Alerts/Notice

[roxasxaxel]

Make this apart of the forums. Give alerts or notices about rules and site changes instead of posting the threads and expecting users to know its there. Either in the form of mail in the inbox or a large link at the top of site that leads to the thread. Obviously I suggest this due to my most recent warning in which I believe I've been unjustly given for not reading a thread I had no idea was there. I don't use forums much aside from posting trades and reading new release and there are others who don't use the forums much either. Putting that fact aside, however, I still believe this would be a great idea.

[grimace]

Yeah, mightbecool.

I think a one time "new news post" popup would be nice

[KoalaNoob]

It already is. On top of the list of forums, there's a little note saying what the latest news is. And, it really isn't hard to look at the latest thread in news and see that it's different.

Edited May 15, 2014 by KoalaNoob

[HeatherMarie]

Don't really see a need for this. As KoalaNoob mentioned, the latest News thread is *always* linked at the top of the forum, so just check there. And I think it's rather common sense to read through Stickied threads to make sure you know the rules in specific sections... Do we really need more then that?

[Utsuhi]

Don't really see a need for this. As KoalaNoob mentioned, the latest News thread is *always* linked at the top of the forum, so just check there. And I think it's rather common sense to read through Stickied threads to make sure you know the rules in specific sections... Do we really need more then that?

But what happens if there is a rule change? If someone read the rules once, what are the chances that they will read it again? Unless something is said, nobody will know until that rare one person will reread the rules every few weeks and notify the rest of the DC forum.

 

(I'm making the assumption that rule changes are not posted in News section. If they are, my argument will be invalid, and I shall go sit in a corner with my cabbage.)

[roxasxaxel]

So your saying we should either have the time out of our busy lives to look for a thread that may or may not be there until the mods decide on a whim to put it there? So its the fault of the users because they may not have time or don't use the forums as much as you think they should to notice a difference? That seems grossly unfair. If a simple notice on the home page or a mass pm were to be sent out perhaps it would help not only the forum communities but also may cut down on the stress of the mods having to send out warning that could easily be avoided by alerting the community of a change. It would seem much easier for a notice to be posted then expecting users to search for some thread that may or may not be there. This way even if users don't come on the forums as often at the very least the notice will be there. What about users who have not used the forums in a year do you or the mods expect them to search through the endless post for the "right" thread. If notices were sent out then users can still easily find the thread stating the change even after being gone for an extended amount of time.

 

As for the latest news link, it doesn't help the situation the prompted me to post this suggestion in the first place as it was never posted there. Whats mostly posted in the news section is events for dragon releases and site maintenance which isn't as pressing of a matter as a rule change or the something that had caused my warning. if a notice is given out through pms then a huge majority of users will notice it quicker. That will most likely be the first thing they give their attention to. And a large link posted above the forums will convey a sort of "this is important read now" feeling. So this way there should be no reason as to why these changes have not been seen, and not been read.

In short having notices can't hurt and may help greatly.

Edited May 15, 2014 by roxasxaxel

[Obscure_Trash]

Board rules are announced when they're changed.

 

Section-specific rules should always be easily found in a sticky'd topic, which is in the board rules to read (although it does zero in on duplicates). And when we do make an update to any rules sticky, we do our best to bring attention to it. Both trade harassment and no IOU's received their own sticky's. IIRC, they were unpinned at first and continuously bumped up with lots of user posts asking questions to make sure they understood. Once a reasonable amount of time passed and the questions lessened, the topics were split and pinned. And the main guidelines should be kept well updated. (SD is just an example because it's the section that has received the most updates. I think the other most recent thing was the Pokemon notice in Video Games.)

 

I'm happy for us to help bring notice to changes, but I'm not sure how much else we can do that isn't already done.

[olympe]

Well, not everybody is on the forums. So, rule changes (like the "no proxy rule" that used to be - or still is (?) in effect or the "no kids of less than 13 years may register on DC - not even with parental consent" rule) that affect DC as a whole should be announced on the site. However, I'm fairly certain that people who need to be updated on changes of forum rules tend to use said forum, so a notice on the forum for forum rule changes should suffice. (Long sentence is loooong.)

[Xili_Rem]

While I myself don't need it, I can suggest an idea similar to what VDex Project does. There the admin posted a topic in the Announcements that was locked, and only the admin and mods could reply to. Whenever there was something new going on, they'd post a reply with bullet points about what was going on, and a link to the topic with all the details. People could subscribe to that post in order to get email notifs about new stuff. A lot of people liked the idea over there, so maybe it'll help here?

 

The board itself is closed to members, so I will grab a screenshot to show the example...here.

 

Big image is big

 

EDIT: HMTL =/=BBC

Edited May 15, 2014 by Xili_Rem

[Fuzzbucket]

(I'm making the assumption that rule changes are not posted in News section. If they are, my argument will be invalid, and I shall go sit in a corner with my cabbage.)

*passes the cabbage*

 

What I WOULD like to see is a notice on SCROLLS when there is a new release - we do get them for events, after all.

 

For those players - especially young ones - who don't come here. And who - contrary to the belief of some people here - CANNOT come here even by clicking the link saying "forum", because their parents have blocked all forums, or their ISP doesn't allow them.

[Melatte]

I don't like the idea of alerts or notifications because I use sites that have things like that and no matter how few I get, it always becomes annoying. That's only my preference though. I just don't really like to be bothered in that way.

 

However, I do like the idea Xili_Rem posted. A pinned topic in the News forum with a list of all the announcements by date, a link to the announcement, and maybe even the title of the announcement (say you were looking for something specific) would be very helpful. You could just click it and then click on any unfamiliar sounding announcements. You wouldn't have to worry about sorting through the News forum and worrying about missing something because it's not always in order.

 

 

Also, because the topic here seems to have an interest in rule announcements, I'll provide a different suggestion.

Small rule changes that are section-specific don't seem to be announced in the main News forum. I understand that it would get kind of spammy with all those little News posts (and they'd bury other important announcements), but it would be nice to know about them without having to go look for them. It's good to be aware of these things. It's not always easy to notice a new pinned topic.

 

A topic, perhaps a pinned topic in the News forum for only moderators that would just be for small announcements would be helpful. As in, say a staff makes a new pinned topic regarding section-specific rule changes in one of the forums. After they're done, they could go make a quick post in the pinned topic for small announcements. Stuff like: "Small changes to Such-and-Such Guidelines." "There is a new pinned topic in Such-and-Such regarding This-and-That." Basically, the little things that aren't really worthy of an entire News post, but are still things that people might want to be aware of.

[Obscure_Trash]

I am not against an organized news thread, but...

 

Let's say you miss that there's a newer sticky you haven't seen yet, such as trading harassment (which isn't the greatest example since it's nothing new, it's just a reminder, but bear with me) and you don't notice there's another sticky around. It was posted in Feb of 2013. You missed it when it was posted and spent a few months away from DC. You come back and figure you remember the rules well. You've been a member for at least a year or more and feel comfortable on the forum, even after your break. You know you'll have to catch up on releases but don't feel the need to re-read the board rules or make sure to poke section sticky's since, well, you've read them in the past and they don't change too often. Since it's been a while you don't recognize that there's suddenly an extra sticky there wasn't the last time you were here. How more likely are you to go seeking out a news topic with updated rules? How more likely are you going to go seeking out a thread with announcement postings and read all the last few posts - which if you've been here you're probably figuring are just the past releases and maybe downtimes since those are the most common news topics?

 

I am curious for some real answers here. How many of you would make use of such a thing?

[Xili_Rem]

I would use it, simply because it's where everything is listed in one place. I can scan it to see release info, right-click > open in new tab the topics I'm interested in, and notice if there's been any rule updates.

 

And who knows what could pop up in the Announcements in the future? Sure we have releases but we might also have a poll on the release time or length of the release at the same time. I might go away for a long length of time, during which TJ has to suddenly disappear off the face of the earth and DC stops suddenly. So when I come back in x amount of time, there's less releases than I expected. I can use the announcements topic to find the thread explaining what happened much quicker than combing through releases to find it.

 

It's also useful when you want to go back and find when a dragon was released or a rule changed. I much prefer having the one topic than combing through the Announcements, which can be cluttered badly at times.

 

My two cents.

[HeatherMarie]

I really have to agree with Sock... I honestly don't see *that* many users actually *using* an organized news thread.

 

The cold hard fact is, you can't MAKE people be responsible. If someone doesn't keep up with the News threads, which are linked at the top of the forum... If someone doesn't deem it necessary to check stickied topics every so often because "I know all that stuff by now"... More threads of the same just aren't going to make a difference.

 

I, like Sock, would love a better understanding of just how many people would use it. Because I don't personally know many users who would.

[Utsuhi]

If the thread was made, I would definitely use it. Even if it has a minuscule chance of helping me in any way, shape, or form, I will use it.

 

I'm a frequent user of Gaia, and they have a system similar to the thread idea, in which staff post notices and site updates in a special thread that goes to all users. Some are big, others are small, and many of them link to bigger announcements posted elsewhere.

 

Such a thread could aggregate a bunch of information with varying degrees of importance, but I would only need to go through that one thread instead of countless others to find what I need. I hope I made sense. D:

[Fuzzbucket]

I really have to agree with Sock... I honestly don't see *that* many users actually *using* an organized news thread.

 

The cold hard fact is, you can't MAKE people be responsible. If someone doesn't keep up with the News threads, which are linked at the top of the forum... If someone doesn't deem it necessary to check stickied topics every so often because "I know all that stuff by now"... More threads of the same just aren't going to make a difference.

 

I, like Sock, would love a better understanding of just how many people would use it. Because I don't personally know many users who would.

OK - for the head count - I would not use it. I am quite happy to keep an eye on the News forum.

[Nectaris]

I don't think I would use it, but I am not seeing the harm in it, either. One thing to keep in mind with the notice at the top is it only shows what was most recently posted in. If TJ made a small announcement(the downtime announcements for example) and promptly locked the thread, and someone commented on the donation thread, it would be the donation thread that would show up at the top, not the new thread. Likewise when TJ has two active news only one(and not necessarily the newest) shows up at the top.

Edited May 15, 2014 by Nectaris

[roxasxaxel]

If there was an announcement made via pm or giant link at the top of the page I would defiantly make use of it.

 

I really have to agree with Sock... I honestly don't see *that* many users actually *using* an organized news thread.

 

The cold hard fact is, you can't MAKE people be responsible. If someone doesn't keep up with the News threads, which are linked at the top of the forum... If someone doesn't deem it necessary to check stickied topics every so often because "I know all that stuff by now"... More threads of the same just aren't going to make a difference.

 

I, like Sock, would love a better understanding of just how many people would use it. Because I don't personally know many users who would.

 

Even if YOU don't see it doesn't mean users wouldn't use it. Your right you can't make people responsible but i'm not opting for this idea for those who are too lazy but for people who don't simply have the time to comb through everything. The purpose of this idea is to actually "ANNOUNCE" changes. Its for people who either don't use the forums often or can't depending on how this idea may be put into effect, if it happens. When I come to the forums I go to my book marks or recent post to go directly to the threads I frequent which are the trade threads and only when my rares have bred. So i don't see stickys. I've honestly have seen less of

the forums in all years i've been here than someone who has been here a year.

 

Nothing else in the forums interest me and the only reason why I made a forum account is to read new releases and now to trade.

 

While I myself don't need it, I can suggest an idea similar to what VDex Project does. There the admin posted a topic in the Announcements that was locked, and only the admin and mods could reply to. Whenever there was something new going on, they'd post a reply with bullet points about what was going on, and a link to  the topic with all the details. People could subscribe to that post in order to get email notifs about new stuff. A lot of people liked the idea over there, so maybe it'll help here?

 

The board itself is closed to members, so I will grab a screenshot to show  the example...here.

 

Big image is big

 

EDIT: HMTL =/=BBC

 

This sounds like a good idea it should be posted at the top of the news section since it seems most just look at the news for updates

Edited May 15, 2014 by roxasxaxel

[diaveborn]

I am curious for some real answers here. How many of you would make use of such a thing?

I can see where a compilation news thread, on the forum or on the main site, would be very helpful to newer players, but even now I'd totally use it if it were around.

[KoalaNoob]

So your saying we should either have the time out of our busy lives to look for a thread that may or may not be there until the mods decide on a whim to put it there? So its the fault of the users because they may not have time or don't use the forums as much as you think they should to notice a difference? That seems grossly unfair. If a simple notice on the home page or a mass pm were to be sent out perhaps it would help not only the forum communities but also may cut down on the stress of the mods having to send out warning that could easily be avoided by alerting the community of a change. It would seem much easier for a notice to be posted then expecting users to search for some thread that may or may not be there. This way even if users don't come on the forums as often at the very least the notice will be there. What about users who have not used the forums in a year do you or the mods expect them to search through the endless post for the "right" thread. If notices were sent out then users can still easily find the thread stating the change even after being gone for an extended amount of time.

 

As for the latest news link, it doesn't help the situation the prompted me to post this suggestion in the first place as it was never posted there. Whats mostly posted in the news section is events for dragon releases and site maintenance which isn't as pressing of a matter as a rule change or the something that had caused my warning. if a notice is given out through pms then a huge majority of users will notice it quicker. That will most likely be the first thing they give their attention to. And a large link posted above the forums will convey a sort of "this is important read now" feeling. So this way there should be no reason as to why these changes have not been seen, and not been read.

In short having notices can't hurt and may help greatly.

No, it isn't unfair at all. It'd actually be faster to go look than to have a mass PM. You don't even have to log in to DC, just come on the page and look at the latest post at the news forum.

[_Z_]

If memebers will not read pinned topics in the section they are posting, why would they dig through the news section first? Updates to sections are never done on a mods whim. We update for a reason , the benefit of the members or dc it's self. We never intentionally make any decisions to make members annoyed.

 

[Fuzzbucket]

If memebers will not read pinned topics in the section they are posting, why would they dig through the news section first? Updates to sections are never done on a mods whim. We update for a reason , the benefit of the members or dc it's self. We never intentionally make any decisions to make members annoyed.

I rest my case.

 

If you don't check the thread you were actually READING - what hope is there for other threads - even pinned ones.

[roxasxaxel]

No, it isn't unfair at all. It'd actually be faster to go look than to have a mass PM. You don't even have to log in to DC, just come on the page and look at the latest post at the news forum.

 

If its so easy to look and read through the news section then why is it so hard for you to read my previous post stating that my initial reason for suggesting this idea was because it wasn't posted in the news section to begin with. What works for you doesn't necessarily work for everyone.

 

If memebers will not read pinned topics in the section they are posting, why would they dig through the news section first? Updates to sections are never done on a mods whim. We update for a reason , the benefit of the members or dc it's self. We never intentionally make any decisions to make members annoyed.

 

My suggestion is not simply another thread or debating what users will or won't do but to incorporate a way to give users a quick and easy access to all rule changes and updates for those who don't have time to search for new topics. Another user had pointed out that if an update has been made and we are not made aware of it then how can we know its there. Sure you say just read it to look for it but then your expecting users to use more time than they can to look for rule updates. A user comes home after a long day of work and they want to do one or two things before bed and the next thing they know is they got a warning or have been banned.

 

No one opposed of this idea has given any decent reason why this should not be done, Other than search and read which sounds more like an excuse than a reason. I've made my suggestion I've addressed all of the possible reasons why this suggestion is not right twice over and if those who could make this possible choose not take this into serious consideration and instead readily dismisses it as pointless Then I suppose I can do nothing else but be very disappointed in them.

Edited May 17, 2014 by roxasxaxel

[HeatherMarie]

I'd like to point out that "not having time to search for new topics" could be called an excuse as well... I mean, NONE of us *need* to be on this forum. If you have time to be on the forum, you should make time to keep yourself up-to-date with rules and news.

 

I really have nothing *against* this idea, I just don't see how much it would really help. As I've said before, if users aren't going to take the time to read stickies and new news-posts, what's the chance they will remember or care enough to check this new thread you want? How many users will *actually* benefit from this, as opposed to how many users will ignore it the same way they ignore all the stickied threads?

 

I have nothing against the suggestion. I just don't agree that it would be *that* much more helpful.

[Seasons Love]

If a post is updated or edited it will show a line at the bottom of the post like this:

 

This post has been edited by SockPuppet Strangler on Feb 20 2014, 02:50 PM

(Taken from *MAJOR UPDATE* The Official Art Usage Form 's First Post)

 

There's really no legitimate excuse on Invision forums to not be able to see that something has been updated.