44 replies to this topic

[PeggyR]

Great new look and terrific new features.  Many thanks for all your efforts.

One minor quibble, though.  It's necessary to log in to view new content -- apparently that's now considered to be a 'search', which has always required logging in.  No idea about others, but I've never seen any point in logging in except to search or post; frequently just took a quick peek at the 'new content' column; now will have to go through the hassle of a login just to see if anything new has been posted.

Other than that, love it!

[sandik]

It will take me awhile to click around on the changes -- I'm a slowpoke -- but many thanks for all the work you've been putting into board development and maintenance.  Without your efforts, we would all be in our individual showers, talking vehemently to ourselves.

[Quiggin]

The only difficulty for me is that the typeface, though larger, is a little more difficult to read than the older version. It's as if the pixel count is the same as a smaller face, or else it's not black and contrasty enough. Tech Crunch also has a sans serif type but it seems darker and crisper. I seem to have to resort to my reading glasses more often than I did with the old Ballet Alert. Also light grey type on home page and "posted today"s is a bit faint.

[bart]

sandik, on 29 October 2011 - 08:24 AM, said:

Without your efforts, we would all be in our individual showers, talking vehemently to ourselves.

Indeed!  

[Helene]

I thought the type face was black, but let me go in and look.  I'm working on something for the lighter gray type:  BT4D is having the same issues.

The default background for posts is now white; it used to be a light, greenish-blue.  I wonder if that is causing an issue.  I changed it on BT4D to a bluish gray, because there was feedback that the white was too glaring.

It's odd that "View New Content" was ever visible without signing in:  it's always been a search.  It's possible that in past versions it went to whatever ballettalk/balletalert cookie was on the machine to determine who you were -- it needs a starting comparison point -- and now it's looking elsewhere.

[Helene]

The text was very dark gray, and not black.  I changed it to black and raised it by a pixel.  I have to go look for the quote size settings, though.

[sandik]

I think I've found a glitch, or perhaps this is just the way it has to work now.  When I used the "link" function to link to another website (in a posting on the PNB lec-dem) there wasn't a box to let me label the link something other than its actual url.  What did I do wrong?

[Lidewij]

I have figured that one out, sandik.  First you type the text you want, then you select the part you want to link to another website and then you click the 'link' button and insert the URL

[Helene]

When you click on the "Reply to this topic" box, the double strip of formatting tools appears at the top of the box.

• There are two types of links:
  
  • Links attached to a word or phrase
    
  • Stand-alone links
• For stand-alone links, you can copy and paste directly into the reply box, or you can use the same tool used for word/phrase links.

The wordy, step-by-step version to use the formatting tool.

• Optional, if you don't want to type the URL:  copy the URL.
  
• Skip Steps 2 and 3 for a stand-alone link.   Type your word, phrase, sentence, paragraph, or post.
  
• Highlight the word, phrase, or sentence you want to turn into the link.
  
• Click the "Link" button, the little icon on the second row, under the size box down arrow.
  
  •  Link A2 Highlight.jpg   51.8K   1 downloads
• The "Link" box will appear:  paste or type the URL into the box and click "OK".
  
  •  Link A3 Link Box.jpg   57.47K   1 downloads
• If you've highlighted a word(s), the highlighted word(s) will be underlined:
  
  •  Link A5 Word Linked.jpg   58.76K   2 downloads
    
  • If you place your cursor over it, you should see a "tool tip" box that says "External link".
• If you haven't highlighted a word(s), the free-standing link will appear as if you had pasted or typed it directly into the post.

You can see the encoded version by clicking the light switch icon (left-most icon on the top row).
 Link A6 Link Code.jpg   68.64K   2 downloads

Apologies for the first grader red circles on the screenshots:  I only have Paint and a touch pad on my PC.

[Helene]

I found the "styles" for most of the smaller text and darkened it.   The way the site is designed, there is a setting, and then different parts of the site use that setting.  I'm not a programmer, just a poke-arounder and a best-guesser, and I didn't attempt to make them independent.

I also didn't make the very small (11px) text larger, because in the style sheet, there's a comment "Important!" next to the size, and I didn't want to blow up the site.

There's a reason the type on the "Edit", "Report" etc. buttons are so slight until you cursor over them:  it's to keep you from accidentally using these buttons, unless you really mean it   Once you cursor over them, the text is dark enough to read.

[Quiggin]

Quote

The text was very dark gray, and not black. I changed it to black and raised it by a pixel.

Thanks, Helene. It does look sharper and easier to read - every pixel does help.

[Cliff]

Helene, on 28 October 2011 - 09:45 PM, said:

Cliff, on 28 October 2011 - 08:55 PM, said:

Is there a way to adjust the display width (or number of columns)?  To read a post I have to either use the horizontal scroll bar for each line or reduce the font size.

What are you reading the board on?

Firefox.  The font and contrast have improved.

[sandik]

Lidewij, on 29 October 2011 - 05:14 PM, said:

I have figured that one out, sandik.  First you type the text you want, then you select the part you want to link to another website and then you click the 'link' button and insert the URL

Thanks so much for the help -- that seems to be the trick.

[SandyMcKean]

PeggyR said:

have to go through the hassle of a login

I presume you know this, but just choose not to use it, but just in case......

One can select the option ("remember me") of having the logon be automatic....then it is zero hassel.  I just click on my "BalletAlert" link on my desktop, and I am instantily into the site and logged on.  I'd hate to have to logon everytime.

[Helene]

SandyMcKean, on 30 October 2011 - 11:02 AM, said:

One can select the option of having the logon be automatic....then it is zero hassel.

For the "automatic" option, when you sign in, click the "Remember me" option, just under the password input box:
 Remember me.jpg   47.64K   3 downloads