Changing forum software - Why?

I have to ask the question.

What was wrong ith the previous forum? It worked well, it was stable, it was as secure as any public forum is, it was popular and everyone knew how to use it.

This new "Upgrade" seems to be a step in the wrong direction, making posts harder to do, attachments an absolute nightmare, even smileys don't work!

It seems to me that an awful lot of time, energy and effort is going into this upgrade with very little benefit. It is also upsetting a lot of people having to learn new ways of doing things, having to reset all their personal settings, re-linking their sigs, messing around trying to get the forum to do things it either hasn't been set to do yet, or functions that just aren't there anymore.

I'm sorry folks, but this new forum gets a big thumbs down from me, (I'd use an icon, if they worked, and if there was one!) I know Mike is doing his best to get things working and I'm sure he's putting a horrendous number of hours into it, but I really do wonder if it's really necessary!

 

I've been wondering the same. I agree with you as well. Sorry Mike, but for me this gets a big thumbs down too. :/ It justy doesn't feel like fishlore, and having the names on top of posts, seems weird. I don't recognise a lot of people now with their names on top cause I don't tend to look on top of the posts, + I liked it when people had their own pics. It helped to get to know the person etc.

sorry

Gwenz

 

I also agree, the old forum was very user friendly...nothing complicated...and everyonr loved it with the upgrade, it just doesn't feel like the fishlore everyone loved

mike, you might have done this, but could you set up a poll, and ask everyone what they think about big upgrades b4...just so we could have some input?

 

I've realised as well, that people are starting to dissagree about if they like the new forum or not. There never used to be many dissagreements etc. That's what I liked about fishlore. This seems to be changing everything. Its not the same forum to me anymore :/

sorry Mike

Gwenz

 

Ok, Mike is still hard at it and things are slowly starting to work, so well done Mike!

I have to be honest that I still don't like this layout or the way it works, but in fairness to Mike, he is trying to do the best for fishlore and it's members, so we need to give him support and time to complete the job.

When he's finished all the changes, and got all the s to work and things, then we will see which is best. Until then, I just hope that he hasn't binned the previous one!

A suggestion for the future though would be to mirror the forum so that the upgrade could be done in the background, before running it live. All you would need to do then is just update the few posts that happen during the upgrade work. It would save all the problems that we are having now!

I actually did this for a forum a while ago, and it worked a treat. I set the new version on a different ip address, then when the change-over happened, just re-directed the old ip to the new one.

 

Thanks Tim. I actually did test it out while running the other forum. I still have the other forum up, just redirected to this one, just in case that I want to scrap this one (not likely though). I'm not too worried about getting the functionality back, it'll just take a little time. The only thing that's frustrating is the user/password issues that didn't crop up in testing. I had several test accounts that worked fine. I think it's relating to the ability to use a custom name with smf and that's what's tripping members when trying to login since this one requires your "registered" name.

 

I'm still not sure why there was need to change, but as admin, you have the final say, Mike, and we will support whatever forum is running!

I do agree with Gwenz here though, that the latest upgrade has caused some descent among the membership, which is unfortunate. I am sure it will settle down though, as time passes.

The user/password issue really threw everyone off balance, I think, mainly because no-one was expecting this change so soon. It was a pity that you didn't mention it in the editorial of the magazine last month!

Never mind, what's done is done, and now it's just a case of finishing the work as quickly and efficiently as possible so that everyone can get back to the matters in hand, tending to their fish and seeking help.

can you not speed up the work by letting some of the mods help out? I know what it's like to re-build a Db, and this one is huge, so it is still a long way off complete. maybe one of the mods could help to get some of the other things done while you concentrate on the sensitive and delicate areas?

 

this sites has its own mag?? I didnt know that is it free if not how much it cost?
and mike I like the forum now its just at first it through me a loop, and I'm still lost hahaha but it all will pan out. wish I could help ya.

 

when I posted my earlier message, not everything was worked out yet, but things are getting better, hope we can figure all this out!

 

I personally really like vbulletin, granted I was not here very long before on the old system, and have used vbulletin forums in the past. Granted like I said in another post the old system had some neat features, but I much prefer this style. (glad the avatar thing is fixed again too)

I have also seen some posts of people saying other forums using vbulletin have left bad tastes in there mouths due to the people on them. On that I have to say, this is a great community and I have made more posts in the last week since finding this site, then I have on other sites I have been a member on over a 2 year span, solely due to the community of friendly people. And to me it would have not made a difference at all if it was the same layout as other sites when I found this one. As I still hit the other sites to as there are some good people there too, and lots to learn of them, I just tend to have less to say there hehe.

 

this sites has its own mag?? I didnt know that is it free if not how much it cost?
and mike I like the forum now its just at first it through me a loop, and I'm still lost hahaha but it all will pan out. wish I could help ya.

Yep, you can find it Here

 

hmm well my only problem was having to reset my password but I really don't have a problem with it, just will take a little getting used to like any new thing.

About the controversary among members, that will start to happen a bit more as more members come since there will be more members and I agree fishlore is different then when we all first came here but things change you can't help that. Fishlore in my opinion is still the best forum I've ever visited, it's a great community.

 

Maybe because I'm a techie, I really like the new look. The 'under construction' phase can be trying at times, but Mike's been fixing stuff pretty quick and I think it has more of the FishLore feel to it now than when it first went live.

What makes FishLore what it is though is the people here. A lot of forums use this software because it's LOADED with features and more customization, but FishLore will never be a strife-ridden place like so many of them.

O0

 

And hurray to that!

I was bothered about having to change password too, so I just reset it to my old password now. (my settings/e-mail and password)

hmm well my only problem was having to reset my password but I really don't have a problem with it, just will take a little getting used to like any new thing.

About the controversary among members, that will start to happen a bit more as more members come since there will be more members and I agree fishlore is different then when we all first came here but things change you can't help that. Fishlore in my opinion is still the best forum I've ever visited, it's a great community.

 

Things are starting to look good and even work And like Dave said FishLore is the people that are here and the caring and concern we have for our fish and each other that make up "Fishloreans" (Richard did you invent that word?). Anyway.. Maybe we won't be getting messages telling us we had run out of space and not letting us log on any more I say Hurray!!! Lets work with this and be patient
I just realized I don't have a Thanks button
Carol

 

you don't have thanks buttons in any posts by other members when you're looking at the forum list of threads?

 

Things have definitely gotten easier(like the my threads, my post, etc links at the top of the page).
The only problem I have is that pages take so long to lead on my slow computer. I've turned off pictures, signitures, etc. but it still takes forever for anything to load.

 

I've noticed that things are running slower too. That includes the typing of messages too. It takes a couple of seconds for the writing to appear on the screen after I have typed it. It's strange, since it's only the forum that gives this problem, and leads me to another question:

Is this forum completely server-side? My feeling is that everything is poerating directly from the server, putting strain on everyone's bandwidth and disabling the cache system. At least, that's the way it seems to me!

 

one other thing.
I am not condemning Mike for the change of format, just wondering why there was a need for this to happen. It does seem to be running better now, but there are still a lot of things to be fixed and repaired, all of which seems to be such a lot of effort. So far, the only "benefits" seem to be little things like the Thanks button and the quotes are slightly easier. At this moment in time, the downsides still outweigh the benefits IMO. The poll that's running tends to back this up to a great extent too.

The keystroke lag is really bugging me now, and I am running a spyware checker to make sure that it's nothing on my pc that's causing it, but I suspect it's nothing to do with my end, since it's only happening on here!

 

I also have a lag when typing and also ran my anti-spyware, and also have no problem on other sites. So I suspect we've got something there.

One interesting thing, though. I am on anotehr forum that uses the same software and am not experiencing the lag problem. Thought I'd reassure you, Mike, that's it's might be a question performance tweaking/stress testing, rather than a fatal flaw with the chosen software.

 

I agree with you there Armadillo. It is probably a small issue that Mike has overlooked while trying to keep up with all the other bigger issues, but it may also be to do with poopularity and number of users online at any one time, bandwidth etc.. The other forum you don't have a problem with may not be as popular as this one, or may have a better server system, or better bandwidth availability..... there are many possible causes for the lag

 

What browsers are you using? This sort of thing is in almost all cases a problem on your end, not the server. What kind of "Message Editor Interface" do you have selected at the bottom of the My Settings -> Edit Options page? The bottom has a fair chance of running slowly due to an overwhelming amount of Javascript used in it. The middle is probably the most like the old forum (I haven't checked) and the basic editor is just a plain text box.

So, if you're having problems with the Enhanced, swap to Standard or Basic.

 

Thanks Marc. I did wonder about that when I looked at the source and saw all the javascripting references. You are correct, if you are using the WYSIWYG editor, the lag is there, the standard editor it isn't.

The lag has gone, but so has the interface. I am running a fairly powerful computer here, so I dread to think what problems the advanced editor would cause those with slower and less able systems!

 

Things are definitely starting to look better now, and the names are back at the side again, thank you Mike. It might not seem like a lot, but it really does change the whole feel of the forum, and makes it stand out from the others!

Now things are really starting to look and feel better, I am becoming more content in myself with the new format. There are still a lot of issues to address, but I am sure that if Mike is given a little more time, they will all be resolved in the end. Just let's hope that he can find a way to get the s back into the posts, and then I think most of us will be quite happy!

 

you don't have thanks buttons in any posts by other members when you're looking at the forum list of threads?

I don't have a thanks button at any time
Carol

 

neither, it would appear has anyone now. The feature has, byt he look of it, been turned off again!

 

mike took it of because it was slowing things down

Peace Out Callum!

 

Just got that! It's a pity that after all the work trying to upgrade, he is having to turn all these nice features off to speed things back up! I'm hoping that the process he found isn't forum related and that his plans can progress again.

 

First - Thanks to everyone for your support, feedback and for sticking with us through this upgrade! As far as reasons for doing it? There are many, many things I'd like to implement going forward (auctions, trading systems, better photo galleries, more user friendly add-ons) and using this software will make it easier on me to implement these things going forward. I do apologize for not giving everyone more lead time to prepare for the upgrade.

Still trying to track down the exact reasons (inefficient code?) for the slowdown when the WYSIWYG editor and standard editors are enabled.

 

slow down .. or you'll slip and fall!

well, it's hard for me to judge the speed change being stuck on dialup until the cable company gets here to install the internet, but it seems to me when I watch a page load, the sluggish time is when the page is loading the graphics.. that's when I get the dragging trying to type. don't know if that helps to track down the problem or not.

I appreciate the new forum, the old one was great and comfortable, but fishlore has grown so much and needs more powerful software to keep the site going in the right direction as we're getting new members daily and it didn't take very long to go from 3000 to 4000 members.