New signature rules/features

[Webmaster]

I've installed a number of hacks (some done by others, some by myself) to change the way signatures are handled on the site. We're trying to strike a compromise on the requests from the users and hopefully this will make everyone happy. From now on there will be a limit of 300 characters on your signature lines posted in messages - which will help with bandwidth usage and readability in the forums. Your current signatures were truncated to 200 characters because that was the original limit we were going to set but upped it based on input. Many people had already modified their signatures so I didn't want to overwrite those changes. However, your current signatures will be copied in whole to a field called "profile". I've turned on signatures by default again so that they will appear automatically in threads. I've also installed a hack that will only show your signature the first time you post on a page - which will help with bandwidth usage as well.



When we turned off signatures by default a couple of months ago we originally did so to help with the loads on the old server. Since that time we've gotten many emails stating how much users appreciated the long signatures not being there and how much easier it was to read the forums. We've also had many emails asking what happened to your signatures (they were never gone, just turned off by default).



With the latest changes you'll have a default signature of a limited length (300 characters) that will automatically be shown on the first thread of a page. If someone wants to see more details then they can click on the profile button and see your entire truck profile (no limit on the length of that one).



Hopefully this will strike a good compromise between bandwidth usage and your desires for short signatures in threads but more details if wanted.



I had to change many of the programs in the forums as well as many templates and it's always possible I introduced some bugs despite my best efforts at testing - if you find any please let me know.



-Steve St. Laurent

Webmaster

 

[Bob Wagner]

that will be a nice option only having one signature per topic



Thank You

 

[Whitmore]

Cool Steve, I thought there for a minute that I could only bomb my Baby up to 200 characters, that would suck

 

[Mark_Kendrick]

#@$%! your hack has destroyed my signature because it counts the url's in the links as part of the char count.



this really sucks. I intentionally made my sig short and small.



I hope you'll reconsider this. it prevents folks from putting links to save space on the page.

 

[HerbW]

Steve,

I liked the signatures because it let me know what each person has done to their rig when reading their post. It saves alot of questions on here due to not knowing what were working with. I also understand bandwidth. :{ Do whatever it takes to keep us going! HerbOo.

 

[Steve St.Laurent]

That's the point here Herb. The signatures are there now more than they were yesterday. By putting a limit on the signature length it stops the huge signature files that some users had posted (sometimes signature lines were 30+ times the length of the message that was posted). We had posted many times over to limit the length of signatures and only post them the first time on a thread - but it was never complied with. Under this system you can put a signature line on that has up to 200 characters in it. You can also put a MUCH longer truck profile (as long as you want actually) in the "Truck Profile" screen and if anyone wants to see it they can click on the profile button at the bottom of your post and get it. That way if you want to see the complete profile you can, but those that don't want to see it don't have to. We had many users that were requesting to eliminate signatures completely after they saw them gone most of the time and how much more readable the forums were. This is a compromise between the two positions. We can adjust the number of characters allowed up or down from 200 characters based on how this works out - just remember we are trying to balance 12,000+ users wants.

 

[illflem]

Thanks Steve much better. Only problem now is that I have to remember to uncheck the show sig box. Wasn't there an option in the cp before that allowed you to chose a default setting for the sig. I can't find it anymore.

 

[Steve St.Laurent]

The setting in the control panel is for displaying signatures in posts, not whether your signature will be displayed or not. It's under edit options->show user's signatures in their posts. If you set that to no all signatures will be turned off for you. As far as remembering to turn off show signature when you are posting your signature will automatically show only the first time on a page. All subsequent postings on that page will not show the signature. So you only have to uncheck it if you don't want your signature to show at all.

 

[RottnDogue]

Originally posted by Steve St. Laurent

As far as remembering to turn off show signature when you are posting your signature will automatically show only the first time on a page. All subsequent postings on that page will not show the signature. So you only have to uncheck it if you don't want your signature to show at all.

Whatever works for you guys, but not sure you shouldn't have left it the way it was..... If someone wanted to see a signature all they had to do was check someones profile, and if someone wanted to post a signature all they had to do was check show signature, NOT ROCKET SCIENCE. As far as bandwith, I've posted a few hundred times in the last couple of months, yet posted my signature (i can only remember twice) less than ten times. Now it will be posted everytime I post to a new thread??? And it's chopped to 200?? Some things are better off left alone... ...



Darren

 

[dresslered]

I totally understand that we are trying to conserve bandwidth, and displaying signatures only once per thread is completely understandable. However, it was a real nice feature to be able to see the users truck as well as the mods that it contained immediately. Too many times, I see the questions being asked, "What kind of truck do you have?", "what mods do you have", before you can even attempt to answer the question that may have originally been asked. I realize that 30-line signatures are approaching the rediculous, but the excuse that we have more than 10,000 members (paying membership fees) doesn't justify the diminishing service. Maybe full signatures could appear in the technical discussion only? Just an opinion...

 

[Shovelhead]

As slow as some dial-up connections are, the old system of 1/2 page sigs with lights, bells, whistles, and whatever took forever to download.

This may be better, but the sigs need to be a little longer.

Admin-types will have to referee the changes I guess.

 

[Amianthus]

I like the having one signature per user per thread idea. That's good. But 200 characters is pretty slim. Can it be stretched to 300?

 

[kiwi bird]

When I first joined after getting my truck I found the sigs with hyper links to be immensely helpful as they allowed me to see what people were using AND where to find the BOMBs. I understand the limits imposed by database search and also slow connection but would like to put in my vote for not counting the extra code that allows the links in the 200 character limit.



I love this site and what it has helped my truck become -occasional Porsche embarrasser and general smile maker.

 

[Steve St.Laurent]

Based on input we've increased the allowable length of the signature that posts to 300 characters. There is no way for us to pull out links, etc and not count those. As I've said above remember that you can put as much information into the Truck Profile that you want. If you want to see more detail on a user all you have to do is click on the "Profile" button at the bottom of a post and you'll get the persons full profile along with pages of information about their truck, links, etc, etc if they want to post it. Right now that field has the full signature as it was before these changes.

 

[BFC]

Steve,



I like it, thanks. I'm dial up, so anything that make anything reading the forums easier, I'm all for. Plus we didn't loose anything. I'm with illflem, I liked the checked box when you want the sig, rather than not. No biggie though I'll get use to it.



Get some rest boy,



Glenn

 

[RottnDogue]

Still seems silly..... when I respond to a joke it'll show my Signature? That's conserving bandwidth? When I congratulate someone on something, again my signature will show up, That's conserving Bandwidth? It wasn't Rocket Science before click show signature, or click on profile, Should have left it alone... ...



Darren

 

[Steve St.Laurent]

Try having to respond to many posts a day asking what happened to their signature when we've already explained it. Then having half of those that you respond to explaining what happened to their signature (that they only needed to check the box to post it) come back and tell you that it sucks that they have to check that box. You can just as easily uncheck the "show signature" box if you don't want your signature to show up by default. Keep in mind that we're trying to balance 12,000+ users wants, it's not easy believe me. We set up this system to provide a means for most to be happy (realizing that no matter what we do, someone isn't going to like it). By default a short signature will be shown on the first post by you on a screen (or you can turn it off yourself), if someone wants more details they can click on the profile button and get your complete profile. Today we increased the character limit from 200 to 300 characters because of a number of complaints that 200 characters was too little. Believe me when I say it isn't easy to keep 12,000+ users that are as opinionated as we are happy!! Remember that until a couple of months ago the default was to show the signature on each and every post and almost noone chose to turn it off although it was requested. Compromise . . . . .

 

[RottnDogue]

So the TDR is becoming like the US Government? People suffer (in this case smaller sigs) to protect the Stupid..... Great.

I am sure you'll use more bandwidth this way over the next two months, then you did in the last two months. But we have to protect the Dummy's from themselves.

Darren

 

[Sled Puller]

Rottendogue,





You nailed it!!!



We, the mass posters, the ones who make the site INTERESTING, the ones who actually USE THEIR trucks, have always been inconvienced by the few complainers who don't post at all, been this way since the beginning.



I guess the only answer is for us to send mass stupid question e-mails to Steve so he sees our side also!!



LOL!!



Oh well, I worked around Crayon Ford boy (that was a classic, remember?) this long, I may as well work around my buddy Steve.



Note:

Sig not fixed, but it was within the old guidelines, and I tried to post it only once a page, from the point I signed on until now.



I FIXED IT!

 

[HiPerf360]

I would like my sig back, it tells a lot about my ol POS truck and the people that helped me do it. I don't like the super long sig's that some people have but I just don't read them. I love the hack that allows the sig to be displayed only once per post but I also think that will save enough bandwidth in itself. Isn't this new server capable of handling it?