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Forum Layouts

PostPosted: Mon Jul 28, 2008 4:38 am
by blid2def
Hi folks,

Sorry for keeping the forum down over the weekend; I ran into some issues with network bandwidth, and I took the opportunity to also test out some stuff.

You'll notice that some stuff has changed, mainly in the layout of the ticker bar (and a couple of tickers have disappeared), as well as the introduction of some Google ads in certain parts of the forum.

It's very late/early now, so I'll explain the rationale for these changes after I get some sleep. They're not cast in stone yet though, so expect some more changes along the way.

Re: Changes in the forum layout, ads (urgh!), etc.

PostPosted: Mon Jul 28, 2008 12:27 pm
by blid2def
Okay, here's the summary / update I promised to provide.

1. In these 2 months, the network bandwidth usage has been increasing and is now close to hitting the allocated monthly quota. My plan is to monitor how the situation is, and perhaps upgrade the service plan, if required. However, I do feel that the latter is just a matter of time.*

2. To help me to recover the costs of upgrading, I've decided to put in some Google ads for this period. They will be there until my costs are recovered. These ads will appear in these places: (a) when you view the list of topics in a forum (excluding "View new posts/active topics), (b) when you read a post, (c) when you reply to a post.

3. These ads will appear below the navigation bar. However, they don't always show up - it depends on whether Google Adsense manages to find any ads matching the contents of the page. If there are no relevant ads, then nothing is shown. Relevance of the ads is determined by Google Adsense. Yeah, I know - I've seen some odd ones, like how to pick up ladies in Singapore. Very odd. :roll:

4a. For registered members who're logged in to the forum - you'll now see the tickerbar again, but it's now re-positioned at the top of the page, beside the shrunken logo. I've had to take out the tickers for VXN (Nasdaq volatility) and NDX (Nasdaq 100) because of space constraints.

4b. For non-registered members (i.e. lurkers) - this tickerbar is not available. Instead, you'll see another Google ad. So, if you want to see the tickers... Registration is free, and use of the forum is free. :D

5. Prosilver template users: The site search has been reduced to a link in the navigation bar to save some space. To search the site, click on the Search link...

6. Subsilver template users: The QuickReply function has been disabled; I found a serious bug with the combo of IE and QuickReply that I couldn't fix, so I've decided to turn that off for now. You can still use the normal Reply function to reply.

7. Google search and the US ticker search functions have been removed to free up space on the page. Google search functionality is available on most browsers anyway. If you want to use the US ticker links search function, you can go to this page here on my personal Wookup Finance site: http://wookup.com/finance/earnings.php

I think that's about it. My apologies for the downtime over the weekend, as well as the introduction of the ads for this time period.

* This forum currently shares disk space & network bandwidth with a couple of my other sites/forums.

Re: Changes in the forum layout, ads (urgh!), etc.

PostPosted: Mon Jul 28, 2008 2:43 pm
by LenaHuat
Hi GR

Can't thank you enuff for this wunderful effort. :D

I will gladly contribute some $$ towards defraying the cost of this set-up. Let me know if this idea is OK.

Re: Changes in the forum layout, ads (urgh!), etc.

PostPosted: Mon Jul 28, 2008 2:55 pm
by blid2def
LenaHuat wrote:Hi GR

Can't thank you enuff for this wunderful effort. :D

I will gladly contribute some $$ towards defraying the cost of this set-up. Let me know if this idea is OK.


Hi Lena, you're welcome. Thanks for the offer - you're too kind. Same goes for the few others who've offered to donate to the cause. :)

At this point, I'd prefer to use the ads to recover the costs though (yeah I know, they're a bit of an eyesore), but your thoughts are appreciated. :)

Re: Changes in the forum layout, ads (urgh!), etc.

PostPosted: Mon Jul 28, 2008 3:15 pm
by HengHeng
Well kudos to GD for all his hard work in doing up the forums.

I would be glad to contribute too assuming if it proves too expensive to host us.

Re: Changes in the forum layout, ads (urgh!), etc.

PostPosted: Tue Jul 29, 2008 8:41 am
by LenaHuat
GR
Pl buzz me when U activate your 'donation' drive.
The ads are OK with me :D .

Re: Changes in the forum layout, ads (urgh!), etc.

PostPosted: Tue Jul 29, 2008 10:02 am
by blid2def
Hi Lena, HH,

Thanks again; I hope I don't have to go down that "donations" route. In any case, I've done some stuff to reduce network bandwidth usage, and it seems to have a positive effect, so I might be able to delay the inevitable. Well, I hope so. :)

Re: Forum Layouts

PostPosted: Mon Aug 17, 2009 3:17 pm
by LenaHuat
I've juz noticed that there are 'hearts', 'exclamation marks" or etc. on the thread markers.

What do these mean, I wonder :roll:

Re: Forum Layouts

PostPosted: Mon Aug 17, 2009 3:19 pm
by kennynah
when you start a thread, you will see all these icons which can be attached ..allowing you to indicate the "mood" of that thread...i suppose...

Re: Forum Layouts

PostPosted: Mon Aug 17, 2009 3:20 pm
by LenaHuat
Hi K :D
I see. Thanks a million. You know I can be pretty fossilized.