GardenersCorner URL Slight Change and Reasoning

Discussion in 'Site Feedback/Bugs' started by Nudaii, Feb 15, 2017.

  1. Scrungee

    Scrungee Well known for it

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    I see 'Home' has been further improved, although I still believe it would be better if re-named, as I consider Home should always be the main page and that's Forums.

    Plus some explanation provided as to what that page is all about, otherwise it has all the appearances of the 'Home' page of a new gardening forum with very little content.
     
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    • shiney

      shiney President, Grumpy Old Men's Club Staff Member

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      Although I'm happy and like the changes I agree that it isn't necessarily a good advert to have a column of zeros (or low numbers) for any criteria. Not many threads get 'likes' on the opening post until it has been there a long time, so it seems a bit of a waste to show them.

      For instance, the thread that comes top with the most replies closed eight years ago :scratch: and it shows no likes. :rolleyespink: Also, quite naturally, most of the threads with the highest number of posts (therefore at the top of the Home page) are old and out of date. The 'what jobs are we doing' threads for 2013-16 are all at the top of the list. Of course they would be because that is what we are about but they're not relevant to this year. This year couldn't possibly be anywhere near that as we have only just started the year - but it's more topical.

      I like the idea of showing criteria but it needs a rethink.

      Is it possible to show the total number of likes in a thread instead of just in the opening post? That would indicate the popularity of the topic - but it still wouldn't necessarily be relevant to today.

      Sorry to be so critical of what I think is a very good change/addition. :sad:
       
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      • ARMANDII

        ARMANDII Low Flying Administrator Staff Member

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        To be honest, clueless, the changes in the software are completely down to Nudaii and the Webmaster and we cannot claim any "glory" .:dunno::heehee:
         
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        • Fat Controller

          Fat Controller 'Cuddly' Scottish Admin! Staff Member

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          Sorry I am a bit late on duty ladies and gents - been a tad busy this past couple of days.

          I don't wish to go over 'old ground' here, as clearly much has already been said and explained - however, I will add an offer - if any member needs more explanation to understand why the changes have been made, OR needs help how to get to the forums (which are exactly the same as they always were), please do not hesitate to drop me a PM and I will do my utmost to help.

          To everyone that is still a bit dubious about the changes, I ask only one thing of you - please bear with it for a little while, remembering that almost any change is going to seem totally alien at first. Think of how it feels when you go to buy a new car from a brand you have never driven before - - it feels a bit odd and unnatural for a wee while. But, before long you are able to jump into that new car and drive it about as though it were an extension of your own body - it just takes time to get used to something different.

          The entire Admin team is here to help and support you - there is no such thing as a silly question, so please do not be shy about asking something, be it here on a thread or via PM if you would prefer. I have the ability to offer remote PC assistance to anyone that is really stuck, so please do not feel alone with any problem or query. GC has one of the best group of members of any forum on the web, and that membership continues to grow - but, no matter how many members we have, we are all part of the one big GC gang and everyone is highly valued, and will get as much help and support as we can offer.
           
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          • clueless1

            clueless1 member... yep, that's what I am:)

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            Who can run fastest out of a crocodile and a tortoise?

            See, there is such a thing :)
             
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            • Jack McHammocklashing

              Jack McHammocklashing Sludgemariner

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              I understand what it is all about and for, Just it would be more friendly if the Entry page to the site was the Forums
              Someone comes to the site and thinks oh they are a friendly lot and have some banter included in the advice, I will stick with this lot

              Someone comes to the GC site and sees a staid bog standard, Flower,Veg,Shed,Compost run of the same old same old gardeners advice stuff, I will keep googling for something a bit more casual, as I am not a horticulturist just a Joe Blogs gardener, I do not want to embarrass myself asking stupid questions
               
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              • ARMANDII

                ARMANDII Low Flying Administrator Staff Member

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                That's not a silly question, clueless:dunno::scratch::heehee: We all know the answer.........the Tortoise obviously,
                [​IMG]


                "One day a hare was bragging about how fast he could run. He bragged and bragged and even laughed at the tortoise, who was so slow. The tortoise stretched out his long neck and challenged the hare to a race, which, of course, made the hare laugh.

                "My, my, what a joke!" thought the hare.
                "A race, indeed, a race. Oh! what fun! My, my! a race, of course, Mr. Tortoise, we shall race!" said the hare.
                The forest animals met and mapped out the course. The race begun, and the hare, being such a swift runner, soon left the tortoise far behind. About halfway through the course, it occurred to the hare that he had plenty of time to beat the slow trodden tortoise.
                "Oh, my!" thought the hare, "I have plenty of time to play in the meadow here."
                And so he did.
                After the hare finished playing, he decided that he had time to take a little nap.
                "I have plenty of time to beat that tortoise," he thought. And he cuddle up against a tree and dozed.
                The tortoise, in the meantime, continued to plod on, albeit, it ever so slowly. He never stopped, but took one good step after another.

                [​IMG]

                The hare finally woke from his nap. "Time to get going," he thought. And off he went faster than he had ever run before! He dashed as quickly as anyone ever could up to the finish line, where he met the tortoise, who was patiently awaiting his arrival."

                And we all know the Hare can run faster than a Crocodile so if the Tortoise can beat the Hare.......question answered.:heehee:

                _________________________________
                 
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                • Sheal

                  Sheal Total Gardener

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                  It would be nice to be given a few days warning that these changes are going to happen. For me the new front page is useless, it is far to bright for my eye problems and for that same reason I reverted to the old set up with the 'clouds' background (which also has larger print) when the forum was changed to the newer bright green. I hope the original is going to remain.

                  I agree with others here that the new front page is uninviting and confusing to new members. Most prospective members would expect to see something that defines the forum and it's set up as in the original home page, not a handful of threads that lead them no where. I understand that changes have to be made, but this one in my opinion is a bad move for GC.
                   
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                  • Fat Controller

                    Fat Controller 'Cuddly' Scottish Admin! Staff Member

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                    Fair point Jack, sadly the Google-bots kinda knacker that, and that in turn makes things run slower for all of us (including any prospective members), whilst also increasing the risk of complete outages. Also, don't forget that the front page will show any threads that are 'hot' even those that are funny or general natter.
                     
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                    • Fat Controller

                      Fat Controller 'Cuddly' Scottish Admin! Staff Member

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                      @Sheal, I am going to work on a guide over the weekend that will show you how to put a shortcut on your desktop directly to the forums page (thus avoiding the new 'landing' page), which I will post on this thread - if this is not soon enough (particularly taking into account your vision issues), please drop me a PM and I will happily guide you to the best of my ability.

                      EDIT - regarding the advance warning, the changes were implemented at very short notice simply because of two things coinciding with each other - those being slightly lower levels of website traffic and the fact that the tech genius that is Nudaii had a job slot become available in his very busy calendar. The changes happened much more quickly than any of the Admin team (or even Webmaster for that matter) anticipated, hence the lack of prior warning - for that, we can only apologise.
                       
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                        Last edited: Feb 16, 2017
                      • JWK

                        JWK Gardener Staff Member

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                        I'm also having trouble reading those thread titles that are in the Green font, I'm afraid it just doesn't conform to good web site design for people with visual impairment. I'm assuming the green font is meant to indicate something? "Stickies" maybe? To be honest who cares whether a thread is a "sticky" or not? I'd rather they were all in the same high contrast font.
                         
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                        • Anthony Rogers

                          Anthony Rogers Guest

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                          I still don't get what it's all about so I'm ignoring it.

                          Although there has been an explanation given as to why it has happened , there hasn't really been any as to why certain sections of GC have been given priority over others.

                          An instance of this is under the " Most Viewed" section, at the top ( or there about ) is " What's your weather like 2009 ", what use is this information to anyone thinking of joining? Won't they be thinking " well, what about the weather last year or even now ?"

                          Also, I still don't get what the numbers are on the left hand side, an example on the " Recently Active " section......

                          1, 7, 12, 1, 2, 1, 0, 0, 1, 1, 1, 0, 1, 4, 1, 0, 0, 16, 0, 0, 2, 5, 9, 0, 0

                          Is it some sort of secret code between the admin or something ! ?

                          If I was new now and I did what I did when I first joined I would probably give up and not bother.
                          When I first joined I was looking for information on Fuchsias and fellow Fuchsia enthusiasts..... Easy..... Just click on General Gardening, Other Plants, Fuchsias see I'm there.
                          Now I have to go through a maze.

                          I'm sorry but it just doesn't seem to be inviting me in to see more, it seems to be be saying " this is what people are commenting on, and this is what was said in years gone past, 2007 in one example.

                          Come on now, shouldn't a forward looking, educational and fun site such as GC be looking to the future not advertising the past.
                           
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                          • Anthony Rogers

                            Anthony Rogers Guest

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                            PS, forgot to say......

                            When I go to my " alerts " I can't go back to the old front page from there, it always takes me to the new one so then I have to go back from there by clicking " go to forums " .
                             
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                            • FloraPie

                              FloraPie Gardener

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                              When I first found this site I was amazed. HTTPS ! :wub2: And the wealth of data is mind blowing. Images alone are an extremely valuable global flora encyclopedia in and of themselves and the cross section of gardening wisdom that covers generations worth of advise and know how is :wow:

                              I checked GC's ranking just out of interest and was.. :scratch: it just didn't fit. I wouldn't and don't as a rule, use Google if I can help it but I understand its necessity in driving global traffic and so without further raving..

                              :yay: :yay: Well done webmasters! :imphrt:
                               
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                              • Sheal

                                Sheal Total Gardener

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                                Sorry admin, I have further issues. During the course of this last week I've been logged out on many occasions. Now, since the introduction of the new home page I'm being logged out as soon as I leave the private conversation page, in fact I was logged out whilst writing a lengthy conversation post also and only discovered that when posting the reply. :doh:
                                 
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