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Welcome to NewBuddhist on Vanilla!

LincLinc Site ownerDetroit Moderator
edited December 2010 in NewBuddhist.com
Take a deep breath. This is a big change, so give yourself a chance to acclimate. It took me about 2 weeks to fully get into the groove of using new forum software.

If you find anything broken or not working as you thought it would, please tell me in this discussion. Questions welcome!

If something feels "off" or you want something back that was in vBulletin... give it a couple days and make sure it's not just the sense of "missing" speaking. :)

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Comments

  • ShiftPlusOneShiftPlusOne Veteran
    Looks good. Is there a "view new" button around somewhere?
  • GlowGlow Veteran
    Definitely will take some time to get used to. I like the big font size, though.
  • B5CB5C Veteran
    Oh yes very interesting difference.
  • fiveballsfiveballs
    If something feels "off" or you want something back that was in vBulletin... give it a couple days and make sure it's not just the sense of "missing" speaking. :)
    An outline of how it works would be nice.

  • fivebellsfivebells Veteran
    edited December 2010
    A way to delete comments would be nice, too.

    Also, I kind of relied on knowing who had initiated a thread. I suppose I will get used to not being able to see that, but it would be nice to have again.
  • LincLinc Site owner Detroit Moderator
    @ShiftPlusOne The main page is the "view new" now! It's always the newest discussions.
  • LincLinc Site owner Detroit Moderator
    (You all see what I did there with the @ symbol?) ;) It notifies the user they've been mentioned in a discussion.
  • LincLinc Site owner Detroit Moderator
    Definitely will take some time to get used to. I like the big font size, though.
    Yes, since we can't do individualized themes yet, I chose to maximize size and legibility since I know we have several members who appreciate that.

  • ShiftPlusOneShiftPlusOne Veteran
    @ShiftPlusOne The main page is the "view new" now! It's always the newest discussions.
    Yeah, I noticed that, it's a little different though. Lol, I am just not good with change.

    I like the instant quote functionality, I found the old forum seemed to lack that... or I wasn't doing it right.

  • LincLinc Site owner Detroit Moderator
    edited December 2010
    The old 'per category' views are still here, they're just over in the sidebar now. As I said, it definitely takes a week or so to get used to. But, after that, you'll wonder how you ever dealt with vBulletin :D
  • LincLinc Site owner Detroit Moderator
    edited December 2010
    Random tip: BBCode no longer works, but HTML does.

    Italics: Stuff to italics
    Bold: Stuff to bold

    I'll add an easy toolbar to do this very soon. :)
  • BrianBrian Detroit, MI Moderator
    edited December 2010
    If you guys had any, any idea how much work has gone into this, you'd be blown away. @lincoln has been busting his ass for months. You'll find, I think, that in the long run Vanilla is a far better solution to facilitating discussions than the old paradigm.

    Lincoln, thank you very much for your hard work. This is going to rock :)
  • JasonJason God Emperor Arrakis Moderator
    edited December 2010
    Looks good, amigo. Only thing that I've noticed so far is some of the old BBCode quotes aren't working (especially here).

    Also, are you planning on adding a 'view users online' thingie?
  • JasonJason God Emperor Arrakis Moderator
    (You all see what I did there with the @ symbol?) ;) It notifies the user they've been mentioned in a discussion.
    What is this, Twitter? :D
  • JasonJason God Emperor Arrakis Moderator
    Oh, and an advanced search option (word + specific poster) would be nice too. I use that all the time.
  • LincLinc Site owner Detroit Moderator
    @Jason Search is definitely a pain point in Vanilla still. Expect improvement there in the coming months.
  • JasonJason God Emperor Arrakis Moderator
    Hm, seems that all the posts that were originally posted via the front page are gone, or at least unable to be accessed. When I click on the 'continue reading' link, I get "Page Not Found."
  • LincLinc Site owner Detroit Moderator
    edited December 2010
    The blog moved and is a little jacked up at the moment. I plan to move all that content directly into Vanilla soon. It's on my list to fix. It will be back.
  • ShutokuShutoku Veteran
    If I might ask, what was the reason for changing?
  • LincLinc Site owner Detroit Moderator
    @Shutoku In a nutshell, I feel Vanilla is easier to use for people new to forums. The markup is much cleaner and mobile-device friendly. It's also much easier to customize and make modifications to.
  • JasonJason God Emperor Arrakis Moderator
    Cool. You da man, @Lincoln.
  • B5CB5C Veteran
    image
  • newtechnewtech Veteran
    omg to weird, hope get used to..
  • InmostLightInmostLight
    Yeah, only thing I noticed was the quotes not working too. Other than that, this looks super! It's clean and quite a bit different than the previous board.

    I also just noticed that the message drafts are auto-saved. It was the worst when writing a long reply and then suddenly firefox decides to be unresponsive, and the message has to be written over again. In terms of functionality, do you intend on adding new features as it progresses, or is the idea to keep it as simple or nearly as simple as it is now?
  • skullchinskullchin Veteran
    Wow, already this is way easier to navigate. @Lincoln Way to go!! :clap:
  • LincLinc Site owner Detroit Moderator
    @InmostLight I do plan to make a few tweaks and additions as we go, but I intend to honor the base simplicity of the software. I will indeed address the old quotes looking weird.

    Thanks, @skullchin.
  • LincLinc Site owner Detroit Moderator
    edited December 2010
    Anyone using Conversations yet? That's the new private messaging. They stay together in a chain (like Discussions) and you can add more people to them if you want. Click on your Inbox to have a look. Feel free to say hello to me if you want to test it out.
  • skullchinskullchin Veteran
    Btw, vanilla is also way easier to read on my phone than vBulletin
  • Mr_SerenityMr_Serenity Veteran
    I like the old one better lol. But not my decision just my opinion ;)
  • ZaylZayl Veteran
    Yeah I prefer the old one better but thats because it's in a familiar format to the forums I have used ever since I was introduced to the internet. I'll eventually get used to this, but a thread explaining all of the changes would be very nice.
  • BrianBrian Detroit, MI Moderator
    I have to tell you, the new mobile version is amazing. That's a big game-changer for me, personally, as I access the web on my phone more often than not.

    Thank you, Vanilla, for the awesome mobile theme.
    image
  • KartariKartari Explorer
    @Brian - I do not use a mobile phone capable of net browsing, but I see how the new format would be much more readable on one.

    I think I have noticed a bug. I commented on a particular topic once, and when I view my profile, "You commented on your bookmarked discussion." is reported about a dozen times.
  • KartariKartari Explorer
    Just checked my profile again, it only happened on one comment, other comments appear just once. I didn't edit that comment or anything.
  • ShutokuShutoku Veteran
    @Shutoku In a nutshell, I feel Vanilla is easier to use for people new to forums. The markup is much cleaner and mobile-device friendly. It's also much easier to customize and make modifications to.
    OK the mobile thing definitely makes sense. I am the last human on the planet who doesn't own any kind of cell phone though.
    I prefered the look of the other on my mac and my pc, but I'm sure over time I'll get used to this.

    Regardless of if I like it or not though, thanks for the hard work in having this place available, and if it makes it more available and usable for those on mobiles, well that is all the better, so thank you!

  • B5CB5C Veteran
    The only thing I don't like the mobile part is that it only shows newest threads and not the different categories.
  • SimonthepilgrimSimonthepilgrim Veteran
    First of all, I want to second Brian and thank Lincoln for all the hard work he has clearly put in to this change. It may take an old codger like me to get used to the new format but I see that as part of the fun.

    You certainly encourage me to change my 'phone as my sons encourage me to do.

    There is a lot here that seems encouraging. I recall coming to New Buddhist, years ago, after some years on Ezboard and Yahoo groups: it was a revelation! There was so much more we could do to make our discussions reader-friendly. Because I have been the beneficiary of Brian's generous advice and support on DP matters, I trust him to have analysed our needs and being in process of meeting them.

    We shall all miss the old New Buddhist, just as we mourn an old home when we move to a new one. Let us remember it with a blessing and welcome the new, spacious condo. we are being offered.
  • SimonthepilgrimSimonthepilgrim Veteran
    P.S. What is "Permalink"?
  • TandaTanda Explorer
    Thank you. I am Grateful for all the time and hard work you invested.
  • andyrobynandyrobyn Veteran
    Thanks again from me too Lincoln and everyone else who has had input ... my only question so far also has been about " Permalink "
  • GlowGlow Veteran
    edited December 2010
    A Permalink is just the address you would use if you wanted to link to a specific post (and posts are apparently called "comments" on this new software). It links directly to that comment, as opposed to the thread itself. This is the Permalink for this comment: http://newbuddhist.com/discussion/comment/152460/#Comment_152460
  • fivebellsfivebells Veteran
    The only thing I don't like the mobile part is that it only shows newest threads and not the different categories.
    Haven't tried them because I never use them, but the categories are in a column on the right hand side.
  • sukhitasukhita
    Looks great, Lincoln. Looking forward to you adding a menu bar for editing, inserting web link, etc. in due course.
  • SyntheticKineticSyntheticKinetic
    Vanilla and my iPod touch seem to agree very well :) good work
  • DazronDazron
    I like the new look and functionality, much more conducive to debate and integration than a BBS.

    Well done all involved :clap:
  • skullchinskullchin Veteran
    So have people lost their "total posts" data? That doesn't smart to much for me, but I can imagine it hurts a little more with people that had thousands of posts. ouch. :bawl:
  • genkakugenkaku Northampton, Mass. U.S.A. Veteran
    The changes have definitely inspired me to refrain from visiting so often.
  • sukhitasukhita
    Initially, I thought that the "total posts" and "join date" data was useful to kind of know whether someone was a beginner or not... and respond accordingly. Often, this is really not the case. I have observed some very new members (recent join dates and few posts) make very meaningful contributions. So, yes, we can do without this data. Signatures, especially the long ones, is also a pain - they fill up space causing us to scroll up and down a page more than is necessary. :)
  • JoshuaJoshua Veteran
    Um, I just logged on and responded to a thread and when I returned to my control panel no less than eight times it says:

    valois
    You commented on your bookmarked discussion.
    Yogacara and a Cosmic Consciousness
    9:09AM

    I'm not sure if this is a bug, but it seems odd? ;)

    At any rate, amazing Brian! I've tried accessing the old site mobilely, long story short it didn't work too well. A phone is the only means of being able to use this site as much as I'd like. Hurray!

    ..

    What's that? Saves drafts? Impressive.
  • BrigidBrigid Veteran
    This is fun!

    Thanks, Lincoln. :thumbsup:
  • thickpaperthickpaper Veteran
    I like it. Seem's to work better on the iphone too. Still no rss feed?

    Cool runnin's

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