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Geek Articles - Codename: Shorthorn Details »»
Geek Articles - Codename: Shorthorn
Version: 1.00, by The Geek The Geek is offline
Developer Last Online: Jan 2019 Show Printable Version Email this Page

Version: 3.0.5 Rating:
Released: 01-17-2005 Last Update: Never Installs: 5
Is in Beta Stage  
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HowdA All,

I thought I would start a new thread here instead of watering down the current release of Geek Articles 2.0

Basically, I released Geek Articles as a cheap and cheerful way to give explicit forums an 'Article system' feel without all the hullabaloo with adding a major addition and hacking your vB code within an inch of its life.

I was aslo desperate for an Article System that actually integrated with vB in the sense that it would be searchable (with the other threads), use vBs user permissions, Attachment system, wysiwyg, etc...

Well, Geek Articles 2.0 does that. However I quickly learned that as soon as you release a hack, about 502.3 people start asking it to do things it wasnt designed to do (anyone know what I mean?).
I dont mean that to sound like a drag as I thought most of the ideas were actually quite good - however they were out of the scope for Geek Articles 2.0

In to your life walks Geek Articles codename: Shorthorn.

This is a project aimed at merging the best of Geek Articles 2.0 (the simplicity, searching, permissions, etc...) with a heavier duty article system (adding a byline option, multiple pages, etc...).

I have my first milestone in beta and has the following features:Once I have finalised these features (I want to give them a test over the next few days on my site) I will then release it for private Beata testing and then finally on this thread for open beta testing.

What I would like to do is to get feedback on the direction that it is taking. Does it look sucky? Is the functionality crappy? Are you really just after a really neat Hangman system for vB?

Here is a live version of a multi page article

So please, come one, come all and let me know if I am wasting my freaking time.

Toodles

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  #12  
Old 01-19-2005, 09:14 PM
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Cheers guys.

Well, I finished up most of the beta coding for first release.

This includes:

Multiple page options via a pagebreak BB code tag
Rate thread down at the bottom
Article shows first 4 (dont ask why 4... it was just a random number I pulled out) comments with a link to view all comments.

Here are 2 live examples:
http://www.thenailgeek.com/showthread.php?t=8801 - shows 2 page article with 3 pages of comments
http://www.thenailgeek.com/showthread.php?t=11287 - shows 2 page article with 3 comments and byline addition

Hope to hell it does OK as its live on my site

I expect to finalize beta code by Friday.

nJoy
  #13  
Old 01-19-2005, 10:40 PM
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Paul M Paul M is offline
 
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Quote:
Installs: 3
I'm just a bit curious as to how three people have "installed" this ......
  #14  
Old 01-20-2005, 01:51 AM
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Link14716 Link14716 is offline
 
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Erwin
You can't post in Beta Hacks until there is something to download. I'll leave this here to give you a chance to upload something - otherwise I or another mod will move it to another forum.
I don't recall that rule ever being enforced.
  #15  
Old 01-20-2005, 06:06 AM
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TCB TCB is offline
 
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Quote:
Originally Posted by the nail geek
Cheers guys.

Well, I finished up most of the beta coding for first release.

This includes:

Multiple page options via a pagebreak BB code tag
Rate thread down at the bottom
Article shows first 4 (dont ask why 4... it was just a random number I pulled out) comments with a link to view all comments.

Here are 2 live examples:
http://www.thenailgeek.com/showthread.php?t=8801 - shows 2 page article with 3 pages of comments
http://www.thenailgeek.com/showthread.php?t=11287 - shows 2 page article with 3 comments and byline addition

Hope to hell it does OK as its live on my site

I expect to finalize beta code by Friday.

nJoy

Looking great

I noticed so far (after a quick look and registration at your messageboard), that even after voting/rating, you keep getting the 'rate this article' question with the ratingoptions, instead of the 'you've rated this article

By the way, I'd be more than happy to betatest your work
  #16  
Old 01-20-2005, 06:24 AM
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The Geek The Geek is offline
 
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Yea, the article rating needs to be finalized. It wont let you vote multiple times but it doesnt show your rating at the bottom - shouldnt be hard to fix.


Quote:
I'm just a bit curious as to how three people have "installed" this ......
Most likely time travelers. That or this hack opens some freaky worm hole in that time/space contuthing.

Fingers croseed I can have a private beta install by tomorrow at the latest (just want to try to get the attachments/artilce image done and other tidbits finalized).
  #17  
Old 01-20-2005, 07:19 PM
rlamego rlamego is offline
 
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Yesterday I was going to post a few thoughts but your demo was a bit warped =) You were probably working on it.

I think it looks great so far and I totally agree with your "I dont want to just recreate something that has already been done well" motto.
There are a few minor issues (on a personal taste level) that I'll save for another occasion but I must ask why did you put the comments on all article pages?
Is it just me or doesn't it makes much more sense to have them only in the last page? =)
  #18  
Old 01-20-2005, 08:48 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by rlamego
Yesterday I was going to post a few thoughts but your demo was a bit warped =) You were probably working on it.

I think it looks great so far and I totally agree with your "I dont want to just recreate something that has already been done well" motto.
There are a few minor issues (on a personal taste level) that I'll save for another occasion but I must ask why did you put the comments on all article pages?
Is it just me or doesn't it makes much more sense to have them only in the last page? =)
Hey rlamego,

Share away... only way to make it the best way...

The comments were put on as a 'review' of the recent comments... kind of like 'similar links' or something.

I had it on the last page only... but it made the comments seem disjointed. I think of it more as an Amazon product page where it displays the article, the overall rating, then a preview of some reviews with the option of seeing and reading all the reviews.

Is there another way that you feel would be better?
  #19  
Old 01-20-2005, 09:06 PM
peterska2 peterska2 is offline
 
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Ooooh I must watch this thread.

[high]* peterska2 remembers that replying makes me subscribed to it.
[/high]

Keep up the good work Geek
  #20  
Old 01-21-2005, 05:52 AM
rlamego rlamego is offline
 
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Quote:
Originally Posted by the nail geek
Is there another way that you feel would be better?
I don't think there is any problem in letting readers know that there are comments made to the article.
But I don't think they should be full displayed in every page, because they may relate to something written a couple of pages ahead or to nothing at all, thus breaking the reader's concentration and giving away the rest of your article.

People should start by commenting the article and then discuss the issue among themselves, whatever route that discussion takes.
But since most people act on impulse, it shouldn't be difficult to imagine someone replying to a troll comment or a flame bait he read on page 1 of 9.

For someone who writes, comments the best feedback you can have. You spent an entire day writing an article that you believe it will be useful for everyone in your community, either a detailed point of view, a thorough explanation of something complex, an easy step-by-step procedure of a very difficult task, etc, the worst thing it can happen to you is getting comments from people that didn't take the time to read your entire article and are just firing away questions and remarks you address in the last pages of your article.

Derek Powazek of Fray.org fame wrote a book called Design for Community. There's a chapter called "Bury the post button" where he describes how comments got a gazillion times better after he put the post button in the last page of the story.
He's take is: the more clicks it takes, the better the posts will be. The distance puts away readers that are not really interested or engaged in the content.
I've applied this "philosophy" in several sites with remarkable results.

Comments are easy, articles are not!
My quick stats say that in every 100 members, all are capable of making comments, 2 can actually write articles, but only 1 doesn't suck.
Although comments should be encouraged, I believe that the priority should be protecting and nurturing writers.

Well, this is getting awfully long and personal although I intended to be totally unbiased =)
In this matter, I can write about my personal experience as a webmaster/developer and first hand contacts as a user.
There are hundreds of other applications for your article system I can't even think of, so don't forget to take that into consideration.
  #21  
Old 01-21-2005, 06:24 AM
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Huh. Excellent point. So wouldnt the better approach have nothing to do with the display of the commnets, but rather the placement of the comment button?

Maybe providing the option of putting the comment button at the end of the article?
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