• Joined: August 27, 2015

Topic: Site Improvement Ideas

Hi there everyone!
I searched for the right topic to post my suggestions and site improvement ideas, but found nothing and decided to start a new thread (if there's already one on the forum, let me know).
So, let's start!
Here's a list of all of those improvement ideas & suggestions that came to my mind:

  • Modern Site Design:Maybe it takes you time, and maybe some of the members are familiar with the current theme; but it will be better if the forum changes it design to something more modern and flat-like. There are a lot of gradients on the site which are old. Nowadays, most of the web designers use flat buttons, flat tabs and there's no sign of gradient at all.
    If you've used CSS for the forum, I can help (if you want mini/tongue ).
    Even if you are not planning to change the current forum theme, you can just change the main page.
    Besides, it will be better if the site goes full-width.
    `

  • Deleting Posts/Replies:I'm still confused either if it's related to the forum platfrom or it's a policy, but why aren't we allowed to delete a post or a reply? Sometimes, users suddenly post twice or in a conversation, they ask a question or say something, but later they regret and they won't be able to delete it! The only way is to edit the post and ask moderators to delete it. I know it will cause a lot of problems when people are allowed to delete their posts, but it could be avoided by putting a limit on it; for example, "Delete" option will be available for only 5 minutes after posting or until someone else replies.
    `

  • Super Old/Inappropriate Threads:Just like the previous idea, I'm not sure if it's a problem or a policy, but why moderators (or other people who take a hand in the forum ) don't delete inappropriate or super old threads? The other day, @Slothpaladin asked me not to reply old threads and he said he'll delete the replies to sink the old threads. Hmm, if these topics are going to sink in deep, why are they still there? Why not delete them? There are a lot of pages in the forum with inactive topics and they seem that no one is going to answer them.
    I saw an inappropriate topic and reported it, but why it was there? We have too many active Moderators/Site programmers here such as rioforce, slothpaladin, Smeagol, ... who visit the forum almost everyday. We can clear the forum from these kind of topics by helping each other, albate if we're able to delete threads.
    `

  • [vid] BBcode:When I was going to post a video in a topic, it came to my mind that maybe, I'll be able to use a BBcode to embed my video in my reply, so, I searched the web and found a list of BBcodes available and fortunately, there was something called [vid] and it was used to embed videos! Then, I came to BiM and sadlys found out we don't support it! It will be excellent if dear Site programmers make it available, because it is a very handy tool specially for us!

Last edited by Shahriar (September 8, 2016 (03:47pm))

Shahriar's Website

  • Joined: March 28, 2014

Re: Site Improvement Ideas

Hey Shahriar! Thanks for your feedback. I'll try to answer a few of your questions below.

Shahriar wrote:

  • Modern Site Design:Maybe it takes you time, and maybe some of the members are familiar with the current theme; but it will be better if the forum changes it design to something more modern and flat-like. There are a lot of gradients on the site which are old. Nowadays, most of the web designers use flat buttons, flat tabs and there's no sign of gradient at all.
    If you've used CSS for the forum, I can help (if you want mini/tongue ).
    Even if you are not planning to change the current forum theme, you can just change the main page.
    Besides, it will be better if the site goes full-width.
    `

We are all too aware of the old web design on the forum. We are actively discussing ways of upgrading the site, but for the time being, it is impossible. It's a lot more than just CSS that needs fixing. Maybe in the near future we'll get a new design, but unfortunately for now, we're stuck with this layout.

  • Deleting Posts/Replies:I'm still confused either if it's related to the forum platfrom or it's a policy, but why aren't we allowed to delete a post or a reply? Sometimes, users suddenly post twice or in a conversation, they ask a question or say something, but later they regret and they won't be able to delete it! The only way is to edit the post and ask moderators to delete it. I know it will cause a lot of problems when people are allowed to delete their posts, but it could be avoided by putting a limit on it; for example, "Delete" option will be available for only 5 minutes after posting or until someone else replies.
    `

Users deleting posts is generally a bad idea. It can cause a lot of issues. Most forums don't allow users to delete posts because it causes lots of confusion and messes up the conversation if a user suddenly decides to redact their statements without explanation. Of course, there's always blanking posts, but then it's obvious the post has been blanked instead of there just being a gap in the conversation.

While the 5 minute thing may work, we usually just use the edit button to modify the post or the report button to inform mods about the post. This is just a standard policy at the moment, but it may be reconsidered when the redesign eventually comes. We can't say for sure yet.

  • Super Old/Inappropriate Threads:Just like the previous idea, I'm not sure if it's a problem or a policy, but why moderators (or other people who take a hand in the forum ) don't delete inappropriate or super old threads? The other day, @Slothpaladin asked me not to reply old threads and he said he'll delete the replies to sink the old threads. Hmm, if these topics are going to sink in deep, why are they still there? Why not delete them? There are a lot of pages in the forum with inactive topics and they seem that no one is going to answer them.
    I saw an inappropriate topic and reported it, but why it was there? We have too many active Moderators/Site programmers here such as rioforce, slothpaladin, Smeagol, ... who visit the forum almost everyday. We can clear the forum from these kind of topics by helping each other, albate if we're able to delete threads.
    `

Inappropriate posts usually get deleted or modified the moment they are noticed. We do have a language filter, but obviously that doesn't cover it all. If you see anything inappropriate, please report it and we'll use our discernment about removing it. But remember to also use your discernment when reporting. We moderators do patrol new topics for inappropriate stuff all the time, but if you see anything we miss, again, the handy report button is there to help!

Super old posts are usually forgotten about unless you're reading the backlogs of Cafe Corner. Inactive and empty old topics usually just stay in the place of the dead topics because that's where they belong unless someone bumps the topic. And a lot of times, that happens and a new conversation is created within that topic. While I do think that some of the forums are a bit messy, I don't really think it's great to delete the old topics. As mods, we don't go digging through the old stuff finding useless stuff. That's just not what we do. There probably should be a simple cleanout of worthless one-post topics, but otherwise, old topics are just there.

  • [vid] BBcode:When I was going to post a video in a topic, it came to my mind that maybe, I'll be able to use a BBcode to embed my video in my reply, so, I searched the web and found a list of BBcodes available and fortunately, there was something called [vid] and it was used to embed videos! Then, I came to BiM and sadlys found out we don't support it! It will be excellent if dear Site programmers make it available, because it is a very handy tool specially for us!

Video embedding is currently not allowed on Bricks in Motion (unless of course we're talking about ). Maybe with the redesign, we'll add it, but right now, it's not available. Our "dear" site programmers are volunteers with full time jobs, so that's why things are a bit slow development wise. We hope to get this cleared up sometime before the next century. mini/wink

Thanks for the inquiries! I hope I answered all your concerns (I didn't proofread so if the post makes no sense that's why mini/tongue). Feel free to use that report button and let us know if you have anything else to say, we're always open to conversation.

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"Whatever you do, do all to the glory of God." - 1 Corinthians 10:31b

rioforce's Website

  • Location: Wales
  • Joined: July 21, 2015

Re: Site Improvement Ideas

I second what Rioforce said about inappropriate threads. A while ago, there was this spammer who was posting nonsensical threads, with links advertising his business. I reported and almost immediately, all his posts were removed.

William Osborne's Website

  • Joined: December 26, 2008

Re: Site Improvement Ideas

Hmm, if these topics are going to sink in deep, why are they still there? Why not delete them?

Reference material, for the most part, so things can be found through the search bar instead of starting a new topic to ask the same question that was answered a year ago.

In general, it's not inappropriate to respond to old threads as long as you're adding something substantial to the discussion. The problem is that sometimes people bump threads to post things like

The average forum bumper wrote:

great mini/smile mini/smile mini/smile

which brings an old topic that no one but the bumping poster was interested in to the front of the forums without creating a new reason for the rest of the site to contribute. The end result is that the thread inevitably sits on top of the pile for a day before disappearing again from inactivity.