How Could We Improve Scioly.org?

[Raleway]

I'd love to have some infinite scroll feature in a thread, so I wouldn't have to constantly switch between pages.

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If I could upvote this I really would

[EastStroudsburg13]

At least for towers, there is a HUGE thread... full of information. Like the info present if someone just took the time to read through it would have placed at MIT. Far too often there will be new topics and threads asking questions that have been discussed thoroughly and just really waste space. Maybe have a pinned topic or some sort of preview before accessing the thread to that and asking: "Could your question be answered? Please read through here first!" could solve some of the issues.

The threads for nearly all events are extraordinarily cluttered and maybe assigning an event moderator would be helpful (you would need multiple for towers...) could help organize threads and combine some and lock useless ones.

And yes. Upvotes would be nice. And a mobile app. And updated aesthetics that have more pleasing colors. But only so much can happen.

Just my two cents.

Event threads have always been tough to be organized, as they're not really intended as references, per se. The wiki is the intended area for reference. In an ideal world, we do have some form of moderation that allows for a bit more organization (a table of contents on the first post, for example), but that is a rather large undertaking and we'd need quite a bit of help to do that. It's not out of the question, but it'd require a lot of people to step up and remain active with their duties in order for there to be any tangible impact.

I also am not a build person and never have been, so it's very possible the needs of the build subforums are different than the lab/study threads. I just don't have the expertise to know what is needed there.

Upvotes have been brought up in the past a few times; the general conclusion each time is that it'd require more energy to implement that it seems, and that generally it wouldn't be worth the effort as upvoting is not a perfect system either. Perhaps just having "likes" that aren't tied to post count is a possibility, but that'd depend on bernard to say what the possibilities are there. I mainly deal with the site itself and not the code behind it.

Aesthetics were updated fairly recently, I am pretty sure. It's hard to develop a color scheme that will please everyone, but if you have specific color suggestions there's no harm in making them. Anything layout-related is unlikely to change for a bit due to the recency of the most recent change.

Also, if any of you want to talk about a specific suggestion a little deeper, feel free to start another thread in the Feedback forum! It does not all need to be contained in one thread.

[bernard]

These are all great suggestions! I'll respond to some if there's already a solution (at least to a degree) or if a solution is planned.

1) Update the photo gallery.
2) Make it easier to add tests to the test exchange.

The test exchange is currently in the works. The earliest rewrite of the test exchange is up though as you've noticed, with limited functionality. SSSS moderators were given a preview of an updated test exchange, and when released (currently looking at mid-February) we're looking to have batch uploads. Perhaps a similar system can be applied to update the image gallery.

3) This one is bit out there, but they should make an app or at least a way to get notifications on any device.

The forums support email notifications. If you're not receiving emails they may be going to a spam folder. We don't have plans for a separate Scioly.org app, but perhaps it's something we can look into more in the future.

An upvote feature to show appreciation of exemplary posts.

The current system for the forums does not include a feature for post voting and it appears existing extensions have not been updated. I'll keep my eye out for more extensions, and if one appears to be maintained over time we can look into implementing it.

How about choosing the topics that you want notifications for?

This is currently possible by clicking the wrench at the bottom of a topic and selecting "Subscribe topic." You can see all subscribed topics and manage notification settings in the User Control Panel.

[PM2017]

This might take away from the aesthetic appeal of the home screen, but I would like to see the userbar (the part with "notifications," "Private messages", and the username) to be available from the main page (the site for this url: https://scioly.org/). I check the website many times a day, and although it isn't too much of a bother, it does get slightly annoying that I have to click on a forum and wait for it to load before being able to see if I have a notification. (and yes, I am aware of the email notification system, and receive notifications on my phone. However, I would still like to see this feature.)

[robotman]

These are all great suggestions! I'll respond to some if there's already a solution (at least to a degree) or if a solution is planned.

3) This one is bit out there, but they should make an app or at least a way to get notifications on any device.

The forums support email notifications. If you're not receiving emails they may be going to a spam folder. We don't have plans for a separate Scioly.org app, but perhaps it's something we can look into more in the future.

An upvote feature to show appreciation of exemplary posts.

The current system for the forums does not include a feature for post voting and it appears existing extensions have not been updated. I'll keep my eye out for more extensions, and if one appears to be maintained over time we can look into implementing it.

Yea it is unlikely to be a feature that can be added, we have looked into every year for the past 5-6 years and the functionality and customizability to make that type of system just doesn't exist for phpBB3. If someone were to create that type of extension it could be considered to be added.

[sahil31415]

Sorry, I am not sure if this is where this message should go, but what happened to the 2018 test exchange? I recall there being an extensive list from 2017 invitationals, but no such thing yet this year.

[pb5754]

This? https://scioly.org/tests/

[pb5754]

Or do you mean this? https://scioly.org/wiki/index.php/2018_Test_Exchange

[sahil31415]

Sorry, I meant the former (scioly.org/tests). Even the 2018 Test Exchange has fewer tests than normal, but I guess more will get uploaded as the season proceeds.

[pb5754]

Sorry, I meant the former (scioly.org/tests). Even the 2018 Test Exchange has fewer tests than normal, but I guess more will get uploaded as the season proceeds.

do u mean these?
https://scioly.org/wiki/index.php/Categ ... t_Exchange