Testing a new forum theme

We're testing out a new design for the forum and I would like to hear your thoughts about it.

You need to select it before you will be able to see the new forum design. To do this, go to the bottom of the page and select UsingEnglish.com New from the dropdown box at the bottom-left of the page.

Do you like it? Is it better than the old design? Have you found problems with the new design?

Let me know by posting any thoughts and comments you have about it here.

Thanks! :up:

I like the old one better but that's probably because I don't like changes. I always find it hard to find anything after them.

But I'm posting mainly because of a problem that I have in both designs. I don't see the menu that used to be at the right of the page (with "subscribed threads" and "new threads" links). It was very useful. Was it removed when the changes were introduced?

birdeen's call said:

I like the old one better but that's probably because I don't like changes. I always find it hard to find anything after them.

Click to expand...

I agree.

You can find Subscribed Threads under User CP and also My Posts and Quick Links. I don't know what happened to Forum Stats.

:-(

Those items that used to be in the left menu are in the new UE Tools menu on the right of the main forum menu bar. The left menu has been temporarily removed whilst testing is happening on the new forum design. This gives more space and emphasis to the posts and content, but also retains the navigation options. ;-)

The new theme is way awesome- except for the menu page resulotion.
& since you're updating the theme, how about enabling embed codes?

Red5 said:

Those items that used to be in the left menu are in the new UE Tools menu on the right of the main forum menu bar.

Click to expand...

I can't find it...

I like the look of the new, but am having a hard time navigating. Where is the plain old "my posts" -- without having to have subscribed to the threads?

The 'My Posts' menu is back. Thanks for spotting that it had been missed. ;-)

@birdeen's call

I think the links you wanted are also in the My Posts menu now. Does that solve the problem for you?

My initial reaction is that I like the new one, though I'll give it a try for a bit and see how I feel after a day or two.

I added a Thanks to the first post- if you switch back to the old version, it seems not to fit the page. Just an observation, but would that affect the possibility of switching back if a permanent change were made across the forum? . ;-)

I love the old version. In my opinion, the new one needs more colour. It´s too bright and that makes me feel uncomfortable.

I have been testing it for a while now and I was going to say that I quite liked it. I can see Mara_ce's point about more colour. It looks OK on my screen, but if the top of a post has shading that was a bit darker, it might make them stand out more clearly on some screens. Are the icons only available in those colours or can they be changed at all?

I'm also researching if we should upgrade to vB4.

You can see vB4 screenshots here: Purchase vBulletin, the most powerful forum software available. or you can see it in action here: vBulletin Community Forum

Would that mean using their layout? ;-)

At least initially, yes. However, I'm unsure how much of their layout is optional at this time. I'm testing this out seperately to the general design here because in theory, much of the final forum design (the forum theme) should be able to be transferred to the new software.

Red5 said:

@birdeen's call

I think the links you wanted are also in the My Posts menu now. Does that solve the problem for you?

Click to expand...

Yes, but it was better to have it where it was... Thanks anyway, it's not a big problem!

All I can say is WOW! The new forum theme is fantastic!

As a new member, I´m still getting accustomed to the old format. My only comment at this time is that the new theme is too white! The pale blue is much easier on the eyes. A second thought: Is there a reason that the type-size has become smaller?

I liked the new design,it looks more professional.