted July 4, 2009 Share Posted July 4, 2009 I see what you mean now.I'm at 18,153Would be nice to see a drop down box with last 24, last week etc... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedScare Posted July 4, 2009 Share Posted July 4, 2009 Took me a little while, but I reviewed all of the threads from today and yesterday. That leaves enough of a gap that I know where the real new content is. However, like Hwy6 said, the fact that the topic drops completely off the board is a bit annoying. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Highway6 Posted July 4, 2009 Share Posted July 4, 2009 (edited) And again... Maybe I'm doing something wrong or it will clear up if I can mark all posts as read. When i click View New Content... This thread does not appear on the list if someone hasnt added to it... This doesn't seem right... it still has the most recent post, even if its not new to me. I want to be able to see it on the list, regardless if another post has followed mine. To take it even further.. I clicked "Mark Board as read" .. and now I get nada under New content. *sniff* After I clicked "Mark Board as Read" ... now when i go to the members tab... I get nada. Says "no new content" ... I'm gonna shut up now. Edited July 4, 2009 by Highway6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Highway6 Posted July 4, 2009 Share Posted July 4, 2009 I'm not keen on Inbox and Sent having been combined... and has Message Tracker been disabled ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lockmat Posted July 4, 2009 Share Posted July 4, 2009 I'm gonna shut up now.I'm sure ed appreciates our constructive criticism, and he's probably getting to them as fast as he can. Plus, it's the 4th. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Porchman Posted July 4, 2009 Share Posted July 4, 2009 Also, note your signatures are scambled. Easy enough for each member to fix their own. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Highway6 Posted July 4, 2009 Share Posted July 4, 2009 (edited) Also, note your signatures are scambled. Easy enough for each member to fix their own.EDIT.. I stand corrected. The kind of tags have changed.Still.. there's a line spacing issue or auto "<br>" being put in that i cant contend with... anyone have any suggestions Edited July 4, 2009 by Highway6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jm1fd Posted July 4, 2009 Share Posted July 4, 2009 The content is what we're here for. Not the fluff around it. Don't lose sight of that fact. There are some extremely successful message boards out there that have absolutely horrendous user interfaces...that's because the CONTENT is what people are there for. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheNiche Posted July 4, 2009 Share Posted July 4, 2009 The content is what we're here for. Not the fluff around it. Don't lose sight of that fact. There are some extremely successful message boards out there that have absolutely horrendous user interfaces...that's because the CONTENT is what people are there for.Don't discount Editor's background in the TV news business. The bloated aesthetic rubs you and I the wrong way, but I'm sure that once all the kinks are worked out, it'll be more convenient and functional in a way that wouldn't have been possible on IP Boards, and I'm sure that most people will prefer the new look as well. And to the extent that some of us don't like it...we were here for the content in the first place, so a more bloated aesthetic probably isn't so important to us that we'd abandon HAIF.As a business decision, this was probably the right way to go. Hopefully, Editor can re-implement a new Diet HAIF, just with the ability to turn on or off pictures. That'd help satisfy the needs of users that access HAIF from mobile devices, too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
20thStDad Posted July 4, 2009 Share Posted July 4, 2009 Definitely need "get last post" link on the new content page, and mark all forums as read. Other than that, I dig it so far and look forward to getting used to it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BryanS Posted July 4, 2009 Share Posted July 4, 2009 "HAIF HD"... too big... I am looking for the elusive "Close Ad" X box to shrink it, but to no avail. I have my resolution set to 1280x1024, and its taking up half the screen! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sarahiki Posted July 4, 2009 Share Posted July 4, 2009 HAIF:Now back online. Access from http://www.houstonarchitecture.com/haifnow.php or from the HAIF:Now link under HAI Extras at the bottom of the page.I like it. Good stuff. Thanks, Editor! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
musicman Posted July 4, 2009 Share Posted July 4, 2009 When i click View New Content not all threads appear on the list even if someone has added to it since my last visit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
musicman Posted July 5, 2009 Share Posted July 5, 2009 When i click View New Content not all threads appear on the list even if someone has added to it since my last visit.It appears that if you're not logged in, the View New Content function works like it is supposed to. the icon for the threads you've read goes dim. if you click it again, it takes you back to the last pane you read. etc. when you log in, all the ones you've read disappear. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedScare Posted July 5, 2009 Share Posted July 5, 2009 After 24 hours of trying to use and become aclimated to the new format, I am frustrated and flat worn out. The biggest problem is the new content page. By dropping a topic off the page after it has been read, it discourages adding a reply. Many times, I will read topic and think about it before posting a reply. Other times, I may want to post an article, a photo or research in my post, meaning I leave HAIF to get that information. The new format causes the topic to disappear, meaning I have to search through HAIF to find it again. Needless to say, I won't do that often.The forum jump at the bottom of the page is nice, and the previous/next topic link is even better. However, if I am in New Content, I want to jump to the next new post, not the next topic in that section.The overall layout may be prettier, but it seems to have less information and fewer links to things I intuitively want to link to. The new format seems mostly to help the person looking for specific information, and punish the frequent poster who has already read much of the historical content, and wants mainly to read new content and contribute to it. As one of those posters, I must admit that it is frustrating enough that I have walked away from the site several times already. Whereas in the old format I could almost feel the other posters in the room with me, now I feel like an outsider looking for unlocked doors in a very large building. It doesn't feel like anyone else is online. 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HtownWxBoy Posted July 5, 2009 Share Posted July 5, 2009 I haven't looked over things in too great a detail but one thing that kind of stands out is that it seems a bit "busy" and "cluttered". It's a little harder on the eyes ... guess it just takes getting used to like anything else. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SchwinnChopper68 Posted July 5, 2009 Share Posted July 5, 2009 (edited) As I mentioned before hopefully there will be an IP Board skin option to go back to the old forum style or continue to use the new updated style. http://www.houstonarchitecture.com/haifnow.php This link is great yet it appears to only show the last 10 hours of new posts. If this could have a drop down of say last 24, 48, 72, last week etc it would make finding recent posts so much easier.As an example, I am a member in another forum and I only need to click one link or bookmark and I can see all 50-200 posts on one page that were made in the last 24 hours, 2 days, 1 week etc.. whether I have been to that post or not. Even a thread that had 7 posts to it I will see all 7 of the new posts with a short 6 line synopsis of that post to let me know if the post is even worth checking out.I like the new header graphics though I think it is taking way too much of the above the fold space. To me it just seems a bit more difficult to navigate around the forum than the old one. Keep the graphics, new headers, buttons, web 2.0 stuff but at least have an option to choose between new and old style navigation/preferences.Sometimes I upgrade programs automatically when "new functions" are released. What I have learned is that yes the new upgrades seem to add a bit but in many cases I lost functions that I had come to depend on.Just my 2 cents for what it's worth. Edited July 5, 2009 by SchwinnChopper68 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheNiche Posted July 5, 2009 Share Posted July 5, 2009 (edited) The new format seems mostly to help the person looking for specific information, and punish the frequent poster who has already read much of the historical content, and wants mainly to read new content and contribute to it. As one of those posters, I must admit that it is frustrating enough that I have walked away from the site several times already. Whereas in the old format I could almost feel the other posters in the room with me, now I feel like an outsider looking for unlocked doors in a very large building. It doesn't feel like anyone else is online.I know that the post ratings were meant to eliminate the following kind of comment, but you articulated the frustration I'm experiencing so well that I just wanted to say ME TOO.Hopefully that empty feeling has more to do with the decline in traffic resulting from HAIF being offline for pretty much a whole day, followed by the weekend slump. And hopefully a lot of these technical issues about user friendliness can be identified and resolved. Edited July 5, 2009 by TheNiche Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jm1fd Posted July 5, 2009 Share Posted July 5, 2009 Don't discount Editor's background in the TV news business. The bloated aesthetic rubs you and I the wrong way, but I'm sure that once all the kinks are worked out, it'll be more convenient and functional in a way that wouldn't have been possible on IP Boards, and I'm sure that most people will prefer the new look as well. And to the extent that some of us don't like it...we were here for the content in the first place, so a more bloated aesthetic probably isn't so important to us that we'd abandon HAIF.As a business decision, this was probably the right way to go. Hopefully, Editor can re-implement a new Diet HAIF, just with the ability to turn on or off pictures. That'd help satisfy the needs of users that access HAIF from mobile devices, too.I don't know if it was the right decision or not. I do know that there are lots and lots of highly trafficked forums that have sub-par design and functionality (gardenweb.org is a perfect example). I'm not sure if TV news is applicable to this....viewers don't interact with TV news, nor provide the news stories which are broadcast (or at least they didn't used to). I think Ed is trying to make this site all things to all people (radar? really?), and I believe that is the wrong approach since this is an interactive medium. The internet allows you to drill in and find the authoritative source for just about any sort of information you desire. Why would I want to access radar from this site rather than NOAA.gov? Coming to this site and then hopping over to radar is just a needless extra step. I visit this site time and time again because it has local info from real people. If Ed really wants to add value to the site he'll find something that will group relevant topics together and display them, or add a feature that would display other topics I might be interested in (mind reading!)....both of which are, unfortunately, hard for computers to do well. It is crucial to draw people into the site, but as Ed has said previously, people are being drawn in by the content via Google, not the flash-in-the-pan graphics that take up 1/2 or more of the screen while contributing nothing useful or unique to the user experience. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
citizen4rmptown Posted July 5, 2009 Share Posted July 5, 2009 After 24 hours of trying to use and become aclimated to the new format, I am frustrated and flat worn out. The biggest problem is the new content page. By dropping a topic off the page after it has been read, it discourages adding a reply. Many times, I will read topic and think about it before posting a reply. Other times, I may want to post an article, a photo or research in my post, meaning I leave HAIF to get that information. The new format causes the topic to disappear, meaning I have to search through HAIF to find it again. Needless to say, I won't do that often.The forum jump at the bottom of the page is nice, and the previous/next topic link is even better. However, if I am in New Content, I want to jump to the next new post, not the next topic in that section.Weren't you the one stating that walking from the old Reliant Energy Plaza to HP isn't bad, and then thinking that we were complaining at the 4-block walk.... Yet, your complaining about having to do things online and how it takes longer and its harder.So, you have to do things that take up your precious time, big deal. Im sure you can spare a few seconds or minutes to find a post. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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