new state pages [closed]

ideology · Post by **ideology** » 25 January 05 11:30 am

we've added avatars to the state pages
we think it looks heaps better than before, so thanks for your feedback!

if your avatar doesn't appear in the state list, please have a look at your profile and check that it has the correct state for you

we hope you like it

we'll be working on the other stuff over the next week or so

The Garner Family · Post by **The Garner Family** » 25 January 05 1:15 pm

we've added avatars to the state pages

mmmm... nice.

Snuva · Post by **Snuva** » 25 January 05 1:48 pm

I'm constantly amazed at the quick turn-around time from our feedback!I don't know if I just haven't gotten accustomed to the new pages yet and found how to do this, but one of the things I really liked in the old state page set-up was being able to select 'full-logs' and getting all the logs for the state in reverse order so I could see who had been active, who had been naughty, etc.

Horus · Post by **Horus** » 26 January 05 10:22 am

ideology wrote:we've added avatars to the state pages
we think it looks heaps better than before, so thanks for your feedback!

We seem to have two of the same avatar on the Tas state page - a glitch in the system? Or has someone got two registrations, it's hard to say because they both go to the same page.

It's well known that I'm not fond of Avatars, so I'm afraid I'm going to have to put my hand up for the new look being untidy, especially the "All" page - which is still trying to load after 12 minutes, and I don't think it's going to stop, there are a few links to Avatars that are broken.

I must say though that this is the first time I've seen peoples Avatars and some of them are very well done. I like the EcoTeam Avatar, very neat and professional looking.

TEAM LANDCRUISER · Post by **TEAM LANDCRUISER** » 26 January 05 10:59 am

I think the main issue is size, we already have limits applied to size 100wx150h but file size is the main killer ... I see most are around 6kb but there are a few that IMO should be changed 30kb+ and one at 250kb+ ... maybe limit sizes to less than 6kb will assist those with slower connections. Do you really need an animated logo?

ideology · Post by **ideology** » 26 January 05 7:37 pm

horis, no worries, we can block the avatars for you if you are logged in. we'll do that later tonight.

if anyone else wants avatars blocked, please let us know here. if there's a big response we'll make it an option in the registration profile.

horus, if you hover over the two identical avatars, you can see the username. it appears to be two different users who have the same website. we had a look at the website and it's nothing to do with geocaching, so perhaps we should change the profile to request that people only link to their geocaching pages now that their web pages are more prominently displayed. thoughts?

team landcruiser, a 250kb avatar is ridiculous! the profile page where people enter their avatars asks that everyone keep them to less than 6kb. we send off two or three pms every week asking people to reduce the dimensions of their avatar. we haven't looked at the size because we block all the complex animations on our browser and don't see them. we might need to either host avatars here so we can check them or write a script that somehow checks them. sad to do, but we'd like to make the site workable on dialup

Cached · Post by **Cached** » 27 January 05 9:45 am

I still don't like the new site layout.

I don't think having the caches listed by the month they were placed as the main feature on the state pages is a good idea - it is a waste of real-estate.

Post by **caughtatwork** » 27 January 05 10:08 am

Ditto your avatar

Cached · Post by **Cached** » 27 January 05 10:12 am

it ain't staying that way - gone shortly [:)]

Cached · Post by **Cached** » 27 January 05 10:20 am

phew!!

swampgecko · Post by **swampgecko** » 27 January 05 10:23 am

Cached wrote:I still don't like the new site layout.

I don't think having the caches listed by the month they were placed as the main feature on the state pages is a good idea - it is a waste of real-estate.

I agree, I think that too much is trying to be done on each page.

At the moment each state page is supplying,
* Status of Cacher activity
* A list of the last 30 caches listed on the secondary site
* A list of all the GCA listed caches
* A list of Cacher Home Pages

Maybe a rethink of the purpose of the site is in order, or atleast the State pages.

Now the next bit is just my opinion on the purpose of the site, so go ahead and flame me if you wish.....

At first the site was dedicated to The Stats of the Australian Geocachers. Which it did quite well, but now it seems to be at crossed purposes. If the GCA is to be seen as a preferred or alternate listing site for caches in Australia and to try to encourge people to go after those caches, then that part of the site should be given preference over the Stats and caches from the secondary site. How this could be achieved while still statisfying everyone's wishes I have no idea.

Maybe a status page and a cache listing page under each state...

Please don't get me wrong, I am greatly appreciative of the work Ideology have done so far. But now the site needs direction instead of being pulled from pillar to post

Cached · Post by **Cached** » 27 January 05 11:57 am

I like the idea of maintaining the stats pages as they were with a separate tab for each state for cache listings.

This could likely be done quite cleanly with two rows of tabs.

ian-and-penny · Post by **ian-and-penny** » 27 January 05 3:13 pm

I'm not too interested in stats. (That's why I haven't had much cause to visit the AU site.) While it may be nice to know who is the top finder/hider for the month - I'm not competing with them, nor they with me.

I am interested in finding and logging caches, but the cache listings don't go far enough towards giving me the info I need. I would prefer to view/search for them by any location, distance from home, proximity to each other, etc.

It seems to me that the purpose of the site has changed quite recently but the functionality hasn't (completely) changed to match.

Regards

Ian

If I find 10 in a month, 3 in Vic, 2 in ACT & 5 in NSW - do my finds get split amongst the states? Or do they contribute to the victorian stats as a victorian cacher with 10 finds?

Cached · Post by **Cached** » 27 January 05 3:34 pm

they are split amongst the states.

Horus · Post by **Horus** » 27 January 05 4:04 pm

ideology wrote:horis, no worries, we can block the avatars for you if you are logged in. we'll do that later tonight.

That would be good thanks - boy you guys are obliging.

ideology wrote:horus, if you hover over the two identical avatars, you can see the username.

Oh I see, neat! So it's not a glitch, it's another registration. When I search for 'Speculator' I get nothing, so it must be a dead account maybe?

As for linking to geocaching pages only, I guess that makes sense given that gca is a geocaching site, but I'm not sure it's needed, I haven't seen anything that's offensive to the general population linked from here, but if someone does I'm sure you know about it.