[Adam]

From these options I vote for leave as it is. If vB 4 will eventually force changes, why change in many steps.

I also have further suggestions: drop the smileys and folder icons - they have really NO use. Next, the read new messages button should be close to the thread title and not to the right.

The thread icons have been dropped in all forums except site suggestions & news. I'm sure many users like the folder icons though, so those are staying.

Here is a live demo of style #1: PentaxForums.com - Pentax Photography Forum
Unfortunately the misalignment cannot be avoided in this layout.

And here is #3: PentaxForums.com - Pentax Photography Forum

Thanks for all the comments- keep em coming!

Adam
PentaxForums.com Webmaster (Site Usage Guide | Site Help | My Photography)



PentaxForums.com server and development costs are user-supported. You can help cover these costs by donating or purchasing one of our Pentax eBooks. Or, buy your photo gear from our affiliates, Adorama, B&H Photo, KEH, or Topaz Labs, and get FREE Marketplace access - click here to see how! Trusted Pentax retailers:

I'm sure many users like the folder icons though, so those are staying.

Really? I have been spending (as a member) quite a lot of time on different vBulletin forums and I've never ever even bothered to take a look at what the different folder icon colours mean to begin with. I really wonder what's the use of them?

But as always, YMMV.

[Adam]

I've tried to simplify it here as much as possible, compared to other forums. Readers' digest version:

Lit icon = unread thread
Grayed-out icon = read thread

Blue = many posts
Green = not so many posts
Red = locked

[Adam]

After further consideration, I'm now leaning toward #3 beacause of the improved visibility. It still uses columns and is tidier than #1.

#2 is off the list.

Thanks for all your input in the poll!

Adam
PentaxForums.com Webmaster (Site Usage Guide | Site Help | My Photography)



PentaxForums.com server and development costs are user-supported. You can help cover these costs by donating or purchasing one of our Pentax eBooks. Or, buy your photo gear from our affiliates, Adorama, B&H Photo, KEH, or Topaz Labs, and get FREE Marketplace access - click here to see how! Trusted Pentax retailers:

[ChipB]

Adam, if there's a compelling reason to change, then #3. Otherwise, leave it as is!!!

[jct us101]

Your #1 demo isn't working.

[jct us101]

Oh never mind, there it goes.

[melon]

After further consideration, I'm now leaning toward #3 beacause of the improved visibility. It still uses columns and is tidier than #1.

#2 is off the list.

Thanks for all your input in the poll!

I wonder if the final versions of these layouts will remain available as a user option in the control panel. Have you considered this yet? For me this would be great.

[Class A]

After further consideration, I'm now leaning toward #3 beacause of the improved visibility.

If you really want to change things, then #3 would by my choice as well.

My vote goes to "leave it as it is", though, as the current column ordering gives you a better idea how "fresh" the thread is, i.e., at what time someone posted to it. Also, it is often useful to know who posted to a thread and again I think that is easier to see in the current layout.

[uccemebug]

I've been messing around with the threadbit template (a.k.a the thread listings) lately, trying to make some improvements and making it easier to use and browse.

FWIW, I like the current version. To improve readability, I suggest that you look at improving the use of whitespace wherever possible. I find that in all of the options you list the text tends to be immediately adjacent other text and my eye wanders between them. I don't think that anyone's reading this with a screen where screen space is at such a premium that extra whitespace would hurt. (and I say this using the original AspireOne Acer laptop with a tiny screen)

Have you considered throwing the logo open to a design competition, by the way? Just my humble opinion, but I find both the current one and the (Demo 1?) Dallas Cowboys-like logo both pretty ... 1996. By way of contrast, I submit the APUG forums which use the same software.

APUG English Forums - APUG

P.S. Keep up the great work, I'm glad you're looking for ways of improving it. If I can use this space as a suggestion box, I'd vote to integrate the "groups", which currently don't see much traffic, with the normal forums area.

[bdery]

The only thing I would change to the forum structure is to have a "my threads" equivalent function (if it exists, I never found it )

[Art Vandelay II]

I like it as is (I use the red theme). Feel free to send these ideas to DPR though

Edit: I did just think of one thing. Is there any chance of you guys detecting for the iPhone and sending those users to the normal site instead of the mobile skin? Your mobile theme is way too dumbed down for the iPhone (and I imagine for the Palm Pre and Android based phones as well).

[PhilippeG]

I voted for the current design, but #3 is also good imho.

I didn't like the way smileys are displayed in #1. Keeping alignments is good, and vertical space is more important than horizontal space imho (there is plenty of empty space between the topics titles and the column on the right side). So no need to integrate the icons in the title's cell.

To me the last post information is more important than the stats, so I'd leave the stats at the far right. But grouping the stats in a single table cell looks better.
I mean, come on, you know that asking opinions on a design means you'll end up with a mix a everything, right?

Oh by the way, I use the Modern Skin (Green).

[Mr. B]

I like this modern green skin. And the alignment is just fine.
Voted for leaving as is, I just got used to it

[PhilippeG]

While I'm at it, a thing I missed until recently is the "Go to first new post" button, because of it's location and look: it's the same image as the re-ordering links in the table header, and when placed before the title it looks like some kind of dropdown so I overlooked it. Pity as it's a very useful button!

Possible solution: giving it a different icon, like the one on the link to the last post (maybe with the same color as the topic's icon?) and group it with the other links at the right of the title.

Don't know if this would be easy to do, I don't no VB well.