Where do you configure Display Mode?

English Forums Feedback
1

Agh. I have rarely spent so much time trying to figure out a web interface, and I have years designing software tools.

  1. What kind of software is this? I don’t see any credits or otherwise identification who originally created or maintains this software.

  2. I spent a lot of time looking for some kind of Display Mode control. The only thing I see are options to configure Thread Mode. You’d think that all interface controls should be grouped together in a hierarchical tree and located together.

  3. I finally now see the bread crumbs that can provide some minimal up/down navigation. IMO should be more prominent and the Forum Component title (eg “Post New Thread” on the page I’m posting) can be less prominent. This would be more consistent with functionality over appearance since on most pages I would already know the basic functionality of that page (Don’t need that much a big title to verify)

  4. Forum Search and Forum Tools are oddly placed. And, the thin font makes them easy to overlook. This is not a trivial defect, using the regular search in the banner pane of the page will not search forums, and it took me awhile to determine/discover this. Will all people realize this? – I think not.

Thx, these suggestions offered in the spirit of contructiveness…

2

Thanks for sharing.

Ad 1. Software is Vbulletin
Ad 2. We just had a complete restyling of the forums, and the software. There’s room for improvement.
Ad 3 and 4. Getting used to that now, but I see what you mean, it takes some studying to find out

3

you might consider trying the forum without any of the design defects
you mention in the web presentation…just use Thunderbird (or your
news/nntp client of choice) as outlined here:

http://forums.opensuse.org/faq.php?faq=novfor#faq_nntp

–
DenverD
CAVEAT: http://is.gd/bpoMD [posted via NNTP w/openSUSE 10.3]
When it comes to chocolate, resistance is futile.