| Author |
 Topic Search  Topic Options
|
MikeEnRegalia 
Special Collaborator
Honorary Collaborator
Joined: April 22 2005
Location: Sweden
Status: Offline
Points: 21615
|
 Topic: Active Topics
Posted: October 21 2005 at 04:00 |
I was wondering if the Active Topics page could be changed to a purely reverse chronological display - no grouping by forum category. I know that the forum software might not have that functionality ... but if it does, I'd prefer it.
What do you think? It would help motivate people to use the right category for their posts and to use the Active Topics page more often.
|
|
|
 |
Matti
Prog Reviewer
Joined: April 15 2005
Location: Finland
Status: Offline
Points: 2149
|
Posted: October 21 2005 at 05:28 |
(  )
Well, there would be some benefit (more
notice to 'bottom of the list' categories) but also it would look
messier by not showing them by categories. I must say I'm satisfied with the recent.
Besides, front page shows the latest ones of not only the first category but of some others too.
A stupid(?) question: how else people would be using Forum during the day than by choosing
the time limit for active topics? In mornings I have normally 8-10 pages (sometimes less,
sometimes more) of the latest threads since my last visit; it gives automatically all
threads that have been continued after my signing out
(ie. turning off the net and computer). After
seeing them I choose Active Topics since
(usually) 2 hours. Simple.
Looks like I'm having too much time right now 
|
|
Sean Trane
Special Collaborator
Prog Folk
Joined: April 29 2004
Location: Heart of Europe
Status: Offline
Points: 20436
|
Posted: October 21 2005 at 06:12 |
Actually you r idea is not bad!
But I have another gripe! when taking a look at the front pages of each forum presenting the threads , it would be nice to see how old the thread is (or how long ago the thread was started). Sometimes someone brings back a subject from the depth of the forum , but one has to open it to see if it is the same old one and having to re-read it!
|
|
let's just stay above the moral melee
prefer the sink to the gutter
keep our sand-castle virtues
content to be a doer
as well as a thinker,
prefer lifting our pen
rather than un-sheath our sword
|
|
MikeEnRegalia
Special Collaborator
Honorary Collaborator
Joined: April 22 2005
Location: Sweden
Status: Offline
Points: 21615
|
Posted: October 21 2005 at 06:15 |
Matti:
That's also how I'm using the Active Topics page. Another idea would be to increase the number of posts shown on one page. I like to open the Active Topics page and then open interesting threads in a new window (right click or shift + left click), read the posts and then close the window and move on to the next thread. That would be easier without the pagination of the Active Topics page ...
|
|
|
|
Citanul
Forum Senior Member
Joined: June 14 2005
Location: South Africa
Status: Offline
Points: 430
|
Posted: October 21 2005 at 06:29 |
 Sean Trane wrote:
Actually you r idea is not bad!
But I have another gripe! when taking a look at the front pages of
each forum presenting the threads , it would be nice to see how old the
thread is (or how long ago the thread was started). Sometimes someone
brings back a subject from the depth of the forum , but one has to open
it to see if it is the same old one and having to re-read it! |
If you use the Active Topics page, then you can hold the cursor over
the thread title, and the date on which it was started pops up.
This doesn't happen in forum category pages though.
|
|
Be or be not. There is no question. - Yoda, Prince of Denmark
|
|
Sean Trane
Special Collaborator
Prog Folk
Joined: April 29 2004
Location: Heart of Europe
Status: Offline
Points: 20436
|
Posted: October 21 2005 at 07:52 |
Citanul wrote:
Sean Trane wrote:
Actually you r idea is not bad!
But I have another gripe! when taking a look at the front pages of each forum presenting the threads , it would be nice to see how old the thread is (or how long ago the thread was started). Sometimes someone brings back a subject from the depth of the forum , but one has to open it to see if it is the same old one and having to re-read it!
|
If you use the Active Topics page, then you can hold the cursor over the thread title, and the date on which it was started pops up. This doesn't happen in forum category pages though.
|
I know this, thank you!!
but why is this not the case on the other individual forum front page? It only gives you the text...
|
|
let's just stay above the moral melee
prefer the sink to the gutter
keep our sand-castle virtues
content to be a doer
as well as a thinker,
prefer lifting our pen
rather than un-sheath our sword
|
|
MikeEnRegalia
Special Collaborator
Honorary Collaborator
Joined: April 22 2005
Location: Sweden
Status: Offline
Points: 21615
|
Posted: October 21 2005 at 08:02 |
^ It actually shows the date when you your mouse is over the topic starter. 
|
|
|
|
Sean Trane
Special Collaborator
Prog Folk
Joined: April 29 2004
Location: Heart of Europe
Status: Offline
Points: 20436
|
Posted: October 21 2005 at 08:20 |
|
|
|
let's just stay above the moral melee
prefer the sink to the gutter
keep our sand-castle virtues
content to be a doer
as well as a thinker,
prefer lifting our pen
rather than un-sheath our sword
|
|
Progzilla
Forum Senior Member
Joined: July 05 2005
Status: Offline
Points: 206
|
Posted: October 22 2005 at 08:20 |
MikeEnRegalia wrote:
I was wondering if the Active Topics page
could be changed to a purely reverse chronological display - no
grouping by forum category. I know that the forum software might not
have that functionality ... but if it does, I'd prefer it.
What do you think? It would help motivate people to use the right
category for their posts and to use the Active Topics page more often. |
I was just about to suggest exactly this. It is used in other forums I
visit, and I think it works very well. The Active Topics becomes more
"active", since all new posts show up at the top spot, regardless of forum
category. You don't have to go to page 3 to see if there's any new prog
polls on a certain day for example. And people won't have to use Prog
Music Lounge in order to get their post at the top spot.
I've been missing out on several interesting topics, because as I don't
visit Prog Archives every day, the first page in active topics is
always prog lounge only, and I don't always bother to skim through all
pages, in order to see if there might be a good thread in another
category.
The way it is now works for very active users, but newbies and more or
less occasional users probably just use the prog lounge all the time.
I'm strongly in favor of you suggestion, Mike!
Edited by Progzilla
|
|
Currently listening to:
- Andromeda
- Pagan's Mind
- Kamelot
|
|
MikeEnRegalia
Special Collaborator
Honorary Collaborator
Joined: April 22 2005
Location: Sweden
Status: Offline
Points: 21615
|
Posted: October 22 2005 at 08:45 |
Another great way of promoting the Active Topics page would be to make it the start page for the "forum" link in the top nav of the archives.
|
|
|
|
Snow Dog
Special Collaborator
Honorary Collaborator
Joined: March 23 2005
Location: Caerdydd
Status: Offline
Points: 32995
|
Posted: October 22 2005 at 10:22 |
MikeEnRegalia wrote:
Another great way of promoting the Active Topics page would be to make it the start page for the "forum" link in the top nav of the archives.
|
Thats a good idea, but that link is onthe right hand side of the homepage.Kind of , anyway.Took me while to discover the Active Topics function thgough, but since I have, many months agonow,its all I use.
|
|
|
|
goose
Forum Senior Member
Joined: June 20 2004
Location: United Kingdom
Status: Offline
Points: 4097
|
Posted: October 22 2005 at 17:42 |
Snow Dog wrote:
Thats a good idea, but that link is onthe right hand side of the homepage.Kind of , anyway.Took me while to discover the Active Topics function thgough, but since I have, many months agonow,its all I use. |
Same here! I don't see any point in viewing it "normally"
|
|
Citanul
Forum Senior Member
Joined: June 14 2005
Location: South Africa
Status: Offline
Points: 430
|
Posted: October 24 2005 at 04:22 |
|
I have another suggestion which I'm not sure if it's possible to
implement. For topics that are longer than one page, is it
possible to have the date of the first post on that page occur when you
move your mouse over the page number? It's often difficult to
remember which page was the last one you observed when there have been
a large number of posts overnight, or the topic is an old one that has
been resurrected.
|
|
Be or be not. There is no question. - Yoda, Prince of Denmark
|
|
Donate monthly and keep PA fast-loading and ad-free forever.
/PAlogo_v2.gif "Progarchives.com Homepage")
Active Topics
I never tried that before (or if I did , I forgot about it)