There's been a lot of feedback through various outlets regarding the RPC's future design. My original plan was to merely update the graphics and leave the base code and whatnot as is. The background, forum borders, and logo/banner, and colors were the only things that I had planned to alter. You can take a quick gander at the direction I /was/ heading here if you so desire (you may have to refresh the page for it to show properly--also note that it is/was nowhere near completion): http://www.ffxiv-roleplayers.com/testforum
There have been numerous suggestions up until now that we should just overhaul everything in its entirety as well. Recently, I've actually begun to look into this and it may very well happen now. I'm actually planning to move /away/ from phpbb now to a new forum software entirely which seems to be pretty good so far. Don't get me wrong. I still stand by my view that phpbb is a very powerful forum software where sky is the limit. But I won't deny that the programmers behind it have a very...archaic view of things and are quickly losing their competitive edge as a result. The coding for things can be viewed by some as spaghetti code that's hard to decipher. Adding mods, while very possible, requires more effort than it should. So after much deliberation, I'm now leaning toward a complete overhaul and have even started doing so already. Fear not though! It will be 100% possible to retain all posts/user information and so on within the new forum software. There may be some lost information (like custom titles, current listed linkshell, etc), but for the most part nothing of value will be lost. Also note that this will not impact the wiki in the slightest, as it is a standalone section of the site that merely draws on this forum's user database for logins.
Now, assuming we go through with said overhaul...there are some things to keep in mind. First, I would greatly appreciate help in the graphic design area. While Sienna was awesome enough to create a new banner that you can see in the link above, it would no longer work in the potential new site design that I'm about to reveal. A new background image would also need to be tailored to fit the new forum. Other various smaller scaled images may also be required. Second, I may take this opportunity to "cleanup" our database some more by deleting long-time inactive users or old posts from 2010. Suggestions on how much to purge (up to what date, etc) would be welcome.
The new forum software I plan to potentially switch to seems far more progressive...but also simplistic in some regards. For instance, the gallery is a stripped down version that doesn't allow users to create personal albums, though I think people wouldn't have a huge issue with this so long as the pre-made gallery categories are well laid out. I have also not verified that all current features we have now would be immediately available/compatible by the site's launch. The bazaar in particular may see the axe, though it's not used ever anyway it seems. I do plan to install as many of the present features as possible before the site would be launched though for a seamless transition.
So without further delay, let me show you the new potential layout of the site. Please note that it is NOT FINISHED AT ALL. It does not yet have any of the RPC branding/FFXIV imagery. Not all features are yet implemented. And not everything is organized 100% as it will be. Also please refrain from hostile feedback. There's a difference between being constructive and insulting in such things and some people seem to have problems differentiating between the two. The main thing to look at is the layout and overall basic design for right now: {site link removed to keep some of the redesign under wraps from here on out xD )
The new software actually has a lot of features pre-made into its code, unlike the phpbb software that forced me to code in just about everything. It seems pretty powerful, sleek, and not nearly as "dated/archaic" as these forums. It is however extremely different and may take some getting used to navigation-wise. Feel free to create a test account on the link to play around for a better feel if you want.
So my question is: Do you want me to continue work on the first link I posted and keep the current type of design? Or begin pouring energy into the second design? Or something else entirely (be very specific please...). Regardless of what people want, I want this all done and launched ASAP so we can begin re-advertising ourselves once more. Alpha is almost over after all and beta will be starting up before we know it.
EDIT: I'm fully aware of "Zaloguj" currently showing up instead of "Login" by the way. Zaloguj sounds better, just admit it
There have been numerous suggestions up until now that we should just overhaul everything in its entirety as well. Recently, I've actually begun to look into this and it may very well happen now. I'm actually planning to move /away/ from phpbb now to a new forum software entirely which seems to be pretty good so far. Don't get me wrong. I still stand by my view that phpbb is a very powerful forum software where sky is the limit. But I won't deny that the programmers behind it have a very...archaic view of things and are quickly losing their competitive edge as a result. The coding for things can be viewed by some as spaghetti code that's hard to decipher. Adding mods, while very possible, requires more effort than it should. So after much deliberation, I'm now leaning toward a complete overhaul and have even started doing so already. Fear not though! It will be 100% possible to retain all posts/user information and so on within the new forum software. There may be some lost information (like custom titles, current listed linkshell, etc), but for the most part nothing of value will be lost. Also note that this will not impact the wiki in the slightest, as it is a standalone section of the site that merely draws on this forum's user database for logins.
Now, assuming we go through with said overhaul...there are some things to keep in mind. First, I would greatly appreciate help in the graphic design area. While Sienna was awesome enough to create a new banner that you can see in the link above, it would no longer work in the potential new site design that I'm about to reveal. A new background image would also need to be tailored to fit the new forum. Other various smaller scaled images may also be required. Second, I may take this opportunity to "cleanup" our database some more by deleting long-time inactive users or old posts from 2010. Suggestions on how much to purge (up to what date, etc) would be welcome.
The new forum software I plan to potentially switch to seems far more progressive...but also simplistic in some regards. For instance, the gallery is a stripped down version that doesn't allow users to create personal albums, though I think people wouldn't have a huge issue with this so long as the pre-made gallery categories are well laid out. I have also not verified that all current features we have now would be immediately available/compatible by the site's launch. The bazaar in particular may see the axe, though it's not used ever anyway it seems. I do plan to install as many of the present features as possible before the site would be launched though for a seamless transition.
So without further delay, let me show you the new potential layout of the site. Please note that it is NOT FINISHED AT ALL. It does not yet have any of the RPC branding/FFXIV imagery. Not all features are yet implemented. And not everything is organized 100% as it will be. Also please refrain from hostile feedback. There's a difference between being constructive and insulting in such things and some people seem to have problems differentiating between the two. The main thing to look at is the layout and overall basic design for right now: {site link removed to keep some of the redesign under wraps from here on out xD )
The new software actually has a lot of features pre-made into its code, unlike the phpbb software that forced me to code in just about everything. It seems pretty powerful, sleek, and not nearly as "dated/archaic" as these forums. It is however extremely different and may take some getting used to navigation-wise. Feel free to create a test account on the link to play around for a better feel if you want.
So my question is: Do you want me to continue work on the first link I posted and keep the current type of design? Or begin pouring energy into the second design? Or something else entirely (be very specific please...). Regardless of what people want, I want this all done and launched ASAP so we can begin re-advertising ourselves once more. Alpha is almost over after all and beta will be starting up before we know it.
EDIT: I'm fully aware of "Zaloguj" currently showing up instead of "Login" by the way. Zaloguj sounds better, just admit it
(the second one, obviously)
![[Image: w0j5ap.gif]](http://i45.tinypic.com/w0j5ap.gif)
![[Image: XZcSm6W.png]](http://i.imgur.com/XZcSm6W.png)
![[Image: FF7Cursor.png]](http://images3.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20080419142836/finalfantasy/images/8/8e/FF7Cursor.png)
like this but flipped to face the other way.
![[Image: sig3.png]](http://www.2135llc.com/storage/sig3.png)
