18 replies to this topic

[ViperSRT3g]

A shoutbox would increase interactivity between members in addition to communicating in threads. Plus, it would allow people to sort of afk on the forums without actually going anywhere.

[ZER0-0]

That would be nice. The chat is mostly useless currently.

[RZR0]

That would be nice. The chat is mostly useless currently.

Doesn't it work properly?

[streak1]

By shoutbox, do you mean a thing that displays the most recent profile feed posts? I'm not exactly sure what you mean.

[ViperSRT3g]

A shoutbox for just the website. It displays at the top of the index as a simple chat room anyone browsing the forums can join in on. It's always visible, and requires no separate tabs in your browser to view.

 

http://community.inv.../5955-shoutbox/

[ZER0-0]

The chat is complicated and I dont know how to work it and I never know who's on. Shoutbox is much better

[RZR0]

The chat is complicated and I dont know how to work it and I never know who's on. Shoutbox is much better

The people who are online are clearly displayed in the list on the right?

 

As for a shoutbox, I really don't like shoutboxes... They take up a lot of space and they're messy.

[ZER0-0]

But everytime I go on the chat nobody answers.

[streak1]

But everytime I go on the chat nobody answers.

Maybe instead of a shoutbox make it so the people who have been afk in the chat for a while are shown as a different color?

[TheLaw]

Ya, yes

[felinoel]

Personally I never cared for shoutboxes, IRC chat works just as well.

[TheLaw]

Well, a shoutbox would be nice.

[ZL123]

I don't think IRC chat looks that user-friendly.

[Alister19]

Although I get why people want a shoutbox I personally don't, it'll make the forums look messy as has been stated above. The current chat is fine, log in with a name & type in the space given. If people aren't answering, getting a new chat won't help that. Sometimes people are busy, but go on for if they get back and someone needs help or wants a chat.


Alister19

[gerbalb]

The principle problem people seem to be having with the IRC, is they log in, say hi and immediately disconnect.

 

If you want help with something:

1. don't quit immediately
2. say the name of someone you think can help. We get notifications when our names are said in IRC.
3. Hangout for a while, we have jobs and other things to do, we check IRC as often as we can.
4. Keep in mind we are a global community with members from Europe, North America, Australia. someone may not always be on the same schedule you are.

[ViperSRT3g]

The principle problem people seem to be having with the IRC, is they log in, say hi and immediately disconnect.

And it's impossible to quit if the chatbox is a part of the forums. This is for ease of use for those who aren't familiar with IRC. Yes, IRC is great, especially if you have a client so you don't need another tab open in your browser. But most people don't know how to use it, or realize that it's literally a chat room. In the shoutbox people can say hello, and anyone browsing the forums will immediately see it and can respond if they want to. Plus the shoutbox has a minimize button so you can close it if you don't want to look at it.

I feel that it will help out the less computer savvy as an easier method of chatting with each other, without attempting to use a chat thread, or hitting the refresh button to view any posts as quickly as possible.

[Artsja]

To be honest I'm not a fan of Shoutboxes either. ViperSRT3g is bringing up some good arguments, but I still think it's unnecessary clutter because doesn't add any particularly valuable/relevant content to the Forums. I understand having a variety of tools and features on ftbwiki.org/ftbforums.org, but do we really need to offer everything there is?

 

I only started using IRC for this wiki, knowing nothing about it and I'm not having too much trouble using it. I think it's very useful; having a shoutbox AND the IRC almost feels overkill. Maybe it would help new people if we put gerbalb's list up there on the IRC browser tab?

[ZER0-0]

Why is there an IRC and not a shout box? To me, it seems like a shout box is IRC that you don't need to do anything to start.

[gerbalb]

Why is there an IRC and not a shout box? To me, it seems like a shout box is IRC that you don't need to do anything to start.

in that they are both means of multi-user chat, yes. in actual functionality, no. IRC is far more robust, far better supported, and has many features a shoutbox lacks. Especially for Admins and moderators the ability to have multiple channels, private conversations, and hilight notification makes IRC far superior to a shout box.

Additionally IRC does not require the keep the shout box page loaded to stay involved in conversations. I, for instance, don't work at a desk with a computer, so I find it far more convenient to use an IRC client on my phone or tablet to stay involved. With a shout box users on mobile devices would have to deal with a probably buggy and user-hostile interface to keep up to speed.