Feedback & Feature Requests

[Eldy Dunami]

Would it be possible to enable YouTube (and potentially other kinds of external media) embedding without it being a hassle? I was thinking it'd be nice to have a "what are you listening to?" thread again but I didn't have any luck embedding a video.

[Reikon Suchi-ru]

One feature I think would be really useful - and was a highly asked-for Original Plaza feature before it was implemented - is having the original post show up at the top of subsequent pages of a thread past Page 1.

[Lúthien Tinúviel]

Can we bring back signatures, @Narv ? They're a fun aspect, and plus it'll allow some of us the option of having our preferred pronouns listed there.

I also second the motion for expanding the Emoji library.

[Silky Gooseness]

@Lúthien Tinúviel - Should be possible now through the User Control Panel now

[Eldy Dunami]

Nice to have that option; thank you!

[Narv]

some kind of "auto save" that it could do, so that you didnt lose your post when posting

YouTube (and potentially other kinds of external media) embedding

having the original post show up at the top of subsequent pages of a thread past Page 1.

To all of these I'm going to say: I'll check it out, but there's a good chance I won't do them. There are extensions that claim to do each of these things, but from what I've seen from a quick check they either haven't been maintained, or they add a fair amount of complexity. I'm pretty leery about throwing too many neat-looking extensions on the board - the more moving pieces and external code we bring in, the more chances for things to break and greater the risk of security issues. Probably better to stick with the workarounds for now (word processor, direct links to youtube vids). Except for the first-post-on-every page one, that has no workaround... but the only extension I found is 5 years old and I don't want to chance it nor build it myself.

emoticons

Yes yes infinite smileys, workin on it

@Loke Clogwearer much appreciated and you may be hearing from me at some point about this (but feel no obligation to do anything you don't feel like). I'm slightly hopeful that the heavy lifting code-wise is more or less done for a while - the code sucks, but it seems to be sorta doing its job and I'm ok with the core functioning of the site being about what it is until someone more ambitious/able than me comes along. My one big remaining job is to get this thing off my personal AWS account and onto a decent shared host somewhere - if you have any experience with anything like that I might definitely come after you with questions as I work through it.

[Oak]

Love the signature idea. I am going to take advantage of that.

[Fairy Nuff]

having the original post show up at the top of subsequent pages of a thread past Page 1.

To all of these I'm going to say: I'll check it out, but there's a good chance I won't do them. There are extensions that claim to do each of these things, but from what I've seen from a quick check they either haven't been maintained, or they add a fair amount of complexity. I'm pretty leery about throwing too many neat-looking extensions on the board - the more moving pieces and external code we bring in, the more chances for things to break and greater the risk of security issues. Probably better to stick with the workarounds for now (word processor, direct links to youtube vids). Except for the first-post-on-every page one, that has no workaround... but the only extension I found is 5 years old and I don't want to chance it nor build it myself.

The workaround is to have two browser windows open - one with page 1 and one with the current active page (on Chrome you can click duplicate tab to do this easily, I think you can do the same on Firefox and probably other browsers too. On Windows (don't know about Mac/Linux) you can have both windows side by side in split screen too, which helps.

[Esme]

gosh, I thought I was summond, again!
you quote my babble I get a notification. neat! :smiley8:

[Narv]

Sometimes neat, sometimes not so much :smiley10: it's a default that can be disabled in the User Control Panel the same way as the other notifications FYI.

[Oak]

Being able to put my info in a signature is good enough for me. My philosophy is simple is better. The original Plaza did get too complex and that is how is ran into problems. I don't think there should be too much fiddling with the icons either.

[Narv]

any of chance of re-re-branding Art, Poetry and Fanfiction as the Cottage of Lost Play?

Never understood that name tbh but sure why not

[Narv]

Excuse the boldness. Was not trying to pull a Mo

[Oak]

Lower the point threshold for ranks, what was I thinking

I will second this one. We do not know how long this site is going to be here. Some of use were oldbies that had joined the Plaza back in 2004 and earlier. I joined in 2003.

[Narv]

Yes, the rank thresholds were chosen at a stage in this project when I was 99% sure this would just be a dead site for people to look around at and remember how things used to be. I didn't expect enough activity for people to actually consider obtaining these ranks again!

It'll be changing before too long

[Yávië]

I didn't even know what the Cottage of Lost Play was, nevermind Lindo, for years. I just liked the sound of it. Thank you!

[Oak]

Well I am here to stay. This site is taking off.

Specially with the new ME TV series coming out, the site may explode.

[Dimcairien Luiniel]

I plan to be here to stay as well, at least as much as adult life will let me.

And yes, with more ME craziness on the horizon, we may attract some newbies. Who may or may not have to face tests of foo and squirrels? @Baingíl Randír @Nessila

[Baingíl Randír]

I tend to get busy and then not have time for Internet Stuff, but... perhaps.

The Squirrel Army may yet rise again.

[Narv]

Ok, a couple changes regarding everyone's (cough) favourite Plaza feature.. points

First, we made them a little easier to acquire: 50 characters instead of the old 200. Especially these days when we're just getting going again, shorter posts to keep the fun going are often as helpful as longer ones (of course, the longer high-effort posts we've been seeing so far are also awesome!), so points ought to reflect that. We're also going with 2 points instead of 1 to help people get going, since we don't have things like Knowledge Halls yet to give that early boost. We know some of you would rather not run around as Saplings and Newborn Gondorians forever.

And finally for all the same reasons, rank thresholds have been lowered, especially for the lower/middle ranks. You may find the bigger ranks still seem quite aspirational - indeed they are. But we need to be prepared in case Tornihyanda comes back and busts the entire fanatic point economy again.

[Dwim]

Well that's awesome Narv. All I wanted was to be a tween again, but I was stuck on 4 points for so long I thought it would never happen. All it took was one good haiku and now I've got my wish. Thank you sir.

Edit: seems my tween days went by pretty quick

[Winddancer]

Yay! Got to skip Cave troll :P

[Nessila]

oh thank you @Narv . It seems a bit vain to want higher ranks again but I don't have the energy or time to write tons of 200 character posts right now but I was already envying others' rank jumps

[Mojo]

Just throwing this out there as a question - where would be the appropriate place to have a "Self-promotion" thread where people could (if they have them) post links to Etsy shops or other places where they make/sell Tolkien-related stuff?

For the record, I do not have an Etsy shop, but I've bought a lot of Tolkien-related gifts for my wife from other people's Etsy shops, so I'm always browsing around for good gift ideas and having a centralized place here to check would be a nice resource (and possibly help some fellow Plaza-ites out at the same time).

[Narv]

@Mojo I think something like that could fit in fine in either OOME or, assuming people are gonna be sharing stuff that falls under the broad category of 'art', CoLP - I have no personal preference for which.

[Oak]

Basically be reasonable about it. No posts where every other word is an F-bomb. That would tend to put people off. But allowance need to be made for artistic expression.

[Lúthien Tinúviel]

In answer to both @Narv and @Aerlinn , Cottage of Lost Play is a reference to some stories from The Book of Lost Tales, iirc.

[Narv]

Thanks Luthien, yes I was finally educated on the matter yesterday. It now joins basically all my other Tolkien knowledge as another tidbit picked up via Plaza references

[Thorin Firehelm]

Just a question, is there a filter that can be set up? There is some very un Plaza-esque language in the Balrogs thread that may put people off.

[Silky Gooseness]

@Thorin Firehelm thanks, we have filtered some stuff but not where it’s part of a larger word. I’ll look into that now. You can also flag a post up by reporting it if it is serious

edit: some wildcards activated.

[Thorin Firehelm]

@Sil thanks! I reported a post but only because it doesn't make sense now the offending vocabulary is gone.

[Aduchil]

The dark background of Mordor forum makes it near impossible to see the link for "first unread post". It would be nice to have it more visible.

[DEATH]

@Thorin Firehelm you're taking this very seriously. Let me explain myself in the kindest way I can. Yes, there was some language in the Balrogs thread that wouldn't have been allowed on the old Plaza. In many ways, this is a beta of this new plaza. I had become aware of a filter that was discussed in an admin messages thread and, for better or for worse decided to test that in a thread that, on the old plaza would have been shot down in flames mere moments after it was started.

The filter didn't work. It had accounted for the short version of the word I used, but not the longer. Seeing that, I decided to leave my post so the admins could adapt the filter as they saw fit. You obviously saw fit to speak for the plaza as a whole, which is allowed. This is not the old plaza. It's largely populated by adults, it is not the place you remember, filled with 13-14 year old posters who might benefit from the overly protective stance you have taken - and I don't disagree with that stance, I just feel it's less relevant in this instance than you believe it to be.

I've edited my posts in a manner that I hope is minimally disruptive to the conversation. Not because I think I was wrong - I could have written LMFAO (regularly used on the old plaza) and if you think anyone here doesn't understand what the F stands for, you've more work ahead of you than you realise - but because I do want this new thing to work, and I'm willing to compromise.

Also I think the immediate reply to my post was very funny.

[DEATH]

The dark background of Mordor forum makes it near impossible to see the link for "first unread post". It would be nice to have it more visible.

You would like Mordor to be more "nice", Elf?

[Aduchil]

The dark background of Mordor forum makes it near impossible to see the link for "first unread post". It would be nice to have it more visible.

You would like Mordor to be more "nice", Elf?

Just a little more readable, really. Would be useful for those of us with the ability to read.

[DEATH]

The dark background of Mordor forum makes it near impossible to see the link for "first unread post". It would be nice to have it more visible.

You would like Mordor to be more "nice", Elf?

Just a little more readable, really. Would be useful for those of us with the ability to read.

Where you see "useful", and "us", and "ability to read", the Dark Lord might see "advantage to our enemies." We see well enough in the dark.

[Narv]

I take full responsibility for fredegar-gate as the one who created such a terrible swear filter. Looks like discussion is back on track over there so I will leave the now slightly-confusing little interlude as a fun riddle for future archive-diggers arriving from The Plaza, 2040 Edition.

re: unreadable Mordor text, true true and I will see what I can do to make that more readable without making other stuff ugly - it's a constant struggle.

[Winddancer]

I thought elves could see well in the dark, or is that just pathfinder..

[Eldy Dunami]

But will the filter protect us from the word "manuscripts" the way the OG Plaza did?

Fake edit: :o :oops: :shock:

[Thorin Firehelm]

@Thorin Firehelm you're taking this very seriously. Let me explain myself in the kindest way I can. Yes, there was some language in the Balrogs thread that wouldn't have been allowed on the old Plaza. In many ways, this is a beta of this new plaza. I had become aware of a filter that was discussed in an admin messages thread and, for better or for worse decided to test that in a thread that, on the old plaza would have been shot down in flames mere moments after it was started.

The filter didn't work. It had accounted for the short version of the word I used, but not the longer. Seeing that, I decided to leave my post so the admins could adapt the filter as they saw fit. You obviously saw fit to speak for the plaza as a whole, which is allowed. This is not the old plaza. It's largely populated by adults, it is not the place you remember, filled with 13-14 year old posters who might benefit from the overly protective stance you have taken - and I don't disagree with that stance, I just feel it's less relevant in this instance than you believe it to be.

I've edited my posts in a manner that I hope is minimally disruptive to the conversation. Not because I think I was wrong - I could have written LMFAO (regularly used on the old plaza) and if you think anyone here doesn't understand what the F stands for, you've more work ahead of you than you realise - but because I do want this new thing to work, and I'm willing to compromise.

Also I think the immediate reply to my post was very funny.

I don't want to make heavy weather of this but just a couple of points. First, I have no objections to effs and jeffs as we call 'em down my way. Indeed, in some forums I frequent they are a characteristic of lively discussion. However, in my view, such vocabulary isn't appropriate considering the subject matter of the site. Tolkien. Such vocab is't to be found in Tolkien and isn't a part of that world. Therefore, I don't consider I am being overly protective. I have no problem with LFMAO or ROFLMAO, both of which I remember on the old plaza, indeed I used them often myself.

You mis-understand me if you think I am setting myself up as some kind of censor, I'm not. I just objected to the use of a blatant f bomb in the middle of a lore discussion.

[Oro]

@Thorin Firehelm you let the admins know your issue. And they have given their opinion. Please let’s not fight over what or what not this forum is for. It is a memory that has been returned to us, and lets just enjoy it while we have. Narv said that he had intended the words to be blocked, and Loke edited it out. No harm no foul. Let’s get back to the fun!

[Thorin Firehelm]

@Oro I know they have and as far as I am concerned that's it. Issue dealt with. I was just defending myself because I felt I needed to. No fighting here.

[DEATH]

I take full responsibility for fredegar-gate as the one who created such a terrible swear filter.

Noted. First of the New Plaza Wars of the Fifth Age started by Narv.

"The only thing needed for the triumph of evil is for well-meaning Plaza admins to create an inadequate swear filter."

I'm also claiming the 'honour' of (to this moment) second-best swear in the Lore Fora.

[Thorin Firehelm]

Excellent! Should we post this on the plaza Calendar? Fredergate!

[Moriel]

THANK YOU @Narv !!!!

[Yávië]

Just throwing this out there as a question - where would be the appropriate place to have a "Self-promotion" thread where people could (if they have them) post links to Etsy shops or other places...

I was thinking along these same lines and noticed your post, Mojo. Can threads be pinned, @Narv? I think the Cottage might be a nice place to have a sort of directory of Plaza member Etsy shops, links to books people have published, etc. Now that we're all adults, ugh, and doing things in the real world, also ugh, maybe we can support each while holiday shopping, as Mojo suggested.

Of course people can make their own individual threads too, but a masterthread of links/basic information would make for easier browsing.

[Mojo]

(Not volunteering to do this but)...

If someone started a thread in the Cottage for people to share Etsy/Amazon/other links for their stuff, whoever started the thread could edit new links into the first post as sort of a "directory" as a quick reference

[Silky Gooseness]

If someone would like to volunteer to create said thread, I will pin it

[KingODuckingham]

Hi, yes, I would like to give a bit of feedback that is very small. Khazad Dum is in the wrong order on the list of kingdoms, it should come 2nd right after Imladris. Every other kingdom is in the same order as the old plaza except for the dwarves. I don't know if this bothers anyone else and I have no idea if this can be changed and I'm not even a dwarf but I just thought I would point this out.

[Narv]

Order has been restored to the universe