Definitely agree with a Like button, New Posts feature, and I would appreciate a mobile forum view.
OMG I just choked on my yogert! :lol:
I also think this is an excellent idea. www.ted.com has similar rating options for their videos and it’s very useful.
I agree that I would not want permanent off-topic forum, even if just for premium members. I like the specialness of it when it does happen, and I’d worry about attracting people who are NOT AT ALL horse people that would use just that forum. I’d prefer to keep this board to horse people who occasionally get to post about non-horse stuff, rather than non-horse people who post about non-horse stuff on our horse board.
[QUOTE=Moderator 1;5960023]
Potential new features for all users:
- COTH mobile app
- New smilies :)
- "Like" button for posts
- Reining/Western forum
- Universal log-in system for all Chronicle sites (this will be implemented after initial upgrade is complete)
Yes to mobile app, Like button and WESTERN forum.
I have lots of western questions but I can’t ask them here unless I really like the sound of crickets. It’ll take a bit for western peeps to really form a commnity on COTH but I think it’ll help. I routinely have to go to another forum for western stuff.
I also use three different phones- it’d be sweet to have a mobile app for the two technically inferior ones 
[QUOTE=Moderator 1;5960023]
Potential new features for Premium users:
- New forum allowing discussion of business-related questions, brags, market research, employment opportunities and some other "borderline" topics previously restricted due to advertising policies.
- Permanent Off Topic forum (also open to rest of community on occasion as we do currently)
- Photo Albums
- Embedded video in posts
We appreciate your input and ongoing interest in the site—you make it what it is!
Mod 1 [/QUOTE]
I keep saying I’d get a premium membership but just can’t quite justify the cost vs. added features. Maybe this would be the tipping point???
NO perm off-topic. It’ll implode some people. I’m on the fence about the borderline topic forum though.
[QUOTE=ayrabz;5961834]
I like the like button.
I’d also like an off topic category, but for any member.
Most desired: A CHAT ROOM! :yes:
thanks![/QUOTE]
A chat room could get really, really sketchy really really quickly. Also, it would be more difficult to moderate. Please, Mods, don’t do this unless you want to create more trouble for yourselves.
Oh, and allowing posters to delete their own posts would be handy, too. And there would be far fewer posts about periods if you allowed us to do this!
A permanent OT forum would be loverly :yes::yes::yes:
I LOFF scoping out recipes from COTHers, but other OT threads make this site feel more like a community, at least to this poster.
I would not object to a Western forum either.
{shrugs} so what if it turns out to be a largely inactive forum?
The Driving threads are kinda slow-moving compared to others, but WTH, room for everyone here on the interwebz, right?
This functionality exists now. Go to “edit”, hit “go advanced” and click “delete message.”
NO to permanent off-topic forum; agree that this should be an occasional treat.
YES to new improved smilies.
NO to chat.
YES to “if 50 regular COTHers push the “spam” button, away goes the spam” ability.
Conflicted re: western forum - my knee-jerk reaction is NO because COTH covers English disciplines, not western ones, and I’m certain western people have their own horse boards but, reining is FEI, maybe you guys can use the advert revenue, so… a tentative yes.
I think you should add a SNARK forum.
To the person who has trouble reading the point size – you can increase the font size by holding down the Ctrl key and the “plus” sign (on PCs) or the Command key and the “plus” sign (on Macs).
I’d love it if you upgraded to Scoop and replies were nested. It would mean that you had the option of replying to the original post, or to an individual commenter.
[QUOTE=Moderator 1;5962800]
]
Also, re: the possibility of a Western forum, we’re considering it as there does seem to be a fair amount of interest, reining is an FEI discipline, etc. If we did add it, it would be on a provisional basis, as we don’t want to add further strain to moderation resources, so if it didn’t work for us, it could be removed.]
Mod 1[/QUOTE]
I participate on one site where there’s “community moderation.” Trusted users – and developing this system is likely a huge undertaking – are given the opportunity to “hide” comments that contravene community standards. If a comment gets X number of “hide ratings” the comment becomes invisible to the larger community.
Moderators still step in, but there’s less of a burden on individuals (and more on the software).
– I agree with some others that I’d definitely up my membership to premium if there was a permanent off-topic forum.
– Embedded videos would be great …
– As would the posting of images. Although I would strongly suggest capping the dimension size of the images. (I.E., Even if someone posts a 1200 pixel wide photo, it would only be displayed as 500 pix wide. Pretty sure this can be done within the vBulletin code itself.) OH – and limiting the number of images per post. Otherwise, you’ll have not-so-net savvy folks posting 15 images that are all 3,000 pixels wide.
– New smilies are cool. 
– I think the ‘Like’ button would be nice. It lets people know which lengthy posts might be worth their time, in addition to being able to tell someone that you like their post without starting a new post for it.
A training forum, please! When I have a general training question—not discipline specific, but related to general classic horsemanship—I would like to have some option other than putting it in Off Course.
Like button? Neutral. Western forum? Neutral, although it doesn’t seem to serve your target audience particularly well. New smilies? Neutral. Some sort of online image viewing option so that I don’t accidentally download something every time I click a thumbnail to view it would be handy!
No to a permanent OT forum, I also think it’s a treat. What I would like, however, is to know how long the OT forum will be open for posts. The start/end times cater to EST and I get disappointed when the forums close “early” for those of us on the left coast.
Definitely NO on the like button idea.
Yes on the mobile app, which is long overdue.
I would also like to see the search feature improved/enhanced to make searches for topics easier and more streamlined.
I would have no problem paying for a premium membership if the search feature could be narrowed down to specific phrases, thereby omitting all the useless threads that may have the words in the post, but have no related meaning to the actual search terms.
How about a mule forum?!! :):D:lol:
[QUOTE=vineyridge;5961077]
Just remember that a lot of rural people are still stuck with dial up. So try to keep programming bloat down as much as possible. Please make videos a matter of choice.
The site already loads a lot slower than it did a year or so ago.[/QUOTE]
I agree, if you allow inline photos, can it be optional to have them load?
Being a western rider myself (but I sure do like to watch the non-western equine events too), I think a western/reining forum would not be a bad thing, especially now that reining is an international sport.
I like the other ideas also.
Potential new features for all users:
–COTH mobile app - if it makes the majority happy, go for it
–New smilies 
– BIG YES PLEEEEZE - If anything, we must have a barfing emoticon. :yes:
–“Like” button for posts – Not “like” per se, but maybe the Thumbs Up?
–Reining/Western forum – No thank you. Let’s keep to the magazine.
–Universal log-in system for all Chronicle sites (this will be implemented after initial upgrade is complete) - Kewl
Potential new features for Premium users:
–New forum allowing discussion of business-related questions, brags, market research, employment opportunities and some other “borderline” topics previously restricted due to advertising policies. – Yes Please :yes:
–Permanent Off Topic forum (also open to rest of community on occasion as we do currently) – I prefer the OTD Treat Surprises
Thanks in advance for the No Avatars, Blinking Stuff, Glitter, etc. - whew!
I’m usually in the K-I-S-S Department: Keep it Simple Sweetie! :winkgrin:
I agree with this. Too much photo stuff contained in a thread makes it hard for people with a slower connection.
How can it be any easier than it is now? Use the multiple quote option at the bottom of the post and poof, you have multiple quotes.
Not a fan of OT being around all the time. Not a fan of Western forum.
Western forum - don’t love the idea, but don’t feel strongly about it.
Avatars - VERY glad you are not considering these. Strongly feel they make forums look trashy.
Like Button - do not like this idea. I do use Facebook, but wouldn’t want a popularity contest going on here. I can read peoples’ posts and determine for myself which are most interesting/helpful.
Improved search function - PLEASE work on this! I find it pretty much impossible to find anything via search on this forum – it is the worst search function I’ve ever encountered!
new Premium Membership perks - YES!! These are perks I’d be willing to pay for! The current ones – I can only think of embedding photos – aren’t ones I use, so that’s why I’m not a premium member.
Also, Can we have a sticky in the pet forum for dog food. It seems like once a week there is someone asking about dog food questions. And then that stirs up all the opinions on what dog food is better than that dog food.
[QUOTE=dags;5962122]
… LOL, total dream, but always thought it would be nice if each thread had a sticky that clarifies the points that have already been stated or ascertained. So much time is spent rehashing facts that have already been stated . . . I don’t believe this is possible (or could be utilized without a cat fight) but my biggest gripe is the amount of redundancy in the threads. The same points, over and over and over. And the long ones are impossible to go back through and discover the most pertinent facts &/or links. If a post could be marked “reference”, perhaps . . . I know, pipe dream, carry on…[/QUOTE]
Yes. Sometimes it is like being in classroom of 1st-graders and all of them talking at once. They read the OP, and it is like does not even matter that 23 people already gave the same answer: they don’t care to read, just voice their opinion. It does get tiresome.
Can anything be done about this redundancy? It would surely cut down on CoTH’s bandwidth at least. Anyone have ideas?
