RMweb Gold The Fatadder Posted October 12, 2009 RMweb Gold Share Posted October 12, 2009 Trouble is Martin, as when I asked this before: it is there on 'Forum' threads but isn't available on 'Blogs'... As far as im aware there dosnt seem to be an equivilant for blogs, instead the list just seems to show blog topics in date order with each link taking you to one blog post. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Ian J. Posted October 12, 2009 RMweb Premium Share Posted October 12, 2009 OK, some hours later I'm pleased to say I'm finding my way round and all credit to you guys, there must have been hours of work went into making this new forum and slowly but surely, I can see some of the benefits. I'm certainly finding it easy to read, which is a big plus, so thanks for choosing colours and backgrounds that are easy on the eye. One thing that would really help me and it may well be there, but I haven't found it yet.... Having looked at a few blogs and some of the replies on here, I can now see the difference between a blog and a layout thread. The one thing that is missing for me, is a summary of what the blog is about. I would like to see right at the front end something like "A P4 layout based on the ECML, set in the '60's". This would tell me straight away, whether or not it was of interest. As it stands, there are many and to be honest, I haven't got the time to trawl through them all to see if they are of interest. If postings to the blogs only appear in the blogs and nowhere else, there is nothing to give me a flavour of something which may be a great piece of modelling. Even a snapshot pic of the layout on the title page would help. I'm sure all will settle quickly and we'll wonder what all the fuss was about in a week or two...... Just an aside: I still can't highlight and copy text in my draft posting, so if it crashes I don't lose everything. I can highlight and copy text in others posts, but not my own. The description of a blog is a setting for the blog, and appears under the blog title at the top of the page. I guess not everyone is using it yet though. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold martin_wynne Posted October 12, 2009 RMweb Gold Share Posted October 12, 2009 Just an aside: I still can't highlight and copy text in my draft posting, so if it crashes I don't lose everything. I can highlight and copy text in others posts, but not my own. Hi Gordon, What do you call your "draft posting"? The contents of the editor panel? I'm not sure why you can't highlight it, but if you click on it and then press CTRL+A , CTRL+C , you should have it safely copied. If the system crashes don't click REFRESH. Don't click SEND again. Click the BACK button. You should then still have your post text in the editor. regards, Martin. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve with the Hat Posted October 12, 2009 Share Posted October 12, 2009 first reactions: oh good theres a fast reply box at the bottom of this topic but before that.. ah the layouts are now split off into blogs (not a blog fan in a myspace sense) they are all in a funny list - oh wait what does this say - right - click a button and its like been back on the old layouts area in RMWeb3 but with the focus on what the blog author is posting - so blogs are like a differently formatted thread - great turn off spam chatbox - good page formatting overall is good though I was expecting a new banner at the top with a grand rmweb logo etc - last thing on a sysops mind at this stage tho galleries - good feature, though members could post a bit more info here on what we are looking at as dcif100889.jpg dosen't really help latest commments list on 'blogs' show only who posted and the blog title not the comment (or part thereof) if this could be altered in future it may help people feeling the blogs have led to a less inclusive style getting heated in here at some points. I took the first impressions op to mean good or bad so why flame people with missgivings, surely reassurance and pointing out the similarities with the previous boards would be a better route. Flip side is people should always read the guides before asking questions especially when admin are up to their eyes in it the few that feel they must now leave the boards due to the upgrade might want to take a few weeks seeing what all the buttons do as many of them are there to allow users to format the board how they like/pretty much how it used to be. overall first impressions are a more streamlined modern feel, a mammoth ammount of effort - especially to attempt a seamless realtime crossover, several new features - some useful, some less so for me. really appreciate the work thats gone on and looking forward to settling in Steve Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold martin_wynne Posted October 12, 2009 RMweb Gold Share Posted October 12, 2009 turn off spam chatbox - good Hi Steve, If you turn that column off you also lose your Watched Content panel at the bottom -- the equivalent of the old "View your posts" list: That panel has become essential to me. Andy -- any chance of moving it to the top of the column? The "what's on your mind" thing is ok, but surely doesn't deserve prime spot in the column? regards, Martin. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
bertiedog Posted October 12, 2009 Share Posted October 12, 2009 Are we really entering a system where blogs are semi independent and the "total" just increases without limit? Following a posting before was easy, it simply came up in my posts. I noticed that blogs you reply to can be set to forward notification, but this is only to you, not to the general readership who are now in the dark unless all blogs are read, and the task of reading hundreds is going to be formidable. I assume the best approach is to reply to a Blog and get notification of new material, but the whole system seems to be leading down a path towards lots of un-read and cubby holed blogs. Quite how I can leave advice for a problem on a blog and expect it to be useful to general readership is beyond me. Stephen. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold martin_wynne Posted October 12, 2009 RMweb Gold Share Posted October 12, 2009 Quite how I can leave advice for a problem on a blog and expect it to be useful to general readership is beyond me. Hi Stephen, You can't. I suggest you start a new topic in the main forums for such advice. In it, link to the relevant blog. And then in the blog add a comment linking back to that topic. That's a lot more effort than just clicking "Reply" but it seems the only way. Also, it's not always going to be easy to see just which forum to put the new topic in. Andy -- we really do need a sub-forum somewhere called "Blog Discussions" or "Blog Matters Arising" or some such. regards, Martin. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold The Stationmaster Posted October 12, 2009 RMweb Gold Share Posted October 12, 2009 Definitely more reliable today so I've had a chance to explore - all very good except the blog section. Well to put it a bit better the blog section itself - not the blogs as such as they are great - but what it really needs is some sort of index page to avoid ploughing through what is currently 10 pages (and will no doubt grow) to see what is there. The same comment I think applies to the various galleries - the format is good but as they galleries grow it will mean a lot of ploughing through to find what might interest you. Would some sort of 'tile pattern' presentation allow easier access when first diving in or when coming back for specific areas I wonder? A bit more confusing is where the boundary exists - if indeed there is one(?)- between what goes into a gallery and what goes into a titled item under, say. 'Prototype'. For instance I - along with a least two others who frequent RMWeb - have hundreds of photos of signals (and plenty of other railway things as well come to that). So do I put them in a gallery (with comments noting what was said above) suitably titled or do I put them in 'Prototype'? This might seem a silly question but which should it be (I presume 'Prototype', but...). Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve with the Hat Posted October 12, 2009 Share Posted October 12, 2009 Hi Steve, That panel has become essential to me. regards, Martin. I noticed that - a 'tree' functionality or a cross next to each box may be more useful bertie - I may be misunderstanding you but do you mean if you post a comment in a blog it will not be read/noticed by members not viewing that blog? is this not the same as the previous system where if someone posted in a particular thread it was only viewable by members who were keeping up with that thread? many a time on the previous board I would only become aware of a great layout when its thread was updated dragging it back from page 15 - or I would search the boards for a phrase looking for advice and discover it that way - with layout blogs set to the 'table' view things look just about the same not having a go - just trying to understand your point m8 regards Steve Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mod6 Posted October 12, 2009 Share Posted October 12, 2009 The description of a blog is a setting for the blog, and appears under the blog title at the top of the page. I guess not everyone is using it yet though. Thanks for that Ian - it would clearly help everyone if originators of blogs (and topics) could be as specific and clear as possible in describing what their tome is about. And that advice is absolutely no different from the old site. But it's down to you guys to make it happen. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve with the Hat Posted October 12, 2009 Share Posted October 12, 2009 A bit more confusing is where the boundary exists - if indeed there is one(?)- between what goes into a gallery and what goes into a titled item under, say. 'Prototype'. [/i] from the guides section on galleries I think the feature is meant as a repository to upload your pics to, fully intergrated into the site with all the features of say, photobucket (sub sections slide shows etc). Then in a topic you could link to your image in the gallery (in the same way you would link to a photobucket hosted image) thats my take on it anyway, may have things wrong.... would it not be a case of using the search functions to find an image you were looking for? there are now 'tabs' in the search results allowing you to see results from the various areas (galleries include) hope that helps (and that I'm not talking tripe lol) cheers Steve Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Willy Posted October 12, 2009 Share Posted October 12, 2009 A mundane reply I know but I am glad to be back on line and thank you all concerned. I voted "Not sure but I think it'll grow on me" and the more I explore the more it is growing on me. There are things that I don't understand yet such as the little red & green "Vote this person up/down" buttons in the bottom right hand corner of each post but I am sure it will sink in in due course. Cheers, Willy Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Poggy1165 Posted October 12, 2009 Share Posted October 12, 2009 I had to re-register for some reason. I admit that I am deeply conservative and resistant to change, but I don't like the new format. Sorry and all that, as I appreciate that there must be a reason behind this change and a lot of work and thought has obviously gone into it. I will give it a try, and as I am not on here that much I doubt whether my absence will be a worry to anyone... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold martin_wynne Posted October 12, 2009 RMweb Gold Share Posted October 12, 2009 bertie - I may be misunderstanding you but do you mean if you post a comment in a blog it will not be read/noticed by members not viewing that blog? is this not the same as the previous system where if someone posted in a particular thread it was only viewable by members who were keeping up with that thread? Hi Steve, It's not the same because under the previous system a new post on any topic would appear in the list of Active Topics. Anyone viewing that list can immediately see that a particular topic has new content -- without actually going to that topic. Under the new system, to find out if a blog has a new comment, you must actually visit that blog. Blog comments don't appear in the Active Content or New Content lists. Essentially, blog replies/comments are intended to siphon off the old "chaff" stuff to somewhere that can be easily ignored. But the baby has been thrown out with the bathwater, in the sense that substantive responses to blog items are also easily lost. regards, Martin. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
gordon s Posted October 12, 2009 Share Posted October 12, 2009 Apologies Ian, I've pressed the multi quote button and nothing seems to happen. If I understand correctly they are all titles you see under the layout Blog section. "Sturminster Newton in N gauge from down under" is a start in the right direction, but "History", "Getting started" etc are no help whatsoever. OK. I now see that I always start from Active Topics, so going to Layout Blogs from Active Topics takes me to the list I'm talking about. Going directly to the main section on Blogs seems to give a synopsis of the layout, so perhaps I should start there and it's me that needs training.... As I said, my main point of entry has always been Active Topics/Content as I'm on here most days and see virtually every post that comes in on a daily basis. I still can't see the "go to the latest post" on any one particular post in the Active Topics page. I can see the icon for today which takes me to the posts today, but then have to scroll back to the last one I read. Is the "take me to the last post I read" icon missing for each and every single topic on the Active Content page? Could be I need more retraining than I first thought...... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajdown Posted October 12, 2009 Share Posted October 12, 2009 I'd like to see the "Bachmann/Farish" new products section split. If I'm wanting to find out about the latest Bachfarish "N" release, I don't want to wade through pages of chat about their OO offerings, and vice versa. There probably aren't that many people who model both. Same with the Dapol section really. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mod6 Posted October 12, 2009 Share Posted October 12, 2009 getting heated in here at some points. I took the first impressions op to mean good or bad so why flame people with missgivings, surely reassurance and pointing out the similarities with the previous boards would be a better route. Flip side is people should always read the guides before asking questions especially when admin are up to their eyes in it And thanks for that Steve :icon_thumbsup2: The frustration from admin comes when members continue to ask the same questions without appearing to have read any of the previous posts and topics or the how-to section - let alone the Forthcoming Changes topic on the old site. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
bertiedog Posted October 12, 2009 Share Posted October 12, 2009 bertie - I may be misunderstanding you but do you mean if you post a comment in a blog it will not be read/noticed by members not viewing that blog? is this not the same as the previous system where if someone posted in a particular thread it was only viewable by members who were keeping up with that thread? Yes, I do basically mean that, but before the reply to a query would at least roll past the top of the new postings list, and they were spotted, as the replies to my posting help showed many, many, times, and I do appreciate that blogs are different, and are a unique cubby hole, if that's an appropriate description. Martin has suggested cross referencing any comment that would be considered as general help to the membership in a blog to a new posing on the forum, and this appears to be the answer. I should add these are comments not complaints about all the work put in on the new forum, and comments were asked for, and are intended as constructive. Stephen. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve with the Hat Posted October 12, 2009 Share Posted October 12, 2009 just been having a click about and I see where you're coming from - the active/new content for blogs reports posts by the author and no the new comments Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Gwiwer Posted October 12, 2009 RMweb Premium Share Posted October 12, 2009 Andy and his team have clearly spent a great deal of time and energy preparing for the new site. And it is very apparent that the majority of people who are expressing their opinions have fallen pretty much in love with it. So with thanks to all those involved and due acknowledgment of their generous donation of volunteered time I shall add a few thoughts of my own in what may turn out to be one of very few future posts. The site has a more modern feel which is nothing more nor less than we were promised and so far (early days) it has not suffered the server pains that troubled the old system. Nor should it. The geography is a little different which we were again asked to take note of and become familiar with and again what has been promised has been delivered. I am not a fan of the internet phenomenon known as the "blog" and had hoped to find that the layout topics might be covered in a more appropriate manner than they are. This is RMWeb not RMBlog and I had thought that perhaps we might be able to post our work for others to share, promote and comment upon, to enjoy and to celebrate our hobby and achievements. Instead I find that the only way to do this is in a rather different format to what has been the case and one that I do not find helpful or supportive. My feelings about being rated as an individual were made known before and as there seems no way to turn this feature, which I consider to be irrelevant to RMweb, off this means that I can now be viewed as somehow inferior to others simply because I have a zero beside anything I care to post. There is no history here for anyone to refer to in order to make value judgements; we all need to refer back to the old site for now at least. To borrow from a popular cult TV series "I am not a number, I am a free man". The only language option at present is "English US" which irks me as a user of "British English" which differs in spelling and grammar, not to say usage at times. I have still not been able to locate the user control panel though no doubt it will turn up on my travels around the site. With those comments in mind I shall in future make only very infrequent appearances here and my participation will be largely confined to read-only mode. For those who have followed my own layout thread I am happy to provide updates in return for a PM as my account remains open here but there will be no future additions to the topic for so long as it is reduced to the same dubious status as the inane ramblings of the terminally bored, namely the web log. Andy has moved on. In some respects in a different direction to that which I personally find helpful. Good luck with the new site as I am sure it will do well. But it may do so without my contributions in future. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mod6 Posted October 12, 2009 Share Posted October 12, 2009 There are things that I don't understand yet such as the little red & green "Vote this person up/down" buttons in the bottom right hand corner of each post but I am sure it will sink in in due course. It's the 'reputation' system (see other topics in Forum Help) but it is currently disabled. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest stuartp Posted October 12, 2009 Share Posted October 12, 2009 I like it. Yes it's different, and I haven't quite sussed the blog thing yet, but I think it's an improvement. I only ever used the 'View New Posts' button on the old RMweb and that's still there, so I'm happy. I remember the wailing and gnashing of teeth when one of the aircraft modelling forums switched from the old Network 54 cascading scroll-forever layout to something like the old RMweb - Chicken Licken impressions all round. After a few days none of us could understand why the host had put up with the old system for so long. Bits of it will take a bit of getting used to, but well impressed ! Thanks Andy. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mod6 Posted October 12, 2009 Share Posted October 12, 2009 I'd like to see the "Bachmann/Farish" new products section split. If I'm wanting to find out about the latest Bachfarish "N" release, I don't want to wade through pages of chat about their OO offerings, and vice versa. There probably aren't that many people who model both. Same with the Dapol section really. Let's hope that everyone titles their topics properly then to save you all that trouble. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Willy Posted October 12, 2009 Share Posted October 12, 2009 It's the 'reputation' system (see other topics in Forum Help) but it is currently disabled. Thank you Mod6. I have to admit that I haven't read all the small print yet, so I have some catching up to do. Willy Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mod6 Posted October 12, 2009 Share Posted October 12, 2009 I have still not been able to locate the user control panel though no doubt it will turn up on my travels around the site. Top right next to your name there is a down arrow. This opens a drop-down menu from where you can see and edit all your profile info and settings. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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