Feedback on StrategyCore

[Kret]

Try, checking or unchecking the Automatic DST option. If you disable it you can manually enable disable the Daylight Savings Time adjustment.

[Gimli]

Thanks, it works now. I unchecked daylight saving time, and it's set correctly.

[Stefan100]

Although I have been away for some time I have been lurking here now and then, and there are some things I wonder:

 

1. Newsletters

I liked the newsletters very much and thought they were a good idea. Why did they stop coming?

 

2. Make summarys of the information here

There is much information here, about games, files, but there is no good summary of the information here. Almost everything is shattered all over the site, especially in the forums. If you are away for some time (like me) or is totally new to Strategycore it can be hard to find all info and get an overview of things. Make summaries of things here. I suggested a similiar thing earlier about game info, but not much seems to have happened. Why?

 

3. Feeling that parts of the site is made, and then forgotten

When looking around at Strategycore I often get the feeling that parts are created and then forgotten/overlooked as they arent updated, with newer info for example. Why arent they?

 

More will be coming

[Slaughter]

Good to see you back Stefan

 

1: Well, Pete hasn't been around much lately, and I haven't gotten around to it. My problem is somewhere between apathy (I have so much to do that I tend to just ignore it all in periods) and more important things to do (namely Uni and Work). The others has done an excellent job preparing stuff for the newsletter, so it's just for Pete or myself to get it all together and out the door really (Troll has given me a gentle reminder or two ).

 

2: Yeah, it should be done, but again we're back to time. Zombie and Troll has taken an even stronger role here now however, so maybe we'll get around to it soon. Can't promise anything though.

 

3: Yes, that is true. Same reason as 2.

 

With my real life responsibilities, I'm at my capacity limit replying in the forum and keeping the news updated. I know it's not excuses you want, but it's the best I can give you. I'll be better off when I finish my studies this summer I believe.

 

Large parts of the staff has no more time than me, or less. We've tried adding more, but they tend to end in my situation, and thus be of limited value to the site. Therefore I'm a little skeptical to adding more. If anyone feels that they can contribute considerably to the site however, and tends to do so longer than two weeks, let me know!

 

All that being said, we appreciate your feedback Stefan, so keep it coming! May not be done anytime soon, but as long as we have this thread, we can backtrack when there's time

[Bomb Bloke]

I thought we already had game summaries.

 

Though I suppose we still don't have any reviews.

[Stefan100]

Hmm seems like the Strategycore staff is a busy bunch of people.

 

I understand that you are busy with your own lifes and dont have much time over for Strategcore, and I see that as an good excuse. When I got time over (busy with school ) I think can help you with making summaries and putting stuff together. If there are things I can help with, just tell me and I will (try ) to do them.

[Bomb Bloke]

What exaclty do you mean by "summaries"? We've got all this text which Zombie has been busy formatting over the past little while.

[Stefan100]

With "summaries" I meant exaplanations of what the games are about, what you do in them, the way you play them (like explanation of turn-based or SAS), unfixed bugs you might encounter and how to solve or avoid them, what the mods you can download here do, tips on how to play etc. Might be much to do but it would give a good overview of the games.

[Accounting Troll]

*wimpers at the thought of the workload*

 

I think we do need all that. Things like mod reviews would be enormously helpful for people who are looking for a mod to make one of the games covered here more interesting. Most of the information on bugs can be found in the forums, but it is scattered around, which makes finding the information rather time consuming.

[Bomb Bloke]

We-ell, a bunch of us have already done something like that over at GazChap's Wiki.

 

Though there isn't really any reviews there, there are plenty of hints and stuff.

 

That cuts down on the stuff which needs to be put up here, which I reckon I could type up in my spare time (about five minutes per day ).

[Thorondor]

I spy, with my little eye... a new front page layout and colour scheme. Quite a surprise when I landed there.

 

And, of course, it's looking good, as always, Pete.

 

::

 

There's just this one thing: the Strategy Core logo on the upper left-hand corner - I feel it could definitely use some spicing up in terms of background colour. It just comes off looking a tad too drab as it is now (to me, at least).

 

I understand you went for contrast with the raging colours of the fresh banner, while matching the new palette of gray below, but... dare I suggest you try to use a swatch of blue (akin in tone to that you have it in the top of the current forums section) somewhere in there ? Play with it a bit ?...

 

Anyway, keep up the great work!

[Pete]

Hehe, I've just viewed it on a different monitor and it does look a little greyer. I think my brightness is set lower on my other monitor and it loks a bit more dark-blue.

 

I shall bear your comments in mind, as well as any suggestions anyone else has

[Praetoris]

I'll have to agree with thorondor on the 'critique' on the loggo, but overall it's really coming along well and you're making some good improvements

 

---

 

I noted a function that I found very neat on Altar's forum that I'd really like to see on this site as well:

 

Two ways of Editing posts, a 'quick' way and a 'full' way.

Go check it out if you're not sure what I mean by this, it's probably easier for you to try it out yourself than interpreting my horrible english .

 

I often find myself correcting grammar and spelling after posting something and the quick-edited-way really is appreaciated.

 

---

 

- Speaking of the forums, Altar's and Strategycore's forums are based of the same original forum aren't they?

[Slaughter]

Same forum software. In fact, if you switch from StrategyCore to IPB Default at the bottom left of this forum, you'll get the Quick Edit function. Reason it's not shown in the StrategyCore skin is that it hasn't been reskinned after upgrading the forum software. Pete has it on his "todo" list however.

[Praetoris]

Lovely, thanks

[Kernel]

As much as I normaly hate websites that change their layout and style for no particular reason I actualy like the new design. Good work.

 

One thing I don't like tho' is the new way the images popup in an overlayed flash window. You can't close it like a normal window, you can't use the back button on the browser (or the the back button on your mouse if you have one), and if you want to show the image to someone else you can't give then a link to the picture. What's wrong with going to a new page with the image, or opening up a new browser window?

[Bomb Bloke]

Right click on a thumbnail, and select "Open link in new window". This will load up the image on its own.

 

The "flash overlay" is actually just a mass of javascript. It preloads all the images in the set so you can scroll through them.

[Pete]

It's not exactly a "mass" either

 

It's all done with overlaying a

and fading out the background... anyway, get with the times folks it's just cooler

 

It won't preload all the images either - just the one after the one you're viewing so that if you take a few seconds to look at one, the next one should load up fairly quickly when you're ready.

[Bomb Bloke]

20kb of code is a mass in my book.

[Gimli]

Am I the only one experiencing the sudden skin change? Or are you guys making modifications?

[Bomb Bloke]

There's been a recent surge of forum attacks around the web, and we've been hit a few times in the last couple of days.

 

Security updates are being released and installed like crazy, but just in case there's a loophole in our normal forum skin which is giving someone unwanted access, it's been temporarily removed pending it being either cleared of faults or updated.

 

Gives Pete a headache. As I once said before: It's the price of popularity.

[Locutus]

Quickly please! It's giving me a headache too! (But then again I doubt anyone here gives a f@ck about me )

[Gimli]

I thought it was something like that.

 

...

 

I still think it's the Raelians.

[Pete]

Well everyone's going to have to live with it for a while I'm afraid I've got no time for about the next month and re-skinning forum software, especially as complex as his, takes a week or so of evenings.

[Dumb_Commander]

I can manage as long as I want to. It's to bad that this site has to many forums, the Of Topic, UFO and X-Com forums would stay but as for other forums..... :drink: