New Layout

[Matra et Alpine]

some people have an in-build tendency to oppose to changes. Nothing wrong with that, but most of the time it will happen as you describe. It is a matter of getting used to. You might ask yourself the hypothetical question: Would you have avoided UPC if the forums had always been like this?

ahem, YES, there are forums I do not bother reading and rely on guys who do to cross-post data in the ones I do.

Readability is key when time is tight. I may be differen to many in that I speed read threads between tasks. So I need to be able to scan VERY quickly. The vertical layout typicaly permits faster recognition of items of "interest" and fast scan over the text of a post to pikc up the gist.

I'm doign catch up and so am able to make a reasonable guestimate on "performance" on my speed reading and I'm running about half speed
I'll re-evaluate once more "normal" daily updates are happening.
The possibility that the new colours and banding may negate the inputs I evaluated the last time we tried this makes the experiment worthy.

[PBB]

Here's what could make everyone happy:

vBulletin Skins

There are many vBulletin forums that give the user the option to change how the forum is displayed. Attached are five versions of the same page from LS1TECH.com. The first is the default setup, vertical like our old look. The second is the same page with the horizontal look we have now. The third thru fifth are merely different color schemes of the vertical setup. The last pic is showing the small dropdown skin selection window in the that's displayed in the lower left hand corner.

The arguement that UCP had to go to the horizontal layout with six attachments per post is insubstantial since the pages display differently based on screen resolution. The thumbnails are only showing up as two rows for people on 1024x768 resolution monitors. (My resolution is 1024x768, for the record. )

Please, Wouter, make the old forum look available for those who liked and make the new the default look for those that prefer it.

-Matt

[henk4]

Here's what could make everyone happy:

not everyone

[targa]

I know I'm not here nearly as much as the rest of you, but when I just pulled up the page......wtf.....the new layout makes the site feel like some of the cheaper, less dedicated car sites I have looked over. It really doesn't matter, 'cause I didn't really contribute while I did frequent here, but this only makes me want to visit less.....

It doesn't matter, 'cause regardless of the reason, the others who are here all the time like it, so it's like 10,000,000 to me and those aren't good odds for a-changin'

[Rockefella]

I know I'm not here nearly as much as the rest of you, but when I just pulled up the page......wtf.....the new layout makes the site feel like some of the cheaper, less dedicated car sites I have looked over. It really doesn't matter, 'cause I didn't really contribute while I did frequent here, but this only makes me want to visit less.....

It doesn't matter, 'cause regardless of the reason, the others who are here all the time like it, so it's like 10,000,000 to me and those aren't good odds for a-changin'

Give it a week or two, it'll look much more appealing. (That's what happened to me )

[clutch-monkey]

i like the new look, imo its good to have change every now and then.

[ZeTurbo]

I like the Horizontal look.As clutch monkey sayd, Change is good.

But here are a few suggestions that would improve it (or at least make it more pleaseant for the more conservative members), and that are not too hard to emforce (i think).

1-Make the text in signatures a lower text size. I think this would go a long way to help readability, not only does it make it easier to REAd the posts and it also takes less space in a thread, while still behing perfectly readable.
I think should have allready be the ruel as a Sig is NOT nearly as important as a Post.

2-PBB has a VERY good point.This was available in the previous format, where we could change the colour and layout(vertical or horizontal) of the forum. Just like we can turn avatars off, and sigs off, It would be really neat if qwe could also choose the horizontal or vertical layout.

Thats my 2 cents on this whole new layout deal. I think you should take them into consideration wouter. It would make things much more pleaseant for a lot of members.

[Zondaboy1]

i havent been on in a while and i came and i was like woah wtf. its weird but i'm growing to like it

[PerfAdv]

There was yet another thread started by someone who hasn't visited recently. It was promptly and aptly deleted.

I was editing my post in it when it was deleted.

I just wanted to share this pic of a page which practices avatar-n-sig abuse but also uses the horizontal scheme. Notice the extreme wasted space...

http://www.postingworld.net/forums/showthread.php?t=648

[Wouter Melissen]

There was yet another thread started by someone who hasn't visited recently. It was promptly and aptly deleted.

I was editing my post in it when it was deleted.

I just wanted to share this pic of a page which practices avatar-n-sig abuse but also uses the horizontal scheme. Notice the extreme wasted space...

This site:http://www.postingworld.net/forums/showthread.php?t=648

What the hell does that have to do with this site?

[PerfAdv]

What the hell does that have to do with this site?

That is the effect that many are complaining about. A lot of space taken up by the repeated avatars and sigs, more obvious with the horizontal scheme.

[Wouter Melissen]

That is the effect that many are complaining about. A lot of space taken up by the repeated avatars and sigs, more obvious with the horizontal scheme.

Why would those people complain about something here that is happening on another site?

[PerfAdv]

Why would those people complain about something here that is happening on another site?

I think I explained myself better in the thread that was deleted.

Originally, I posted the pic saying that it was an exaggeration to make a point of how the horizontal scheme takes up more space, especially with the repeated material of avys and sigs.

[Wouter Melissen]

I think I explained myself better in the thread that was deleted.

Originally, I posted the pic saying that it was an exaggeration to make a point of how the horizontal scheme takes up more space, especially with the repeated material of avys and sigs.

Well seeing as we don't have pictures and signatures and have them limited to 200 characters, I still don't see the relevance of that screenshot.

[PerfAdv]

Well seeing as we don't have pictures and signatures and have them limited to 200 characters, I still don't see the relevance of that screenshot.

What we have now is one step closer to the screen-shot than it was when we had the Username, avatar, and user information creating the left margin. The information in this margin was easily ignored when reading through the posts. In the all-horizontal setup, this information tends to distract more.

EDIT: I don't mean to just criticize what must have taken a lot of work. I think that other than the forums the whole site has improved, greatly. Just the forums seem to nag-on, I'd thought after a few days I'd have adjusted.