System Update New forum Theme now available in your preferences

[Richard]

Note: The new Theme will be switched over to become the new default Theme from Monday May 1.

Everyone is encouraged to try the new theme out. It is 98% ready.

If you do not like the new theme you can switch back to the old theme for a time. The old theme will remain for approx 8~12 months and will be permanently removed after 12 months. There will be no further maintenance of the old theme.

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The XenForo theme that we currently run is called UI.X. It has been several years since we updated it.

The latest version (UI.X 1.5) is now available to select in your preferences.

New theme looks like this;

Change by selecting Preferences ;

Once selected, there are Style options you can turn on or off;

You can switch back to default theme from the footer (but not the other way)

On Desktop, Member details.. are more detailed!

(same as BigFooty)



On mobile, the responsive menu is much better (imo) and there is also a useful rapid scroll thingy that fades in when you settle - it looks like this ;

(it is also there on desktop but not as useful)


Post thoughts &/or bug reports below (grizzling will be ignored )

 

[Jellybeans]

It's better on tablet, that's for sure.
Really cool theme!

 

[Claude Cat]

Nice.

 

[Schnaxxy Schnaxxlburger]

 

[Schnaxxy Schnaxxlburger]

having done that I can't see 'active topics'

 

[Richard]

New Unviewed is very similar.

Active topics was a custom hack, to map with UBB (the forum platform from 1999-2013). The default theme has both New Unviewed and Active Topics.

I'm not convinced we need both. Almost no-one clicks New Unviewed v's Active Topics. So have not made up my mind what I will do when I customise it - every hack of the templates makes it that bit harder to cleanly update when a new version of the theme is released - so want to keep it minimal.

Anyway, that's the sort of missing item that I mean by saying the theme is 'still a bit raw'

 

[Majikthise]

Active topics sits as a sub selection of new unviewed

 

[Richard]

Active topics sits as a sub selection of new unviewed

Ahh yes, that's right.

 

[Majikthise]

Its now moved to the left...

 

[Hyst]

I hate these computer freaks!

But somehow they make it work - but please keep it simple for us who are not computer freaks.

 

[cold wombat]

I hate these computer freaks!

But somehow they make it work - but please keep it simple for us who are not computer freaks.

Do you still use Windows 95?

Keep using the current theme for now.

 

[Richard]

I hate these computer freaks!

But somehow they make it work - but please keep it simple for us who are not computer freaks.

Changing to the new theme is your choice - if you are comfortable with the current theme, there is no need to switch.

 

[cold wombat]

Don't like the pinging green dot. Ping isn't subtle enough IMHO.

 

[Richard]

no grizzling!

it will be months before this theme is switched to default.

I like it because its visible, straw poll says more than half dont see the current 'online' signifier

but will seriously slow the ping down when I stumble across the line of css controlling it. concur its too pingy atm

 

[cold wombat]

Hmmm. Lots of little tune ups needed.

Main one: Alerts. Too many button presses to get to quotes/mentions.

 

[cold wombat]

no grizzling!

I'll bloody well grizzle to my hearts content! It's one of my specialties!

 

[cold wombat]

But I think I'm starting to get used to it. Will have to try it on the lappy later.

 

[Richard]

Hmmm. Lots of little tune ups needed.

Main one: Alerts. Too many button presses to get to quotes/mentions.

Que?

Alerts seems to be exactly the same UX as current, click flag, there they are, click to full list?

or are you talkiing about some other pathway?

 

[Schnaxxy Schnaxxlburger]

Que?

Alerts seems to be exactly the same UX as current, click flag, there they are, click to full list?

or are you talkiing about some other pathway?

there is an extra step
I click the red number and it drops down but there's another number next to the flag so needs another click
this is on ipad
btw the active topics are visible on the ipad and seem to be there on the iphone now

 

[currawong]

I think I like the widget at top right that scrolls through the posts on the page. I will need to use it to really try to find a post I'm after before knowing jow useful it really is. Is there a way to pause it on a post?

 

[cold wombat]

there is an extra step
I click the red number and it drops down but there's another number next to the flag so needs another click
this is on ipad
btw the active topics are visible on the ipad and seem to be there on the iphone now

@Richard This. It's only one extra click but the time lag waiting for the response is a pita. I get enough alerts that the difference is significant.

 

[Richard]

there is an extra step
I click the red number and it drops down but there's another number next to the flag so needs another click

yer lost me, need screen grab for this 'other number'

btw the active topics are visible on the ipad and seem to be there on the iphone now

that's no mystery, I hacked it in a couple hours ago,

 

[Richard]

@Richard This. It's only one extra click but the time lag waiting for the response is a pita. I get enough alerts that the difference is significant.

whats this other number? is it a different number to the first number? what do you think these two numbers signify?

What are your alert settings? Are you watching many threads?

 

[Richard]

nup, you are all on drugs. cannot recreate two red numbers from the flag menu. someone has to screengrab this.

 

[cold wombat]

Not sure about two numbers except this: First click is on my icon at top right. It displays my new alert count (first number?). I wait for the UI to respond. I then click on the flag icon (with the same new alert count number) and again wait for the UI to respond. The waiting time has doubled. Given I use my recent alerts as a nav aid to return to threads where I know there are new posts its a bit of a pita to have the alerts list buried one deep.

As for watched threads, I've never used it.

 

[Richard]

@cold wombat

so... you dont just click the flag itself to get the alerts?

and it's not actually different to default theme, just slower ?

 

[Richard]

I'm not seeing any difference with the Member menu (or the flag menu) between themes

@person s

is this the two red numbers you mean?

 

[cold wombat]

Doesn't work like that on my phone screen.

Only my icon shows. Same if I go landscape. But at least its clear this is only a CSS issue not a design misfeature.

 

[Richard]

ahhhhh

phone!

person s said ipad. I've been on ipad all evening.

now I know what you are talking about.

 

[cold wombat]

What I get when I click on my little wombat icon at the top:

 

[cold wombat]

Sorry. I must have stopped reading properly before I got to the iPad bit.

 

[Richard]

ahhh.

ipad in portrait mode ffs, i never hold ipad in portrait!


this is why UX testing is done in the same room with the user - the whole picture of what is being experienced can not be conveyed with enough detail any other way.

 

[cold wombat]

ahhh.

ipad in portrait mode ffs, i never hold ipad in portrait!


this is why UX testing is done in the same room with the user - the whole picture of what is being experienced can not be conveyed with enough detail any other way.

Remote UI testing. I feel for you. I really do. Bigly.

 

[Richard]

it's like when my 80yo Dad rings and says "my email stopped, how do I fix it?"

try fixing that over a phone, when you cant even get enough sense to know if they have their email client open!

so I drove eight hours and installed a VNC client - no more talk, just remote in.

 

[cold wombat]

it like when my 80yo Dad rings and says "my email stopped, how do I fix it?"

try fixing that over a phone, when you cant even tell if they have their email client open!

so I drove eight hours and installed a VNC client - no more talk, just remote in.

Been there, done that. Never want to again.

 

[Richard]

yes, that's really slow on older hardware, my iphone 7 rips it but the 4yo ipad is pia.

plus too many clicks anyway.

might be a bit of a hack to get the flag menu in view at that viewport. will tackle it in a few days.

 

[Schnaxxy Schnaxxlburger]

Not sure about two numbers except this: First click is on my icon at top right. It displays my new alert count (first number?). I wait for the UI to respond. I then click on the flag icon (with the same new alert count number) and again wait for the UI to respond. The waiting time has doubled. Given I use my recent alerts as a nav aid to return to threads where I know there are new posts its a bit of a pita to have the alerts list buried one deep.
As for watched threads, I've never used it.

yep, that's what I meant

it's like when my 80yo Dad rings and says "my email stopped, how do I fix it?"
try fixing that over a phone, when you cant even get enough sense to know if they have their email client open!
so I drove eight hours and installed a VNC client - no more talk, just remote in.

I'm old but I'm not quite at your dad's level yet
fortunately mine never used a puta
my mother had various issues and would just click everything to try and fix whatever problem
then a call: 'the machine's driving me mad'
luckily the family has four reasonably skilled mac and ipad users who could talk her through a fix over the phone

 

[currawong]

On the subject of the alert flag...

It's much further from the edge, so on a tablet you can't just get it with your thumb- have to take hand off tablet to reach it.

Don't know if that's fixable in css

 

[Schnaxxy Schnaxxlburger]

the theme looks nice on the lappy too
is the page loading faster?
the alerts flag drops down when I hover the cursor arrow over it

 

[currawong]

The blue rapid scroll thing is great for returning to top of page (to click on Newest Posts).

Not sure if it can be used to scroll part way or only TOP/BOP

 

[azzski]

Will take a little getting used to (I always hate extra real estate being taken up permanently at the top of the screen - at least it's not changing if you change the direction of scrolling, which is always visually distracting) but some very nice touches. "Sonar" ping on the Online Now green dot!

 

[Seth]

I like it. Especially that blue go back to the top thing. Very handy on the mobile to get back to active topics.

 

[Richard]

Will take a little getting used to (I always hate extra real estate being taken up permanently at the top of the screen - at least it's not changing if you change the direction of scrolling, which is always visually distracting) but some very nice touches. "Sonar" ping on the Online Now green dot!

You can turn 'stickiness' for either of the Nav bar and the User bar off. If you turn them both off, you get the whole screen and traditional behaviour. I like that choice is available. I personally like a thin sticky nav on sites I spend time on so menu is always at hand.

A trend I quite like is the transparent sticky nav, allows maximum screen real estate on mobile with the convenience of the menu always being available - like this (try on mobile);

http://danielricciardo.com/

at least it's not changing if you change the direction of scrolling

That really bites my ass too, especially when they pull in frames both top and bottom just because you scrolled up. Stupid.

The thinking comes from a desperate place, they think that because you have scrolled up they can 'infer' intent and that you are about to leave - so they can shove an advert, or newsletter promo or some shit in your face to 'capture' you before you leave - when all you want to do is scroll back a bit.

 

[Richard]

I like it. Especially that blue go back to the top thing. Very handy on the mobile to get back to active topics.

Yeah, that's the single best UX improvement. On mobile it's fantastic - and unlike the poor attempt at 'inferring' intent I describe above, it's fade in/fade out behavior is about right.

 

[azzski]

That really bites my ass too, especially when they pull in frames both top and bottom just because you scrolled up. Stupid.

The thinking comes from a desperate place, they think that because you have scrolled up they can 'infer' intent and that you are about to leave - so they can shove an advert, or newsletter promo or some shit in your face to 'capture' you before you leave - when all you want to do is scroll back a bit.

Even an allegedly super-savvy site like Medium gets the change of direction thing wrong. Especially on mobile, where the last thing you want is to have your limited screen space being taken up by useless crap when all you did was scroll back up a little to re-read.

Removing the Nav bar stickiness is key for me, the user bar is slim, unobtrusive and useful.

Now, if the actual post counter nav part of the nav bar was actually on the LHS of the User bar, we'd have the best of both worlds!

 

[cold wombat]

Yeah, that's the single best UX improvement. On mobile it's fantastic - and unlike the poor attempt at 'inferring' intent I describe above, it's fade in/fade out behavior is about right.

Solid win for me.

 

[Legs Akimbo]

I switched to the latest version. It was fine for a while, then I got intermittent (the worst word in troubleshooting) failures of centre click and right click and select to open in a new tab. I have reverted to the old version and everything is fine. No problems on other sites. Win 10 and Chrome.

 

[Legs Akimbo]

And it's back. It remains random. It is not threads in which I have posted, nor does it seem to be particular sub-fora. I can't pick any consistent pattern.

 

[cin]

Do you still use Windows 95?

Not yet
I'm always a bit scared to update in case the new version still has some bugs to sort out

 

[Schnaxxy Schnaxxlburger]

Not yet
I'm always a bit scared to update in case the new version still has some bugs to sort out

exactly - bring back 3.1 I say!