AnswerBank Update Coming Monday (We Think!)

[AB Editor]

Good Afternoon,

We've got some good news - there's going to be a site update on Monday.

That's right, you now have an excuse to go to the pub this coming Monday - don't say we don't ever do anything nice for you!

Some things which might get upgraded/added while you're having a pint or three:

(if you've not got much time, just read 6 & 7! Quick!)

1. Improved Contact Us Page - Bigger text, bigger boxes, no requirement for a phone number (as it was causing some to head to spam) clearer and cleaner... we hope

2. Improved Registration Page - Believe it or not, some new users have trouble signing up or put the wrong information in the wrong place. We've improved the layout of the registration page to make everything clearer.

3. Improved Ads on Desktop and Mobile Sites - currently there's some spots on the site where we can't get the most for the space we've got. We're changing that. Better cash flow means better improvements down the line.

4. Housekeeping! - excitingly there's a few improvements to the tools I use to manage the site. This includes things like being able to move threads and categories around. We can finally move Crosswords to a top-level category! I can FINALLY move your stray questions into the right category!

5. Deactivate Account Button - Those who want to leave AB (for whatever reasons) will be able to revoke their account with the click of a button. It makes flounces more fun and flounce denounces even funnier.

6. Best Answers V 2.0 - You'll now be able to see threads where others have had their answer marked as best in the public profile.

7. Badges - To recognise the outstanding contributions of some members of this excellent website we've put together a "badge" system. Badges are earned through contributions to the site. They include things like the "newscaster" badge for posting a great number of threads in News and "debator" for contributing to a certain number of long threads. We'll reveal all the badges and how one would achieve them once the site is live.

Hope this all sounds palatable to you. We'll update you as we get closer to the launch.

Please let me know what you think.

All the best,

Ed

[Ellipsis]

Oddly enough, Sandy, Gmail (Google email) used to have that very feature - "Mail Goggles":

http://gmailblog.blog...g-mail-you-later.html

They removed it for some reason. A pity ...

[AB Editor]

So is anyone excited about the new registration page?

No?

Just me then.

[tonyav]

Where is it, Ed. And I'll have a look.

[sir.prize]

Oh dear, Ed. Ever have the feeling things are not going well?

[AB Editor]

Lol, it's not up yet...

Not sure what you mean SP.

[tonyav]

DOH the Ed's tricked me.

[Baldric]

Are we going to need to reregister then Ed?

[bibblebub]

Does the new registration page include any info about avatars, even if it's just a link to the What Is An Avatar? article?

[factor-fiction]

I know it's too late to change the plans now but I'm hoping that before long it will easier for people to see whether a question has already been answered. At present when i read a question unless there is a 'best answer' marked I have to scroll down to see whether it has already been answered. Quite often new users in particular post answers to crossword questions that were answered fully hours or days earlier.

[sunny-dave]

< still holding breath ... when will the Ed get it up ? >

[ChuckFickens]

See page 5 for when the Ed's expected to get it up.

[Baldric]

Does he have problems then Dave?

[ChuckFickens]

I said to my boss a couple of years back in front of an entire office of people "I'll try and get it up for you this afternoon".... it was in reference to a website but I didn't live that one down for a while!

[AB Editor]

"I know it's too late to change the plans now but I'm hoping that before long it will easier for people to see whether a question has already been answered. At present when i read a question unless there is a 'best answer' marked I have to scroll down to see whether it has already been answered. Quite often new users in particular post answers to crossword questions that were answered fully hours or days earlier."

Notifications/at-a-glance stuff should be addressed in the next update (i.e. the one after tonight's)

"Does the new registration page include any info about avatars, even if it's just a link to the What Is An Avatar? article?"

No, but there is a orientation email that gets sent out to all new users. We've had many less requests since we started doing this.

[AB Editor]

I went back to have a look Chuck, and it was so good I made it the best answer:

http://www.theanswerb...5.html#answer-7243203

[sunny-dave]

Ed makes own post Best Answer ... hmmm ... not a good precedent ...

... naughty step ... NOW !!

[AB Editor]

I hope everyone is as excited as me about this.

[Ellipsis]

Ed makes own post Best Answer ... hmmm ... not a good precedent ...

And to do it, he un-BA'd me! What a BA steward...

[Baldric]

^^^ Does that mean you're stripped of your Medal??? ^^^

[Ellipsis]

Dunno, but "Thieving BA Steward" could be the name of the badge for people who Best Answer themselves too often, i.e. "Steward the Best Answer in their own direction"

(not to be confused with a British Airways male flight attendant ... )