Move user links to the top

drsjlazar · 2010-09-27 12:13:23

Currently on the forum index page the user specific links are at the bottom. I mean the "Show recent posts", "Show unanswered posts", "Show your subscribed topics", "Show your posts" links. The last 2 links are the first things I check before I continue browsing... But this means I have to scroll all the way to the bottom of the page to get to them.

I don't know about other users but I think it would be a big UI improvement if they were moved to the top of the page under the user name. Would this change be possible?

Thanks.

Wintervenom · 2010-09-27 12:17:42

You can do this with Stylish by utilizing the CSS content property.

drsjlazar · 2010-09-27 12:31:23

I take it that Stylish is a browser extension. I use rekonq which unfortunately does not support extensions yet.

karol · 2010-09-27 12:35:32

Does something like Ctrl-End to jump to the bottom of the page work with rekonq?

I am automatically subscribed to topics I post to or I can click to subscribe if I don't post but want to keep an eye on the topic. If any new posts are posted in those threads, I get an e-mail notification. Why do you check them 'manually'?

Last edited by karol (2010-09-27 12:42:16)

drsjlazar · 2010-09-27 13:08:51

Yes Ctrl+End does jump to the end in rekonq. But it is an extra step. I don't like to clutter my main inbox with stuff other than email. It gets too distracting when there's other stuff to be done. I will try it out though.

I do realize that that each user has his/her own way of doing things and there is no one size that fits all. So I guess my question could be rephrased as such - Would it be a UI improvement if the links were moved to the top? And it would be more of a discussion rather than a request for implementation.

A good example of this layout is the Linux Mint forums. http://forums.linuxmint.com/index.php These often used links are at the top and remain there no mater which page the user is on.

karol · 2010-09-27 13:16:44

I wouldn't have mind those links moved to the top myself.
Many e-mail apps / webapps have folders and filters so you can put every notification from Arch Forums in one place, from Linux Mint in another, if you wish.
I'm subscribed to about 300 topics atm, so checking them would be a bit time consuming. I check my inbox anyway, so I just deal with notifications as I have time. You can say for me is one step _less_ ;P

Wintervenom · 2010-09-27 15:15:20

drsjlazar wrote:

I take it that Stylish is a browser extension. I use rekonq which unfortunately does not support extensions yet.

If Rekonq can do site-specific CSS overrides, then that works, too.

stqn · 2010-09-27 23:20:57

For what it's worth, I also found it very strange and annoying that half the links were at the top and the other half at the bottom of the page. But now I use the RSS feed to be informed of new topics, and subscribe to those of interest, so I don't navigate on the forum anymore. This works much, much better for me than using the "Show last posts" or whatever.

karol · 2010-09-27 23:24:36

stqn wrote:

For what it's worth, I also found it very strange and annoying that half the links were at the top and the other half at the bottom of the page. But now I use the RSS feed to be informed of new topics, and subscribe to those of interest, so I don't navigate on the forum anymore. This works much, much better for me than using the "Show last posts" or whatever.

Exactly.
I use the list of topics to which I'm subscribed if I know what I'm looking for: "There was a thread like that yesterday or the day before yesterday ..." - it's often faster to browse a relatively small list than try to guess / remember some search phrases :-)

jasonwryan · 2010-09-27 23:26:36

The links at the top of the page offer the most utility, ie., "Show new posts since your last visit" is more useful than "Show your subscribed posts" which, by definition, is just a record of threads that you have already received an email for each update. Likewise "Show your posts" is a record of the stuff that you have already submitted...

Each to their own, but Arch is very much DIY so you are encouraged to tailor the CSS yourself as suggested above.

karol · 2010-09-27 23:30:02

jasonwryan wrote:

Each to their own, but Arch is very much DIY so you are encouraged to tailor the CSS yourself as suggested above.

And if every link would be on the top, somebody would complain that he just 'lost' a third of screenspace on links he doesn't really use.

fukawi2 · 2010-09-28 04:45:38

drsjlazar wrote:

I don't know about other users but I think it would be a big UI improvement if they were moved to the top of the page under the user name. Would this change be possible?

Personally I agree, but the forum admins don't like changing the standard installation as it causes headaches at upgrade time. So the only way this is going to happen is if upstream makes the change, then Arch will inherit it when we upgrade

drsjlazar · 2010-09-28 08:04:20

Wintervenom wrote:

If Rekonq can do site-specific CSS overrides, then that works, too.

Rekonq allows the use of one custom user CSS file. I'm not a CSS wiz. Could you please point to a specific guide on how to do this. Maybe my search terms are not good enough but I'm not finding anything to specifically do this. If it is easy enough to fit in a forum post, I'd really appreciate if you could do that as well.

As for changing the forum defaults, I think we can safely conclude that that is not happening... Maybe a forum theme that has this layout would be a viable option?

Last edited by drsjlazar (2010-09-28 08:10:44)

Arch Linux

#1 2010-09-27 12:13:23

Move user links to the top

#2 2010-09-27 12:17:42

Re: Move user links to the top

#3 2010-09-27 12:31:23

Re: Move user links to the top

#4 2010-09-27 12:35:32

Re: Move user links to the top

#5 2010-09-27 13:08:51

Re: Move user links to the top

#6 2010-09-27 13:16:44

Re: Move user links to the top

#7 2010-09-27 15:15:20

Re: Move user links to the top

#8 2010-09-27 23:20:57

Re: Move user links to the top

#9 2010-09-27 23:24:36

Re: Move user links to the top

#10 2010-09-27 23:26:36

Re: Move user links to the top

#11 2010-09-27 23:30:02

Re: Move user links to the top

#12 2010-09-28 04:45:38

Re: Move user links to the top

#13 2010-09-28 08:04:20

Re: Move user links to the top

Board footer