25 replies to this topic

[Ash-Bash]

Hi guys,

I have been a member at these forums for almost a year and have just seen it go down hill since I signed up and started posting.
I have been thinking in my spear time while logged onto Trap17 and below are a few idea's/suggestions & Ways you could improve the forum altogether.

• New Theme, This theme seems to be old and quite dull. Would make a great change!
  
• New things to keep old members interested!
  
• Less down time, The forum seem to be down alot. Try and keep 'em up!
  
• Better Speed, Its always good to have a Fast forum!

Well there are a few I am sure you guys will approve and disapprove of some of them please feel free to add your own in the replies!

-Ash.

[rpgsearcherz]

Ash-Bash, on Aug 8 2009, 08:00 PM, said:

Hi guys,

I have been a member at these forums for almost a year and have just seen it go down hill since I signed up and started posting.
I have been thinking in my spear time while logged onto Trap17 and below are a few idea's/suggestions & Ways you could improve the forum altogether.

• New Theme, This theme seems to be old and quite dull. Would make a great change!
  
• New things to keep old members interested!
  
• Less down time, The forum seem to be down alot. Try and keep 'em up!
  
• Better Speed, Its always good to have a Fast forum!

Well there are a few I am sure you guys will approve and disapprove of some of them please feel free to add your own in the replies!

-Ash.

I'm kind of off-and-on the forums so I didn't notice the downtime or slow speed. About the theme, I definitely agree though. Or to make it even better, there could be *multiple* themes (with us being able to choose our own). Doing so would allow each person to feel more comfortable in the forums without making others uncomfortable. This is what I did with my forums and it worked out much better for everyone since nobody had to agree on a theme. Make some dark, some light, different colors, etc.

[TheDisturbedOne]

It's quite hard to have a "fast" forum with such a large database. A new theme wouldn't be bad though.

[rvalkass]

Ash-Bash, on Aug 9 2009, 02:00 AM, said:

New Theme, This theme seems to be old and quite dull. Would make a great change!

Do you have any suggestions for a new theme? Remember that everyone has different personal taste, so one thing to bear in mind is choosing a theme that most people will find OK. Also remember that, as far as I know, OpaQue has to do quite a bit of work to get each theme to work correctly with the various modifications he's made to the forum.

Ash-Bash, on Aug 9 2009, 02:00 AM, said:

New things to keep old members interested!

Again, any specific suggestions or ideas in mind? To be honest there isn't a lot of 'new' stuff you can do with web hosting

Ash-Bash, on Aug 9 2009, 02:00 AM, said:

Less down time, The forum seem to be down alot. Try and keep 'em up!
Better Speed, Its always good to have a Fast forum!

57,000 members and over 400,000 posts makes the database quite large, and therefore slower than on a forum that is much smaller. However, I haven't really noticed any speed issues myself - it may well depend on geographic location or Internet connection, which are much harder to change or fix.

[TheDisturbedOne]

For a skin, I have found a free one called "Black Crystals" from http://www.gpf-design.com. Very professional an looks nice.

As for "new things for old members" how about a double points month or week? MyCENTs would get doubled, and activity would increase. Of course there might be spam issues, but I think it would work out great.

[Nameless_]

Yeah, I like the new theme suggestion, this forums doesn't look professional, even though it's a web hosting site. But then, most web hosting sites don't look good anyway...

There is still the new appearance contest, so anyone that want so join can do it. I won't be in it though, takes too long and I don't have time for it. But I'll be looking out for new entries (I don't think that there are any at the moment) and hopefully this will get more visitors to the site.

The actual appearance actually turned me off, just to let you know...

[rpgsearcherz]

I would just like to see a darker theme.. Reading white pages too long starts to burn your eyes. Maybe I'm the only one who feels that way, I'm not sure, but just with almost the entire site being white or near-white, it's hard to stay on for extended periods.

[anwiii]

for an unprofessional forum as you call it here, it sure is successful. it's one of the more busier forums on the internet. it also offers pretty much free domains and web hosting services. why don't you use your words more carefully when talking about this place because i am going to start wondering why you're here. this thread was about suggestions for trap. do you have any objective suggestion?

Nameless_, on Aug 9 2009, 08:24 AM, said:

Yeah, I like the new theme suggestion, this forums doesn't look professional, even though it's a web hosting site. But then, most web hosting sites don't look good anyway...

There is still the new appearance contest, so anyone that want so join can do it. I won't be in it though, takes too long and I don't have time for it. But I'll be looking out for new entries (I don't think that there are any at the moment) and hopefully this will get more visitors to the site.

The actual appearance actually turned me off, just to let you know...

[rpgsearcherz]

anwiii, on Aug 9 2009, 07:05 PM, said:

for an unprofessional forum as you call it here, it sure is successful. it's one of the more busier forums on the internet. it also offers pretty much free domains and web hosting services. why don't you use your words more carefully when talking about this place because i am going to start wondering why you're here. this thread was about suggestions for trap. do you have any objective suggestion?

Looking unprofessional doesn't necessarily reflect people's view of something. There are plenty of businesses that thrive even though they aren't the best looking or the best thought out, solely because they have unique ideas.

The look isn't what sells this site/service, it's the idea behind it.

[TheDisturbedOne]

And often with other forums that have competition it is look that bring people there. I would come here no matter what it looked like though.

[sonesay]

What would really be good is something along the lines of what Deviantart.com has where everything seems all integrated as one site. We would have our account management area (hosting) and forums appear as they are/from in the same site. Obviously its going to be a lot of work developing something like this and I don't think anyone has the skills or time. This site works as its purpose and the way it looks should not matter all too much in my opinion. The only practical thing we can do to make it look better is change themes but who decides what looks good and what doesn't? I personally prefer a dark colored site with white text but its my preference.

[rvalkass]

sonesay, on Aug 10 2009, 09:23 AM, said:

What would really be good is something along the lines of what Deviantart.com has where everything seems all integrated as one site. We would have our account management area (hosting) and forums appear as they are/from in the same site. Obviously its going to be a lot of work developing something like this and I don't think anyone has the skills or time.

I think it would be impossible to do that. Everyone is now in the same billing system, whether they use Trap17 for their hosting or buy it from ComputingHost with real cash. To integrate the forums with the account management wouldn't work because there's a very large number of people in the system who have never used the forums, and have no use for them.

[anwiii]

it's all relative. what looks good to one, may look bad to another. my point though, which you want to argue for some reason had NOTHING to do with what you just said.

rpgsearcherz, on Aug 9 2009, 07:24 PM, said:

Looking unprofessional doesn't necessarily reflect people's view of something. There are plenty of businesses that thrive even though they aren't the best looking or the best thought out, solely because they have unique ideas.

The look isn't what sells this site/service, it's the idea behind it.

[Ash-Bash]

Quote

Do you have any suggestions for a new theme? Remember that everyone has different personal taste, so one thing to bear in mind is choosing a theme that most people will find OK. Also remember that, as far as I know, OpaQue has to do quite a bit of work to get each theme to work correctly with the various modifications he's made to the forum.

Yes here is one I seem to like very much...
Name: Just like IPB3
Preview:http://skins.invisionize.com/db/index.php/f/8418/process/viewshot/size/lg
Download: http://skins.invisio...ndex.php/f/8418

Quote

57,000 members and over 400,000 posts makes the database quite large, and therefore slower than on a forum that is much smaller. However, I haven't really noticed any speed issues myself - it may well depend on geographic location or Internet connection, which are much harder to change or fix.

Ok I understand about this Large database problem. But a new theme would be super!

TheDisturbedOne, on Aug 9 2009, 02:22 PM, said:

For a skin, I have found a free one called "Black Crystals" from http://www.gpf-design.com. Very professional an looks nice.

As for "new things for old members" how about a double points month or week? MyCENTs would get doubled, and activity would increase. Of course there might be spam issues, but I think it would work out great.

This does look a nice theme I also found a free one Please look above
I think the idea about the Double points monthly or weekly would be great I am sure this would keep old members active and intrested in Trap17.

- Ash.

[rpgsearcherz]

I don't see a reason to boost the number of mycents earned. Just by taking part in the community in general you can easily earn your hosting. One post a day is roughly $3 a month. That's $36 a year ($24 for hosting, $10 for a domain are the costs, leaving $2). And that's just from one post a day.

Of course bigger packages cost more, but it still shouldn't be an issue.

[Ne0n]

Quote

Hi guys,

I have been a member at these forums for almost a year and have just seen it go down hill since I signed up and started posting.
I have been thinking in my spear time while logged onto Trap17 and below are a few idea's/suggestions & Ways you could improve the forum altogether.

•New Theme, This theme seems to be old and quite dull. Would make a great change!
•New things to keep old members interested!
•Less down time, The forum seem to be down alot. Try and keep 'em up!
•Better Speed, Its always good to have a Fast forum!


Well there are a few I am sure you guys will approve and disapprove of some of them please feel free to add your own in the replies!

-Ash.

It would be great if there was a bit more to myCENT.
But of course the packages you have to consider.

Edited by Phoneix, 10 August 2009 - 11:35 PM.

[Diffusr]

Ash-Bash, on Aug 9 2009, 02:00 AM, said:

Hi guys,

I have been a member at these forums for almost a year and have just seen it go down hill since I signed up and started posting.
I have been thinking in my spear time while logged onto Trap17 and below are a few idea's/suggestions & Ways you could improve the forum altogether.

• New Theme, This theme seems to be old and quite dull. Would make a great change!
  
• New things to keep old members interested!
  
• Less down time, The forum seem to be down alot. Try and keep 'em up!
  
• Better Speed, Its always good to have a Fast forum!

Well there are a few I am sure you guys will approve and disapprove of some of them please feel free to add your own in the replies!

-Ash.

I couldn't agree more on every point. The theme needs to be updated and the forum navigation needs to be overhauled.
I would be on here posting a lot more frequently if it weren't such a painful experience each time.
We don't need to see all the forum subheadings up front.
How about a rollover reveal app. Or go and take a look at a site like digg.com and get some ideas. While far from perfect, digg is much easier to spend time on than here.
I think all that keeps users on this forum at the moment is the free hosting (obviously) and maybe because there is such a big choice of subjects the net is cast wide and people have found there niche discussion area here. Also the spirit of trap17 is appealing to many - but it could be SO much better.

[mahesh2k]

Quote

I couldn't agree more on every point. The theme needs to be updated and the forum navigation needs to be overhauled.

I agree with this one. I think to get current threads you have to scroll to bottomI think it will be better if they make it at the top.

Quote

How about a rollover reveal app. Or go and take a look at a site like digg.com and get some ideas. While far from perfect, digg is much easier to spend time on than here.

Digg is not forum and it has lot of JS and ajax stuff. That adding to forum will increase loading time and many of us are on dialup or low speed connections, mobile phones so think about it.

Quote

I think all that keeps users on this forum at the moment is the free hosting (obviously) and maybe because there is such a big choice of subjects the net is cast wide and people have found there niche discussion area here. Also the spirit of trap17 is appealing to many - but it could be SO much better.

I think you're taking this annoyance way to extreme. I agree with navigational issue but rollover app and people flocking here just for mycents is not valid all time. Besides theme is not that bad, as you are trying to portray.

Edited by mahesh2k, 12 December 2009 - 06:37 PM.

[Ash-Bash]

Diffusr, on Dec 12 2009, 05:39 PM, said:

I couldn't agree more on every point. The theme needs to be updated and the forum navigation needs to be overhauled.
I would be on here posting a lot more frequently if it weren't such a painful experience each time.
We don't need to see all the forum subheadings up front.
How about a rollover reveal app. Or go and take a look at a site like digg.com and get some ideas. While far from perfect, digg is much easier to spend time on than here.
I think all that keeps users on this forum at the moment is the free hosting (obviously) and maybe because there is such a big choice of subjects the net is cast wide and people have found there niche discussion area here. Also the spirit of trap17 is appealing to many - but it could be SO much better.

The speed seems to be ok taking into account the size of the database though maybe accounts with 0 posts could be deleted at some stage to stop us active members suffering? This would definitely increase the speed as most of them are probabley them PM spam bots.

A script like Digg would be great on here and maybe you could earn 10myCents for every dig or something?

I do think there should be more ways to earn mycents such as the Dig way above or something to keep old users interested in posting.

[mahesh2k]

What's the point in Digg traffic ? Do you know digg traffic is made up of savvy userbase. All IM people know that it's hard to monetize for Digg. And digg members hardly click on ads. So what's point in bringing that traffic ? Just for Alexa ranking ?

If the traffic is not paying anything in return then what's the point in that traffic source ? Digg is not at all worthy source when it comes to PPC. Only PPV/CPM traffic benefits from Digg. And to let you know that Adsense ads on trap are CPC. Kontera ads on trap17 are also CPC. Now what this digg traffic will help xisto grow in terms of revenue ? If you have any good explanation and stats on digg and revenue generation i'm all ear to it.

One more thing is current way of earning mycent is enough. You post quality content and you earn mycent which worth the post. You want to earn more and do what ?want to buy datacenter or something ? 1 week of forum posting (with 5 quality replies) is enough to earn mycent that will last for 1 year of logic plan hosting. Plus you'll earn enough to cover domain costs as well. Why you want to have more ways of earning mycents ? Are you running out of them ? I guess not so.

[Ash-Bash]

I did say something like the Digg System, Maybe The admins could add a Rep system where you are 10 Cents for every rep given and -5 for every minus rep. I thinks that's very fair as long as the system is not abused.

[anwiii]

yea? well i don't like it. people can use unjust reasonings. i mean lets say people don't like ya, ash(god forbid). there goes your mycents. plus, this isn't the dig system nor should it ever be. the system is god. it is unique to trap.

Ash-Bash, on Dec 12 2009, 02:16 PM, said:

I did say something like the Digg System, Maybe The admins could add a Rep system where you are 10 Cents for every rep given and -5 for every minus rep. I thinks that's very fair as long as the system is not abused.

[Soviet Rathe]

To me, dark themes are less professional, the Black Crystals theme Disturbed mentioned would be a good idea, the name would make you think it's a dark theme but it's actually white, and the headers and footers make it look like windows vista, the headers of this theme is flat -.-
But installing new themes are time consuming if you have mods installed because you have to look up all of the skin edits each modification calls for and redo them, and I'm sure there are many mods on this board. not to mention things like the ads and 3rd party things which are all skin based which means lots of skin edits.

Yes I think there should be more things to do here like a regular SOTM? or SOTW? I think a SOTM would be great and have it like on my friends forums where the winning sig is displayed on the forum index in a little box, here's what it looks like http://bu-clanforums.com/ yah I know their forums is a tad ugly lol but the SOTM thing is what I'm talking about.

I think the forums are really fast, I'm on dialup and it runs just fine.

[mahesh2k]

Quote

I did say something like the Digg System, Maybe The admins could add a Rep system where you are 10 Cents for every rep given and -5 for every minus rep. I thinks that's very fair as long as the system is not abused.

Reputation system ? For what ? Isn't this content system enough to earn mycent ? We had reputation system when we had credit system in 2005-2007 but now opaque dropped it and i'm glad he did that. Just imagine one or two posts which are in 1-liners from us and any noob will come up with reasoning of one liners and will dump us with negative rep. You wanna gonna go down with such thing ?

And as i said earlier, digg is in no way justifies trap17's current revenue model. It will hurt more than it will help.

Quote

To me, dark themes are less professional, the Black Crystals theme Disturbed mentioned would be a good idea, the name would make you think it's a dark theme but it's actually white, and the headers and footers make it look like windows vista, the headers of this theme is flat -.-

Dark themes are not at all professional. If you have ever read about usability and people with reading trouble then you'll come to know that black themes are not at all considered as professional. Show me any usability study where black themes are considered as professional. Let me tell you even current dark theme hurts eyes a lot for some people. Blue/white/green/light yellow themes make no issues to eyes.Text becomes easy to read for people. Only art/warez/gaming forums prefer dark themes and they are happy with what they do as majority of members like such themes. Here this is hosting forum, and people want to read things with ease and reply. What dark theme can do better here for people ?

[FouGilang]

Reputation system is good, especially to see some people reputation (i still remember when i insert my polls on another forum), but it will works only if it does not affect anything. I don't know about ipb reputation system, but in the another forum i mentioned it was kind of perfect to measure the worth of the corresponding person. And it cannot be easily abused so the reputation shown, is really the person's reputation.

New theme will do good, but i'm satisfied already with the current one. Isn't it so human just like ubuntu? dark theme is a no-no in a forum where you will spend a lot of your time. Almost all my site visitors prefer the current brighter theme than the old one.

For the forum activities, the 'xwzy of the month' will be fun. But then again, trap have that yearly award.
How about making a sub forum where the member can start their own forum events? It was VERY funny when the comic and story competition was being held on the official game forum on my country