My Thoughts About V5

[Asteria]

I, personally, dislike V5. My forum is V4, and very easy to navigate, code, change, update, ect. I also love how V4 was very easy to customize with header and footer codes. Plus, most Proboards members are used to V4, so they avoid V5 sites as it's confusing for them to make the transition. Tons of sites that updated have lost members. I can't navigate V5, I hate the post layout, and it's confusing - I can see why they've left, and I have so far tried to use V5 forums but have left them due to these issues. I think it's great for some forums, but for RP forums, V4 is (in my opinion) better. I also understand that everything takes time to adjust to, but many forums are going to suffer due to this required change after December - lots of them won't recover. Proboards may not want to pour money into an "outdated" version, but if people prefer it, then I think they should invest in it or make V5 easier to use for V4 users.

I still love Proboards, but I can't stand V5. It's confusing and hard to customize if you've ever used V4. Members are leaving sites that update to V5. Lots of beautiful old codes no longer work and have no V5 counterparts. Lots of people dislike the way V5 looks and works. The post layout is confusing. I've tried to make a V5 forum so that maybe I could get used to V5 and try to adapt, but that just gave me a major headache - V4 is far easier to manage for admin. I do like the ability to switch accounts that easily, but I've had lots of trouble trying to make accounts for V5 forums. I also dislike the profile layout in V5. I really am trying to learn, but it's so difficult to work with! I'm going to miss Proboards V4, and I don't think I can make the transition to V5.

[Thomasss]

Have you tried creating a test v5 forum, and invite users onto it, so they are able to get used to it, before you upgrade?

[Smokeygrey]

I am truly amazed by the amount of negatives, that in read in this and other threads, from members who do not like V5.

I am absolutely useless with computers, and plugins, and programming.

But I showed my members V5, and we decided to jump in at our earliest chance.

Yes!  There was and still is a lot for me to learn.

I really cant see how it is more difficult for members to navigate and use.  It is as easy as v4. Apart from a few minor issues. My members love V5 and all it has to offer.

Plus you have experts here that are willing and ready to help even the most useless members, like myself.

I really think members like you are missing out on a great opportunity.

Shame !

[Asteria]

I have actually tried that - that was the purpose of my attempt at a v5 forum, to get myself and other members used to V5. That was when I encountered the admin difficulties of V5. I get frustrated and have to give up when I try to manage that forum.

[Thomasss]

The Support team here, and the volunteerism that help out on v5 and support boards, know all about it. Yes, there are some issues, may i also add, its in beta. 


I know where you are coming from with the whole RP is best on v4. However, we have themes that make this not so big of an issue. Dark and light themes. v5 gives more features for RP, and all forums. Its a big transition, and the negative complaints about it, mainly are about the "forced upgrade" and the "not easy to navigate." It actually is, and once they give it a chance, they all upgrade. For users who are used to v4, its a big change. ProBoards has given enough testing for ALL users to test out v5. 

[Thomasss]

Apr 20, 2013 10:54:48 GMT -8 Asteria said:

I have actually tried that - that was the purpose of my attempt at a v5 forum, to get myself and other members used to V5. That was when I encountered the admin difficulties of V5. I get frustrated and have to give up when I try to manage that forum.

Admin difficulties? Like? v5 is in beta, and there will be issues. The point is to keep trying, not to give up. 

[Asteria]

I understand this it's in beta and that things will change. And I'm not dissing Proboards itself, as I prefer PB over the other forum and site hosts out there.

I just find it difficult to navigate even after trying to understand it for a while now. I honestly have given it a chance, and that's my honest opinion about the current V5 as I have seen and tried it. :c

[Thomasss]

Apr 20, 2013 11:03:06 GMT -8 Asteria said:

I understand this it's in beta and that things will change. And I'm not dissing Proboards itself, as I prefer PB over the other forum and site hosts out there.

I just find it difficult to navigate even after trying to understand it for a while now. I honestly have given it a chance, and that's my honest opinion about the current V5 as I have seen and tried it. :c

How is it hard to navigate? I find my self flying through these boards..

[Asteria]

It isn't, per se, the boards. The admin panel is where my main navigation issue is. I'm so confused about pretty much everything in there. But also, the posting layout ("Preview" and "BBcode") is still a little confusing, but I am beginning to learn how to use that. It's also hard for me to navigate profiles and to modify a profile, with all the tabs, social network aspects ("statuses"), the avatar option involving combined uploaded and default avatars, and the default BBcode. Actually, I like the BBcode idea, but I wish it had been better explained to me other than "it just shows up in your posts." I wasn't sure if it was closer to a signature or a posting template until I messed around with it. The Info Center is also slightly hard to navigate and read, what with all the space taken up by links that don't really need to be there. It seemed far easier to view birthdays only if there were current birthdays, no RSS feed links in the info center, and no distinction between posts and threads. The RSS feed is pretty confusing, considering I don't know a thing about RSS. I think with codes or plug-ins or whatever, these problems could be fixed... If it was easy for me to modify my forum.

The plug-ins are confusing. So I have to purchase space for them if I want to use a ton? So they're files? I personally find scripts easier to use, and without the added risk of viruses on my computer. I'm also not sure how to go about editing the Layout Templates. I'm terrified of messing something up when I'm trying to make my site sparkly and cool. The fact that you have to be an advanced user to have these HTML changes (as opposed to just adding things to the headers and footers) is distressing to me.

[Thomasss]

Apr 20, 2013 11:32:56 GMT -8 Asteria said:

It isn't, per se, the boards. The admin panel is where my main navigation issue is. I'm so confused about pretty much everything in there. But also, the posting layout ("Preview" and "BBcode") is still a little confusing, but I am beginning to learn how to use that. It's also hard for me to navigate profiles and to modify a profile, with all the tabs, social network aspects ("statuses"), the avatar option involving combined uploaded and default avatars, and the default BBcode. Actually, I like the BBcode idea, but I wish it had been better explained to me other than "it just shows up in your posts." I wasn't sure if it was closer to a signature or a posting template until I messed around with it. The Info Center is also slightly hard to navigate and read, what with all the space taken up by links that don't really need to be there. It seemed far easier to view birthdays only if there were current birthdays, no RSS feed links in the info center, and no distinction between posts and threads. The RSS feed is pretty confusing, considering I don't know a thing about RSS. I think with codes or plug-ins or whatever, these problems could be fixed... If it was easy for me to modify my forum.

The plug-ins are confusing. So I have to purchase space for them if I want to use a ton? So they're files? I personally find scripts easier to use, and without the added risk of viruses on my computer. I'm also not sure how to go about editing the Layout Templates. I'm terrified of messing something up when I'm trying to make my site sparkly and cool. The fact that you have to be an advanced user to have these HTML changes (as opposed to just adding things to the headers and footers) is distressing to me.

The admin panel has the Legendary Tabs, to make that easier. 

Yeah, preview and BBCode has confused many, preview basically is what the post will look like, the BBCode is the coding of the post. 

Editing profiles, i find easier with the tabs, and since there are only like 3-4 tabs you can edit on other profiles, it shouldn't be hard. Personal is the user really. Siggy, etc.

Staff Options, if you want to ban, warn, disable things, thats your tab. 


Oh yes, plugins. you can use a total of 40 plugins. Plugins are codes, in a file really. They are easier to use, as each plugin has menus that have the settings, unlike codes, you delete a period or something, if messes it all up. theres a explanation by Jordan, lemme see if i can find it. 

[Patrick [ASE]]

Asteria, you have made 4 posts, all of them in this thread, maybe work with us, there is plenty of help here, if you have old codes that you can't find a counterpart for, ask.
I recently introduced a friend to Proboards, he has never admin'd a forum, but after about 10 minutes with a littler help from me, he totally got it, and has created a basic forum using a built in theme, has managed to set member groups etc.
sure he has more work to do, but he isn't phased by it.

We see many complaints about V5, but later we see the same complainers helping others here.

We are happy to help

[CheatAreZee]

Also just wanted to mention too that if you're having difficulties navigating the admin area, our v5 help guide is available. It may be a little rough at the moment since it's still in development but the bulk of the info that is available there already may be able to assist you further as well. You can view the help guide here

[David Clark]

Hey Asteria, reading through your posts it seems to me that much of your dislike for version 5 is based on a lack of understanding as to how the new features work. I do know that, having familiarized yourself with v4 for so long, the concept of everything you know just changing one day is a little scary. But rather than thinking of it like that, you should think of it as what it actually is - an upgrade, an expansion on what you already know and love.

Our developers worked very hard for quite some time to incorporate everything they could to make the transition easier for those familiar with v4.

If I can, I'd like to try and help you understand a bit better. :)

The admin panel is where my main navigation issue is. I'm so confused about pretty much everything in there.

If you spend some time just clicking through the admin panel and acquainting yourself with the different sections and features in there, I think you'll find it's a lot less intimidating. For v4 users who have no idea where to start, we added in a section of it that looks just like the layout of the old one - navigate to your admin panel and on that first page and find the button that says "Legacy". This is a great place for you to start using the admin panel.

Like the disclaimer there says, though, not every section of the admin CP is represented in that list, so that can give you an idea of the magnitude of the improvements and additions we've made in that area.

But also, the posting layout ("Preview" and "BBcode") is still a little confusing

The posting preview window is certainly an advanced and powerful feature, but nothing to be afraid of. From the Preview window, you'll be able to see BBCode formatting (bolding, image/video inserts, smileys) as they will display when you post, right away. If you insert a smiley, you won't see ":)", you'll immediately see . 

The BBCode tab next to it is simply a way to look at the code you've already inserted - you can compose BBCode tags from here as well. 

It's also hard for me to navigate profiles and to modify a profile, with all the tabs, social network aspects

If you dislike the social features we've implemented (statuses or liking posts, linking posts to facebook etc) it is completely possible to disable those, some right from the admin control panel, others through the use of plugins. If you don't know how, you can feel free to ask here. 

The Info Center is also slightly hard to navigate and read, what with all the space taken up by links that don't really need to be there.

It is possible to customize the contents of the Information Center completely to your liking, from hiding certain things to adding in things that aren't there now to changing the very text of "Forum Information & Statistics". If you're not sure how, you can always ask here.

The RSS feed is pretty confusing, considering I don't know a thing about RSS.

The inclusion of an RSS feed was for the minority of our userbase that happens to keep up on forum activity via their RSS readers. A few people have appropriated this to delivery email activity notifications to their inbox, which is a feature that wouldn't otherwise be possible. As always, it can be removed if you'd like.

The plug-ins are confusing. I personally find scripts easier to use, and without the added risk of viruses on my computer.

Here's a thread wherein the original poster held a similar opinion - read through Jordan's post for more information as to why plugins are way, way, way better than header and footer codes.

Furthermore, plugin files will only ever be saved as a .pbp file. So long as you retrieve your plugins through the plugin board here on support or our upcoming Plugin Library and verify that it is indeed a .pbp file, there is no risk of infecting your computer with a virus from one of them.

I'm also not sure how to go about editing the Layout Templates. The fact that you have to be an advanced user to have these HTML changes (as opposed to just adding things to the headers and footers) is distressing to me.

The editing of Layout Templates is a feature recommended for advanced users, yes, but for those who understand them it opens up an incredible number of to-the-detail customization options that can be reappropriated and given to non-advanced users in the form of a tutorial or guide.

With that being said, header and footer codes still exist, and theoretically modifications to your page's HTML can be made through them (although again, Layout Template editing is far easier and direct if you're the one doing the coding).

[Asteria]

Asteria, you have made 4 posts, all of them in this thread, maybe work with us

            That's a little irrelevant, how many posts I've made - and also incorrect (granted, I've never made a post in a part of the forum where posts count before.) I really am trying to work with you guys here. I have no doubt that V5 is easy, but for people that have used V4 for so long, it's a big change and far harder to learn.

Also just wanted to mention too that if you're having difficulties navigating the admin area, our v5 help guide is available.

            Thank you for the guide! I'll bookmark it, read it over, and keep it handy while I'm learning all this.



Thanks, David! The Legacy tab does make it a whole lot easier to understand the functions and sort out what I'll likely be using most. I think I will remove a lot of the social network features, as they don't really seem needed in the context of my forum. Same for the Info Center. As for plugins, I'll take your word on them being better. For now, I'll avoid editing the HTML (even though I have a working understanding of HTML and such).

Thank you all for the help, you have no idea how much I appreciate it.

[merleh]

Apr 20, 2013 10:41:57 GMT -8 Asteria said:

I, personally, dislike V5. My forum is V4, and very easy to navigate, code, change, update, ect. I also love how V4 was very easy to customize with header and footer codes. Plus, most Proboards members are used to V4, so they avoid V5 sites as it's confusing for them to make the transition. Tons of sites that updated have lost members. I can't navigate V5, I hate the post layout, and it's confusing - I can see why they've left, and I have so far tried to use V5 forums but have left them due to these issues. I think it's great for some forums, but for RP forums, V4 is (in my opinion) better. I also understand that everything takes time to adjust to, but many forums are going to suffer due to this required change after December - lots of them won't recover. Proboards may not want to pour money into an "outdated" version, but if people prefer it, then I think they should invest in it or make V5 easier to use for V4 users.

I still love Proboards, but I can't stand V5. It's confusing and hard to customize if you've ever used V4. Members are leaving sites that update to V5. Lots of beautiful old codes no longer work and have no V5 counterparts. Lots of people dislike the way V5 looks and works. The post layout is confusing. I've tried to make a V5 forum so that maybe I could get used to V5 and try to adapt, but that just gave me a major headache - V4 is far easier to manage for admin. I do like the ability to switch accounts that easily, but I've had lots of trouble trying to make accounts for V5 forums. I also dislike the profile layout in V5. I really am trying to learn, but it's so difficult to work with! I'm going to miss Proboards V4, and I don't think I can make the transition to V5.

I was the same but after a certain time you will never ever want to have V4 back. V5 is MUCH better. The plugins are very easy to handle and certain features like quoting notifications or multiple quoting make using a forum fun and easy. Like all good things, it needs a bit of patience at first. IMO V5 is the best free forum software out there.