The Forum SA

After some lurking and taking lots of amateur guidance in setting up this forum, I'll risk input/criticism from the pro's...

My first go at this sort of thing and what a learning curve.

The Forum SA (http://www.theforumsa.co.za)

Any and all comments appreciated.

I hope that you're going to get rid of the default vb images? I like your header image, but it looks out of place with the default vb colors

Thanks. Point taken and much appreciated.

Stops me from thinking the job is done :D If you had seen some of the disasters to get to this point... OMG.

Oh I truly do understand! I had a few disasters of my own when I got my first vB.
But honestly, your work is never done ;)

Hi Dave.

We've all been there. We all had the stock VB and looked at it, wondering how to make it work well and look good. Thats why your here, to learn from others of us who have been there, so dont sweat it.

Looks like you got a good start. Yes, maybe think about a skin or at least some new images. But its looking good as a start.

Thanks for the encouragement. It's great to know I'm not just... well... stupid.

I've made a few changes. It's amazing how a few "minor" changes affect the whole look/feel of the site.

Now to learn about gradients and buttons....

And then another round of SEO....

And all I wanted was to help a few people with their business challenges.

It's a great site. When you do a West African business forum, let me know. :)

Thanks for the encouragement. It's great to know I'm not just... well... stupid.

I've made a few changes. It's amazing how a few "minor" changes affect the whole look/feel of the site.

Now to learn about gradients and buttons....

And then another round of SEO....

And all I wanted was to help a few people with their business challenges.
I just took another peek Dave... your forum is looking MUCH better! It is amazing what a color change and a few "tweaks" can do, isn't it?

Hey, if you tell me what kind of status forum markers you'd like, I'd be happy to make a set for you, if you'd like.

It's a great site. When you do a West African business forum, let me know. :)Thanks for the compliment - I'm getting a little inspiration from around here.

And as for West Africa - Now that would be a challenge! But I like your "when".

I just took another peek Dave... your forum is looking MUCH better! It is amazing what a color change and a few "tweaks" can do, isn't it?

Hey, if you tell me what kind of status forum markers you'd like, I'd be happy to make a set for you, if you'd like.Wow! I guess you really are a sweetheart. Thanks for the offer.

For some reason, I feel a perverse need to try to tackle this. If I get stuck, I'll holler for help.

Wow! I guess you really are a sweetheart. Thanks for the offer.

For some reason, I feel a perverse need to try to tackle this. If I get stuck, I'll holler for help.


haha that's argueable by some, but I do try ;)
ok you know how to reach me if you need help.

I've been chipping away at it for the last three weeks. After selecting the primary colours, I've worked on gradients, buttons and forum markers. There's still quite a few smaller images to go as well as a bit of cleaning up on transparency issues. But the major stuff is, I hope, complete.

So before I get into the really tedious finer detail stuff, I'd appreciate your opinion - does this work?

Homepage (http://www.theforumsa.co.za/)
Main forum page (http://www.theforumsa.co.za/forums/index.php)

Don't hold back this time. I'd appreciate total honesty, even if it's brutal.

I see that you're trying to go with the colours of your flag. The problem with it is that they are quite clashing colors between themselves. You have three primaries and one secondary and black and white to booth. I wouldn't recommend red and blue as your main theme colours for starters, they're quite hard to make it look right on the first tries.

Try using black, yellow and green as your main colours and red white and blue only for text or accent colors and imagery.

I wouldn't recommend red and blue as your main theme colours for starters, they're quite hard to make it look right on the first tries.I can agree with that!! I was hoping I was getting close to pulling it off, though. This whole exercise has got me looking at colour mix and match in a whole different way.

EDIT: At the moment I'm thinking about going back to the default forum markers. That change has introduced a second dimension to the contrast that might have taken it over the top.

I think I've solved the forum marker issue. Now to see what the experts think.

Hi Dave

Yes indeed, very nice job sir. Can I make a further suggestion? How about trying to incorporate the logo into the overall look and feel of the header section. At the moment, it is sort of just, well... errrm... stuck there on the left! I'd suggest perhaps amending the background to a light one (as opposed to black) and somehow merging the logo/header image into the background. I believe this will have a positive effect on your forum.

Light backgrounds are - in my humble opinion - far more aesthetic and professional looking than darker ones.

Also, you have a few images that need to be aliased for your background as there are 'jaggies' around them. Here's one:

http://www.theforumsa.co.za/forums/images/buttons/reply.gif

See how it looks OK'ish on here - that's because of the light background. Have a lookie at the same button on your forum (see attachment) - there are white jagged edges around the image. Most graphic apps such as PSP or Photoshop can clean them up for ya.

Good luck.

Thanks for your comments, John. That jaggy bit is the transparency issue I've got to clean up still.

Hey, if you tell me what kind of status forum markers you'd like, I'd be happy to make a set for you, if you'd like.Hi Peggy,

I'd love to know what you think of my forum markers now.

After slaving away at my own custom skin and living with it for months, I've finally put it to sleep. It was a look where, it seemed, you either loved it or hated it. And the goal is about presenting the info, right? Not trying to figure out if you like the colour scheme etc. A bit like losing a child, but part of growing up I guess.

So I've basically gone with the FH Abir skin (how are these things named) and it now has a far more sleek, neutral look. I fixed all the W3C issues with the skin, so if anyone else wants to know how to get it to work properly, and with vBa, just holler.

My only complaint now is that the site has lost its South African colour and I think the answer lies in the forum markers. I'm thinking there must be a way to blend in the SA flag in the forum markers so that it fits the rest of the theme. And I simply don't have the graphics expertise to even try. Any chance of me taking you up on that earlier offer, Peggy?

Anyway, any thoughts, ideas, suggestions and criticism welcome as always. To save scrolling back...
The Forum SA homepage (http://www.theforumsa.co.za/)
The Forum SA forum index (http://www.theforumsa.co.za/forums/index.php)

ps. And damn - I see "powered by vBulletin" has snuck back into the forum index page title again with the last update. Grrrr.

eh that's cuz you reverted the templates when you didn't have to on this upgrade. No templates changed.

Personally, I'd like to see your flag used as forum markers. A slightly faded version for no posts and a brighter version for new posts. JMO

Hi Peggy. Isn't it kinda dark/late your part of the world right now? Obviously burning the midnight oil!!
Personally, I'd like to see your flag used as forum markers. A slightly faded version for no posts and a brighter version for new posts. JMO
That's my thought exactly. I just can't master the colour fading controls - I'm using Inkscape and clearly it's not the right program for the job.

I tried using Photoshop once, got totally confused and ran away never to return :(

yessir - it's 3:38 am right now.

Your avatar is your flag, I assume? If so, I'll see what I can do. Give me til tomorrow (well, later today) ;)

Your avatar is your flag, I assume? If so, I'll see what I can do. Give me til tomorrow (well, later today) ;)
Yes and thank you so much. Sleep tight (when you get there).

Dave, tell me if you like these or not. Be honest. If you want something different, just let me know. I'm flexible :)

Thanks Peggy. At the risk of being fussy, is there any chance of doing exactly the same thing, but using the image from my Avatar on this forum, just resized down to the right size. This would give a 3D look and the colour tones are slightly darker, which is more like the actual colours of the flag and hopefully will "fit in" with the tones of the skin.

And then just tell me what site you want me to plug for you in the big thank you I'm going to post on my forum ;) Themes by Design, I'd think - but just to make sure.

I've loaded the set above in the meantime so you can check it out. I think the darker toned base will do the trick.

EDIT: I've uploaded the biggest one I've got on file if res is an issue.
DBL EDIT: I've also got a scaleable vector graphics version if you'd prefer... but that's 2D

grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr... damn fussy people :mad:


Just Kidding!
Hmmm I don't see much difference at all on my monitor from your av and the flag that I looked up on the internet. However I'll attempt to use yours, but I won't be able to get to it til later this afternoon.
I'll still have to fade the flag to use for the forum_old markers, OR we could use the full color markers for the forum_old and the faded ones for the new posts.

Which would you prefer?

It shows up most in the green. It's deeper and richer...

If anyone's got a good monitor they don't need anymore, please send it Peggy's way. The lady's doing graphics with a crock one :confused: A really good cause, from what I've heard. I might have one floating around at the office somewhere, but with shipping from this neck of the woods to Ohio, it would be cheaper to just buy you a new one.

I reckon full color for new posts and faded for old, just like you had it. Makes the most sense I think.

I don't want to be fussy, but do you think you can do it round like a 3D button?
/ducks for cover :p

Just kidding, promise. One day I really need to learn how to do this stuff properly for myself. But so many causes, so little time.

rofl - I have a brand new monitor, color calibrated by the computer shop :)
Good for you to duck, as I don't do 3D stuff, lol.

The fact that the one you posted above is not only in gif format, but also has a bevel around it, is going to compromise quality when I have to resize it smaller, so I wouldn't expect alot - we'll see how they turn out. ;)

Hey sweetie, try this one - it's for forum_new

Oh baby. That looks so fine!

Loaded. I'm chuffed.

rofl - the rest will be ready in about 7 mins - but I'm sure you're in bed by now. They'll be waitinggggggggggggggggggggggggggg....:frog:


EDIT: Here ya go darlin -

Thanks Peggy (http://www.theforumsa.co.za/forums/showthread.php?t=806). I really appreciate it.

awww you're sweet. and you're welcome ;)

I've been thinking - it's a while since I've asked for a review and feedback of my site. I thought it might be an idea to get some critical opinions just in case I've missed something obvious or you guys and gals are comfortable enough with me now to tell me what you really think.

The Forum SA (http://www.theforumsa.co.za)

I like very much what you've done with the place. I see your Wiki is a WIP, there would be where I would be working right now, make it look like part of your site, it will drive your userbase to participate more. And put a lot of content there, you will have to start with a lot of work to get the ball rolling.

Thanks Hell. That is just the kind of feedback I'm looking for - and I reckon you're absolutely right.

I finally got round to skinning my forum wiki (http://www.theforumsa.co.za/wiki/index.php/Main_Page) - pretty chuffed with the result too :D

Nice job!

Looks great Dave, nice work.

Thanks Peggy and Hell. And now I actually feel inspired to get more content in there too.

No guessing what I'll be up to for most of the weekend :rolleyes: