Site Issues, Updates, Changes, and Feedback Thread

[The Computer Audiophile]

8 minutes ago, sphinxsix said:

@The Computer Audiophile

Chris, I think I haven't said that before - thanks for the shaded black bars and the Blue CA theme option (I've only just discovered it). Both look IMO really cool (much better than the heavy black bars)!

For everyone interested - if you scroll down the CA page you will find the theme switch - IMO the blue one is worth checking out if you haven't discovered it yet. I've just been browsing CA in blue for ten minutes just enjoying it. Yeah ..looks really cool!

 

Thanks for the kind words. 

[The Computer Audiophile]

6 hours ago, Cornan said:

This happens with links when viewed on iPhone SE:

 

 

The link is going outside the frame if the link is long.

 

Thanks for the report. I can reproduce it if I use Safari, but not Chrome. 

[The Computer Audiophile]

7 hours ago, rickca said:

Chris, I'm encountering some new weird behavior on the site today.  When I bring up an All Activity stream, I'm seeing posts at the top of the list saying they were made, say, 10 minutes ago.  But when you navigate to the actual post, you discover that the post was actually made, say, 8 hours ago.  Refreshing the list with F5 fixes the problem, at least temporarily.

 

I don't think I've ever seen this behavior before today, but it's happened several times today.

 

 

Hi Rick - Next time this happens, can you check the two time stamps and let me know if they are different? See screenshots below.

 

Also, what browser are you using? 

 

 

[The Computer Audiophile]

14 hours ago, rickca said:

Chris, are you looking into this?  I don't know whether you do such things yourself or have a tech support person.

 

I also reported that the All Activity stream doesn't auto-update for me.  It puts up a message saying there are new posts and I have to click to see them.  

 

Hi Rick - I just returned from Axpona and I'm getting caught up. I'll look into this and find out what it takes to resolve the issue (if I can do it or I need to hire someone etc...). 

 

By the way, I talked to many members of the CA Community and got some good suggestions about improving the new site. 

[The Computer Audiophile]

On 4/6/2017 at 5:04 PM, rickca said:

Chris, a performance issue.  I'm just using the All Activity stream.  When I find an interesting post in the list, I click on the xx hours ago and go read it.  Then I use the browser (Chrome) back button to return to the list.

 

With the new software, at least that gets me back to the entry in the list rather than the most recent post.  That's a huge improvement over the old software.

 

However, the longer ago the post was made, the longer it takes to return to the list.  So if I go look at a post made 12 hours ago, it takes much longer to return to the list than if I go look at a post made 15 minutes ago.

 

It seems like the logic has no direct pointer back to the list entry that was of interest.  Rather it seems to churn through every entry in the list until it reaches that point.

 

It would be nice if the performance of the return trip triggered by the back button was more consistent.

 

 

The performance issue for me is definitely there, but it's reasonable, given what's taking place. 

 

When browsing an item from a few minutes ago and clicking the back button, it takes about one second to load. 

 

I scrolled down many pages of content to find something posted 13 hours ago and clicked on it. Then I hit the back button. The delay was about four seconds, while all the content was loaded and the page was adjusted back to my previous location in the list. 

 

Given what has to take place, all the content must be loaded based on time stamp and several pages may need to be loaded, this is probably the best we can do right now (without a major change to the site). This type of thing is likely the reason 100 posts aren't automatically displayed in the Activity window by default. It's not simple to run that query on so much content. 

 

That said, I will see what I can do. I get annoyed at items like this. It's 2017, it seems like we should be able to resolve this type of thing.

 

Thanks for the report Rick.

[The Computer Audiophile]

43 minutes ago, jtwrace said:

Is there a way to search just a thread and not the whole site?  

 

Go to the thread and the default search will change to "This Topic."

[The Computer Audiophile]

1 hour ago, R Johnson said:

I guess I must be the only person who has a problem with the current dynamic, fancy timestamp system. I'd much prefer a simple mm/dd/yyyy hh:mm scheme.

 

I agree. 

[The Computer Audiophile]

1 hour ago, R Johnson said:

Chris, does this mean that the forum software does not permit any choice of timestamp format?  A real bummer if true.  I use Firefox bookmarks and save the timestamp in the "name" of the bookmark. This forum's timestamp makes that virtually impossible.

 

I'm working on it.

[The Computer Audiophile]

This timestamp issue is really deep. If it can be changed, it won't happen overnight. 

[The Computer Audiophile]

8 hours ago, Duke40 said:

Another audio site (popular with headphones) just updated their site, and now I have something recent to compare to, I think the CA upgrade went very well.  The UI is so clean, with common look and feel independent of device. 

 

I wonder how these type of site upgrades affect how people use the site.

What changes in the behaviour ? 

Like do they use the recent activity view or browse the forums more, or something else.

It would be interesting to know, just curious.

 

Thanks for the kind words and putting everything into perspective.

 

I just checked out Head-Fi, as I didn't know they had switched platforms. 

[The Computer Audiophile]

2 minutes ago, elcorso said:

Hi Chris,

 

Why I can't load anymore a video from a link?

 

Thanks,

 

Roch

 

Not sure what you're asking. Can you expand on that?

[The Computer Audiophile]

@Cornan is right. Just paste the link to the video into the post and it will automatically appear. 

[The Computer Audiophile]

39 minutes ago, jcn3 said:

@The Computer Audiophile -- would love to see the ca logo back at the top left of the menu section.  the current words ("computer audipiophile" only in arial font) just don't represent the site well!

 

Hi jcn3 - Thanks for the feedback. I don't disagree. There is definitely less "branding" to the new site. I tried to keep some CA branding by using the stylized CA on the right side. 

 

I continue to test some logos on top versus the plain text. There are some other factors at play though, such as when viewing on mobile or a tablet and deciding not to display the logo for those small screens etc... Not rocket science, but factors I need to consider when making what seems like small changes. 

 

Thanks again for the feedback.

[The Computer Audiophile]

4 minutes ago, Sal1950 said:

Late coming comment I know and I haven't read any of this long thread but,

IMO the new forum engine has some improved functionality over the old.

But I find it visually very unattractive compared to the old site. The improved function surprised me as I found it very crude looking.  First few days I thought the site had broken and this was a quick kluge to get the things running.

Don't mean any disrespect.

 

 

 

No disrespect taken Sal. 

[The Computer Audiophile]

2 hours ago, rickca said:

Chris, have a look at DIY DC power cables thread with John Swenson's latest post.  The line length is such that you have to scroll right to read the entire line.  Why this is happening only in that thread is a mystery.  Maybe John broke it!

 

This is a strange one because it only appears this way for some users. I continue to research the issue but can't pin down the cause. I've seen it happen in one other area in the UpTone sponsored forum and nowhere else on the site. 

 

Thanks for the report. 

[The Computer Audiophile]

9 hours ago, Daudio said:

And just what are we supposed to call this 'new' version of CA ? 

  Ver. 2, Ver. 4, Ver. 2017 ????

 

 

Perhaps I could go the Apple route and call it CA (Early 2017 Edition) :~)

 

I actually hate Apple's naming scheme. Officially this is CA 4.0. We started with an extremely basic Drupal website in 2007, then did a major overhaul after a few years but stayed on the same platform. After that we switched to vBulletin and now we are here with the latest version of the site on a different platform.

[The Computer Audiophile]

9 hours ago, bunno77 said:

Hoping this to be either ignored as it isn't the goal of the new website or taken as constructive criticism. 

 

I haven't been on this site for weeks due to the new site, the app being cancelled and Tapatalk support not being available. 

 

I love the new site as it mirrors a lot of forums. My only issue is updates/notifications. I am getting emails about new posts but I don't want to check me emails then be referred to the website for each post. I may be doing something wrong but it isn't easy to navigate currently. 

 

I have said before that this site is very similar to stereonet now. 

 

Stereonets notification tab alerts you to when someone quotes/likes your post but also if there is a new post in that thread. I am not getting this in the new ca site and it is the only thing missing for me. 

 

I really miss this site as it is a great source of information and I really appreciate your reviews and posts. I think this site may be one of the most important to the future of this hobby/lifestyle/industry and I really want it to be the best it can be.. Today upon logging in again it feels like it isn't as vastly used as before but I could be wrong about this. Anyways I will try to add a few pics to show a little of how stereonet works. 

 

I personally would like Tapatalk support again but if that isn't good for your business that's understandable. 

 

Thank you

Dan

 

 

Hi bunno77 - Thanks for the comments. You are correct about Stereonet and CA, we use the same web platform. If you can do it on Stereonet, you can do it on CA. 

 

Please check your notification settings at the following link and let me know if this solves your issue or not. If not, I'll dig deeper into the issue until we figure out what you need.

 

https://www.computeraudiophile.com/notifications/options/

 

 

[The Computer Audiophile]

10 hours ago, austinpop said:

@The Computer Audiophile

 

Hi Chris - can I make a couple of feature requests? Consider these first world problems, so it's your choice whether to take any action!

1. Add back the location field in the users profile, and import this info from the old site. I like to see where a user is located sometimes, and currently have no way of knowing.
2. The controversial reputation score. How do people feel about exposing it in the user's profile, not under their handle on every post as initially implemented? Or do you not want to go there? Flawed as it was, I did like the feature. This way it could be hidden away discreetly, but still accessible.

Respectfully submitted.

 

 

Well, I have partial good news for you. I've added back the location to the user profiles. However, I can't go back and import just the location information from the old site to the new location field. Hopefully, people will populate this field when they edit their profiles. 

 

Let's leave the reputation score alone for a little bit :~)

[The Computer Audiophile]

9 hours ago, Daudio said:

 

1) +1

2) +1

 

There is so little left now of any kind of member distinguishing info to help bring people into a community, that anything added (back) to the 'new' CA* is a help !

 

And just what are we supposed to call this 'new' version of CA ? 

  Ver. 2, Ver. 4, Ver. 2017 ????

 

 

We once had a feature that placed a flag next to usernames in the forum based on the location of the person. People actually got irate about this because they didn't want anyone to know their location. Anyway, that's neither here nor there.

[The Computer Audiophile]

1 hour ago, mourip said:

I liked seeing the year that we joined CA placed next to our picture. Could we bring that back?

 

I'm with you on this, but for now we have to hover the mouse over the username.

 

[The Computer Audiophile]

22 minutes ago, elcorso said:

 

And now we all have @mourip email address

 

Roch

 

Dang! Thanks for letting me know. I fixed it now :~)

[The Computer Audiophile]

30 minutes ago, wwaldmanfan said:

Ignore List question: I can block another user's content, but I still see their posts listed in the Activity stream. Is there a way to block their posts entirely (except when quoted)?

Also, the "reputation" likes/dislikes should be eliminated. It fosters animosity between members when negatives are given.

 

Looking into the ignore question. I guess i'll have to ignore someone to really test this :~)

 

I adjusted the likes feature to only allow for positive ratings. We'll see how it goes. I'm not a fan of participation trophies and believe people should be called out for certain things, but I certainly understand that the negative ratings have been misused.

 

 

[The Computer Audiophile]

"Does paranoia trump reason here too these days ?"

 

Your paranoia?

 

I'm not making decisions about your health care. I'm testing features of the website in order to find the right balance. 

[The Computer Audiophile]

Think what you want. Maybe there's a conspiracy against you here because your suggestions aren't implemented. But that would go against your theory that we do whatever people ask for. 

 

Give us a bit more credit. This is our day job. We evaluate everything. 

 

Perhaps you need to look for polls before you speak. 

[The Computer Audiophile]

Thanks Thomas. I'll get it fixed.