I just got done reading the novel where everyone chimed in about the advertisements at the bottom of the page when you aren't logged on....

I have to say that I'm impressed with the professionalism being shown by the owners/admins with so many people getting pissy and whiny. I too have complained recently and the calm response from them has been very professional. Instead of getting defensive and pissy back, the responses are clear cut, thought out and low keyed.

Now for another complaint...
At the top of each forum, we have a directory tree. Do we really need to have another box that describes the purpose of that forum? The title of all forums is pretty self explanantory.

I also noticed that since the advertisers were moved to the right, the text boxes were shortened requiring text wrapping into multiple rows. I think this gives the website a very cluttered look. The old TGO design, as seen in the attachment, was very clean and neat. Is there any way to improve the look to be more simple? Is the last post in that forum really necessary to have on the forum directory page? I also noticed the font is larger than the old TGO design. I would think that promotes the use of word wrapping even more.

I opened a web archive of the old TGO and tried comparing. When I opened a thread, it brought up the new design with the old layout. I was able to see 19 threads per window with that layout and only 13 with the layout we use daily now. It just looked neater. I think if you clean up a little, people won't complain as much.

 

Why are the topics in the middle like that for you? I gotta see what's going on with getting the TGO retro thing done again.

 

You know who to talk to.

But that is likely not going to do anything for this issue here. The Retro design (if approved) will likely have the same "features" that you see on this current theme here. The Retro will likely only be a color and logo difference. The ad layout, and text, will likely remain unchanged. Even if there is a change allowed, it's probably only going to be minor.

 

I brought that part up too about having to scroll really far down the page to get to a forum...Thats it exactly -the font/text and that the sponsors are on the side is the reason..i was told it was something with my computer but it only changed when the site was changed over to the new vB. I too would like too see a lot more boards and threads per page...as i dont like scrolling so far just to reach the regional boards and ect.

 

thank you, I really appreciate the way you approached your question and concern.

If we were to move the advertisers back to the top of the page, it would require you to scroll down a good 500 pixels every page load to get to the content. It also leaves no room for future advertisers to join without pushing content even further down.

Now why your content looks the way it does in your browser has me floored. If I knew everything was centered I would have corrected that a long time ago. That is not a very appealing or easy way to be reading content. Can anyone else provide me with a screenshot and the version of web browser they are using so I can look into this matter.

Thanks.

 

I'm not sure if it is me that you're referring to about the font size issue. I often do have to inform people about their browser's font size getting changed because many people do accidentally change it through short cuts - like holding down the ctrl key and using the mouse's scroll wheel, etc. - then think it is the website. If that was not the issue in your case, sorry.

 

There is also a collapse button at the top right of each forum section. If mainly visit "Regional Boards" it may be worth shrinking down the rest of the forum so there is less need to scroll.

 

Just an FYI. When I view the pages directly from the website, the information is not centered as shown in that one picture. That link showed up from the web archives when I opened a thread. For whatever reason, it showed the new layout, but spaced like the old site. I think that looks just fine if the info isn't centered. I attached a pic of what I see today when looking at all forums. This is compared to the old website view. Obviously, the old one is easier on the eyes and easier to see what you're looking for. Again, the centered version looks like a morph of the old site font and spacing with the new website colors and format. The 2nd picture is what I see when looking inside the History Board. There is a lot of white space that can be reduced to clean up the look.

 

Comparing side by side the old one is clearly easier maybe the KISS rule applys to this, having popular threads as well as most recent thread does nothing for me because if i am interesed in the topic i will go in and see the first thread first, i dont need to see it before i go into the topic then also when i go in...

I appriciate the new new owners timly and level-headed responses to everyones opinion. I feel that this site will be built superior to the former, it just may take some time, Dave|Xoxide goodluck...

 

just as an add in the big red advert by google sticks out way too bad. the red is off color with the rest of the reds a little bit at least on my screen which just makes it a little worse even.

 

Without going into details, as I understand it, it is basically under construction. It likely may change.

 

This ad is being removed today. It was a quick test we ran and it is NOT something we are going to be doing in the future.

Our goal is to keep the site looking smooth and clean. Making sure it has a good overall appearance. While there will be ads on the site we are working hard to ensure they fit into the site design as best as possible.

 

thank you much. having ads is understandable, and I can even understand wanting to gather a little attention to the ads. that was too much though.

again thank you for changing that