At the end of August, our website and forums will be getting some exciting new upgrades. We’ve been hard at work revamping and refreshing all the features you know and love to make them even easier to find and use.
We’re improving the forum’s design and ways in which you’ll be able to interact and connect with other forum members. Even though the forums may look slightly different, all previous forum topics and threads will be preserved. We will transfer everything from our old forum to the new.
In addition, the new forums will allow you to build a more comprehensive profile, tell more about yourself in your biography, and become friends with other members. This will help you stay on top of what others with similar interests are talking about.
We’re excited to lift the veil on the new site and forums. Stay tuned for more updates and the exact launch dates.
Matt:
I kind of fell like the guy who was asked to take a ride in the new neighbor’s car. [:-,]
The first statement out of the new (unknown) neighbor is TRUST ME! Suddenly, You become conflicted!
Sort of like when my first wife used to say the same thing…You want to believe,BUT you always feel like something is being held back. [%-)][sigh]
Or maybe, it’s the IT guys I have trepedations about…[banghead]
(EDIT TO ADD Comment)
I did not want to come off as really being too rancorous or distrusting of the changes Matt anounced change was on the wind for the FORUMS.
. It is just that in the past some of the best features (I thought) were lessened, and cut down. The Archives of this Forum are facinating treasure troves of photos, and ideas and interesting comments.[bow]
I know they require space and space costs money, but personally, I have found them to be an extremely useful resource. Access through the ‘Communbity Search’ option is a good way to access this encyclopaedic resource. I hope they do not reduce it or eliminate it.
Sounds like I’m whinning? You Betcha! With the Media being what it is today, I find this hobby and its magazine to be more than refreshing…{ Nuff said there- I DO NOT want to get into my politics here.)
I am looking forward to see what these new changes will bring. And at the very least; Thanks, Matt for the warning! [:-^]
[soapbox][soapbox]
[soapbox] That’s very important to me. There’s a lot of wisdom, insight, and good reading in many of those older threads.
Any chance of the Model Railroader “Index of Magazines” - which was in the list of links at the bottom of the webpages until a couple of weeks ago - coming back with this change? I know the recent notice of its demise said not, but that was a very useful feature for me - I bet I used and posted a reference from it at least once a week. Alternatively - since I recall that security was a concern - could you still keep it available ‘in-house’ there, and we Forum members and Trains (or other Kalmbach publication) subscribers could e-mail an search inquiry to you to run
I really really hope this means a move to vBulletin (vB 4) for the boards. I cannot stand this forum software. My biggest complaint being its lack of Safari/Chrome support.
…Some of us are not {fully accomplished geeks}…and trying to apply a photo from our list and include it with a post surely would be nice if it was a less complicated task.
Again, something vB is much better about.
Alright, friends!
We going to have likes/dislikes?
Can we find casino chips on the floor?
I hope there’s no farms. I don’t trust some of our forum members around livestock…
New and ‘improved’ Tide…
New box…impossible to tell the change in the powder
Since the Trains Magazine Forums is split into 6 parts, would it be difficult to tag the Blogs on the bottom, rather than hiding them elsewhere on the site?
I would also like to see the forum software activate all posted links automatically. The Snitz forum we had a couple of years ago could do it, I don’t see why newer forums can’t do something simple like that.
I hope the new software will inhibit animated images in signatures and avitars and limit their sizes. Some of the ones presently being used (cute or whatever the users may think they may be) are very distracting and way too large!
I like the Website just fine, didn’t Trains change stuff a few years ago? Keep it the same?[2c]
…It’s been changed several times.
This will be the fourth incarnation I’ve seen. I had to get used to three of them, and have never liked the improvements when they’ve come out. I think the current incarnation has cost me time, and increased the frustration level over the year or two it’s been around. I would like a “last post” feature that works, and to once more be able to end a paragraph just by hitting the “return” key.
I will probably find things I don’t appreciate about the new version, too, but will eventually get used to it. But really–wouldn’t it be nice to see an actual improvement for a change?
Dear Carl:
[soapbox] Whine! Whine! Whine! [soapbox]
BUT, I am with You! You’re singing my song!
I am afraid we are both in the same position that the Russians were after the ‘Cold War’; America found out the Ruskies loved us! It was their interpreters that Hated the Americans…[%-)]
I think that the IT People work hard to make this 'PUTER
stuff hard on eveyone else who does not know much more than punching words into the darned things. That is the way they get back at the (us) non-nerds, who must work with their stuff. [banghead][banghead]
NOW I’m whinning! [X-)] [soapbox]
[This situation is kind of analogous to the story about the Roman galley slaves. (with the IT’ers being the Romans). The first mate goes down in the galley, and says they have sighted land; and the ship will be in port that afternoon… The problem being that the [4:-)]Captain wants to water ski in!]
I guess we’ll all row now. Lookin’,hopin’, an prayin’ for that Change a comin. [:D]
…Just keep us “none accomplished total geeks” in mind too, as the new design is created. I’m sure there are a generous amount of us.
[:O] Oh no… here we go again [sigh]. I guess I better knock the dust off the old popcorn machine and get it ready [swg]
This time could we get all of Dale’s ‘guides’ back??? He sure spent a lot of time on them and I miss not having them handy as a refrance.
Will there be more posts on the first page, less posts on the first page, or about the same number of posts on the first page?
I hope some of the editorial policies will change also. It seems to me that there is far less activity. Many formerly active posters have dropped out, in part b/c of a lack of civility, in part b/c of too heavy a hand in locking any controversial thread that even tangentially relates to political considerations. If one doubts this, look at the Transit and even Passenger sub-forums. Most of the first page threads are very old, indicating a big drop off in interest.
I sincerely hope that more attention will be made to design features that will decrease page loading time. It’s not just the ads! For instance, replies with quotes should NOT include photos by default. Major GRRRR.
Also, reducing the font size range to less than 18 pt will allow more replies to appear on a page compared to this! Likewise, to me there seems to be a lot of unnecessary white space especially at the ends of posts and in the .sig block. The left column (containing name/avatar) is a waste of space and/or a designers exercise in pointless symmetry - I agree with reducing the avatar size. Surely Kalmbach could find a css/html genius that could flow post text below the right hand ad space.
For the person who complained about the difficulty of posting pictures, I submit that some the cause is that forum help/faqs are too hidden. C’mon Kalmbach, how about a Help button that opens a window?
</Rant off>. Thanks for listening. Looking forward to improvements.
Is it lack of interest or the economy? Other than retirees many of us are trying to find ways to bring home the bacon.