Does the forums need a rework?

[Shurrikhan]

I think there are some tremendously useful improvements that could be implemented, yes.

Before any new "features" exactly, there's just the obvious issue that these forums are rather slow compared to any modern well-used game forum. Loading a poster's profile here, for instance, typically takes over 20 seconds. On the Overwatch forum, it takes about 1 second, and that already caches threads created, recent posts, and then begins progressively pre-caching all further posts by that user. Here, loading their threads or the posts would take a further click and further 2-8 seconds' wait.

The other complaints:

1. Tags are painfully insufficient, partly because of tags being limited to 5 and there being virtually no sort of common vocabulary surrounding those tags.
   
2. The Search and even Advanced Search functions are useless in most cases. The system has no idea how to distinguish actual thread subject matter from something mentioned but irrelevant. Each does as described -- finds the most recent time the word "Monk" has been used on the forums, even if that's merely in the profile of someone on the Marriage megathread, or finds the most recently bumped thread with the word "Dancer" in it because you were clearly most interested in "PotD - Corpse Dancer Quest", right? -- but that's hardly sufficient for the tasks we'd want those functions to fill.

Apart from the above (tagging, search, and speed), these are the main directions of improvement I'd like to see:

1. Page connectivity

   There's a huge advantage at present to being at the top of a page, and a huge disadvantage to being at the bottom of one, just by way of which posts are most seen. In that regard, the easiest solution would be to swap to an uncapped vertical format. Atop this though, it can feel pointless to reply later in a busy thread, even when one's comment would still be pertinent, just due to the number of pages that would then separate the two posts. It'd be best to note at the bottom of each post how many replies a post has received and for those to be optionally openable directly below that post (ideally, in summarized form if extending beyond the currently visible page until clicking on the individual responses to expand them).

2. Quoting QoL

   Allow players to click and drag across another posters writing and then "Quote" that section in particular via a pop-up button. Allow any such quoted section to be expanded directly within the responder's post to show (with the quoted portion colored) the full context of the original post at the time of the quote, and to be collapsed back as the reader desires. Moreover, subtly underline the portions of an initial post that have been quoted by others. Perhaps even allow "quotes" to be made via a few different reactions ("Agree", "Disagree", "Confused", "Curious", "To Answer" etc.), and color the subtle underline accordingly. Maybe even optionally make use of a marginal space, where mousing over that subtly underlined area would give a blurb of the reply which quoted it. The underline would be optional; for my own part I'd likely only have it show when mousing over the post or even within a few lines of the underlined portion.

3. Better threading.

   Let players choose as they post, and others influence by review, whether something is pertinent to the thread as a whole or only by way of reply to another. Those less pertinent to the thread as a whole can take on a lower font, be more indented, etc., as according to the reader's set preferences. You can have well-liked posts with many "To Answer" replies, for instance, be made more visible, as they're likely to be house more of the useful guiding questions for a thread.

4. "Summarize" function.

   This one's complicated, but think of it as just using a customizable algorithm to made an entire thread far more quickly digestible. Readers can set their own weights to just about anything.

5. "Recommended" Page (?)

   Based on set forum interests and/or on previous searches and participation, you can have a "Recommended" Page, rather than everyone just using the New Posts function or checking the newest X posts of a (usually innately still too broad to be all that useful) sub-forums.

6. More involved "tagging" and a "cross-threading" support.

   As part of the thread creation process, have the TC select, say, whether they which to ask for advice, whether they wish to share an opinion, want to gather opinions, etc. Thereafter, as they write in the title, tags, and content, the system will check each against existing posts to recommend existing threads that would be more usefully house the content of the would-be new thread. Similarly, show when a given post has been quoted or linked in or from other threads, with handy links to said its place in said threads.

7. Notifications

   Notify people via the forum interface, optionally, when they've been replied to, when they've been liked, a(subscribed) thread they've participated in has been continued, or a new recommended thread has appeared, with further weights in each (e.g. only tell me if these people have done so).

8. Greylisting and Blacklisting

   Conversely, allow people to de-weight or generally remove certain posters, or those with certain types of reports made against them, from their forum experience.

9. Goldlisting (?)

   Opposite to the above, weight these specific individuals higher. This might also carry over in some way to default or general weights, effectively pushing forward de facto community leaders.

10. Dark Mode

    I like not being blinded by the forum's colors late at night.