Forum Changes

[Galloway]

I'm sure you've noticed by now that there has been a change to the forum skin. The colours have been changed to try and make the forum seem more "trek like". The current colours are just a rough draft and are likely to change, but not drastically as they are somewhat similar to what I had in mind when I began. Images such as buttons and the like will also be updated soon.

Over the next few days there will be further and more drastic changes to the way the forum is set up and operates. I'll list the planned changes here so that none of you are caught off guard.

Firstly, the board set up will be changed to include some new boards and remove some old ones. The new set-up is likely to be somewhat like this:

Forum
Website & Forum Announcements
Website & Forum Questions
Suggestions & Comments
Content Submissions (More on this when the board is up and running)

STO Fleet Ops

[/i]
[/u]STO News & Updates
STO Discussions
STO Questions
STO Events
STO Screenshots & Media

General Discussion[/i]
[/u]General Chat
Graphics
Other Games
[/quote]

Secondly all forum ranks will be re-evaluated. Ranks on the forum will no longer be based on your fleet rank, but rather on your participation here.

These changes are geared towards turning this forum into a community full of lively discussion of both STO and various other affairs. I will also be spending the next month or so working on a new website independent of our Fleet Management System (FMS) that was pioneered by our own, and wonderful Skippy. This new site will feature various information and guides about STO that will hopefully help members and visitors alike as they progress through the game.

Our FMS, assuming that Skippy can get it operational again (), will serve as the primary portal for fleet operations. This is where all fleet ranks will be displayed, rather than here on the forum.

I'm hoping that by expanding into a fansite/helpsite we can attract a larger fan-base and expand our ranks in game. Not only this but I hope that it will also serve to increase fleet-wide activity. Still, this may not go as planned, but with a little luck we can pull through.


Cheers,
Galloway



PS: I'm also going to look into getting us some new smilies. The ones we have... well, they just lack pizazz (<-- See what I mean?)

PPS: Tell me what you think of this, by the way. I'd rather not spend a lot of time on something that isn't very popular to begin with.

[Keegan]

I very much like the new look and new direction we are heading in. If there is anything I can do to help let me know. I don't have very much experience with all of this stuff, but one thing I do have a lot of is time, so I will do what I can.

[Galloway]

Of course. Something tell me that this is a little more than a one man job, so I'll let you know if I need any help.


!! UPDATE !!
The forum boards have now been updated. All old and obsolete posts have been moved to the recycle bin (A new board that can only be seen by staff)

[Galloway]

Since we're expanding into a fan/help site I thought it might be prudent to come up with a new name, independent of our fleet name (which will still continue to exist as the "official" fleet of the new site/forum).

Any suggestions? I'm sure I could think of some on my own, I've been stuck at home spewing my guts out all day, so lord knows I have the time.

[String]

Looking good mate nice work ;D

[Galloway]

Cheers. Just finished the "New Posts" / "No New Posts" logos that appear on the left of every board on the main page. I think the colours look okay (red for no new posts and blue for new posts), but let me know if anyone disagrees and I'll see about changing them.

I'm about to begin work on the forum ranks, which will include new names and rank pips. I'll keep you updated on progress via this thread as I've already been doing.

[Galloway]

! Update !

Alright guys, I'm having a little more trouble with ranks than I expected, may take a little longer. In the meantime I've created a new title image at the top to replace the rather bland intrepid class version I put up yesterday. The text looks a little better and I chose a much better background image.

[Hipposoft]

New skin looks very cool indeed - like the tag line Galloway!