DDO Forums Business Meeting: 10/7/14

[Wipey]

Drama Initiative sub forum would do well here. Something like Quarantine for stuff you don't like but don't wanna Cube immediately.
That would get more traffic than stuff like Cleric or Rogue sub forums for sure.

[MadCookieQueen]

and here's my 3.5 cents (adjusted for inflation)

One of the problems is that there’s duplication form the upper navigation to the Forums. There isn’t a true need for this, especially for the ones that are not user actionable.

High Level: (Content, Game, Community, Store, Play Free)

• Store is a high level navigation piece, you do not need to have it as a called out forum in the list.

Second Level: (Forum, Dev Tracker, Game Download, Bug Report)

• You have Dev Tracker and Bug Report in the upper navigation. Effectively you could pull them from the Forum list. There isn’t much of a need to duplicate those links.
• Download DDO can also be removed (there’s several spots to download the game, it does not have to be repeated in the Forum listing…navigation piece and footer piece also work)

Forums

Official DDO Party

• Announcements & Contests
• DDO News, Notes and Issues (Service News/Release Notes/Known Issues – even in the description for Service News known issues is listed as part of the forum. The expectation is that Known Issues and Release Notes should also be there.)
• From the Desk of Turbine (used to be Official Turbine Discussions)
• How Can we Help?
  
  • Account Maintenance
  • Technical Support (PC and Mac)
  • In-Game Customer Service

Our Players in Action

• Fansite News
  
  • Fansite Applications
  
  
• Forum Hall of Fame
• The Hall of Bragging Rights (In-Game Achievements)
• Rolling for Initiative (Roleplay & D20 Roll Play)
• Events and Gatherings
• Recruiting
  
  • Perma Death and Static Groups

Free Thinkers

• General DDO Discussion
• Help! I’m New!
• Suggestions and Ideas
  
  • Website and Store Feedback
  
  
• Bacon! (used to be Off Topic)

Servers

• Lammania
  
  • Official News and Discussions
  • Loots, Quests and General Things…Oh My!
  • The Land of Bugs
  
  
• Cross the Servers…it’s not bad Egon! (Cross Server Trading and Things)
• List out the other Servers as usual with their standard sub-forums

A Little Focus

• Raiders of the Lost Challenging Quest (Quests and Challenges and now add Loot)
• Races and Heroes (really Iconics and Races do belong together)
• Classes
  
  • When One Class or Path isn’t Good Enough (Multiclass and Custom)
  • Melees
    
    • Rage Against…ALL The Things! (Barbarians)
    • My Blade is an Extension of My…(fighters)
    • Lawful Good isn’t Lawful Nice (Paladins)
    • Welcome Grasshopper (Monks)
    
    
  • Specialists
    
    • Ballroom Blitz! (Bards)
    • That is NOT a Squirrel in my Pocket! (Rangers)
    • They will never see me coming (Rogues)
    • Deus ex Machina (Artificer)
    
    
  • Spell Casters
    
    • Faith Healing (Clerics)
    • I don’t have Fleas! (Druids)
    • Why, Yes I am an Angel (Favored Soul)
    • I Study therefore you die (Wizards)
    • And yeah baby I am the evil midnight bomber (sorcs)
  
  
• Mechanics and Systems (Gameplay and Game Systems, Crafting, PvP, Epic Destinies)
• Audio and UI

International

• Deutschsprachige Foren (I think ti’s safe to eliminate the current subforums)
• Forums francophones (I think ti’s safe to eliminate the current subforums)

[Livmo]

**** that bacon is smokin' hot!

I feel inspired!

Check out this recent sexy shot of bacon. I call this shot, "Bacon in Repose". Anyone know what quest that shot is from? The hint is sur la table.



Here is another angle for those that want a frontal. I call this shot "Pirate Bacon":



EDIt ~ Forgot to mention the direction I'm going in was a Bacon/Ham sub-forum where people can discuss the finer points of in-game pork and post screenies.

BTW, I feel there is also and in-game ham shortage. I blame the Coin Lords for that tho and not the Free Agents. You at least get 1 ham during this chain.

[cdbd3rd]

Hello! Just wanted to create a thread to chat a bit about a couple of planned changes.
....

There's one thing I feel needs to be addressed in regard to lumping of sub-forums vs finding information.

The Search function has become clumsy, stubborn, and nearly impossible to use to find specific information, especially if trying to dig up a specific post. (Plus the display issues which aren't really a focus for this particular thread.)

The Search & Advanced Search boxes before this "new & improved" forum were very functional. I think tweeking the current version would help alleviate some concerns over lumping threads and sub-forums together.

[MadCookieQueen]

There's one thing I feel needs to be addressed in regard to lumping of sub-forums vs finding information.

The Search function has become clumsy, stubborn, and nearly impossible to use to find specific information, especially if trying to dig up a specific post. (Plus the display issues which aren't really a focus for this particular thread.)

The Search & Advanced Search boxes before this "new & improved" forum was very functional. I think tweeking the current version would help alleviate some concerns over lumping threads and sub-forums together.

and let's not forget the security issue that makes viewing this on a mobile device a pain in the tail....

[Holleyz]

Just break it down to this: this is all in fun and games though so please do not take this seriously.
1. Troll thread
2. Doom thread
3. Races/Classes thread
4. Help thread.
5. Complaint thread.
6. Quests thread
7. Server thread
8. Bug thread
9. I'm so awesome and your not thread
10. Role players thread
11. Zergers thread
12. xbox game style players thread
13. Old School pen and paper Advanced Dungeons & Dragons 2E thread.

[HAL]

Does the existence of these sub-forums create some kind of administrative burden? Server Load? vBB storage problem? If so, you've got to do what you've got to do. Otherwise why make change for change's sake? I have many many threads on these forums bookmarked and/or subscribed, so I worry that your moving them will cause me broken-link problems (whatever would give me that idea...). The last time Turbine decided to make forum changes, ... well... lets just say the site has yet to recover. If your IT/IS dept is WELL ahead of the curve in planning for and managing the issues that are sure to arise, then I'm still only 50% confident in going forward. If on the other hand y'all plan to just start moving and closing and archiving all willy-nilly (whatever would give me THAT idea...), then I'd say please please don't. Just don't.

I can't imagine that letting those forums sit as they are is doing your servers any harm, so how about you let sleeping blogs lie, so to speak. It feels to me like a make work project and it has the potential to do more harm than good.

/signed (and more characters)

[cdbd3rd]

Just break it down to this: this is all in fun and games though so please do not take this seriously.
1. Troll thread
2. Doom thread
3. Races/Classes thread
4. Help thread.
5. Complaint thread.
5a. Complaints about the Complainers thread.
6. Quests thread
7. Server thread
8. Bug thread
9. I'm so awesome and your not thread
9a. The Your/You're debate thread.
10. Role players thread
11. Zergers thread
12. xbox game style players thread
13. Old School pen and paper Advanced Dungeons & Dragons 2E thread.
13a. The only slightly less uber AD&D 1E thread.

Some slight additions/improvements to your line-up.

[Holleyz]

Some slight additions/improvements to your line-up.

cool thanks I never thought about those, thanks for the fix.

[Cordovan]

Thanks for the great feedback, all. I've now done a bit of cleanup on the forums, with the following changes:

- Expansion Packs Free Discussion Forum is gone, with the threads in it moved into General.

- Lamannia Quest XP & XP Curve Changes and Lamannia Reincarnation have been removed, with their threads moved into Lamannia Discussion.

- The Lamannia Enhancements and Epic Destinies sub-forums (Martial, Divine, etc.) have been consolidated into the main Lamannia Enhancements and Epic Destinies forum. Few of these sub-forums had more than 20 threads in them.

- Re-ordered the Lamannia forums a bit to put the more official stuff up top, then the more frequently used stuff (Discussion, Bugs), then the specific sub-topics.

That's it! There have been some really interesting ideas about overall forum layout brought up in this thread, but I want to give it more time and consideration before acting on any of these suggestions. Thanks!

[MadCookieQueen]

That's it! There have been some really interesting ideas about overall forum layout brought up in this thread, but I want to give it more time and consideration before acting on any of these suggestions. Thanks!

admit it...you really want a forum called "That is NOT a Squirrel in my Pocket!"


^^

[Cordovan]

Hello!

I would like to see a forum dedicated to "math" behind the game...

AC / tohit / PRR / etc... all the game system changes are skattered all over the place....

I think the current Gameplay and Game Systems forum seems like the best place for this kind of thing.

[UurlockYgmeov]

Thanks for the great feedback, all. I've now done a bit of cleanup on the forums, with the following changes:

- Expansion Packs Free Discussion Forum is gone, with the threads in it moved into General.

- Lamannia Quest XP & XP Curve Changes and Lamannia Reincarnation have been removed, with their threads moved into Lamannia Discussion.

- The Lamannia Enhancements and Epic Destinies sub-forums (Martial, Divine, etc.) have been consolidated into the main Lamannia Enhancements and Epic Destinies forum. Few of these sub-forums had more than 20 threads in them.

- Re-ordered the Lamannia forums a bit to put the more official stuff up top, then the more frequently used stuff (Discussion, Bugs), then the specific sub-topics.

That's it! There have been some really interesting ideas about overall forum layout brought up in this thread, but I want to give it more time and consideration before acting on any of these suggestions. Thanks!

+1 Cordovan - keep up the continued improvements!

[Cordovan]

admit it...you really want a forum called "That is NOT a Squirrel in my Pocket!"


^^

That forum would be...odd.

[MadCookieQueen]

+1 Cordovan - keep up the continued improvements!

as usual...you WIN!

That forum would be...odd.

but so true of Rangers ^^

[EllisDee37]

Thanks for the great feedback, all. I've now done a bit of cleanup on the forums, with the following changes:

- Expansion Packs Free Discussion Forum is gone, with the threads in it moved into General.

- Lamannia Quest XP & XP Curve Changes and Lamannia Reincarnation have been removed, with their threads moved into Lamannia Discussion.

- The Lamannia Enhancements and Epic Destinies sub-forums (Martial, Divine, etc.) have been consolidated into the main Lamannia Enhancements and Epic Destinies forum. Few of these sub-forums had more than 20 threads in them.

- Re-ordered the Lamannia forums a bit to put the more official stuff up top, then the more frequently used stuff (Discussion, Bugs), then the specific sub-topics.

That's it! There have been some really interesting ideas about overall forum layout brought up in this thread, but I want to give it more time and consideration before acting on any of these suggestions. Thanks!

Nice work, kudos.

I notice that my suggestion of a complete revamp doesn't include any race/class/build forums, which I just wanted to point out was an oversight on my part. I wasn't trying to imply that they should be removed. heh.

[Seikojin]

Streamlining forums is always good.

Taking a quick look at the forums we have now, if I were given the keys to the kingdom and asked to reorganize them all, I'd probably go with something like this, where the () list details which forums get merged into the new forum.

DDO News and Support

• Dev Tracker
• Announcements (Announcements & Contests + Service News + Sales & Promotions + Release Notes)
• Customer Support (Account Management + In-Game Customer Service + Windows Technical + Mac Technical)
• Knowledge Base
• Report a Bug

DDO Discussion

• Official Turbine Discussions
• New Player Advice & Guidance
• General DDO Discussion
• Perma-death & Static Groups
• Suggestions & Ideas
• Guides & Strategies
• Achievements

Lammania

• Lammania Dev Tracker
• Lammania Announcements
• Lammania General Discussion
• Lammania Quests & Items

Fan Zone

• Fansites (Fansite News + Fansite Applications)
• Screenshots, Fan Art and Videos
• Events & Gatherings
• Off-Topic Chat

Servers (unchanged)

• Argonnessen (2 subforums: Market & Guilds, same for all servers)
• Cannith
• Ghallanda
• Khyber
• Orien
• Sarlona
• Thelanis
• Wayfinder
• Cross-Server Trading and Marketplace

Deutschsprachige Foren

• (Announcements)
• (Discussion)
• (Recruiting)

Forums francophones

• (Announcements)
• (Discussion)
• (Recruiting)

This, really. I sometimes see the current forums and think there is too much going on.

[MeliCat]

and let's not forget the security issue that makes viewing this on a mobile device a pain in the tail....

Oh agreed. Every single friggin time.

[Stoner81]

I personally don't disagree that we could have fewer forums, but in general, past efforts to reduce the total number of forums have not been well-received. For every person who dislikes the long forum list, there are others who find value in being able to target a specific topic and see what people have been saying about it, including folks on the DDO development team.

I didn't necessarily mean fewer forum sections (though that would be a good thing in my book) nor am I saying to remove everything... let me ask you this then, when was this type of thing last looked at? A year ago? Two years ago? Three years ago? The further it goes back the bigger the differences are with the game from how it was then to how it is now. I agree that some sections like Classes can't be shrunk down but you could put Iconics in there, the server section could be converted to just one main forum (on the index page) and then all servers would show as sub forums (which currently do not show on the index page).

Custom Character Builds and Multiclasses sections are pretty much pointless since most builds these days are multiclassed to begin with and every build is a custom build anyway so they serve no real purpose.

Anyway my point is that there are options, having options is never a bad thing be it forum layout or stuff in game.

EDIT - As for people complaining about the search function, to my knowledge that is an inherent problem with vBulletin v4 it always has been, v5 looks terrible so just be glad they haven't switched to that... yet.

Stoner81.

[Saekee]

Since you are still thinking about forum categories, how about one simply that celebrates? That moment one makes an ESoS? Some happy find? Things that are not achievements but make the game satisfying