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Forum Facelift - Nested Replies (Like Reddit For Instance)

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#1 Cluster Fox

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Posted 07 November 2020 - 09:07 PM

Why is it so easy to navigate replies and topics on say... Reddit?

Because replies are nested and organized, which means you can easily tell who's replying to what.

With Daeron's idea of getting the community involved on the forums, give yourselves the tools to succeed !! I think it's time the forums get a little modernization / facelift. The current forum style is antiquated and inadequate for navigating, tracking and discussing multiple issues. MWO needs to move to cascading / nested style forums.

Further detailing my suggestion along those line to get a better density of information and greatly improve the forums:
  • Replies to be presented in a cascading format where it's clear which level users replied to.
  • Posts are username and message, that's it. Images and all can still be allowed.
  • [User information tombstone with Tier, Image, Location and badges / Signature block] become pop-up on-hover / on-click toggle for mobile view.
  • Quote / MultiQuote would simply be replaced with "Reply to this post"
  • "Reply to this topic" would stay the same (Level 0 reply) OR will not be required at all since users could simply click reply on the Original Post.
  • "More reply options" would simply be an options pop-up / toggle rather than a completely new window and could be available in-thread replies.
Cons:
  • Someone might reply at the wrong level
  • Needs additional manpower on the forum framework, forum DB and forum layout
  • Smaller signatures and user rectangle should be considered to favour density information
Pros:
  • Multiple subjects of discussion can happen in the same forum thread about the same post, in parallel.
  • Much more organized way to navigate and present information
  • You can skip to the aspects of a subject that interest you without having to read everything.
  • Quotes are not really required anymore
  • The forum is CSS based, hopefully that makes life a LOT easier
For this functionality to work, only one additional database field is really required for the forum posts and that would be "parent post ID". Hierarchy can then be cascaded from there. The rest would be framework and web design work - still a lot of it.

Edited by Cluster Fox, 08 November 2020 - 10:31 AM.


#2 D V Devnull

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Posted 09 November 2020 - 07:16 AM

Due to the fact that there is a rule against sudden multiple posting to a thread, this puts me with having to vote against your idea happening. The current Flood Limiter that the Forums have also would cause a massive problem with your idea. I have personally had too many times where I get into a discussion, and end up replying to several people at once in a single post in order to stay within the current rules. With your idea, I would be having to waste time with laying down several separate replying posts, and be severely (AND WRONGFULLY) slowed by multiple bounces against the Forum's current Flood Limiter getting in my face repeatedly. Unless you can overcome these nasty issues with your idea, it really can not (and therefore should not) happen. As it is, ending up on something reminiscent of Reddit would more than likely drive people away, as MWO's Forums should not be a mere case of being another barebones-ish area like that. :(

Frankly, I'm rather much fine with the current (based on "Invision Power Boards") system. It's good as it currently is, and I would very much miss things like MultiQuote due to how helpful that has been in saving time on getting a complete set of replies put up without having to spread it across multiple postings. :huh:

~Mr. D. V. "sorry to have to punch such a giant hole in your Forum software changing idea" Devnull

#3 Cluster Fox

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Posted 09 November 2020 - 09:02 AM

No offense taken. You have posted a lot more than I did so you know what you're talking about. I think every opinion counts. In the end it's PGI's website so their choice.

My opinion is the exact opposite as I believe a barebones version would be beneficial for more efficient discussion. Personnally, I far prefer density and hierarchy of information to fluff. I usually don't have time to catch up with thread discussions as I'm more of a "Forum casual", so organized information is key.

The flood limiters/rules would have to be revised, possibly putting members on different levels of restriction based off seniority.

Multiquotes, well sorry... that's collateral damage.

Edited by Cluster Fox, 09 November 2020 - 09:18 AM.






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