IPB: Reply vs Add Reply - possible (?) or should be possible

[Brandon D]

IPB does cater towards both situations. If you want a rambling chat with no direction then use the topic's Add Reply button, or better yet, just use the quick reply. If you want to reply directly to a post then click the little reply button under that post. I don't think it could get any more simple than that.

[3DKiwi]

All the majority of users wish to do is to type a quick reply.

I agree.

My Fast reply button just calls some javascript to scroll down the page. Essentially a reverse of the "Top" button. There's a mod in the resources section adding a Top button. All I did was change it around to become a bottom button. The code however is:

<li class='bottompage'>

           <a href='javascript:scroll(0,10000);' > {parse replacement="bottom_page_icon"} {$this->lang->words['bottom_page']}</a>

</li>

CSS code for the above:

ul.post_controls li.bottompage,

Interesting that Luke thinks making things more obvious to members would be confusing. This hasn't been my experience but I do agree that 4 buttons is too many. With IPB2 I removed the multi-quote button. I haven't got around to doing that with IPB 3. I doubt anyone would complain if it disappeared.

3DKiwi

[.Ian]

IPB does cater towards both situations. If you want arambling chat with no direction then use the topic's Add Reply button, orbetter yet, just use the quick reply. If you want to reply directly to a postthen click the little reply button under that post.

so in order to reply to such a post, would it be easier to be able to click on a button that says quick reply or quick quote instead of having to scroll down the page - especially if the page has 100 posts on it.

[.Ian]

I agree.

My Fast reply button just calls some javascript to scroll down the page. Essentially a reverse of the "Top" button. There's a mod in the resources section adding a Top button. All I did was change it around to become a bottom button. The code however is:

<li class='bottompage'>

       	<a href='javascript:scroll(0,10000);' > {parse replacement="bottom_page_icon"} {$this->lang->words['bottom_page']}</a>

</li>

CSS code for the above:

ul.post_controls li.bottompage,

Interesting that Luke thinks making things more obvious to members would be confusing. This hasn't been my experience but I do agree that 4 buttons is too many. With IPB2 I removed the multi-quote button. I haven't got around to doing that with IPB 3. I doubt anyone would complain if it disappeared.

3DKiwi

Thanks - often more confusing to some is much simpler to others.

People need to bear in mind that their view of things is not the same as Joe Public who has just signed up to your forums and could become a major player in your forum if he feels your forum is easy to chat with other members. Make it hard and he will go down the road the Tom Smith running VB and offering similar topics to you.


Thanks for the tip.

[Brandon D]

Yeah, it would be undoubtedly easier to reply without quoting if there were more links/buttons that did that. I just think that's best left for admins to decide if it will benefit their forum and add it themselves rather than it being a default in the software. I also don't agree with putting it next to the other buttons under every post, as they don't belong together.

If I were to do something like that, I'd probably move the Report button from the left to the right and then put the Add Reply button on the left side. That way it's still separated to some extent from the post buttons.

[Luke]

Interesting that Luke thinks making things more obvious to members would be confusing. This hasn't been my experience but I do agree that 4 buttons is too many. With IPB2 I removed the multi-quote button. I haven't got around to doing that with IPB 3. I doubt anyone would complain if it disappeared.

I'm baffled. My point was that adding more buttons would make things confusing. 4 buttons is too many, thus confusing. Do you guys even fully understand what I'm suggesting?

Really the point I'm trying to make is balance. There is no need to have 4 buttons on the page when you can do exactly the same thing with two buttons. ian doesn't like the fact that users don't bother to un-quote people when they shouldn't be quoted. That's fine, this can be done with the two buttons we already have, but by adjusting the way they function. Lets make the "Reply" button not quote unless "MultiQuote" is selected. It would add 1 extra click if you wanted to quote someone, but you could quote other people at the same time while replying directly to someone else. Not only does this solve the problem in a way that doesn't add unnecessary buttons to the page, but it adds flexibility. Right now you have to use the "Add Reply" button to make use of the MultiQuote functionality - the "Reply" button doesn't work with "MultiQuote" even though they are right next to each other. It makes perfect sense to me that a post should ONLY be quoted if "MultiQuote" is selected. And since it would be the only way to quote someone (with this change) I would suggested naming it "Quote" instead. It's simpler and more streamlined.

Side note: Another nice feature to have - When in the full editor there is a topic summary. Would be nice to be able to click a button on one of those posts to add the quoted text into the box.

[Brett B]

This is true on a 'support' based forum - but not every forum is the same.

Not all forums are full of intellectual questions - some are rambling chats.

Good forum software has to cater for all situations.

You can't assume that every situation is the same.

In a rambling chat, don't you occasionally direct a response towards a certain person's ramble? Of course you do, in which case it only makes sense to quote that particular ramble, or post, by replying to it.

so in order to reply to such a post, would it be easier to be able to click on a button that says quick reply or quick quote instead of having to scroll down the page - especially if the page has 100 posts on it.

Pages don't have 100 posts.

[.Ian]

Yeah, it would be undoubtedly easier to reply without quoting if there were more links/buttons that did that. I just think that's best left for admins to decide if it will benefit their forum and add it themselves rather than it being a default in the software. I also don't agree with putting it next to the other buttons under every post, as they don't belong together.

If I were to do something like that, I'd probably move the Report button from the left to the right and then put the Add Reply button on the left side. That way it's still separated to some extent from the post buttons.

Indeed - should be the best option to the particular forum - one style will never fit all :)

I'm baffled. My point was that adding more buttons would make things confusing. 4 buttons is too many, thus confusing. Do you guys even fully understand what I'm suggesting?

Really the point I'm trying to make is balance. There is no need to have 4 buttons on the page when you can do exactly the same thing with two buttons. ian doesn't like the fact that users don't bother to un-quote people when they shouldn't be quoted. That's fine, this can be done with the two buttons we already have, but by adjusting the way they function. Lets make the "Reply" button not quote unless "MultiQuote" is selected. It would add 1 extra click if you wanted to quote someone, but you could quote other people at the same time while replying directly to someone else. Not only does this solve the problem in a way that doesn't add unnecessary buttons to the page, but it adds flexibility. Right now you have to use the "Add Reply" button to make use of the MultiQuote functionality - the "Reply" button doesn't work with "MultiQuote" even though they are right next to each other. It makes perfect sense to me that a post should ONLY be quoted if "MultiQuote" is selected. And since it would be the only way to quote someone (with this change) I would suggested naming it "Quote" instead. It's simpler and more streamlined.

Side note: Another nice feature to have - When in the full editor there is a topic summary. Would be nice to be able to click a button on one of those posts to add the quoted text into the box.

4 buttons to some is too many - to other forums it is just right - my question is why not leave it to the admin to decide - I think we both agree that currently it does not work to the benefit of most forums.

In a rambling chat, don't you occasionally direct a response towards a certain person's ramble? Of course you do, in which case it only makes sense to quote that particular ramble, or post, by replying to it.

indeed - so a quick quote would work in the situation you propose.

Pages don't have 100 posts.

Why not? Some people prefer having 100 posts on a page - if a forum typically has threads with 3-400 posts on it, isn't it better to have 3 or 4 pages than 20 pages? Some people prefer it that way. It is their choice. The buttons should cater for those of 20 posts or 100 posts.

[bfarber]

I think we both agree that currently it does not work to the benefit of most forums.

Minor correction here.

There are something like 4 or 5 people in this topic discussing this issue. Hardly indicative of the majority of our customers.

Additionally, this functionality has been in place since about 2.0 (that's something like 6 years) and no one has complained about this that I've ever seen in the entire time I've been here (since 2005). Again, this one topic with 4 people voicing differing opinions is hardly indicative of "most forums". :)

[.Ian]

Sorry for making statement as a licence holder.

[3DKiwi]

Brandon - I suggest you do a few searches here in the forums on +quote +reply and or "quote reply". You should find that what us the end user are talking about has cropped up regularly over the years.

It's one of these things like Signature images. Some people like them. Others like me can't stand them. Just visual pollution of threads as is excessive quoted replies.

Nigel / 3DKiwi