Shockernet Upgrade and Mobile Access

[Kung Wu]

So behind the scenes we have had some discussion about updating Shockernet to the latest (and MUCH more current) version of our forum software. This would be a major change with the following enhancements:

- Better mobile capabilities
- Single theme will work on desktop and mobile (you wouldn't have to switch themes based on device)
- Better anti-spam capabilities
- Increased private message folder size

But this raises some questions:

1) Do you guys like dedicated "apps" for forums? As in, installing an app instead of using a browser to read and post on Shockernet? vb5 gives us that capability, but you have to purchase it. I personally never use them. If you guys use them on other forums and like them, give me some feedback as to what it is you like about apps vs browser.

2) How important on a scale of 1 to 10 is it to you that the Thanks/Like statistics don't reset? I am not clear I can keep that history, and even if I can, it may be a LOT of work to keep it versus simply resetting it.

3) How important is it to you on a scale of 1 to 10 to increase the number of messages you can store in your private messages?

4) What percent of the time do you spend on Shockernet on a PC vs mobile device? e.g. I am about 40% desktop, 60% mobile.

[Dave Stalwart]

1. I don't have enough experience with apps for other forums to really have an opinion.

2. Anything that creates a lot more work for someone else is automatically low on my scale of importance. I would probably give that a 1 on the scale of 1-10. Unless it involves me getting like and thanks on mobile. :) I'm also not 100% sure what you are even talking about when you say "reset." *Still trying to think of an Illinois State 1-12 joke here, but nothing is coming together yet.*

3. ZERO. Give all my PM space to @WuDrWu.

4. This one is tough for me to answer. 100% of the time I spend posting awesome photos and memes is done on PC because mobile won't let me do it. 80% of the time I spend just browsing SN is done on mobile. I probably spend 67% of my time wishing I could like posts from mobile without switching to the PC version. But I only actually go to the trouble to do that about 4% of the time. I think I spend 35% of my time correcting my autocorrect stuff after I've posted from mobile. I also spend 100% of my time rolling my eyes in the Politics forum.

So I guess the best answer to your question is that I spend 386% of the time browsing SN on mobile and switching back and forth to PC when it becomes necessary and punching kittens after reading everyone's political opinions. Does that help?

[Play Angry]

So behind the scenes we have had some discussion about updating Shockernet to the latest (and MUCH more current) version of our forum software. This would be a major change with the following enhancements:

- Better mobile capabilities
- Single theme will work on desktop and mobile (you wouldn't have to switch themes based on device)
- Better anti-spam capabilities
- Increased private message folder size

But this raises some questions:

1) Do you guys like dedicated "apps" for forums? As in, installing an app instead of using a browser to read and post on Shockernet? vb5 gives us that capability, but you have to purchase it. I personally never use them. If you guys use them on other forums and like them, give me some feedback as to what it is you like about apps vs browser.

2) How important on a scale of 1 to 10 is it to you that the Thanks/Like statistics don't reset? I am not clear I can keep that history, and even if I can, it may be a LOT of work to keep it versus simply resetting it.

3) How important is it to you on a scale of 1 to 10 to increase the number of messages you can store in your private messages?

4) What percent of the time do you spend on Shockernet on a PC vs mobile device? e.g. I am about 40% desktop, 60% mobile.

This is awesome, thanks for going to the trouble and all the work involved.

1) I never use the apps, always just access through browsers.

2) 1. Do not care.

3) 1. Do not care, increasing the size means I'll clean it out every 18 months rather than every 9 months.

4) 25% PC,75% mobile with a strong trend towards increased mobile use.

[Kung Wu]

2. ... I'm also not 100% sure what you are even talking about when you say "reset." *Still trying to think of an Illinois State 1-12 joke here, but nothing is coming together yet.*

By reset I mean that on day 1 of the new system, you would have zero likes and thanks attributed to yourself and so would everyone else. Posts that were previously Thanked and Liked would have zero thanks and likes. It would be a completely new install from scratch. Sucks to lose that history, but I am not sure I can save it.

4. This one is tough for me to answer. 100% of the time I spend posting awesome photos and memes is done on PC because mobile won't let me do it. 80% of the time I spend just browsing SN is done on mobile. I probably spend 67% of my time wishing I could like posts from mobile without switching to the PC version. But I only actually go to the trouble to do that about 4% of the time. I think I spend 35% of my time correcting my autocorrect stuff after I've posted from mobile. I also spend 100% of my time rolling my eyes in the Politics forum.

Right! This is why I want to get us upgraded badly. We should be able to do everything mobile, including upload stuff and Thanks and Like. We cannot do that on this old version of the forum.

So I guess the best answer to your question is that I spend 386% of the time browsing SN on mobile and switching back and forth to PC when it becomes necessary and punching kittens after reading everyone's political opinions. Does that help?

Hilarious!

[Dave Stalwart]

By reset I mean that on day 1 of the new system, you would have zero likes and thanks attributed to yourself and so would everyone else. Posts that were previously Thanked and Liked would have zero thanks and likes.

[Aargh]

1) NA - My "mobile" is a flip phone
2) 1
3) 1
4) See #1.

[RoyalShock]

1. Totally depends on how nice the mobile skin is in a browser. I use the CSNbbs app because the board doesn't have a mobile skin, so it's awful to try and read on a phone screen. The mobile skin on SN now is pretty decent, so I expect an upgrade would be on par or even better than now.

2. 1

3. 5

4. I'm probably 75% PC, 25% mobile. Mainly because most of my SN time is during breaks at work.

[Bluzrover]

1 - 1
2 - As I rarely get either, 1
3 - 1
4 - 70/30

[WstateU]

By reset I mean that on day 1 of the new system, you would have zero likes and thanks attributed to yourself and so would everyone else. Posts that were previously Thanked and Liked would have zero thanks and likes. It would be a completely new install from scratch. Sucks to lose that history, but I am not sure I can save it.

[Kung Wu]

Hahaha. I'll put you in the category of 10 on #2. :)

[DUShock]

Any reset would be the 3rd or is it the 4th loss of post counts, etc.? @RoyalShock: Of course this going back to the stone tablet days when we had actual names and hometowns attributed to the username.

Sorry I am about to wax nostalgic for young and innocent days of the internet...

[ShockerDropOut]

I am not one of the long time users, but here goes.
1) I never use apps for any bbs.
2) 1. No biggie.
3) 1. No stored messages to begin with.
4) 100% PC. Now that I have upgraded my phone, that could change, but it hasnt yet.

[Kung Wu]

Any reset would be the 3rd or is it the 4th loss of post counts, etc.? @RoyalShock Of course this going back to the stone tablet days when we had actual names and hometowns attributed to the username.

Sorry I am about to wax nostalgic for young and innocent days of the internet...

I don't think we would lose post counts, etc. I think the only thing that would get reset is the Thanks/Like stats. It's possible we can even save those, I'm just not clear yet.

[Aargh]

When I first found ShockerNet, I tried to register an account. It wouldn't let me because I already had an account, so I asked for my username. It came back as "Aargh".

Turns out ShockerNet was in the same family of message boards as an online game I had played previously. My character name in that game was Aargh, so I became Aargh here because of a name I used in an onloine game 20+ years ago.

[WstateU]

When I first found ShockerNet, I tried to register an account. It wouldn't let me because I already had an account, so I asked for my username. It came back as "Aargh".

Turns out ShockerNet was in the same family of message boards as an online game I had played previously. My character name in that game was Aargh, so I became Aargh here because of a name I used in an onloine game 20+ years ago.

You had me fooled... "AARGH!"