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Question I like the new forum reorganization

7 years 10 months ago #1 by Arcanist Lupus
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    • What the title said.
    "Shared pain is lessened; shared joy, increased — thus do we refute entropy." - Spider Robinson
    7 years 10 months ago #2 by Dreamer
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    • Agreed. Thanks for all the work you do, Kristin.
    Thank You for story comments appreciated and help me know me they are being read and liked. :-) Note: My story comments can't nor are trying to replace reading the stories, simply my way of enjoying them and letting the authors know I enjoy them.
    7 years 10 months ago #3 by Rose Bunny
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    • Someone owes Kristin much cake.
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    7 years 10 months ago #4 by Kristin Darken
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    • Heh... the forum reorganization took about 10 minutes. The entire site reorganization to using the new content layouts, access control, and tags that I've been working on probably took more than 70 hrs in the past two weeks. ;)

    But you're welcome. :-p
    Fate guard you and grant you a Light to brighten your Way.
    7 years 10 months ago #5 by Iwasforger03
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    • You Rock Kristen, nice work! Thank you very much.
    I am a Sexy Shoeless God of War - So suck it CP!
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    7 years 10 months ago #6 by Malady
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    • ... What are you guys talking about? ... Oh! That's Nice! ...

    Hopefully the Staff Support section will remain empty for a long long while.
    Archives: Rubberjohn's Fanfic + CrystalHall + Mittfh's Wordcount Spreadsheet

    My Patreon. But, support the Crystal Hall 1st?
    7 years 10 months ago #7 by Esar
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    • Thank you Kristin.
    7 years 8 months ago #8 by Yolandria
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    • After seeing the new layout. I like the ideas implemented. However there might need to be some adjustments. Example. The beginning description page. Very hard to read. Perhaps enlarging the font sizes? The other thing that jumps out at me. Visit button. Not very descriptive...Visit who? Visit what? So perhaps a change of title from Visit to Forums? Just my 2 cents. If i find more stuff ill drop a line.
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    7 years 8 months ago - 7 years 8 months ago #9 by Katssun
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    • I think "Discussion(s)" might be a better choice for "Visit," since it is pretty much the forums and messages for now. Unless Kristin has future ideas for more ways we can interact like idiots with each other.

    But I do like the change to "Read Stories." Absolutely to the point. It seems like a simple change, but for a new visitor, it being that clear is important.

    Is there any way to put a "stickied" article at the top? Something like "Where to Start" and a quick description of the sidebar links, basically Original Canon vs Gen 2, WhatIF and the Library, giving a gentle nudge toward "Recommended Reading Orders" I know the quick summary is on the front page, but the 12 million words is still pretty daunting, and when I first started reading Whateley, not know where to start was pretty intimidating.
    Last Edit: 7 years 8 months ago by Katssun.
    7 years 8 months ago #10 by Kristin Darken
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    • Yes, this is just a start. I've got a whole additional menu area to add yet, that will be titled something like "New to Whateley" that will start with a guide on where to find things... using screen shots (in both desktop and mobile). The tough part about guides like that is that you can't create them until you build the structure to put them in. Otherwise the screen shots you use are out of date. So... trying to build around that section first and then I'll create the section for newcomers will will include explanations on the advantages of reading by different orders or how to find things that you need to get up to speed if you want to jump in somewhere along the line.

    I'm open to different language for the menus if people think they have a thought that will be more intuitive... just keep in mind that the more words you put in there, the larger the buttons are going to be... and that can be a factor in both the sidebar menu and in both menus when on certain screen sizes.
    Fate guard you and grant you a Light to brighten your Way.
    7 years 8 months ago #11 by Bronzephoenix
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    • Just idea to bring down the Read stories/Discussion (or maybe 2nd copy of them - if you want keep layout same across pages) to opposite the title Welcome toThe Whateley Academy Universe and The Crystal Hall, at first glance it hard to see where the stories start
    7 years 8 months ago #12 by Kristin Darken
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    • I'm sorry... but that isn't at all clear.

    Are you suggesting that I:

    1. Move the menu or duplicate it so there is a second link to the stories collection on the front/landing page?

    2. Move the sidebar 'newest' lists so that you don't have to scroll down to them?

    3. Something else?

    ---
    Yes, I am (to some degree) working to keep the layout the same throughout the site, so people know where to look to find certain items. But I also have to be aware of a couple key design elements - 1. some mobiles don't handle drop down menus well... which necessitates either one really large menu (about 40 options) or two menus - one covering zones and the second leading to options within that part of the site. 2. We use the ad revenue to pay for the server, domain registration, and other costs... ads that are not visible at page load do not earn as much revenue. So positioning things above the ads has to be minimized... OR we will have to implement other means of paying for the site. 3. The site is viewed in two main ways... on a desktop, it has a header, two sidebars and the main center section. That's not uncommon. But this layout also have to be usable to mobile users... and they see it in one column only. So the more I put in the (left) sidebar, the more they have to scroll before they get to the actual content. And more importantly, putting the 'main' zone menu in the right sidebar would really suck for mobile users.
    Fate guard you and grant you a Light to brighten your Way.
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