Prelude to Rebirth

[Kylin]

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Hey gang! As advertised this past month now, a number of users and posts have been purged from the database. Please see the below lists for a summary. Should anyone have been deleted accidentally, feel free to re-register (nobody with 10 posts or more was deleted, nor was anyone who had posted "important" threads such as character profiles, guides, etc..nor was anyone who was active in late 2011 or later). The forums will likely not go through this kind of database purge in the future again, as database size should no longer be an issue going forward (regardless of how big it gets). Not that many posts were actually removed and most that were had already been moved to a pre-deletion admin section in the weeks leading up to now. Additionally, the -old- wiki link has been removed (though the old wiki itself is still technically up and accessible if needed for awhile longer until all character profiles are properly backed up).

 

I've been slaving away at the new RPC site design and I'm finally near the final stretch. Everything has been redesigned from the ground up...literally. A few more tweaks/additions and everything will be set to go live. The new site will differ quite a bit from this one in multiple ways. My goal going into the redesign was to keep things simplistic, elegant, and powerful all at the same time. The colors are far more subtle and not as 'in your face' as these current forums. I'm putting a bit more effort into fonts to keep it down to only a couple throughout the whole site for a more appealing look.

 

There's less imagery used, such as no graphical borders every other place. In this way, there's significantly less to load for each page. Even the existing images have been optimized for better memory usage (the background image for instance uses a mere 1/7th of the memory that this current site's old background used...and it looks waaay better too!). There's a lot more usage of shadow effects throughout the forum to keep an elegant appearance as a result of the removal of borders. Ellie has also been a huge help by helping design the new awesome logo (seen above in this post) as well as the background image. You'll be happy to know that she's been working on the vast majority of graphics, with only minimal input from me . That means no pixelated and/or grainy images!

 

Another focal point for the redesign was freedom of choice. Don't like the new fancy text editor for some reason? You can change it in your control panel (between 3-4 choices). Don't like the way the new post page viewing layout looks? Change it back to traditional style via your control panel. Don't like all the javacript? Disable it and the site will still be just as functional. Don't want alerts to certain things? Pick and choose what to disable/enable. Don't like the sidebar? You can get rid of it. There's a LOT of customization this time around and abilities to disable/enable certain aspects of the site and how it looks and acts for you individually. You can even choose what language you want the system-side text displayed as (English, Japanese, Russian, Polish, Spanish, German, and French).

 

The site is far more powerful than our present one in every way (except the lolgallery, as stated in a previous topic). Javascript is utilized more often for simplistic and good looking dropdown menus. Should one have javascript disabled for whatever odd reason, the navigation should still work without the need for drop down menus (though it'll require an extra screen to click through). Another big goal of mine was to allow for high levels of compatibility, even if images and/or javascripts were disabled, such as for low end mobile devices. Keep in mind that there are still going to be some graphical glitches with such devices though. But I'll try to make tweaks over time as needed.

 

A number of new and enhanced features are being introduced. One of my personal favorites is the new text editor. It allows for a 'what you see is what you get' mode that shows your post's format without having to hit a 'preview' button.

 

[spoil][/spoil]

 

There's also a new auto-detection feature for videos and audio files. Simply posting a link to a YouTube video, for instance, will automatically embed the video into the post without having to use any codes like:

[video]link to video[/video]

 

There's finally a 'latest threads' sidebox, the gallery sidebox is improved, a customizable alert system similar to Enjin's is in place, and profile pages have been completely overhauled to diplay more relevant information, among a myriad of other things. I'm also looking into other features such as a blogging feature, but that will have to come a bit later after the site's launch. A full list of modifications will be made available at the site's launch in a few weeks.

 

The site has been tested on multiple browsers and not too many issues seem to exist. The few that do mostly involve Internet Explorer (and those are largely minor issues). Following the database merge, most things should be converted to the new site's coding format with little issue.

 

There are three known issues regarding the merge you should all be made aware of. 1) The tabs system utilized in the Linkshell registration process is not operational on the new site at this time. As such, that format will not likely transfer over. I'm actually working on an improved Linkshell section that'll show exactly how powerful (and user friendly) the new site is, so hopefully it'll be done in time but if not, it'll still probably be added a bit later. 2) Attachments technically transfer, but for some reason not all of them transfer fully and end up unoperational on the new site. For this reason, please backup any important attachments you may have put on the forums (by attachments, I mean actual attachments, not image links since those will be fine). 3) Your profiles will partially be wiped. Things to be wiped include your avatars, linkshell, custom title, likes given/received, and possibly other minor settings. Signatures will transfer since those are just mostly links anyway, as will usernames, passwords, private messages, and all posts. In fact, it seems deleted private messages are restored upon the merge so you may need to re-clean out your PM folders after the move.

 

Images in the gallery will not transfer. Please back them up, along with anything else mentioned above that may not transfer.

 

The wiki -content- will not be impacted. However, you will now be unable to login with your forum credentials after the move. After the merge, you will need to register to the wiki separately in order to login. This is because the new forum software does not have an up-to-date bridge between their software and the wiki software. I'm going to try to set this up so only NEW users have to sign up separately. Current registered members will hopefully be able to login with their existing wiki name/password. For the near future, I am looking to fully integrate the wiki into the forums/main site completely. The only hangup here is twofold in that 1) it will require another transfer of information and 2) the new wiki software will be -vastly- inferior to the current one. Feedback on this issue is welcome/encouraged. Some public "beta" testing on the potential new wiki software will be done before any final decision is made.

 

I sincerely hope the new site will be up to everyone's standards. I've been working really hard to make every tiny aspect as perfect as possible. I've actually completely stopped character developments on my Rp characters this past month and focused strictly on the new site design. This isn't to say the site will be flawless, but I'm keeping my fingers crossed that you'll all be very impressed with it as a whole. A new RPC for a new game is only appropriate I think. I dare say that the new site will make sites like Enjin feel slightly archaic in many regards ^^;.

 

We are now only a few weeks away from our 3 year anniversary. As a result, some of the current site's images have been altered to reflect that (you may need to refresh your browser for some of it). A prelude to the rebirth if you will.

 

If you have any questions about the forthcoming site overhaul, feel free to ask. The target date for the launch is February 8th, though this is just an ETA and not definite at all, so be prepared for a spur of the moment maintenance message at any time in the forthcoming weeks.

 

Hope everyone is as excited as I am for our rebirth! Here's to another 3 years and beyond!

 

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Users Deleted:

[spoil]Aamalthea

Acedia

Aellynne

Ahlis

Aki Sakata

Alessa

Alicia

alikdoril

Amalia

ANSEM000

Anubis

Aqua

Aradice

Archimedes

Arelian

Aremethius

aristotleami

Arivant

Arnau

Arthion

Arya

Aryienne

Asakku

AsphyxZero

Atreyu

aylin

azurewolf08

Baelo

bd10

Benavei

Byrg (duplicate account--merged with other, Bryg Bluebeard)

Caliah

Cankiie (duplicate account) -- The other account, Cankiie123 is renamed Cankiie

Caradhas

Caydron

Cecelia

Celestienne

Chi Mai

chr0n032

Cinhil

Cirdan

Cloudstrife2011

Clyo

Corvusvlos

Cosmas

Crane

Creatis

Cyretaux

Darkodin Nargacuga

darksephiroth1998

Dashmier

Daxion

Demerik

Dheo

Dilu

Dizzy

Dmitri

DogberryMessina (Duplicate account? Original "Dogberry" kept)

Dorjan

drake2k

Drakos

Dreadwood

Dres

dwraithrah

ElhazStar

Eli

Elipsa

elixan

Enge_Moui

Evelyn

Eyinde

EyrminDraconis

faligorn

Feryan

Fibril

Fiddler Crab

figi69

Fiosha

Foh

Frelia

Frink

Frumi

Gargor

GeoNekos

Geruvah

grandsoul

Gustaff

Gyongyi

hanmiaofeng1234

Hechicera

Heicko

HelaB

herbaltea

Higgs Boson

Hilario

Hyrist

Ianian

ilium

Inhiko Toyo

Interzone

Ishivan

Ishmahrai

Jaime

JamesRae

Jekhar Mok

Jericho3k

Jet

Jeyno

Jhessail

Jiovan

Jones52j

JUGGERNAUT

juice_by_alex

Justice

justmissu

Kaelia

Kaelyn

Kailisen

kain

Kaln Dryden

kalsteine

kanago

Kanashii

Kangenix

kanovankiba

Kartmiro

Kataxenna

Kathy

Keiko

Kelrav

Kensaki

Kestrel

kitfighter

Kleus

Komaru

Konufis Lem

Krux

Kyriel

lanshan75

Lavin Ashfield

Layander

Leo Izanagi

Leon Eisen

Lexyanne

Lhilim

LiamGray

Lingoart

Lloire

Lox

Lucindriel

LunaFields

LunaRhiki

Lunnoiren

Lyrima

madrileno23

magister99

Mahon-fianna

Mao

maphilliant

Mashira

MatrimC

Matsu

Maus

Mdniteblu

Meraris

MeruRikku

Midnight

milkmallow

MinameYaero

Mirumu

mocanguandend

Moonshadow Darkly (Duplicate account)

MrOptimism

MtotoWamoto (Duplicate account, posts merged into Mtoto Wamoto)

Murasame

MyLyfeCrysis

Myllis

Myllor Aurelion (Duplicate account, Myllor kept)

Mynerva

NakoAdahl

Nalani

Nash

Nayuki Mikoshi

Neilietheous

nintendoagekid

Nishiki

Niteshade_x

NobleEinherjar

Nym

Nym_undlin

Old Justice

OldManHector

ombre

overture2112

PakaPaka (Duplicate account)

Pandamonaeon

patsfan32

Pepper

Pepper Marks

Persona

Pikkle Dilly

Pipit

Pipsy Lililoo

Plum

Poisonelf

pplolo2012

Psiharis

Puar Felward

Q

Rabadash

Ralzma

Rashia

Raven_Bludwyn

Regenerated

Rehn

Reim

Reldin

Reloj

Renik Vaarchas

Reniree

Reslon

Revo

Rhomagus Asclepiot

ridil

Rjain

rockman0

Rokusho

RosineIda

Rothorn

Rune Winchester

Runo

rutgyr

Ryougi

Ryrie

Rythwen

Ryzen

Sabazius

Sae

SarcasticMrZ

Scythean

SecretAgentCat (duplicate account)

Seigfreid Morgoth

seleneartemis (duplicate account)

Seralysia

SereneAurora

Shadowmere (Duplicate account)

ShadowyFigure

Shanghai

Shar

ShienSarvong (Duplicate account)

Shiija

Shinkotsu

Shivamaccers

Short_tail

Silivren

Soas (Duplicate account)

solenn22

Solivy

somatica

Sora Albrecht

sudo

Sukina

Summer

Swyghar

Tayn Zolin

Tempus

Terror of death

Thac0

thatwhichspeaks

The Avatar of Blue

ThePinkFoxx

Tilia

Time_Compression

TinyKing2

Tonacas

Toran

TotalLamer

Tovu Marack

Tuss

Twilight Sea

Tyndis

Tyre

Urat

utoxin

Vaare

Valaeli

Valief

Valquiss

Van

Vana Durga

Vash

Vauseyun

ventis

Vestas

ViatheVial

Viator Rex

videlous

Viola

Volodya

vonschwarzen

Winterstar

wowfood

Wrin (Duplicate account)

Xaeragana

XarZith

xellie

Xeno

xvvolvenx

XyleHarkyn

Yandere

YG Linna

zaban

zaheela

Zaiaku

Zephek

Zephias

zmhs5

Zukipuu

Total: 318[/spoil]

 

Total posts deleted: ~2,200

Classifieds: Now disabled

[Moltove]

very exciting, I can't wait to see the finished product of your labor!

[NKato]

Looking forward to seeing what you have in store for the website redesign.

 

I should also add, I wouldn't recommend ditching the chat room. Just change it out with a better chatroom system, and make it very accessible. Feature accessibility is a major factor in determining if something gets used often or not.

[Deirdre]

Just wanted to say Kylin how great of a job you've done on everything. I've been keeping up with the updates so far and everything is looking spectacular. Keep up the great job and as always, here if you need anything!

[TheLastCandle]

Thanks for all your hard work!

[Aysun]

So excited for this revamp!

 

Thank you Kylin, and Ellie, for the work you've put into this.

[Ellie]

Definitely excited to see the revamp as well. I wonder what it's gonna look like...?

[Tadir]

Like everyone else, I'm pretty stoked to see the new site. Thanks for all the work.

[Niteshade_Rune]

Always liked the layouts here. Im sure whatever comes next will be just as good.

[Alothia]

Can't wait to see the finished product!

[Kylin]

Thank you all for the support! Can't wait to show the finished product in the next few weeks. I'm actually trying to go above and beyond with things that were never on my to-do list to begin with :lol:

 

In regards to the mentioned chat room...I may add such a feature /after/ the new site launches. Though right now it's not on my radar. And if it is added, it most definitely will not be on the front forum page taking up space. As it stands now, our current chat room is VERY accessible. You click one button and you're in >.>. People still don't utilize it. If a chat room is eventually added, I will not be placing it at the top of the forum index for the following reasons:

 

1. It's unattractive, distracting, and obtrusive.

2. It's intrusive. Not everyone wants to come to the forums and automatically be lunged into a chat room against their will. Some people like to keep a low profile and I want to respect their right to do so.

3. It won't be used either way. People will still continue to use Skype. And after the game launches, people will naturally choose their own linkshell chat rooms over a larger public one. And those who want a public one will utilize Backstage in game most likely.

4. It uses a lot of memory/queries/server resources. As a result, forum outages would possibly happen a bit more than they should.

5. It takes away forum content. This is something the vast majority of forum programmers agree with. They, like me, don't really care for built in chat rooms because people keep things like image links or other shared items in the chat room rather than the forum. I would rather people post content on the forum that can be kept around for years to come rather than post it in a chat room where it'll disappear within a day's time or less.

 

The cons really outweigh the pros at this time. Again, not saying we will definitely not have a chat room. But it would be its own separate page if so. Personally, I think a shout box or status updates with comments would be better for this particular environment.

[Kylin]

New site is closing in on an official launch~ After a few more bugs are ironed out and some content prepared, it'll pretty much be set to go. We're looking at less than 2 weeks most likely, assuming nothing goes dreadfully wrong. My biggest obstacle right now is the gallery, as I've made a last minute decision to revamp it completely. I wasn't satisfied at the prospect of launching a new site with a single feature less powerful than what we already have >.>. As such, I'm trying to use an outside powerful gallery software and attempting to fully integrate it into the site.

 

Please remember to backup the following if you haven't already:

1) Any images in the gallery. None will survive.

2) Avatars. None will survive.

3) Attachments. They may/may not survive. This is in regards to actual attached files, not linked images.

4) Custom titles if you for some reason won't remember it.

 

Everything else should be fine. These forums will be backed up again before the 2-3 hour process begins anyway just in case. During the downtime, the wiki will still be accessible.

 

Edit: Another note--the linkshell section will be locked at first. While the basic coding is operating properly for the new layout, I need to put a significant amount of work into it in order to achieve the overall goal of an elaborate and intuitive design.

[Kylin]

 

The site is almost 100% ready and should be launching sometime next week! Hurray! Remember to backup things I already warned about. Please be forewarned that due to the vast number of changes between databases, the new site will certainly not be completely bug-free, but the bugs that will exist should be pretty minor.