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First time on the new site - like the re-arrangement of the topics, text could be more bold/black to help those of us with restricted/impaired vision - what's wrong with simple black text ?;
One other niggle - no way I can see of saying a quick 'Thank You' to another poster. This was a very friendly feature of the old very nice to send and very nice to receive.
 

Damian

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The Thank You button on the old site has been replaced by a "Like" button , which if you hover the mouse over Like, you get a choice of emoticons to use.
Hope that helps.
 
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Damian

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As with all changes there will be some who prefer the old style, but given time and the opportunity to explore the various options open to users, I think that most folk will appreciate the new style.

Yes, the way some things are done has changed, and I for one don't like change, but this new format is much superior to the old .
 
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The new pages look clearer and easier to read. The new layout takes a bit of getting used to but I think we will be OK as we get used to it.
I did have some problem getting back in as it kept rejecting my passwrd on Saturday but when I signed in today and it showed my name and I was in but it is still telling me to use the forgot your password option to log in.
Not sure why a lot of subjects like touring are in the caravan forum when they are of equal interest to motorhomers though. Possibly we should have three sections with Caravan, Motorhomes and general sections.
 
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Hobbyt600

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Information on this forum’s Trophy feature is here

https://forums.practicalcaravan.com/help/trophies/

There are 4 categories

Best Answers
Discourse
Seniority
Popularity

The values in those categories produce a ‘points-score’ displayed to the right of a trophy-cup symbol in the data-section beneath a forum participant’s avatar on the left of each of his/her postings.

The values in each category are accumulated and the 4 totals then added together to produce a grand-total Trophy points-score.

As I type this my Trophy points-score is 18585 and this is made of

Best Answers - 0
Discourse - 10 + 20 + 50 = 80
Seniority - 500 + 1000 + 3000 + 6000 + 8000 = 18500
Popularity - 5

Grand total - 0 + 80 + 18500 + 5 = 18585

According to the titles shown for each category, I have been given Novice, Brass and Iron awards, have progressed through the ranks from Initiate, Journeyman, Veteran, Elder to my current seniority status of Ancient, and am ‘Liked’ (though, sadly, not Admired, Respected or Honored).
 
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Damian

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Wow !! riveting information:(

I certainly hope that a caravan forum such as this does not end up like the reports I hear about social media sites that are dominated by those with the most "likes"
At the end of the day all the "points" scoring is stupid, serves no purpose whatsoever and certainly does not answer a single caravan related question.
 

Hobbyt600

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The XenForo software package provides a Trophies feature and on-line Xenforo-related comments generally treat this with derision.

There is also a Badges feature (mentioned here)

https://xenforo.com/community/resources/badges.7367/

but that does not appear to be fully integrated for this forum.

As a significant selling-point of the XenForo package is that it is highly customisable, the current Trophies criteria could be changed or Trophies/Badges probably could be completely suppressed.

There will be certain things that forum participants will need - like the ability to post and reply to postings easily and effectively - and this forum has that. Then there will be ‘unnecessary’ features that can be provided and that some people will enjoy and others loathe. For instance, the Facebook liking/friending/unfriending ethos may be attractive to some, but not to others. It’s possibly useful to me to know that you first registered to the Practical Caravan forum in 2005 and that you’ve posted over 6000 times since then, but I’ve no interest in how many ‘likes’ you are clocking up, nor what your Trophies points-score is. On the other hand, ‘likes’ and Trophies data are harmless enough.

It’s up to forum users to be proactive over what the Practical Caravan/Motorhome forum’s XenForo software provides. Before the ‘old’ forums were migrated, better facilities to attach images to postings and a private-messaging capability were asked for and these are now present. But if forum users generally REALLY dislike some of the ‘extras’ that XenForo offers, (like the Trophies thing) they should say so.
 
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The XenForo software package provides a Trophies feature and on-line Xenforo-related comments generally treat this with derision.

There is also a Badges feature (mentioned here)

https://xenforo.com/community/resources/badges.7367/

but that does not appear to be fully integrated for this forum.

As a significant selling-point of the XenForo package is that it is highly customisable, the current Trophies criteria could be changed or Trophies/Badges probably could be completely suppressed.

There will be certain things that forum participants will need - like the ability to post and reply to postings easily and effectively - and this forum has that. Then there will be ‘unnecessary’ features that can be provided and that some people will enjoy and others loathe. For instance, the Facebook liking/friending/unfriending ethos may be attractive to some, but not to others. It’s possibly useful to me to know that you first registered to the Practical Caravan forum in 2005 and that you’ve posted over 6000 times since then, but I’ve no interest in how many ‘likes’ you are clocking up, nor what your Trophies points-score is. On the other hand, ‘likes’ and Trophies data are harmless enough.

It’s up to forum users to be proactive over what the Practical Caravan/Motorhome forum’s XenForo software provides. Before the ‘old’ forums were migrated, better facilities to attach images to postings and a private-messaging capability were asked for and these are now present. But if forum users generally REALLY dislike some of the ‘extras’ that XenForo offers, (like the Trophies thing) they should say so.

I rather liked the “ thank you” button as it allowed something a bit more personal to the poster than a “like”. But the rest of the update I think is a big improvement on the old Forum, particularly image posting. A Bravo Zulu to the team. (y)(y)
 
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Damian

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It’s possibly useful to me to know that you first registered to the Practical Caravan forum in 2005 and that you’ve posted over 6000 times since then

I fail to see what that information is of any use to anyone.
For a start it is wrong.
It is wrong because that date of 2005 is the date of the last migration to what is now the old forum, but there was another version previous to that.
It is wrong as it does not include postings made pre 2005
So in actual fact the information is useless !!!
 
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Hobbyt600

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I fail to see what that information is of any use to anyone.
For a start it is wrong.
It is wrong because that date of 2005 is the date of the last migration to what is now the old forum, but there was another version previous to that.
It is wrong as it does not include postings made pre 2005
So in actual fact the information is useless !!!

Even though your message ‘count’ is understated (as it does not include the number of postings you made on a forum incarnation that preceded the 2005 migration) over 6000 messages is still a considerable ‘score’ to have accrued over the last 14 years. It identifies you as a prolific Practical Caravan forum participant and, on the basis that I have posted less than 60 times since 2011, statistically anything you say here should have more than 100 times greater weight and credibility than anything I say.;):giggle:
 
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Damian

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statistically anything you say here should have more than 100 times greater weight and credibility than anything I say

No, I do not agree.

Nothing I say on the forum as a contributor has any more weight than anyone else.

Acting as Moderator is slightly different as I have to apply the rules of the Forum.

No one is "better" than anyone else, every posting has its merits and there will never be a situation whereby a poster is deemed, or thinks, he or she is better than anyone else.
That has happened before and some people thought they could post whatever with impunity, which dragged the Forum down with many others leaving. It will never happen again !!!

The majority of my postings are based on the knowledge I have through dealing with the multitude of faults on various caravans.
There is nothing spectacular about that, it is a job that I simply like doing and helping people turn what could be a spoilt holiday into one they enjoy, although sometimes the cost is a bit of a negative.
 
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The number of postings has nothing to do with the quality or value of the information given.

You only have to look at some of the throwaway comments especially on the Chit Chat thread that some contributors have given over the years, which have no direct relevance to caravanning. There have also been rare occasions when some members have taken to less charitable comments directly against contributors, rather than focusing on the facts or practical issues.

These also count towards totals.. It just goes to show that statistics on their own cannot show the whole picture with accuracy.
 

Parksy

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Although I have been known to come up with odd snippets of useful information from time to time I'd say that the majority of my postings are connected in some way to my task as a forum moderator.
I'm no wiser than anyone else when it comes to the inner workings of caravans.
Post counts are irrelevant, how could I know more about our hobby than a 30 year caravanning veteran who may have only decided to join this forum yesterday?
 

Hobbyt600

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...I'm no wiser than anyone else when it comes to the inner workings of caravans...

I’ve never owned a caravan nor towed one, and the only time I’ve spent time in one involved a week’s holiday with a girlfriend in a small ‘static’ near Tenby in the 1960s.

So I’m certain you must have more caravan-related knowledge/expertise than me.
 

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