How is the new layout?

Just curious. If you have any suggestions for categories or anything else let me know and I'll consider it.

Hi Richard, I like to keep up with all items on the forum, and therfore I liked the single layout from before. I'm sure I can get used to the new layout, but when I visit the site, I like to see all new posts regardless of topic.

I'm a hand-loader guy, but am always curious about stokers, chimney issues, coal quality etc. Everything about burning coal interests me. So the new catagories are more of a hindrance to quick surfing than a help.

This is just my opinion, I'm sure others who for example own a certain type of stoker who don't want to wade through other posts about hand-feeders.

Thanks for having/creating/maintaining this site, it has been a great resource for me.!!

Greg L.

LsFarm wrote:
I'm a hand-loader guy, but am always curious about stokers, chimney issues, coal quality etc. Everything about burning coal interests me. So the new catagories are more of a hindrance to quick surfing than a help.

Each visit you only have to look for the yellow icon next to a category or post to see if there is anything new.

If you see this it means there is something new, once you view a topic it will go back to white. If you have viewed all the new posts or there are no new ones it will be plain. Note: if you use the back button on your browser this will not happen, instead use the breadcrumb trail to the top left of the table (NEPA Discussion Forum Index -> Polls) Clicking NEPA Discussion Forum Index will take you to the the main index, clicking polls will take you to the polls.

Even easier when you first get here on the main index to the top right of the table is a few other links such as the "view new posts". Clicking that will bring up a list of any new topics or topics with new replies since your last visit.

I'm also workin on a newsletter type e-mail you'll be able to subscribe to. you won't even have to come here, you can just have all the new posts e-mailed to you on a daily/weekly basis if you want.

I was going to agree with "LS" about liking all the posts in one forum for easy reading. However, now that I am aware of the "view new posts" option I guess it does not matter.

So I am cool with it


Coal Dust

My opinion is there are now too many categories for such few number of postings. Let's face it, this forum is a VERY niche topic, and could easily be served by a "general' topic category.

I was also sadened by the loss of so much historical posting data. Lots of valuable info was lost to newbees who could find topics by search.

My 2¢

Wotseurba wrote:My opinion is there are now too many categories for such few number of postings. Let's face it, this forum is a VERY niche topic, and could easily be served by a "general' topic category.

Well this forum has essentailly come to life since the fall, before that it was relatively dead. I expect it to pick up as time goes on and I want something it can grow into. There are only really 4 categories where most of the information is going to reside. the rest are extra. I modeled it after another highly succesful forum I'm a member of albeit with fewer categories. One thing I really wanted was to add the classified section, I really want to keep that seperate and not have it cluttering up the information.

There are other reasons for doing this as well, specifically search engines are going to have more to find at higher level pages. Plus I'll be adding some optimization for the main titles.

I was also sadened by the loss of so much historical posting data. Lots of valuable info was lost to newbees who could find topics by search.

Yes that is unfortunate but lesson learned, keep a backup of the backup. Just want to clarify it wasn't a huge loss, the 600 posts were spread across many topics. Lime4x4's thread about his problems with his stoker had at least 40 or 50 alone. In total it was probably about 40 or 50 topics but I have no definite figure.

I too enjoyed the single layout but as you say, simply scan for new posts.

I would like to see a seperate catagory for chimneys, flues, liners, maintenance of the chimney, etc.

Mark