Board CSS Update

[Bandage_Man]

It needs more....violet and purple...
/s

[Risebell]

I'd be down for that, actually.

[Ghosty]

purple

Would be pretty cool actually

But not too much thought

[legomaster1378]

Whooo! The new layout looks awesome! Time to squash ALL the bugs!

[Scarilian]

Also since the time the post was posted isn't there anymore,necroposting isn't against the rules,now? /s

Just a heads-up as not sure if you were sarcastic about the necroposting or that there is no 'time posted'.

The time posted is now located underneath the profile pic, though it is less noticeable due to being light grey on white.

[Conduitt]

I think it looks way better. It feels as fast as, if not faster and smoother than, Facebook or Twitter. Great job.

[Political_Slime]

Topic suggestions are not really needed at the top of the main page. given we have suggested topics at the bottom of each topic. I've had little-to-no interactions with the suggested topics either, so not sure why some are being suggested.

And that is where you and I differ. I attempt to read all topics on the Boards, so Steve is quite helpful for me to see new and hot topics. Correct me if I am wrong, but from what I know you mainly read a few topics that you find interesting, and ignore the rest of the Boards. (Which is fine, just a different style.)

Other 'Hot topics' feel like they shouldn't really be focused because of their nature as troll topics, fun to mess-around with, but not really something that should be thrown in a member's face when they log in

Again, more useful to people like me who are actively looking for the hot topics.

They are also incorrectly labelled saying they were updated years ago.

Must be a bug on your end, because they're fine for me.

It also appears to be scrolling, yet there is no option to scroll back. So if you notice a topic you are interested in, chances are you'll miss it as it'll scroll before you click it.

That is a fair point. A few arrows could help out with that.

There is also the idea that it may reveal spoilers for people who don't want to see them when suggesting topics about varying things - such as Ninjago or other TV shows/films which sometimes have a spoiler-filled image inserted in the opening post on the topic. (Seen this happen with the Ninjago realms topic)

Also a fair point, though I don't see any solutions for that besides axing Steve.

Sizes of the profile pics have changed again, resulting in the issue mentioned by 'The_Owl' where its difficult to see the profile pictures. I think its also trimmed a few images resulting in the above image of 'Kah' and the unreadable 'Cast & Crew'

I actually don't think they changed at all. The reason that Kahi's avatar is messed up is because of the "Circular, Bigger, and more Blurry" profile update a while back.

[NoCashValue]

This'll definitely take some getting used to. Personally I'm experiencing a bit of lag, but that could be my computer.

[Ghosty]

/s

So yeah

The time posted is now located underneath the profile pic

Oooh
I didn't notice,my bad.

[Payinku]

I didn't notice,my bad.

why the random grey line on the left? it obscures the time-stamp of the posts.

#killtheline

[Scarilian]

And that is where you and I differ. I attempt to read all topics on the Boards, so Steve is quite helpful for me to see new and hot topics.

I'm the same, i tend to just skim the 'suggested topics' at the bottom or the part where it tells about how many new or unread topics there are. The issue with Steve is that it'll select just the most popular topics in that week, which are normally the most popular in each of the segments regardless so they show-up under the headings. It also doesn't mean they'll be new topics, only that they are active.

Just feel it doesnt add anything other than being another 'suggested topic' area. It has a few kinks such as a user being able to cycle through the varying topics Steve displays. If it was worked out so it displayed only new topics rather than just popular topics then it could be something.

Correct me if I am wrong, but from what I know you mainly read a few topics that you find interesting, and ignore the rest of the Boards. (Which is fine, just a different style.)

Worth noting, these are not really things that i brought up other than the pointlessness of Steve, most of this is just the general consensus that people chat about that I've relayed because they wouldn't. So personal preferences of board searching, even if they matter, are not only related to me here

I don't know where you have gotten this impression, I'm more active on the boards than most i just don't comment too much xD From the rank i thought you'd know that i read a lot of the new topics and I always comment on the new MOC topics that i see and practically everything else that's related to what i like xD

The thing is Steve is just the fifth form of displaying hot topics, there is also;
- Stared topics topic that are given focus via TTV or Staff
- Topics that get popular and appear in the top three of each area
- Suggested topics at the bottom of the page
- Focused on the main page (mostly reserved for important news)

It serves no purpose that is not already filled in multiple ways, and is currently a less efficient way of viewing hot topics than the others that exists. If it was changed to viewing new topics instead that would be giving it a unique function, but at the moment i have no need to use it because the other options are there

Must be a bug on your end, because they're fine for me.

Should i make a bug report topic? or seeing as you've read it do the staff already know about the issue? Not sure there is anything my end that could make the time jump from minutes and hours to hundreds of years...

Also a fair point, though I don't see any solutions for that besides axing Steve.

An option is just removing the image displays from Steve, have a small bar across the top or side of the boards with scroll arrows that displays the titles of new topics. If it was moved to the left or right, Steve could then be accessed at all times making it easier to transverse from new topic to another.

Have an additional option to change the display on Steve, such as 'show topics created in the last few days' or 'show popular topics' or 'show topics in a certain area' then that would definitely make it more useful.

I actually don't think they changed at all. The reason that Kahi's avatar is messed up is because of the "Circular, Bigger, and more Blurry" profile update a while back.

Possibly, might have just missed that

OoohI didn't notice,my bad.

Tis fine, we'll all need to get used to the new layout

killtheline

I think the better question is... why is it here?

[Payinku]

I think the better question is... why is it here?

if I may ask, why the random grey line on the left?

indeed.

[Ghosty]

I think the better question is... why is it here?

Sp00ky line is sp00ky

[Looch]

@Political_Slime is calling the latest addition Steve.

I vote for the next new addition to be named Larson.

[Tate]

everybodies reaction to the new update;

[Kahi]

The new "Hot Topics" bar is to show people, both new members or members who maybe have taken a break for a while, just what is popular on the boards just this moment. It's visually distinctive, catches people's attention, and it directs members to see if they would find something interesting that they haven't yet seen. Also, it's pretty great to see your own topic up there. I remember the relish of seeing my comics topic on BZP's Hot Topic list quite well.

My avatar is just messed up because I haven't bothered to change it when everything went circle. It's on my list.

The one thing that would be cool is arrows to scroll back and forth. I'll look into that.

[IllustriousVar]

I'm the same, i tend to just skim the 'suggested topics' at the bottom or the part where it tells about how many new or unread topics there are. The issue with Steve is that it'll select just the most popular topics in that week, which are normally the most popular in each of the segments regardless so they show-up under the headings. It also doesn't mean they'll be new topics, only that they are active.

The idea isn't to suggest topics that you may find interesting. It's to highlight topics that are actually popular throughout the boards for people who aren't actually members. It's a tool that will be significantly useful for users who just browse/lurk the boards rather then interact with it, or for new visitors.

It's not meant for you, or someone who consistently keeps up with all topics every day because obviously you would have already seen these topics, hence why they are popular in the first place.

Of the thousand or so people that browse our website every day, only 300 of them are actual members with accounts. This is an easy, visual way for them to find things that are being talked about and discussed without having to be deeply embedded in the community.

This is also a tool that highlights popular topics- it's a reward for posting something that people enjoy and incentive to make cool mocs, post cool art, or make a topic that people find fun or interesting to talk about because then you'll be featured at the top of the page for everyone to see (once again, this is for users who AREN'T members of the boards, therefore being featured at the top means more exposure from sites outside of the TTVMB).

The "hot topics" slider will be the first thing people see when looking at our site- including LEGO Employees. Getting your MoC/artwork featured here is a big deal.

hopefully that makes it's purpose more clear

---

Also, can I request that everyone take screenshots when they stumble upon a bug? A lot of them are client specific, so it's hard for me to fix something that I can't actually see myself.

Thanks! (and thanks to everyone who actually has reported bugs so far, I'm looking in to them and taking in your considerations regarding the changes as well).

It would also be helpful to say what browser you were using at the time the bug happened, as well as whether you are browsing on mobile or PC.

[Gresh113]

I love the new look!

[IllustriousVar]

While I'm still working on it behind the scenes, mobile should now be in a somewhat usable state.

[Looch]

Mobile is not crash