Van2 Posted October 4, 2012 Share Posted October 4, 2012 IPS has done an amazing job building the software we use But i would like to see more improvements to the Profiles. These boards are all about members and getting more members. Members checking out each others profiles, I feel this is the one of most important part of a commuinity This is why facebook has become so popular over the years Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alfa1 Posted October 4, 2012 Share Posted October 4, 2012 Yes, while I am very impressed with IPS as a whole, I am unimpressed with IPS profiles. There is certainly a lot of room for improvement here. It would be nice to see profile modules, timeline, and a much cooler layout. Member List is also outdated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Van2 Posted October 4, 2012 Author Share Posted October 4, 2012 I like a lot of the new features being talked about for IPS 3.4, But i really think IPS has gotten away from making the software better for the members of our sites. I feel the changes lately have all been Admin based I hope some changes can be made to the members profiles before they release 3.4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brett L Posted October 4, 2012 Share Posted October 4, 2012 Member List is also outdated. What specific changes would you like to see to the member list While I do agree profiles have lots of room for improvement i'm a little bit curious as to what you would like to see the member list offer that it doesn't already offer. I agree it is rather cumbersome to just a list of thousands of users but how do you propose we improve that? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brett L Posted October 4, 2012 Share Posted October 4, 2012 I like a lot of the new features being talked about for IPS 3.4, But i really think IPS has gotten away from making the software better for the members of our sites. I feel the changes lately have all been Admin based 3.4 was made to be more of an admin-friendly release. We have not "gotten away from making the software better for members" it was just planned that 3.4 would be primarily for admins. Trust me front end usability enhancements are still very much on everyone's mind. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wolfie Posted October 4, 2012 Share Posted October 4, 2012 What specific changes would you like to see to the member list While I do agree profiles have lots of room for improvement i'm a little bit curious as to what you would like to see the member list offer that it doesn't already offer. I agree it is rather cumbersome to just a list of thousands of users but how do you propose we improve that?I have a couple of ideas. First is here: Main reason for the above topic is to remove the hard coded messenger fields from the template and instead make it dynamic so that someone can add new social based sites/services. Another that comes to mind, in relation to the list, make it so that in the top right, you can start typing in a name and have it filter the list in real time, like in the ACP when looking at the members and typing in a name, it starts filtering right away. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Van2 Posted October 4, 2012 Author Share Posted October 4, 2012 3.4 was made to be more of an admin-friendly release. We have not "gotten away from making the software better for members" it was just planned that 3.4 would be primarily for admins. Trust me front end usability enhancements are still very much on everyone's mind. Would you agree the 3.3 was more about admin based as well, I can't see why you guys can't do both with upgrades Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Van2 Posted October 4, 2012 Author Share Posted October 4, 2012 One thing i would really like to see in the profiles is More photo's, I know we have the gallery but can we have the option for members to add more photo's in their profile or show their gallery photo's in their profiles Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wolfie Posted October 4, 2012 Share Posted October 4, 2012 Would you agree the 3.3 was more about admin based as well, I can't see why you guys can't do both with upgradesI think that depending on the situation, it can be better to focus on one area vs another or vs multiple areas. With the stability of the current release (with bug fixes pending in either a 3.3.5 or a 3.4.0), it's better to make any necessary or useful enhancements/improvements in a focused area and then start working on either 3.5.0 or 4.0.0 (I'm sure it'll be 4.0.0 but I say 3.5.0 just in case that's the next step).One thing i would really like to see in the profiles is More photo's, I know we have the gallery but can we have the option for members to add more photo's in their profile or show their gallery photo's in their profilesWhat I'd like to see is a way for users to be able to customize the content of the default landing tab when viewing a profile. Have a standard 'community stats' block that would be on there, without the 'active posts' and 'interests' but with a few other tidbits added. To the left of that, allow like 3 to 5 mini blocks that the member could pick from, with default ones being friends, latest visitors, likes and also an 'interests' block, which would be based on adding interests either from a list (restricted mode) or typing in the name of an interest and providing a link and it would turn into a little block (similar to the 'friends' image on the friends block) so that hovering over it would reveal the name and (if permitted by admin and on a per group basis) would link out to a site. (Per group would be based on the profile being viewed, not the viewer, so a spammer couldn't add 'interests' and link to various sites because it wouldn't work, but a verified member might have their likes linked out so visitors to their profile can click an image to see more.) See attached image for a rough idea. The tabs on the left (highlighted in red) would also be somewhat transparent and maybe a tad more visible, but when mousing over, the tabs would overlap the view and clicking on a tab would work as normal and other views wouldn't hide the tabs. Just the 'cover page', so the focus is the content. Under the 'community stats' section, maybe allow for a row for more blocks, with the side blocks being defined by the admin and the row (spanning from under the stats to under the other blocks) would be user chosen blocks with those blocks being supplied by the admin. Look at the attached image. 'block one' and 'block two' could be either feeds (twitter, fb, etc) or perhaps a 'quote' the user has made (the clock icon (on mouseover) would tell the date and time for it) or that space could be used for something else or left as it is now. Link provided for seeing more (quotes or the source of the quote). For the latest visitors (and friends) hovering on image would show name (and latest visit if its latest visitors, last time active on site if the friends area) and moving to the name would show the member card. Clicking on the image would view their profile. The three user blocks (could be bigger in height and maybe less wide to allow up to 4 or 5 to be used) could be user choice based on what the admin has chosen to make available. This is where IPS community members could create/invent blocks for an admin to add and that would let members choose what to show. Notice also the user 'rep' moved and is less wide. Under it all, the members 'feed', so that you can see their latest status updates without having to hunt it down. As with viewing a list of topics, be able to click a 'more' button to see more from the member. Unlike fb/twit, it wouldn't just auto-load when scrolling down (that's annoying to be honest). Just something where you see the member and what they have to say, all up front. The tabs on the side would be for exploring them a bit more (but have the topics/posts tabs combined into a 'forums' tab, showing links to latest topics and to latest posts, with the 'drop down' icon to preview the content, as you can when viewing the topics lists). Blog would show latest entries (if any) and latest comments. Same idea for gallery and downloads. For the 'Likes', have it show likes from everywhere and not just forum posts. Reduce the amount of content show and tell where the content is from (Forums post in topic 'some title here', Gallery comment for image 'image name here', etc). That way, the focus is less on forums and covers more content. Having a 'forums' tab vs topics/posts also helps move away from the concept of forums being the primary focus. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lase Posted October 4, 2012 Share Posted October 4, 2012 What specific changes would you like to see to the member list While I do agree profiles have lots of room for improvement i'm a little bit curious as to what you would like to see the member list offer that it doesn't already offer. I agree it is rather cumbersome to just a list of thousands of users but how do you propose we improve that? Just one example of how a member list in 2012 ought to resemble at the least: Plenty ways to skin a cat though. But 3's are good numbers to work from. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wolfie Posted October 4, 2012 Share Posted October 4, 2012 Plenty ways to skin a cat though. But 3's are good numbers to work from.I disagree with having 'active posts' as a static item. That requires the forums app to be installed and it's important to remember that IPS is trying to move in the direction of not requiring the forums app. Also, for the left 'block', show stuff like stats (gender, birthday, profile views, etc) but with links to social media (if they have fb or are a twit, show the icons and link to their social media accounts). Second and third blocks should be the same size (left block being half the width, so next two would be 1/4 each), with it being admin choice as default (and admin can choose the user control.. none, left, right, both). So if an admin wants each account to have the same info, it will, or could let members decide. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom Christian Posted October 4, 2012 Share Posted October 4, 2012 What specific changes would you like to see to the member list While I do agree profiles have lots of room for improvement i'm a little bit curious as to what you would like to see the member list offer that it doesn't already offer. I agree it is rather cumbersome to just a list of thousands of users but how do you propose we improve that? One thing I've never understood is why the 'member list' is considered an important enough area of a forum to be placed second in the navigation. Why is it even in the navigation? I don't think I've ever actually used the member list on a forum. If I want to find a specific user, I'll use the search feature. Unless I'm missing some amazing feature within the member list, It just seems like an utterly pointless feature to me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rimi Posted October 4, 2012 Share Posted October 4, 2012 I actually removd the members list from my navigation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom Christian Posted October 4, 2012 Share Posted October 4, 2012 I actually removd the members list from my navigation. So have I, but then I've also removed the entire forum except Nexus :P Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TracyIsland Posted October 4, 2012 Share Posted October 4, 2012 I actually removd the members list from my navigation. We too! Using ProMenu 2.0, our nav system says: 'STATUS UPDATES' and below it is a drop down menu with 1. again, status updates 2. a link to the messenger inbox (we're fanatics about UI) 3. a link to 'Members Online' We think those might be more interesting or useful to our members. In terms of suggestions for the member profiles, I have a slew of recommendations: 1. we use the profile tab numbering feature (3rd party app) to show the number of posts, topics, groups (social groups), profile comments, ... that is so much more useful. 2. we're hoping a certain developer will come through for us in creating a hook on the main member profile that will create a side bar to show the add profile comment field ... yes the profile comment has its own tab but it is hidden behind the need to click a side tab AND ... again, a UI thing ... new users and/or casual users don't know what the tab means or signifies. (and yes, we have played with the language string but it is so tough to come up with something so obvious ... and in the mantra of don't make me think, it is so much more useful to have it just there, in a side bar ... so you can comment on a member when you are looking at their profile ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ajouz ♞ Posted October 4, 2012 Share Posted October 4, 2012 Membr List : it is useless , who care honestly about member list Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rimi Posted October 4, 2012 Share Posted October 4, 2012 Membr List : it is useless , who care honestly about member listhttp://community.inv...vs-member-list/Well, I care about it. But I don't think it needs as much attention as it has right now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alfa1 Posted October 4, 2012 Share Posted October 4, 2012 What specific changes would you like to see to the member list While I do agree profiles have lots of room for improvement i'm a little bit curious as to what you would like to see the member list offer that it doesn't already offer. I agree it is rather cumbersome to just a list of thousands of users but how do you propose we improve that? I would like to see more admin set layout options. Currently its only possible to have a paginated list of rows. I would like to see grid like layout options similar to: QQ (750 million users) Facebook PHPFox. I do not have enough permissions do upload more examples. There was a very popular memberlist addon for vbulletin 3.I would like to see widgets for popular members, staff, members who received the most reputation this month, new members, recently promoted members, etc. AJAX-loading instead of pagination is the modern standard these days. Initiate chat from memberlist. Userstatus on memberlist. More control over what is visible on memberlist. A more prominent 'add friend' button A 'follow' button. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dr. Jekyll Posted October 4, 2012 Share Posted October 4, 2012 . I agree it is rather cumbersome to just a list of thousands of users but how do you propose we improve that? For example, by making the profile (with a small photos gallery) visible only to friends and not just to everybody as it is now :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wolfie Posted October 4, 2012 Share Posted October 4, 2012 I don't think I've ever actually used the member list on a forum. If I want to find a specific user, I'll use the search feature. Unless I'm missing some amazing feature within the member list, It just seems like an utterly pointless feature to me.Membr List : it is useless , who care honestly about member listI actually use it from time to time. Depends on what I'm doing and what I need or want to do. So it's not useless, just less commonly used. Calendar isn't used that often, but I don't see people calling that useless (although I'm sure some will chime in that it's useless just because I said that). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TracyIsland Posted October 4, 2012 Share Posted October 4, 2012 Let's not lose sight of the original post:But i would like to see more improvements to the Profiles. These boards are all about members and getting more members. Members checking out each others profiles, I feel this is the one of most important part of a commuinity Yes, Brett L can probably do some quick remakes of the Member List but I agree with @Van2 that the profile itself needs to have a better, more informative and interesting display. There is lots of competition for geography on the default overview. I like the status update display above but how will the casual visitor know how to comment on the status update? Solution: add a simple link between, to the left or to the right of the posting date and the comment count. The link might possibly create a drop down or pop up (I like drop down (expansion) better) that allows a user to comment. I also like the idea of a sidebar or [widebar (ahem ... my term for the wider content area) to showcase the latest uploaded images?] maybe above or below the About Me section, and possibly allowing or enabling the overview to have (ajax?) capabilities so users can drag and drop the overview profile elements from/to the widebar-sidebar and also up and down in the listing of items in the widebar/sidebar Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wolfie Posted October 4, 2012 Share Posted October 4, 2012 Yes, Brett L can probably do some quick remakes of the Member List but I agree with @Van2 that the profile itself needs to have a better, more informative and interesting display. There is lots of competition for geography on the default overview. I like the status update display above but how will the casual visitor know how to comment on the status update? Solution: add a simple link between, to the left or to the right of the posting date and the comment count.You mean how it is now or the example I created? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TracyIsland Posted October 4, 2012 Share Posted October 4, 2012 You mean how it is now or the example I created? I was talking about how it is now. To be honest, I had not clicked on your mock up. I like some of what you did but not all. My personal style tastes mandates that the horizontal tabs on the left stay visible, and I like the two-column layout of the widebar and sidebar below the super wide top. Not sure if I am super enthusiastic about two blocks up in the super wide like you show. so my idea would be able to drag and drop a widebar block and move it above or below the 'about me' and the 'community stats' block, or ... to drag it to the sidebar and also have the ability to drag up and down blocks within the sidebar Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wolfie Posted October 4, 2012 Share Posted October 4, 2012 I was talking about how it is now. To be honest, I had not clicked on your mock up. I like some of what you did but not all. My personal style tastes mandates that the horizontal tabs on the left stay visible, and I like the two-column layout of the widebar and sidebar below the super wide top. Not sure if I am super enthusiastic about two blocks up in the super wide like you show.The tabs on the left would still be visible but just enough so a visitor knows they tabs are there, but would otherwise remain hidden/covered until they hover over one of the tabs, then it pop to the front. That way there's more room for actual content and more focus on it as well. The two blocks in the upper right is more to fill the space with something, although it's not a necessity for it to be filled. Could be blank for normal members but have buttons for admins/supermods to use. I had thought of it remaining two columns underneath (where I show the profile feed/status updates), but then that makes it a bit cluttered. Simple feed should be enough. Top has some information, one level down is more information and some blocks, then nothing but user content below. So you get 'necessity' up top for a quick overview but then you have user content to look over. Tabs on the left for viewing more details. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Van2 Posted October 4, 2012 Author Share Posted October 4, 2012 I just want to make this point, i have over 11,000 members on one of my site and when i upgraded from 3.2 to 3.3 not one of my members noticed anything different to the site, except my mods, They were not happy with the changes, I get over 250 new threads per day and a lot of members use the bump feature and we figured out that using the approve, un-approve buttons would un-bump a topic.. This was removed in 3.3. and now we have hide and un-hide and my staff do not like it, They are also not happy with the changes with the new warn panel. Now i am reading about the changes coming in 3.4 and again this is admin based, Which is great, i like the improvements But the point of this thread was to make improvements to the profiles, I find them boring and in need of some serious updates, The best part of the profiles is the add-ons i have added to try and make them more user friendly.and fun I just think we need to get back to making the board better for the users, because without them we don't have community's Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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