New Look

perldrivr

Member
Why was the look of the board changed? I don't want to sound like a whiner but I kinda liked the old look better.
 

Tiedgen

Administrator
Staff member
Administrator
Good morning fellow PMT members,

I liked the old style as well, but unfortunately, the old style was no longer compatible with the new version of vBulletin. You may have not noticed that many features did not work or did not work correctly with the old style. Member profiles for example, were empty and the new version added tabbed categories. Also, the search feature has been extended upon to make it easier to find certain threads and posts.

I spent a lot of time on the last style and I was very reluctant to change it, but the change is absolutely necessary. I wish I could have used the old style, but that style is no longer developed for vB 3.7.

I appreciate the feedback, as your opinions are most valuable with regards to style changes/modifications and other misc updates. Upon request, I have integrated the 'Home' button back into the navbar at the top.

Please, if there are other changes you would like to see, do not hesitate to ask! This style is still a work in progress, so expect to see some changes as the days go by. Glad you like like the smiles! :yahoo:

Kind regards,
Ben Tiedgen
 
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MSZ

Moderator
Use the "New Posts" tab on the top of the page and it will list all of the new posts since your last visit. This way, you don't have to thumb through all the forums...
 

69ST

Well-Known Member
The only "complaint" I might have is the narrow page width, pretty trivial stuff in the grand scheme of things. Overall, the added functionality + bells and whistles are good things. You get accustomed to things being a certain way, then change comes along and upsets the apple cart. It doesn't take long before the new interface becomes familiar and it's not like the wheel has been reinvented (or something).
 

makotosun

Member
Depending on the CMS system you are using, you should be able to integrate a format that allows the posts to be full width on anyone's monitor. I am not a VBulliten expert by any means, but the layout, I believe, is template based.

There are some that allow a user to choose a template for their own display purposes, but I don't know if that is available in your version.

My only complaint would be the narrow width. I am losing 2-3" of screen real estate meaning more scrolling. Features seem to work fine though.

I know how much work is involved in managing one of these systems, and that it can take awhile to work out the bugs and features of an "upgrade". :77:
 

johnmacd

Member
hYuk

I'm just happy we FINALLY get to see the color of the CT doing the wheelie over the Planetminitrials.com address up there! I was SURE it was red..... :24:
 

perldrivr

Member
The thing that I notice is that the symbols for threads with or without new posts are not very different - the shading gradient is not very strong. Maybe its just my eyes geting older, but I find that I am looking at the screen from different angles to make sure which threads have new posts. I would rather see a color difference like the one for hot threads. Also, I don't see any difference for the marker that Identifies threads that you have posted in. It would also be nice if the format were wider so I could take advantage of my wide screen monitor.

These are just minor comments - not complaining mind you. Overall, I think you have done a great job with this board Ben.

Thanks,
Paul
 

mrdouble

Member
I really like the color scheme, somethins' differnt about it. Only complaint is the width issue as racer has already pointed out. But all in all.. I LIKE IT

Thank you:deadhorse:
I love DEAD HORSEs
 

XSIVE

Member
No mention of an upgrade as I know of so I thought I was losing my mind. Good to know that's not the case. Yet anyway!! :18:

Same here, wider screen would be better for my wide screen.
 

Tiedgen

Administrator
Staff member
Administrator
The thing that I notice is that the symbols for threads with or without new posts are not very different - the shading gradient is not very strong. Maybe its just my eyes geting older, but I find that I am looking at the screen from different angles to make sure which threads have new posts. I would rather see a color difference like the one for hot threads. Also, I don't see any difference for the marker that Identifies threads that you have posted in. It would also be nice if the format were wider so I could take advantage of my wide screen monitor.

These are just minor comments - not complaining mind you. Overall, I think you have done a great job with this board Ben.

Thanks,
Paul

UPDATE:

I noticed many of you wanted a wider version of the template to take full advantage of larger, wide screen monitors. I have granted this request. If you scroll to the very bottom of the board on the left, you will notice a drop-down box; from this you can choose the 'Narrow' template or the 'Wide' template, depending on your preference.

Another request Paul had was for brighter/darker notification icons on the main page. I will agree that the difference between the 'no new posts' and 'new post' icons are hard to see. Within the week, I plan on changing the logo and brightness of these icons. I was thinking a grayed out CT70 for old posts, and a bright blue CT70 (or red for John :16:)for new posts.
What do you think?

Thanks again for all the input, I really appreciate it. Please, please, please notify me of any other changes you guys/gals would prefer. :6:

Thanks again! :thumb: :ty:
Ben
 
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dennis d

120cc
Ebay / Honda cars

Ben,
Could you reset the Ebay listings on top back to start showing Honda CT70 again instead of Honda cars ?

Thanks,
Dennis
 

mikev

Member
UPDATE:

I noticed many of you wanted a wider version of the template to take full advantage of larger, wide screen monitors. I have granted this request. If you scroll to the very bottom of the board on the left, you will notice a drop-down box; from this you can choose the 'Narrow' template or the 'Wide' template, depending on your preference.

Another request Paul had was for brighter/darker notification icons on the main page. I will agree that the difference between the 'no new posts' and 'new post' icons are hard to see. Within the week, I plan on changing the logo and brightness of these icons. I was thinking a grayed out CT70 for old posts, and a bright blue CT70 (or red for John :16:)for new posts.
What do you think?

Thanks again for all the input, I really appreciate it. Please, please, please notify me of any other changes you guys/gals would prefer. :6:

Thanks again! :thumb: :ty:
Ben

The widescreen option is FANTASTIC!

(For the record, when you're actually posting, it reverts back to the narrow screen)

Also, I'm not sure if it's just an issue with me or if it's the board, but if I am at the main forum page, there's no difference in color between forums with new posts and forums that I've read. The "New Posts" link gets around that, though.
 

Tiedgen

Administrator
Staff member
Administrator
Ben,
Could you reset the Ebay listings on top back to start showing Honda CT70 again instead of Honda cars ?

Thanks,
Dennis

Hey Dennis,

I have noticed this too, I will check the eBay settings. I believe it only gives me the option of text ads, image ads, or both. I'll see what I can do. Thanks for the input.

The widescreen option is FANTASTIC!

(For the record, when you're actually posting, it reverts back to the narrow screen)

Also, I'm not sure if it's just an issue with me or if it's the board, but if I am at the main forum page, there's no difference in color between forums with new posts and forums that I've read. The "New Posts" link gets around that, though.

Mike,

When it reverts back to the narrow screen during posting, does it stay this way, or return back to the wide screen template? I was not aware of this; I will look into it.
The differences in color is there, but it is very, very hard to tell the difference between the two. In the near future I plan on adding my own custom icons; stay tuned for the changes.

Thanks again for the input guys! Glad you like the new, wide template :6:

Ben
 
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mikev

Member
Mike,

When it reverts back to the narrow screen during posting, does it stay this way, or return back to the wide screen template? I was not aware of this; I will look into it.
The differences in color is there, but it is very, very hard to tell the difference between the two. In the near future I plan on adding my own custom icons; stay tuned for the changes.

Thanks again for the input guys! Glad you like the new, wide template :6:

Ben

It reverts back to widescreen after posting.

And, actually, upon further review (which I'm noticing as I type this) when I'm typing a reply, I can scroll down and the "Topic Review" section is actually widescreen - it's apparently JUST the actual posting box that's still narrow.
 

Tiedgen

Administrator
Staff member
Administrator
It reverts back to widescreen after posting.

And, actually, upon further review (which I'm noticing as I type this) when I'm typing a reply, I can scroll down and the "Topic Review" section is actually widescreen - it's apparently JUST the actual posting box that's still narrow.

This is one of the problems you have with fluid templates vs. fixed width templates. I made the box about 60px wider, but anything more it won't align properly. Unfortunately, I cannot set it for 100%; it won't allow me to. If you need a bigger input box, click on the little up or down arrows in the right hand corner when you are reply to a message or start a new thread. They will vertically stretch or shrink the content area to allow more space for typing. The width of the box is less important, especially when working with fluid width templates.

If it is still a problem, I will check it out and see if there is any workaround for this. Thanks again for the input. :55::16:

Ben
 

mikev

Member
This is one of the problems you have with fluid templates vs. fixed width templates. I made the box about 60px wider, but anything more it won't align properly. Unfortunately, I cannot set it for 100%; it won't allow me to. If you need a bigger input box, click on the little up or down arrows in the right hand corner when you are reply to a message or start a new thread. They will vertically stretch or shrink the content area to allow more space for typing. The width of the box is less important, especially when working with fluid width templates.

If it is still a problem, I will check it out and see if there is any workaround for this. Thanks again for the input. :55::16:

Ben
Meh - it's not a deal breaker by any means, I was just pointing it out.

I pretty much always use the Fast Reply function anyway, especially with the option to Quote the message I'm fast replying to.

But out of curiosity, I'm typing THIS reply using the full reply feature.

It's much better just being that little amount wider than before, IMO. I'd say mission accomplished.
 
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