Now that the election is over (mostly) I'm turning some attention back to some nagging issues here on OP. This site is never going to be gorgeous or as easy to use as one with a full-time staff dedicated to making it so, but I think there are ways to make some small changes that can have a big impact.
For example, I already added "more" links to some of the featured posts in the left hand sidebar of the front page, so that now you can get a bigger picture of the active conversations on the site, and you can browse all of the top-rated posts of the week (and see which ones are at the bottom, too). In addition, there are still site stats available to registered users which show you which members and which posts are the most active (for better or worse).
I'd like to start a discussion about what else we can change easily to make the site work better. For example, one of the next things on my list is adding a message on the comment form to alert users if they are not logged in. I hope to change the Welcome message on the front page to a place where I can feature specific entries that I think folks will be interested in. I'm also considering a systems of rating comments and showing the aggregated score on a user's profile. And I've always wanted to have a more comprehensive list of candidates that can be cross-referenced, sorted, and maybe commented upon. Etc. (I got a million of 'em.)
Some people live and die by the Latest content page, and others hardly notice it. Which one are you? Do you use the event calendar? Ever read the tweets? Do you use the site in ways for which it's not designed? Can we adjust the site to reflect this? (Should we?)
(Also, if anyone know students or others who would like to get some unpaid experience building Drupal sites, let me know! I do all the development myself, but we can always do more with more help.)
Issues:
Comments
I just discovered the "Latest content" approach
That's all I need to keep up.I haven't made the Twitter leap yet.
Latest content gets my vote too
That's how I try to keep track of postings.
Latest Content Question
OK. I'll 'fess up that Latest Contect has me befuddled. I always go there first, but after I click on the link, it just takes me to somewhere in the discussion but I can't always find where the latest post actually is or where the ones right before it are. So I like it but I suspect either something is wrong with my computer or this operator is at fault. Any suggestions appreciated. Is there a way to just follow things chronologically? Linda
I used to have that problem
I used to have that problem and solved by changing the comment viewing options at the top to:
Select your preferred way to display the comments and click "Save settings" to activate your changes. If you just wanted the most recent at the top, you could do flat list for the 1st choice and newest first in the 2nd. I think the key on the links not working is the # of comments per page -- links to non-page 1 comments don't seem to work.
Thanks jcb. I'm playing
Thanks jcb. I'm playing around to see what works best. Appreciate the assist.
I've referenced the event calendar
from time to time to keep an eye on things going on that I might otherwise miss.I'm not sure how one adds to the calendar, or suggests that something be added to the calendar though.As of this thread, I just started following OP on twitter. I haven't been that into twitter because most of my uses for the internet require more substance than that, but I'm starting to use it more. And I've just added "TweetDeck" which should make for a more interesting twitter experience.
That reminds me
There is a whole list of important features under your username in the right sidebar (after logging in, of course). This includes the links to create a new blog entry or event. This menu is another underutilized resource here, which says to me that the interface could use some improvement. (Duh.)
Latest Content
I'm a devoted Latest Content. In the previous version of the site, I subscribed to the all-content RSS feed (including all comments), which I don't seem to be able to do with this version.
Comments RSS
I think I mentioned it right after we made the transition to Drupal, but let me mention it again now that we're past that initial hurdle: if there's any way to get all comments aggregated into an RSS feed again like they were in Wordpress, it would be much appreciated!
I'll second that
I'll second the request for a comments RSS feed -- both a global comments feed and a per-post RSS feed. I find both useful on sites which provide them.Also, I do read and appreciate the tweets. I'm also a big fan of the different lists, in part because it's a way to keep connected about things going on around here, but also because it's a good way for me (as a newcomer) to keep up with some of the progressive folk in town. My only complaint is that, as a Duke grad, I prefer the informational tweets more than the ones which mention Carolina basketball. :)
Hmmm
Have you tried the links under the Subscribe header in the right sidebar? Especially http://www.orangepolitics.org/blog/feed ? (That More RSS page is automatically generated and needs some work.)I agree that comment feeds need to come back, I'm sure there's a way to do that. I also think some folks would like to be able to subscribe to replies when they post a comment.
"Like" option
I love the idea of rating comments. I've become very attached to the "like" feature on Facebook. At first it seemed so lazy, but it's nice to say you "like" something without having to explain. Of course, a "dislike" button would be handy too...or a "You're being an asshole. Lighten up" button.
Like
n/t
Please don't make the mistakes that the HSL made
Ruby, from an old computer person who has written software since 1964, yes, since 1964. Please don't add features that make the basic things more difficult or even different. About two years ago, some IT genius at the UNC Health Sciences Library, whose computer lab is very heavily used by impatient people, decided to substitute Word 2007 for Word 2003 on all the computers. The howl could be heard in Carrboro. While there may be some new features in 07, or some detail of 07 that is better than 03; for 99 pct of the users, the change was simply to learn new procedures to do the usual things; i.e., change for the sake of change. UNC's webmail system is now transitioning to a new webmail, with, as far as I can tell, has exactly the same results; i.e., nothing gained for the user, but the need to learn new procedures. In this case, however, the introductory page to the new webmail has a link to the old webmail. I don't know what are the stats on how many people, given the choice, have migrated.
Amen, Joe.
I can't stand the new webmail. I always click the "Old Webmail" button before I start. Why oh why didn't UNC switch to Gmail instead of upgrading Webmail? It's still terrible!
I like Latest Content too
Ruby, nice job. This site is quite user friendly. I like latest content.
Pictorially challenged
1. Woops, didn't know what the up/down arrows to the left of a post were for ... have messed up a few people's points until I figured that out.2. Embedded photos do liven up the threads but if they are too large, they derail the discussion. Any way to standardize them to a manageable size?
I think I did too
I thought maybe it was for scrolling through a long comment or something. So you're not alone =)
Experimenting
As Priscilla noticed, there are now arrows to vote up or down on each comment. I'm experimenting with a system called "user karma" that would allocate points for this and other things (like publishing blog entries and events). All it would do is display points on people's profiles and maybe a badge if you get a lot of karma.I'm still experimenting and it's not working quite right, so bear with me . ;-)
Karma arrows
As much as I might like to send a negative hit to some jack-ass comment, won't it really register disagreement or agreement more than "karma" or how the person is communicating with other posters? It seems like it might become a scorecard of orthodoxy or personal feelings rather than a useful measure.An option of attaching a poll on an issue would be nice, i.e. "Who likes Greenbridge?" or "Would it be acceptable to locate a transfer station on Millhouse Rd.?", etc.