GTA-NeXt Forums - V2Welcome back to the new and improved GTA-NeXt Forums! Call this the GTA-NeXt Forums V2 if you like - we have a new forum design, we have updated the forum layout and have added a number of different features to the forum for members to enjoy. If you have any problems, suggestions and/or feedback, please let us know in the
Feedback subforum. This is an update that your Administrators, past and present, have been working hard to deliver to you guys for the last few months and now, it is finally here.
There are plenty of changes, additions and removals, so without further adieu, below is a list of updates.
The forum styleWe received a number of complaints from members regarding the former style of the forum being too hard on the eyes. We have responded to this by changing to a new and fresh style - tweaked and modified for use for the GTA-NeXt Forums! New board icons have also been added.
There are still probably bugs with the new style. If you find something out of place,
please let us know.New Forum BannerAccompanying the theme is a new banner at the top of the forum. The Network Home page has also been fitted with a new banner to match the forum banner.
Board RenamesSeveral boards on the forum have been renamed. Others have been removed.
The rulesThe rules have also been updated slightly. It is advised that you all read over them to avoid possible rule violations.
MembersThere was a backlog of former staff accounts on the forum which were never used. As such, we have cleared out some of the accounts that have never been used, as well as accounts owned by former staff members on the forums. They weren't needed and we felt that they were only cluttering up the members list.
Posts / TopicsWe have cleaned up some of the forum topics in some of the forum sections, and have deleted some unneeded posts too.
Archiving of topicsSince this is a major forum re-structuring and redesign, we have archived all past announcement topics made by our staff (past and present), and have merged a few of the topics into one. We have also archived many of the old topics in the Network Suggestions and Support subforum. In addition to this, topics that have been locked have also been archived.
Please see
this topic for further details.
Removed ReputationWe felt that having a reputation feature on the forum is very pointless, and people could easily +rep peoples posts that don't necessarily deserve it, and -rep posts that don't deserve it just because the member isn't liked. We have removed it for this reason - if you want to say you like a post, you can make a post saying so as it stimulates discussion, for this is a forum afterall.
Removed AwardsThey were just cluttering up the side of posts where they show. And we believe that members don't need icons beside their names to show that they are contributing members. If they contribute and help out, the community should recognise them for it regardless of whether they have an icon beside their names or not.
Removed KarmaSame as per above. When you do something good, we will let you know via PM with a thank yiy - much like we do when we give members warnings for rule violations.
Arcade removedThe forum arcade has been removed and uninstalled from the forums. The reason being because it was almost never used and only served as a waste of space on the forums.
Removed gallery linkThe inactive gallery link at the top nav. bar has finally been removed.
Removed staff listWas redundant and it had to be manually updated. We won't be having a staff list on the forum going forward, so add staff to your Buddy Lists (see below) if you wish to have quick access to staff members.
Profile MessagingEveryone now has the ability to leave other members profile messages, instead of PMing. These messages must always conform with the forum rules, and we as staff reserve the right to remove profile messages for any reason if they are in violation of the forum rules.
Buddy ListsYou can now also add other forum members to your Buddy List. To add a member to your buddy list, go to their profile and click the "Add to Buddy List" link.
New Profile FieldsWe have added a number of new profile fields! To edit them - click the "Profile" tab, then click the "Forum Profile Information" link. The new profile fields are located at the bottom of the resulting page.
The new profile fields are: Favourite GTA, Biography, Interests, and Respect List.
Change forum Display NameWe have enabled the ability for members to edit their forum display name. This can be done by going to "Profile --> Account Settings" and putting your desired name where it says "Name:"
This feature is going to be a trial feature. If this is abused, we may remove it alltogether again.
Changes to the NetworkIn addition to this, the
Network Home Page has been given a facelift with new graphics!
The other pages on the GTA-NeXt Network home site have also had a change - with a new banner at the top of the page to match that of the forums.