Upgrade done

[xoxoxoBruce]

Is everyone using the quick reply? I'm using the post reply and don't get the red triangle to report bad posts in the upper right corner.

[Beestie]

There might be some confusion provided by an advanced feature of the new board:

To illustrate, I replied to a post within this topic by using the "quick reply" button in Perth's post. The new feature I'm referring to allows one to reply not only to the topic itself but to any post within the topic (subThreading).

The problem becomes apparent when viewing the thread in different display modes. In hybrid or threaded mode, my test post shows up directly under Perth's post. I deliberatly wrote my post to only make sense if it was read immediatly after Perth's post to illustrate the problem.

Someone reading in linear display mode (the old Cellar was linear - all posts were sorted in chronological order) won't see my post immediately after Perth's post but not until much later (many intervening posts) and will not understand my post. Similarly, if someone reading Perth's post intends to reply to the topic itself (the only choice one had on the old Cellar), then someone reading in threaded display mode will see the post as a reply to Perth when it may integrate/address points made in posts that do not appear until much later in the view.

The quick reply button inside of each post creates a reply to that post (a subThread) instead of to the topic itself and I'm not sure everyone knows that. This new software makes it possible to create sophisticated subThreading within topics but after reading this topic in both modes, its obvious that some reply-to posts weren't replies to the post they are subThreaded under and some that are genuine subThread posts, when viewed in linear display mode are hard to understand since they are separated from their parent post by all the chronologically intervening replies.

In short, neither display mode solves the problem and that, imo, is the problem. One solution is to disable subThreading making it just like the old Cellar where all posts are always sorted chronologically. Another solution is to remove the quick reply button leaving only the quote button (also creates a subThread) to insure that a "reply-to" post always shows a quote of the message it is replying to. If nothing else, this would make everyone understand that they are creating a subthread and not making another general "stand-alone" post in the topic - retaining the text of the post being replied to would also solve the problem of not understanding the context of a subThread post while reading the topic in linear view.

Subthreading is a cool feature but only when posts land where they are supposed to and read in the correct order.

[Beestie]

If you view the topic in threaded mode, and use the quick reply box at the bottom instead of the quote button within a post, you get a non-quoted reply. There are too many ways to reply to posts, imho, and they all behave very differently and create vastly different impressions (some create unintended subthreads, for example). A subthread post that doesn't quote the parent can be misinterpreted since the post shows up in different places depending on the display mode. Read this topic in threaded mode and again in linear mode and you will see what I mean.

[LabRat]

RIP old Cellar format...

this will take some getting used to, but i think in the long run we'll all get used to it and come to love it as much as the old Cellar. the quick reply is nice, i haven't been all over to check out all the bells and whistles yet tho. dunno how much trouble this was for you UT, but keep up the good work!!

[Undertoad]

I made that decision - the software does let you deny "quick reply" to people unless they hit one of the quick-reply buttons.

If you don't hit the buttonk, it doesn't know how to thread your reply, which does break threaded mode, badly. But I felt like nobody would really USE threaded mode, and I felt it was a terrible user interface problem to give people the quick reply box without telling them they had to hit a button to use it. (An UNLABELED button at that!)

vB3 is full of user interface improvements but that one is a tiny step back. What do you think - will people use threaded mode? Is it useful?

[Beestie]

Originally Posted by Undertoad

vB3 is full of user interface improvements but that one is a tiny step back. What do you think - will people use threaded mode? Is it useful?

Threaded mode is great but, again, only when its used properly. The Cellar worked beautifully in linear mode and it may be that it should retain that restriction.

Just here, if I didn't know why you posted what you did, since your reply is not threaded under my initial post on the matter, it would be difficult to understand. And misunderstanding is a big enough problem without posts being out of their intended order. All sorts of unintended interpretations could result from the unexpected placement of a post.

I think linear always works because you can always quote the post you are replying to. Threaded mode is too easy to mess up by threading a reply that isn't supposed to be threaded and by not quoting a reply you mean to thread to but didn't. But this is a fairly big issue - I'm not trying to advocate as much as bring the issue to light. Personally, I like threading but, if I have a vote, I'd vote against it since its very difficult to manage properly (make sure that all posts end up exactly where they were meant to end up).

[OnyxCougar]

I find myself using the quick reply more often than not, and didn't even realize there was a linear/hybrid/thread mode option.

Beestie's post DID succeed in confusing the shit out of me.

I'm using linear, like the Old Cellar. It defaulted to that when I got here. Am I missing posts?

[Undertoad]

I wasn't even thinking of the notion of forcing threading to be the default view; I think that goes against what the Cellar really is, allowing conversations to meander wherever they will. But I can imagine people wanting to see a threaded view, of, say, Dodads.

BUT, that said, if Bruce wanted a full-out discussion of every single dodad he would have started a new thread for each one. The thread stands on its own.

For massive communities where they discuss specific topics, it's a good idea...

[Undertoad]

Originally Posted by lumberjim

cant change my title?

This is fixed.

[xoxoxoBruce]

Linear works better when I'm not keeping up on a thread, which is getting harder to do these days.

[Griff]

many grassy ameobas sunyour

Originally Posted by Undertoad

Also, your profile pic can be up to 500x500, why not.

Yeah, I really like that feature and see that a lot of folks have already added a pic to their profile. Its nice to get a bit of a visual on who you are replying to, and I must say we are a good looking bunch. Beauty and brains and off the wall posts - the Cellar has it all!

[elSicomoro]

Originally Posted by xoxoxoBruce

Linear works better when I'm not keeping up on a thread, which is getting harder to do these days.

Liar! Stop fibbing!

That's what happens when you get old...you can't keep up with the youngbloods.

Okay, we've been on the new version for a few days now...it's alright...the setup is like an invision board (which juju uses for hinterlands). It's just gonna take me some time to get used to.

[lumberjim]

Originally Posted by Undertoad

This is fixed.

ok. so where is it?

[Undertoad]

Top left, User CP, Edit Profile, second box