'New ATS' and the starring system?

A couple of instances I have come across since the change over which I would like
explained?

# 1) I have made a post on a thread of only a half dozen posts and the problem is
that there is no place to star my post (if anyone wanted to ) All the other posts still
have the facilities to 'star'

# 2) A long running thread I have taken part in, and up to the change over still had
the facilities for starring - no longer has the ability to 'star'?

reply to post by eletheia


I thought that was a problem too at first but it isn't. Your posts will not show a place to star for you, but it does for everyone else..

As for your second point I havn't noticed it so I don't know.

reply to post by dustytoad


Every post has a see through star that remains so till it is starred by someone
and other posts I have made that are 'un starred' are still there and not
coloured in.

However on the thread I mentioned of only half a dozen posts it is more easily
seen as other posts 'un starred' still have the un coloured stars but my post
doesn't even have this un coloured star??

reply to post by eletheia


Trust me it's not an issue.. I'll go star you..

It's only a visual thing.. You are not supposed to see the unfinished star on your posts anymore because you can't star your own post. They switched it. Some of your posts may show an unfinished star like some of mine did in the begining, but that isn't supposed to happen.


I just starred this post:
Your post here had no stars a second ago

I starred the post you asked me too now.. Go check.

I wonder if it was an intentional ego buster. Like you can't make snarky remarks now and see how many stars it gets you to grow the old e-peen lol. Oh nvm, you can still see how many stars you get

reply to post by eletheia


1). It looks like on ATS53 there is no place to star our own posts because we don't need/can't to star our own posts. I'm sure others see a place to star on your post.

2). For the other, it looks like that thread was moved to HOAX, which takes away all the stars from the thread. From what I understand, the stars you received are still included in your tally but stars are invisible from the thread now.

Um...are the stars really that big of deal to you? Just seems kinda weird to bring up...

reply to post by AshleyD




Thanks for your explanation! just needing to find my way around the new site

But what I can't understand is .... on the said 'hoax thread,' and it has been a 'hoax'
for sometime, was that until very recently 'new posts' were still getting
starred!?

reply to post by Agent008






"Stars" are like spots ... you don't tend to notice them till you get a a large

blind one on the tip of your nose!!

reply to post by eletheia


You can't actually see your own place to award a star but others can. And you will see your stars when you get them for a post.

Just one other confusing bit of dreck on the "new" ATS, give me a break!!!

I would give you a star but I cant see where to do it. There is no option for me.

Agent008
Um...are the stars really that big of deal to you? Just seems kinda weird to bring up...

Not really, its nice to give people stars.

reply to post by greavsie1971


Within this forum, there are no stars. All other forums, have stars.

reply to post by SkepticOverlord


Is it just me or does when SkepticOverlord posts you hear it in Walter White's aka Heisenberg's voice....

Folks, we've been tossing out sneak-peaks for months, have been opening this up to members for about a couple months, and have had an open member beta test for almost a full week.

Everyone got a U2U urging them to test the new site and provide commentary in this thread:
Open Member Testing: ATS.5/3 Final Release Candidate
If you didn't participate in an unprecedented open test and request for feedback, why are you doing so after launch?

Please stop starting new threads and use this one thread for your comments.


And for the purpose of communicating, yet again, the rationale behind the redesign, here is what was posted in the open test thread...

By now everyone should have received a private message with the username/password that enables access to the Final Release Candidate version of the new ATS.5/3.

This is the fourth round of user testing (first being staff-only, second being invited beta-testers, and third being an open-beta test to all members) and is intended to accomplish the following:

1) final testing of the site UX (user experience) on a wider variety of user scenarios

2) final refinement of of the color scheme of the two UI (user interface) options

3) establish an understanding of the new interface/structure for a less jarring cut-over

4) begin the offered opportunity for a member collaboration on new smilies


This open test is not intended as an opportunity to offer significant alterations to the UI/UX in any way. Months of work, preceded by months of research, and that preceded by months of analysis of existing "upgrades" to so-called discussion board frameworks (XenForo being the best of a lackluster bunch).



The Primary Goal

What you are testing is not "change for the sake of change." Two massively important factors have been the driving force behind such a significant re-think of what a discussion board platform should be.

1) While the number of in-bound new users (roughly 85% of all daily traffic) has remained relatively flat, the user-engagement (content/thread pages viewed) has been falling off for months.

2) Across the Internet, nearly all discussion boards are experiencing a very similar phenomena. The decline in engagement is seen everywhere, even in large long-established video game forums.

The reason, is relatively simple: the audience has changed. The percentage of people comfortable with the rigid/tight discussion board format is decreasing, while the percentage of people accustomed to the more open sensibilities of contemporary flat design is increasing. It's a clearly quantified (and has been) fact of life for online operators.


Our mandate at AboveTopSecret.com, for more than ten years, has been to create and maintain a venue that showcases the quality content created by our members. A big part of that mandate has been consistent attention to search engine optimization. Another big part has been the delicate balance of advertising to provide the revenue needed to support big traffic, our own advertising, and growth. But the biggest part of that balance has always been finding ways to push the boundaries of a discussion board platform so that new users have the best possible chance to discover your content.

Right now, discovery is falling. Action is needed.

So every decision from font-size to color to mobile responsiveness has been from the vantage point of "what best highlights the content." The content is first. The content is second. And the content is third.



I'm not saying your input isn't important

That's why this is the third time we've opened the development site up to members. But if we didn't place a high priority on ensuring your content is both discovered and lingered-over, all we'd be doing is talking amongst ourselves and no one would have encountered the long-list of content that you created, that became important on thousands of other websites and hundreds of news sources.

This IS for you.






this thread is closed.