The Dink Network

I believe I posted a very similar message a couple months ago, but oh well. Here it goes again:

I'm currently working in my spare time on massively updating most aspects of The Dink Network. Generation 9 (the look-and-feel) and Miasma 3 (the underlying code base) will be implemented at the same time, sometime later this year.

There will be a few changes.

1) Blogs no longer be around, and exisiting Blogs will be merged into appropriate message board categories. I'm not sure why I added Blogs in the first place, you might as well get a live journal instead of using TDN's system.

2) The 'Help Wanted' section of the board will be merged into the 'Development' section.

3) There will be more 'right-side navigation bars', like on the main page, for the account area and such.

4) The DOTY code will be written.

There's quite a few other underlying changes that are being made, but I don't think they will affect anyone too much.

So, if anyone has any suggestions, let me know.

I know this makes me look lazy, but how about automatic linking?, you know, paste a link and it shows up as a link, with the word 'go' or 'link' visable?

Really, the "Submit" and "Reset" buttons when posting something should be in the board style, like "Modify" and "Reply" and such. The windows-style-buttons (or whatever you want to call the standard style) really don't fit with the theme.

I think the Help Wanted section might actually be used as intended if it were named something like 'Dink Classifieds' or whatever. The name and description it currently has are apparently thoroughly confusing, resulting in half of the posts in there being for development questions and not for recruitment/suggestions and such. If you insist upon the merger, though, I have no qualms with that.

Automatic linking might be possible.

Submit and Reset buttons... I see where you're coming from, and they might be changed. I never noticed because as a developer they're two seperate things (a image link vs a form submit).

Dink Classifieds: possibly, maybe.

Maybe the files section could also have an option view on dmod name, that means if you select fb3 you'll see the dmod, the mpachancer, the ted shutes mod, etc...

How about DN making his own e-mail service?
For example: "kory@dn.com"

If you set up to get noticed by email if you get a new pm you won't need that for a dn mail service, the only problem is attachments...

I don't see the point in it.. it's not like anyone needs it. And it's not very "cool" either.

I like the idea of "Dink Classifieds". They sound like they could be a nice improvement over the current system.

I don't know how this problem could be solved... what about the Previews section where d-mods have been announced that we know will not be finished (e.g ThinkDink's stuff). Is there any other way of regulating this?
Perhaps Previews could be deleted after 6 months if the author hasn't posted (or heard from)?
Also, it would be nice if the previews section was a little more in depth. Perhaps enabling authors to release screen shots?

One plan for Previews is to eliminate the current system and replace it with a much more verbose one, forcing the author to write something of substance instead of just posting next to nothing as has been done now. So it would almost be like a mini page. But would any author actually use this? Probably not, so maybe Previews would just be abandoned as well.

what the hell's wrong with you? you add nothing but remove everything!

The Dink Network has become a metrosexual and is going on a strict diet.

Don't delete the Previews section.

Make it crash-proof

I have one thing that's been bothering me (and many people, I'm sure, as well): The spaces at the beginning of a line in a post don't retain after submission.

Notice this indentation (and that semicolon has 4 spaces before it):

if(1)
{
;
}

Like that? I programmed that one in thanks to someone abusing shoot.

That problem is more of an HTML problem: multiple spaces are displayed as one. I'll probably add 'pre' or a custom 'code' tag support in Miasma 3.

I like your new idea for Previews Redink. If people make the effort (which I'm sure they will) then it will be much better than the curret system.
Also, if somebody is going to put loads of effort into a preview screen, then surely they are more likely to be owrking hard at the d-mod?

You would hope so anyway...

I think The Dink Network should have a searchengine to search for DMODs and stuff. DN have a searchengine to search on the board, and thats just great, but it would be PERFECT to search for DMODs!!

A suggeston by *tada windowssound* Yoda *windows errorsound*

And by the way, i'll take a littel brake whit my Yoda "speech"

there already is one. look on the left under downloads.

I think that one should be able to customize their news section. The standard news by default would show, but users could also select options like displaying when a new preview is posted, or when a new post added to a thread selected as a "thread to watch" or what not. Also, i think that one should be able to select the appearence of the sight from the likeness of some of the previous generatiions.

"He needs like a motorcycle or something. Some inspiration from Evil Kineval. Hail evil!"

*sigh*

Just when I get the news page all nice and cache-ified, you have to come up with a really good suggestion that isn't possible with cache. Thanks a lot

But really, that would be sort of nice.

Appearance may be quasi-customizable with G9, as everything is CSS based its pretty simple to just give you a new design. I think the Banana design will come back as a choice.

How about everyone gets a PM when:

Dukie chokes from the smoke
I get something accomplished
Kyle has a bowel movement
Redink freestyles?

Or an Instant Message when you get a PM...

Yes, the system will start sending out automatic PMs in Miasma 3, such as for review validation and such. The idea was to do this with Miasma v2, but I never got around to it. I did make the Miasma account, though.

And I think you remember my failed attempts to send Instant Messenges when you get a PM, Merlin. As Miasma 3 will be programmed in PHP, maybe those modules will work better.

I like the new look DN of Miasma 3... those screenshots were doody.

How about a rehaul of the contributers? WC tried it once a long time ago, but I am guessing that many of the accounts are inactive, and have been for a long,long,long time. (How would you do it? I don't know...maybe delete the whole contributers list and start anew <make everyone sign up again?>

>^..^<

What would you like to see? More of a focus on those who contribute?

argh, no, everybody would change their names and then I wouldn't know who anyone is!

By my accounts there are at least 300 contributers, yet when it comes to vote for a dmod of the month, only 5 - 10 people seem to vote. Or on The Dink Message Board, we see the usual posters, posting a message. It just irks me so.

And no Scratcher, that was only a suggestion, you could try the emailing thing again (and give the contributer 7 days to respond, with a click, or remove his/her name from the contributers list.) I am not the brainiac here, surely Redink knows who logs on and who doesn't. It just seems to take up alot of space.

>^..^<

Not all contributors are active or wish to post. And not everybody can make it to the DN every day like I do. Take someone like....mimifish. How often does mimifish visit the boards? Not very. Does he/she irk you?

I don't think the userlist needs a lot of space, it's basically all pure, clean text, just like a standard *.txt-file.

Anyway, I think miasma's user icon looks cool

Can we 'talk' with Miasma by PM-ing it and it'll reply with those robotic answers? "I don't understand the word "blah" in your question."

And yeah, neat icon

I think this website is good as it is right now!

so don't change, huh?

A feature that I think would prevent abuse of the edit button is adding a message to the bottom of the post after modifications, such as, "Message was last edited by User on 16 Jun at 05:34".

Miasma: I was thinking about having him respond, which would be cool. I might look into some sort of AI-chat program and see if I can plug it in. And yeah, I was hoping someone would like the icon

Modify Button: Yeah, that would be nice. There hasn't been too many problems with that though... only iceman/jamie/whatever. He's banned from modifying his own posts.

If it's going to be in php a message about it being modified is done easily... And than I'd like board code you know, with a simple php replace command that makes [url]*text*[/url] <a href=*text*>*text*</a> and things like that... Also that way like phpbb is

There is board code currently, and its a lot easier to implement in Perl than PHP. See the rules page.

If you haven't figured it out, phpbb kinda sucks.

It'd be cool to see the average score that someone has given to dmods he/she has reviewed when clicking on his name.

PHPBB is one of the best php forums out there, together with vbulletin...

And why's that?

merlin, you say everything sucks. do you just hate life, are being cynical or what? name something that doesn't suck for a change.

Correct me if I am wrong, but you seem to be frequently critical, yourself.

is that so? hmm...I haven't noticed. though that may be true.

I thought this was a thread about dink network suggestions, not about she doging and picking at each other.

hey, I did that too.

suggesting, that is.

Well, Linux doesn't suck.
The DN doesn't suck.
Tal doesn't suck.
C++ doesn't suck.

On the other hand, your mom does.

hey, how did you know my mother was a horny MILF?

...you'd like to do your mother?

haha, no. I should rephrase what I said but it was so fudgeing stupid anyway that I won't bother.

MILF... Scratcher knows quality!

Wow, i never thought that I'd see a thread deteriorating at the hands of Tal, scratcher, merlin and the like. Hell, who would have thought i'd be to uphold an air of seriousness? Next thing you know, Kory will become the n00b cannon, WC will, um, be less WC-ish and Sabretrout will release a d-mod on the predicted release date.Oh right, can't forget SimonK complaining about how the blatantly sexual themes of Dink Smallwood are corupting the minds of innocent children. ZING!

It's the end of the community!

And Dukie stopped smoking weed!