This *****

Posted by: Kevin Hughes on 31 July 2000

I am not impressed with the new software (polite opinion ). This software is totaly round earth, looks nice but fails to do the basic job properly.

Can we have an uncensored part please?

What happens if you chose the "under 16" option?

Tony & Mike, who did you sleep with to ge to full member (oh err etc..) status.

Kevin.

PS still no spell checker either, just pants.

Posted on: 31 July 2000 by Mike Hanson
Yes, this software is useful only for forums that have no more than a couple of messages in each thread. It just feels like a room full of people shouting at each other. There's not enough organization to the conversations. It is pretty, though.

As far as getting full member status, it's probably based on the number of messages posted. Catch you later!

-=> Mike Hanson <=-


[This message was edited by Mike Hanson on MONDAY 31 July 2000 at 20:38.]

Posted on: 31 July 2000 by Kevin Hughes
quote:
As far as getting full member status, it's probably based on the number of messages posted. Catch you later!

So it encorages spam as well, great.

Kevin.

Posted on: 31 July 2000 by Tony L
As far as getting full member status, it's probably based on the number of messages posted. Catch you later!

How much spam needed to get to administrator?

Tony.

Posted on: 31 July 2000 by Mike Hanson
My web hosting service said they could handle the old ColdFusion/MSSQL setup, but Naim told me that they weren't really interested. Maybe they'll reconsider that with all of the negative feedback that they're getting.

Smilies do not a forum make.

-=> Mike Hanson <=-

Posted on: 31 July 2000 by Kevin Hughes
I hope someone from Naim comments on this soon, I will understand if they think we will get use to it and want to wait a few days, but onyl a few days.

In the meantime I urge everyone to vote in the Padded Cell - New Forum thread. If enough of us vote negativly I hope Naim have the balls to admit there mistake. It will be intrested to see if the negative view of the new software is held by most or just software developers used to ripping other people's systems to bits (like me).

Kevin.

Posted on: 31 July 2000 by Bob Edwards
Hey gang--

I am a bit undecided as to how this flows or if I like it or not. . .

We should, however, avoid falling into the trap of assuming the old one was better because we knew it longer.

Cheers,

Bob

Posted on: 31 July 2000 by Mike Hanson
quote:
We should, however, avoid falling into the trap of assuming the old one was better because we knew it longer.

There are various sites which use this same software (including the Royd and Exposure conferences), and I've been hating them for quite a while now too. Fortunately, there aren't as many messages on them as there is on the Naim forum. With our usual volume, pure chaos will ensue. In fact it's already begun, since I have a terrible time determining if there are any new messages and how they fit into the flow of the various converstations.

With the old forum software, I had a single screen with three purposeful panels. One showed a list of all recent threads in all conferences; the second showed the message tree for the currently selected thread, and the third showed the text of the currently selected message. It was a perfect Forest-and-Trees approach, and very similar to many newgroup readers (like Agent).

With this software I'm lost! I'm constantly maneuvering from page to page in hopes of determing whether anything new is being posted anywhere. I'm forever re-reading messages to determine if I've read them already. It's not enough to jump to the bottom of the page, as then you must scan backwards to see where the new messages start. If you're really unlucky, the thread will be long enough to flow onto multiple pages. To top it off, each time you post a new message, you're thrown back to page one, and you must manually click back to the last page, just to see if your post appeared correctly!!!

It's absolute and utter crap!!!!

-=> Mike Hanson <=-
Smilies do not a forum make

Posted on: 31 July 2000 by Mike Hanson
Hallelujah, brother! I love the graffiti, even though it's made from those superfluous smilies. Catch you later!

-=> Mike Hanson <=-
Smilies do not a forum make.

Posted on: 31 July 2000 by Mike Hanson
quote:
Boy, you guys can really whine.

Sure, but only for a good cause. Catch you later!

-=> Mike Hanson <=-
Smilies do not a forum make.

Posted on: 31 July 2000 by dave simpson
Anyone got a map for this puppy?

testing earth to dave,

dave

vuk, how bout a map with that cd

Posted on: 01 August 2000 by Mick P
Gentlemen

This system needs tweaking but there are some good points.

Its quicker than the old one

There is a lot more information avaiable

The faces obviously appeal to Vuk.

Long threads do not narrow down, just look at the thread on Mana Stealth where two of our fraternity have caused the screen to reduce to 1 inch in width.

The major problem is the lack of developing a thread within a thread. If some computer genius can sort that problem out, then in all fairness we have a much better system.

I think the faces are childish, but then I am just grumpy.

Regards

Mick

Posted on: 01 August 2000 by Mick P
Gentlemen

This system needs tweaking but there are some good points.

Its quicker than the old one

There is a lot more information avaiable

The faces obviously appeal to Vuk.

You can jump in and out when writing letters which is useful

Long threads do not narrow down, just look at the thread on Mana Stealth where two of our fraternity have caused the screen to reduce to 1 inch in width because of the multitude of letters.

The major problem is the lack of developing a thread within a thread. If some computer genius can sort that problem out, then in all fairness we have a much better system.

I think the faces are childish, but then I am just grumpy.

Regards

Mick

Posted on: 01 August 2000 by Mick P
Chaps

This is my second attempt to reply so I am obviously being slow in picking this up.

Basically, I like this new system providing it gets tweaked at some later date.

It seems a lo faster than the old one.

You have a lot more information to look at.

The personal profiles are "nice". BTW Mike Hanson is the spitting image of me when I was a few years yopunger. So I am what he will be like in twenty years from now.

The bandwidth does not narrow on very long threads such as the rather dull and boring one on Mana Stealth.

Vuk, in particular, loves the faces. It has brought out his creative personna.

The major problem is not being able to respond to specif letters. If that issue is cracked then it gets my vote.

I am fairly happy

Regards

Mick

Posted on: 01 August 2000 by Rico
Mike

I am pleased to report that this new forum has generated one*** (and one only) positive thing: I am in complete agreement with you on your post! <insert yer smiley face wid da wraps 'ere>

Overall it sucks - the first time a new Naim product has been worse than that which it replaced.

Rico - musichead

{***edited - oh, two things - it's bought Vuk back to complain, too!}

Posted on: 01 August 2000 by BrianD
Cliff is spot on.

I started reading the forum last October and have found it very enlightening, entertaining and, for the most part, excellent reading. I don't buy hi-fi magazines, I get more pleasure from following the forum.

The whole point of the forum is being able to follow a thread. Many times I have posted comments in the middle of what had become fairly long threads. Other people do the same all the time. They then follow that particular part of the topic closely, while still 'monitoring' the rest. Mike has made this point a couple of times too. That people are unable to do this now is enough reason to consign this effort to the bin. The whole thing is just cumbersome and too difficult to follow

Something needs to be done or I can see contributions dropping if it stays like this.
That would be a real pity and a great loss to everyone.

Brian Jnr

Posted on: 01 August 2000 by Jo Sharp
Let us try to be constructive to support our friends in salisbury; E-mail our suggestions for improvements to them (without spamming).

I would like to see proper thread management better to follow replies in sub-threads, with the headers listed at the beginning so you don't have to read every entry to find an item of particular interest.

And the new message system restored.

In other words, the old forum back, but on a new server!!


Jo

Posted on: 01 August 2000 by Mike Hanson
quote:
Mike Hanson is the spitting image of me when I was a few years yopunger. So I am what he will be like in twenty years from now.

So why don't you have a picture in the profile section. I want to know where I'm headed . Catch you later!

-=> Mike Hanson <=-


Smilies do not a forum make.

[This message was edited by Mike Hanson on TUESDAY 01 August 2000 at 15:31.]

Posted on: 01 August 2000 by Mike Hanson
quote:
I am in complete agreement with you on your post! <insert yer smiley face wid da wraps 'ere>

Isn't that special!

BTW, there are two ways to use smilies (a.k.a. emoticons). First is the one that's associated with the subject of the message. Your choose that one with the options in the "Message Icon" area. It's also used to represent the thread on the thread list, if it's the first message in the thread.

The emoticons within the message text can be added by clicking on the desired face within the "Instant Smilies" area, below the text entry box. It will automatically add the text for the desired smilie to the end of your message, and you can cut and past it up into your message proper. Catch you later!

-=> Mike Hanson <=-


Smilies do not a forum make.

Posted on: 01 August 2000 by David Dever
Got "New Messages" functionality back...satisfied.

Glad to see a more sophisticated formatted text handler in this software (the other software was definitely getting dated), though I can see the issues with the message tree—might force linear coherent arguments, though...

Dave Dever, NANA

Posted on: 01 August 2000 by Mike Hanson
quote:
Glad to see a more sophisticated formatted text handler in this software

Actually, this is worse. The other system supported most HTML code, while this UBB approach is a lackluster subset. Sure it has some hot buttons to the bottom of the page, but it always appends them at the end of the message. By the time you cut and paste your stuff, you may as well just type the HTML tags by hand. Catch you later!

-=> Mike Hanson <=-


Smilies do not a forum make.

Posted on: 01 August 2000 by Kevin Hughes
quote:
Got "New Messages" functionality back...satisfied.

Have you, doesn't work for me. Exactly what button did you press, all I can get is a list of message headers, not the messages themselves.

Kevin.

Posted on: 01 August 2000 by Chris Metcalfe
>>the first time a new Naim product has been worse than that which it replaced.<< apart from 102/72, natch.

Actually the one thing that annoyed me when I first entered was the division of topics, apart from music into 'hifi' and 'non-hifi', as if, as soon as tangents develop, they should be put quietly into another room. Are we supposed to think in such a compartmentalised way?

Posted on: 01 August 2000 by Mike Hanson
Got some spare time on your hands, Vuk? I think your next one should be of Samantha Fox. Catch you later!

-=> Mike Hanson <=-


Smilies do not a forum make.

Posted on: 01 August 2000 by Keith Mattox
As a long-time lurker here, I can't speak with the authority of the current or former heavy contributers. But one main reason that I spent more time at the old naim forum was the ergonomics - it was the easiest forum/BBS/you name it that I ever used, allowing one to look at the structure of the conversation and how it changed while quickly moving to a particular message where desired. It left the Royd, Mana and Linn forums by the roadside burning.

This format is OK for those aforementioned forums due to their much smaller traffic. But it won't support the trafic that this forum gets in the manner that it deserves. Mark and Paul; this is one additional personal request to find another solution.

cheers

Keith.

ex-audiophile

Posted on: 01 August 2000 by Martin Payne
I'm afraid I have to agree with the majority of the opinions above.

The ability to reply directly to another person's statement is a prerequisite for a discussion. This has been a feature of every other forum package I've seen.

Reasoned debate (even if some of the old threads were far from reasoned!) is not possible here.

Having created a large demand with the old conference, Naim-ites may end up going elsewhere. Discussion is at the heart of 'our' conference.

Sorry to Paul for the downer!

Martin