Why Were The Forums Moved?

[Mayor_McSteeze]

I was just wondering why the forums were moved.

They were perfectly fine on the other site.

[Rick Brewster]

We have our reasons and when we're ready we'll share them. Until then, please don't fill this new forum with posts like this.

Mostly right now we are just busy with settling this new forum, and not on crafting a few paragraphs for this.

(For now, I'm locking this thread)

[Rick Brewster]

Ok, here we go. Now that we're settled in a bit more ... *unlocks thread*

They were perfectly fine on the other site.

No, they really weren't!

The reasons for moving the forum were many:

• I wanted the forum to be on an actual Paint.NET domain instead of forumer.com. Without this, Paint.NET still had a bit of "freebie unprofessionalism" syndrome. Back in the day I was even using paint.net@hotmail.com as the official Paint.NET e-mail address. Not exactly professional, and it came in stark contrast to the Paint.NET application itself.
• We wanted to do all sorts of customizations to the forum that we were unable to do without full administrator access. For instance, I just updated all the icons used on the forum to a newer, fresh set from http://pinvoke.com. And now we can upload any new skins that we want, automation scripts, etc. Or what about syntax highlighting for code snippets? etc. etc. There we several phpBB mods we wanted to install but we would always have to ask the forumer guys to install stuff, at which point they'd either say no or just ignore us.
• Once we identified IPB as the forum software we were going to move to, we noticed it had a bunch of apps that we can plug into it. For instance, it has a gallery, blog, content pages, and download manager system. Expect to see some sweet revamps to the Pictorium and Plugins areas, and hopefully Tutorials as well.
• We wanted analytics data on the forum. Basically the type of stuff you get out of any normal webpage stats package.
• We were unable to get any real service out of the forumer.com. For instance, we'd been trying to update the emoticons for months, which requires FTP access to the server (which we definitely didn't have). Limez, the owner, completely ignored us. Wild Cat, one of their administrators, basically told us to F-off and to stop abusing our special privileges (?!) even though pyrochild had been extremely cordial and polite in asking for assistance.
• We need to be able to place our own ads on the forum so that we can start getting something back for all our time that we spend on here. Note: We are still planning what exactly we're going to do here. Please don't bug us about it.
• Ultimately, from a business standpoint, I was unwilling to continue having a dependency on a freebie forum hosting company. Technically, if they wanted to, they could have banned us and took over the forum. Or they could have decided we didn't fit into their business model and removed the forum completely, or they could have gone out of business, etc. etc. We really had no rights, per their TOS (Terms of Service).

This is something we've been wanting to do for a very long time, but inertia and procrastination always stopped us. Finally we got fed up and pyrochild figured out all the technical stuff and then just did it. Major huge props should be thrown his way. Buy him a coffee.

As a pre-emptive note, I will not let this thread turn into a forumer bashing party. It's simply not necessary, and we're better than that. Don't do it.

[barbieq25]

I think it is a huge milestone for PDN...well done & thank you pyrochild. I'll make you all the coffee you want

[chrisjw37]

We have our reasons and when we're ready we'll share them. Until then, please don't fill this new forum with posts like this.

Mostly right now we are just busy with settling this new forum, and not on crafting a few paragraphs for this.

(For now, I'm locking this thread)

I seem to remember a golden rule here "Be nice to the Newbies"

It's just an explorative question.

Hopefully this new forum will be friendlier than the last one

[chrisjw37]

Good points and bloody well done that man

Love the new feel

Ok, here we go. Now that we're settled in a bit more ... *unlocks thread*

No, they really weren't!

The reasons for moving the forum were many:

• I wanted the forum to be on an actual Paint.NET domain instead of forumer.com. Without this, Paint.NET still had a bit of "freebie unprofessionalism" syndrome. Back in the day I was even using paint.net@hotmail.com as the official Paint.NET e-mail address. Not exactly professional, and it came in stark contrast to the Paint.NET application itself.
• We wanted to do all sorts of customizations to the forum that we were unable to do without full administrator access. For instance, I just updated all the icons used on the forum to a newer, fresh set from http://pinvoke.com. And now we can upload any new skins that we want, automation scripts, etc. Or what about syntax highlighting for code snippets? etc. etc. There we several phpBB mods we wanted to install but we would always have to ask the forumer guys to install stuff, at which point they'd either say no or just ignore us.
• Once we identified IPB as the forum software we were going to move to, we noticed it had a bunch of apps that we can plug into it. For instance, it has a gallery, blog, content pages, and download manager system. Expect to see some sweet revamps to the Pictorium and Plugins areas, and hopefully Tutorials as well.
• We wanted analytics data on the forum. Basically the type of stuff you get out of any normal webpage stats package.
• We were unable to get any real service out of the forumer.com. For instance, we'd been trying to update the emoticons for months, which requires FTP access to the server (which we definitely didn't have). Limez, the owner, completely ignored us. Wild Cat, one of their administrators, basically told us to F-off and to stop abusing our special privileges (?!) even though pyrochild had been extremely cordial and polite in asking for assistance.
• We need to be able to place our own ads on the forum so that we can start getting something back for all our time that we spend on here. Note: We are still planning what exactly we're going to do here. Please don't bug us about it.
• Ultimately, from a business standpoint, I was unwilling to continue having a dependency on a freebie forum hosting company. Technically, if they wanted to, they could have banned us and took over the forum. Or they could have decided we didn't fit into their business model and removed the forum completely, or they could have gone out of business, etc. etc. We really had no rights, per their TOS (Terms of Service).

This is something we've been wanting to do for a very long time, but inertia and procrastination always stopped us. Finally we got fed up and pyrochild figured out all the technical stuff and then just did it. Major huge props should be thrown his way. Buy him a coffee.

As a pre-emptive note, I will not let this thread turn into a forumer bashing party. It's simply not necessary, and we're better than that. Don't do it.

[jerry533482]

Sweet!

Nice move guys; you did what was right. Paint.NET seriously deserves a quality forum, & thanks to Pyrochild (& Rick of course; for Paint.NET), this great app now has one. I agree Barbieq25, this is a huge milestone.

Keep up the good work guys!

Edited April 5, 2010 by jerry533482

[theonlychad]

i totally agree and i am glad to see this new forum and happy to see that our mods are actually in control of everything

Major props to pyrochild for the hard work he has done!

[jerry533482]

One small question: why was the "paint.net" text kept as the forum logo rather than "Paint.NET"? I don't mean to be analytical, but the logo is now all white, so there's no red-green-blue-yellow color band like in the .net logo (from which the "paint.net" logo was derived from), so why keep the old text? Is it still an aesthetic thing, or...

Still, I think the new forum is beautiful. I'm still adjusting to getting around & finding my posts, but seriously, you guys made the right move. I love the new look. Whenever I'm previewing one of my replies, the posting box's text looks so bland, but the outcome text looks amazing. Reminds me of Civ IV's UI.

Edited April 5, 2010 by jerry533482

[LFC4EVER]

One small question: why was the "paint.net" text kept as the forum logo rather than "Paint.NET"? I don't mean to be analytical, but the logo is now all white, so there's no red-green-blue-yellow color band like in the .net logo (from which the "paint.net" logo was derived from), so why keep the old text? Is it still an aesthetic thing, or...

Still, I think the new forum is beautiful. I'm still adjusting to getting around & finding my posts, but seriously, you guys made the right move. I love the new look. Whenever I'm previewing one of my replies, the posting box's text looks so bland, but the outcome text looks amazing. Reminds me of Civ IV's UI.

Maybe its the new PDN logo. Personally, i think the newer one is better. It looks much cleaner.

[Possum Roadkill]

Rick I have to applaud you for this show of commitment to this forum, and to Pyrochild for his herculean effort to get this all done. I can't tell you what a relief it is to me to know you are as committed to this community as to Paint.net as a project. That you would go to this effort speaks volumes as to your commitment. Thank you so much and a big thanks to all the mods, especially Pyro. Within a few days, I think everyone will love the new format and features.

Now that you have a new look and new home for the forum, would it be possible to maybe have more competitions? I was thinking that it would be nice to have a comp for photo manipulation and/or abstract art. The sig artists have a comp, and now the wallpaper artists have a comp, maybe with a new forum some new activities can be brought on-line to encourage more activity by the members?

[pdnnoob]

agreed. This new forum...will rock when I figure it out The new picture viewer is cool too. Maybe if someone posted a tutorial on all the features of this new forum...(hint hint )

@Possum Some new competitions would be nice...please don't make some collage thing again. I'm terrible with those

[0(-.-)0]

Ok, here we go. Now that we're settled in a bit more ... *unlocks thread*

No, they really weren't!

The reasons for moving the forum were many:

• I wanted the forum to be on an actual Paint.NET domain instead of forumer.com. Without this, Paint.NET still had a bit of "freebie unprofessionalism" syndrome. Back in the day I was even using paint.net@hotmail.com as the official Paint.NET e-mail address. Not exactly professional, and it came in stark contrast to the Paint.NET application itself.
• We wanted to do all sorts of customizations to the forum that we were unable to do without full administrator access. For instance, I just updated all the icons used on the forum to a newer, fresh set from http://pinvoke.com. And now we can upload any new skins that we want, automation scripts, etc. Or what about syntax highlighting for code snippets? etc. etc. There we several phpBB mods we wanted to install but we would always have to ask the forumer guys to install stuff, at which point they'd either say no or just ignore us.
• Once we identified IPB as the forum software we were going to move to, we noticed it had a bunch of apps that we can plug into it. For instance, it has a gallery, blog, content pages, and download manager system. Expect to see some sweet revamps to the Pictorium and Plugins areas, and hopefully Tutorials as well.
• We wanted analytics data on the forum. Basically the type of stuff you get out of any normal webpage stats package.
• We were unable to get any real service out of the forumer.com. For instance, we'd been trying to update the emoticons for months, which requires FTP access to the server (which we definitely didn't have). Limez, the owner, completely ignored us. Wild Cat, one of their administrators, basically told us to F-off and to stop abusing our special privileges (?!) even though pyrochild had been extremely cordial and polite in asking for assistance.
• We need to be able to place our own ads on the forum so that we can start getting something back for all our time that we spend on here. Note: We are still planning what exactly we're going to do here. Please don't bug us about it.
• Ultimately, from a business standpoint, I was unwilling to continue having a dependency on a freebie forum hosting company. Technically, if they wanted to, they could have banned us and took over the forum. Or they could have decided we didn't fit into their business model and removed the forum completely, or they could have gone out of business, etc. etc. We really had no rights, per their TOS (Terms of Service).

This is something we've been wanting to do for a very long time, but inertia and procrastination always stopped us. Finally we got fed up and pyrochild figured out all the technical stuff and then just did it. Major huge props should be thrown his way. Buy him a coffee.

As a pre-emptive note, I will not let this thread turn into a forumer bashing party. It's simply not necessary, and we're better than that. Don't do it.

Amen.

[Rick Brewster]

One small question: why was the "paint.net" text kept as the forum logo rather than "Paint.NET"? I don't mean to be analytical, but the logo is now all white, so there's no red-green-blue-yellow color band like in the .net logo (from which the "paint.net" logo was derived from), so why keep the old text? Is it still an aesthetic thing, or...

Still, I think the new forum is beautiful. I'm still adjusting to getting around & finding my posts, but seriously, you guys made the right move. I love the new look. Whenever I'm previewing one of my replies, the posting box's text looks so bland, but the outcome text looks amazing. Reminds me of Civ IV's UI.

The color bands do not work on a dark background. What you're seeing is simply the version of the paint.net logo for dark colored backgrounds. There is no sense reading into this more than that.

[Goonfella]

I think this will turn out to the best thing that could have happened to this forum. I am clueless when it comes to forum maintenance and I had no idea there were so many restrictions put on the previous one so moving was the logical and best thing to do. I really enjoyed reading about all the reasons for the move and it has given me an insight into how much work goes into maintaining these, or any other, forum.

Well done to the mods and particularly Pyro for making it happen.Have a cool one on me.

[Axle]

the new forum is much cleaner, stylish and easier to get around, although, it will still need a little getting used too (mainly remembering the new webaddress). But i was a little annoyed when i couldnt get to Paint.NET forum until i found a PM that had slipped past me saying i had read it (when i hadn't) then i understood and came here xD

[chrisco97]

I love the new forum, and I am glad that you guys were able to do it. It is, as barbieq said, a huge milestone for PDN. This forum is way more professional looking then the Forumer one.

Pyrochild, thanks for making this happen! I will make some coffe for you!

--

And Rick, sorry to bring this up, but your icon is no longer from the Oatmeal, so you may want to take that out of your signature!

Edited April 5, 2010 by chrisco97

[Possum Roadkill]

agreed. This new forum...will rock when I figure it out The new picture viewer is cool too. Maybe if someone posted a tutorial on all the features of this new forum...(hint hint )

@Possum Some new competitions would be nice...please don't make some collage thing again. I'm terrible with those

All the more the reason to do one.

I think I will leave my gallery, with the duplicate posts, alone for a few days until you guys have had a chance to settle in and the board to settle down. This is really really nice. I hope everyone will be patient with the changes and alterations. Remember you don't buy a thousand dollar suit off the rack, a quality garment is tailored. Let's let the gentlemen work in peace. All the little details will come in their own time.

Thanks again Rick ! , <stoked Possum said> Pyro, YOU DA MAN ! <super stoked Possum said>

[david.atwell]

This new forum is 100% , the layout, the text...the everything about it

As Rick says "major props" to Pyrochild, work well done. A beer awaits.

He's underage. Better go for a mountain dew.

[chrisco97]

He's underage. Better go for a mountain dew.

[Rick Brewster]

Speaking of which ... :mtdew: :mtdew: :mtdew:

[chrisco97]

Great! I needed one of those! Thanks Rick!

That tastes good...

[ChitoDog]

I too think this move to an IP.Board was a wise decision. My own board runs on IPB as well, so I had no problem getting around this new board. Two thumbs up to pyrochild and Rick for this decision and their hard work.

[Pixey]

This old dog is stumbling around the new format, but, yes ...... a well-earned coffee toast is in order, as a lot of work must have gone into arranging new forum. Congratulations and thank you!

[GNandGS]

This is the right direction! Curious: did you replicate old posts and users? How? Manually? yikes!