Summer Update + UI Status

[Dragoneer]

Will you overhaul the TT system? Things can look pretty front end, but for the staff, can you post for them (does not need to be in this thread of course) what plans are for back end usage?

After this update, I want to focus on redoing the entire administrative side of the site. Tear it down completely and rebuild it from the ground up. Proper moderation channels, levels (similar to the forums -- mods, super mods, admins) and revised ticketing, assignments as well as a proper reporting system.

[Pravda]

After this update, I want to focus on redoing the entire administrative side of the site. Tear it down completely and rebuild it from the ground up. Proper moderation channels, levels (similar to the forums -- mods, super mods, admins) and revised ticketing, assignments as well as a proper reporting system.

You know, this would be an excellent time to redo this the right way. Scratch PHP, redesign your database schema to be workable, and separate the admin tools from the frontend webapp. Maybe even make them secure, so that stolen admin cookies aren't an unmitigated disaster.

At least, this is the approach I would use. Feel free to ignore this and make a mishmash of scrapped-together, unreviewed PHP to control the inner workings of your site, then point fingers at me when you get 0wned.

[dinosaurdammit]

After this update, I want to focus on redoing the entire administrative side of the site. Tear it down completely and rebuild it from the ground up. Proper moderation channels, levels (similar to the forums -- mods, super mods, admins) and revised ticketing, assignments as well as a proper reporting system.

If you are going to do another chain of command, can the mods on the forums also be allowed help out on the main site as well? I really have nothing to do and am on the internet like 90 precent of my day. I can do loads of TTs in a given day and I am sure the other mods could help out as well.

[Dragoneer]

If you are going to do another chain of command, can the mods on the forums also be allowed help out on the main site as well? I really have nothing to do and am on the internet like 90 precent of my day. I can do loads of TTs in a given day and I am sure the other mods could help out as well.

Exactly. Having an official moderator role will allow FA mods to be FA mods - forum and site - if they choose to be.

[Pravda]

Exactly. Having an official moderator role will allow FA mods to be FA mods - forum and site - if they choose to be.

Your current codebase, as far as I understand it, doesn't have the concept of roles. Are you seriously going to retrofit this into the current code?

[Iovis]

Will there be a report button? It is so much trouble to fill out a TT that it becomes rather a bother to do it. A report button would be so nice.

This is the only thing I want an answer to.

As for the new UI, I could care less. If I don't like it I know enough about CSS to just create my own and say "screw you FA".

[dinosaurdammit]

This is the only thing I want an answer to.

As for the new UI, I could care less. If I don't like it I know enough about CSS to just create my own and say "screw you FA".

Then why don't you?

As for the update, I like the new layout. The FA now seems so bland and stale. I don't mind using it and I am not about to complain for a free service but the new layout is very promising. I have never used IB or SF or any other furry sites so I dunno about their faults 'n such but I hope that with the new system will beef up measures to counter attacks and hopefully put more of an end to unexpected down time as well as prevent leaks and problems within staff.

[Pravda]

Dragoneer, you're going out of your way to ignore important issues (case in point: you disappear from this thread around the time I posted this); you're only responding to the fluff and to announce future promises of planned plans.

If you want to fix your site, as you state is your current priority (above cash, even), you need to start with the current major issues. To wit:
Security. Not the cargo-cult "lots of magic values hashed together" kind that yak keeps pushing.
Database redundancy. It's nice that you've got some fat storage servers, but you are bottlenecking at the database.
System architecture. Why do you have a load balancer when your webapp isn't redundant? (don't tell me SSL, I know that's BS)

Again, if only you had someone whose day job is helping secure redundant web apps offering to help you fix your insecure, non-redundant web app... If only!

[Iovis]

Then why don't you?

With some of the new things that they are going to be putting out (folders, new comment system, etc) the CSS style would probably just break when it comes out. So I'll wait and see.

[kayfox]

I am also seeing Dragoneer skip over security questions here.

[thoron]

wait...wait...
are you talking about the Browse feature or the search feature as I'm sure you can look up for just stories and poetry by using the advance feature for search. Even then the Browse feature does allow one to look up specifically literature too

I've been talking about the browsing feature, the problem is that the species list that is the bane of the FA browsing system is what seems to be on the chopping block. I love the current browsing system the only useless portion of it is the species list, but I can't seem to tell if the its just the species list thats going or the who current browsing system, which from what I can see so far might just be replaced by a keyword search like on FAP or IB. It doesn't help that they have yet to show an example of the new UI's browsing page, what will I use? Keywords that can be iffy if the user mislables? or the current system that makes catergorizing simple everything easy to find ouside of species?

[Accountability]

The homepage preview doesn't look particularly appealing to me, and knowing people don't like change, I designed my own that keeps the general layout of the current one and uses or references existing elements found elsewhere in the new UI. It also has my idea for how stories and/or music should be displayed and Twitter integration, and a slight shadow on submissions.



EDIT: My thoughts about the "News" section:
Typically the "News" section never contains anything that is important days after it is posted, so my design only shows the most recent. In some cases, however, it is nice to have access to old news, which could be accomplished either by having a dedicated news page and/or having a next/last series of buttons in the news element that lets you browse through the last 5 or so.

[Wolfenpilot687]

[worthlesscomment]
Also, I hope mood can be more easily changed, for all those emotional folks out there.
[/worthlesscomment]

[Sekhmet_Pyralis]

I like the look and feel so far of the update!

I have a question a lot of users and myself are wondering:

With the new update, will you integrate the possibility of changing usernames? It would be extremely helpful!

It was stated here that it was "in the works" http://help.furaffinity.net/article/...-username.html

So I am wondering if we should expect it with the new update this summer? If not ,when? Thank you!

[Eevee]

It is extremely obvious to me that only the userpage was designed by Zaush, and the rest has been retrofitted by a non-designer to kinda fit the general page layout. That doesn't bode well.

That said, I'm less interested in the UI and more interested in: what has been done and what is still planned? Dragoneer, you've been very hand-wavey every time this has come up. Yes, we get it, there's new commenting supposedly probably coming, or whatever. Please be more specific. We have no idea what's actually been accomplished and no idea what's holding up an open beta.

[RedRoseofDeath]

Wooooowww... It's a good thing that the pure immaturity of people never amazes me anymore. Because reading through this thread I am just repulsed by the pure rudeness shown by so many people. Honestly, some of you are just nasty. I see some people on this topic that are the reason people hate furries. If you don't like the new UI then go to a different site. Are you serious? There are things called manners that some of you idiots could stand to learn. It's sad really that we live in a world where people think it's okay to say whatever they want because they are hiding behind a computer. I bet any amount of money that if you were face to face with Dragoneer you would be too cowardly to say it to his face.

Aw poor baby, you don't like the new UI, aw poor baby he won't discuss security issues, Well honestly, would you like him to say OH YES we are fixing the security by doing this, this and this? just so people know exactly how to breach it? Woww you guys are god damn morons. -.-'

I personally love the new UI, I don't see how it is 'a copy' of any other site be it inkbunny, sofurry or any of those other sites that I don't give a flying flea about.

Keep up the good work Dragoneer, I can't wait for it to roll out.

[Xaevo]

i don't want this update, i just want the old UI and improved under-the-hood code.

FA is good as it is when it comes to styling, please focus on the code instead?

There are alot of security issues to be fixed, focus on that before switching themes.

imho, it looks like inkbunny raped Deviantart, and then something spawned out of that....

no offence, but really, it's too copy-catty.

Fix the issues, listen to what eevee, pi and i have to say, and then give users the OPTION to switch to the new UI.

[Shadomew]

I'm definitely excited about the update; to put it bluntly, the current UI is boring and the backend leaves much much much to be desired...
By the way, one thing I noticed in the process of creating this post that's a tad irksome -- the forum isn't linked to the main site at all. ^^; Is it possible that the future will include integration so that FA users won't need to register a second time to access the forums? x_x

[Browder]

I'm definitely excited about the update; to put it bluntly, the current UI is boring and the backend leaves much much much to be desired...
By the way, one thing I noticed in the process of creating this post that's a tad irksome -- the forum isn't linked to the main site at all. ^^; Is it possible that the future will include integration so that FA users won't need to register a second time to access the forums? x_x

Yes it is. Look at the bottom of your page.

Still the fact that you HAVE to look at the bottom of your page may prove your point.

[Eevee]

Well honestly, would you like him to say OH YES we are fixing the security by doing this, this and this? just so people know exactly how to breach it? Woww you guys are god damn morons. -.-'

This is not how it works. Some of the people in this thread are decently well-versed in security; if you are not, please don't criticize the technical merits of their actions.

FA is good as it is when it comes to styling, please focus on the code instead?

Fix the issues, listen to what eevee, pi and i have to say, and then give users the OPTION to switch to the new UI.

FA currently looks terrible and functions poorly. It may be familiar, but its merits end there.

Providing multiple skins is a fool's errand; it significantly increases the workload required for adding or changing virtually any feature, and more roadblocks are the last thing FA needs.

[Pravda]

a big long extended "if you don't like it go somewhere else" dicksuck

Saying "go somewhere else" does not fix the severe, long-term, brokenness exhibited by this current code base. Please learn a little bit about internet security before you accuse people of being immature for talking about it, then immediately pull the least-mature response of 'heh if you dont like it just leave'; that helps nobody and only serves to make you look stupid.

[Iovis]

Wooooowww... It's a good thing that the pure immaturity of people never amazes me anymore. Because reading through this thread I am just repulsed by the pure rudeness shown by so many people. Honestly, some of you are just nasty. I see some people on this topic that are the reason people hate furries.

I'm sorry but what, pray tell, does that have anything to do with being a FURRY? Seems more like a HUMAN thing to me... but maybe that's because I don't live in some delusional fantasy world where "FURRIE R TEH REELZ!!111!"?

If you don't like the new UI then go to a different site.

Like what? I hate to break it to you sweetie, but Furaffinity is the biggest and best out of all the furry art sites out there. Though I will say that Inkbunny would easily beat out FA if it wasn't run by a bunch of human hating pedos.

Aw poor baby, you don't like the new UI, aw poor baby he won't discuss security issues, Well honestly, would you like him to say OH YES we are fixing the security by doing this, this and this? just so people know exactly how to breach it? Woww you guys are god damn morons. -.-'

Fun fact: if the security issues that FA is plagued with were fixed properly it wouldn't matter what kind of information he gave out. Trying to abuse security vulnerabilities that aren't there is like trying to cut down a tree with a blade of grass.

[Talonblaze]

Seeing as how most of this stuff is still not yet 100% factual yet and many of the questions I wondered have been asked already;

What about site efficiency? The great thing FA has over alot of sites is how fast and easy to navigate it is. I don't have to wait for stuff like DA, SoFurry or all that jazz with this jumbled stuff of useless features and codes and the UI is friendly for all connections.
Will this new UI change that?

Also, if tags ARE introduced, will they be alot more efficient than the other sites? Its a major turn off that I'm wasting time having to do tag formats in a silly specific format JUST to submit my works.
Heaven forbid I can't do C/P or miss a comma. I really hope FA doesn't go down that road.
The drop down menus are quick and easy to navigate to and find what you want as well.

[dinosaurdammit]

The drop down menus are quick and easy to navigate to and find what you want as well.

I actually like the drop down menu but not for species. If the tag system were used and the drop down for species cut down it would solve a lot of archiving issues. Rather than just putting OTHER and lumping it with like a bunch of stuff that does not match your species you can just tag it and tags that are similar will automatically write up too. It seems more efficient.

[Rossyfox]

You know for the amount of changes you are making to this thing maybe it would make more sense to start from scratch with a web application framework.

You could call it Project Ferrox