Change the colour of the thread font after reading it

[anishjp]

Hi Administrator,

I wished if you could add this feature to this forum

Once the user has logged into the forum, the colour of the thread heading changes to a different shade/colour to indicate that you have visited/read this thread before.

Thanks,
Anish

[Tdol]

There's a little blue box with a tick thatshows you the threads you're subscribed to, so you can see that.

[Tullia]

Threads you have read totally (i.e. no new posts) appear in normal font, threads with unread posts in bold font.

Also, there is a different set of thread icons which show you threads to which you have contributed, which I find very useful. Any thread whose icon has a bent arrow like this one: is a thread in which you have posted - it's a handy way to look out for threads you have previously been involved in.

[birdeen's call]

Is there a way of learning the meanings of other icons like this? I don't understand them...

[Tullia]

Is there a way of learning the meanings of other icons like this? I don't understand them...

I thought they were mostly pretty intuitive, but then again I'm also the Forum Admin of another forum that runs on VBulletin software so I probably have an advantage.

I've attached a simple pic, apologies for the poor quality; I'm at work and don't have anything other than MS Paint to use. It should explain most of the basic icons. There might be a better guide to it somewhere on the forum, though. If there are any other icons you don't recognise, I'm sure someone will explain if you ask here.

[birdeen's call]

Wow, thank you very much! This picture should be pinned somewhere!

One more question. Why some of those envelopes are orange and some blue?

[Tullia]

Wow, thank you very much! This picture should be pinned somewhere!

One more question. Why some of those envelopes are orange and some blue?

Closed envelope (normally blue) = no unread posts
Open envelope (normally pale orange) = unread posts

If the envelope is red, then the thread is "hot" i.e. it has more than a certain number of replies/views already (the admin can set this number themselves). Both open and closed envelopes can turn red if the thread is popular enough.

All envelopes can have a padlock on them - this shows they are locked and cannot be posted in anymore,

All envelopes can have a zigzag arrow on - this shows you have posted in the thread at some point, but the envelope colour and open/closed logo underneath the arrow tells you about the popularity and new post status.


If people think the images are useful then I'll make a clearer one later this evening when I'm at home and on some decent software.

[BobK]

Hi Administrator,

I wished if you could add this feature to this forum

Once the user has logged into the forum, the colour of the thread heading changes to a different shade/colour to indicate that you have visited/read this thread before.

Thanks,
Anish

The request makes sense - it's the way some other systems work. (I use a Moodle-based one for an OU course I've been doing). But as others - esp. Tullia - have said, VBulletin provides many other ways of achieving the same thing. Personally, I find the View First Unread button very useful.

b

[Tullia]

The request makes sense - it's the way some other systems work. (I use a Moodle-based one for an OU course I've been doing). But as others - esp. Tullia - have said, VBulletin provides many other ways of achieving the same thing. Personally, I find the View First Unread button very useful.

b

I actually wouldn't mind a slight colour change to go with the change from bold to normal font, and it would be pretty easy to do in the templates. The problem would be finding two colours that were harmonious with the board design already and both stood out *enough*. It would be very easy to go too faint on the colour for "read" threads.

[BobK]

It's also important to consider Accessibility. Some background colours would be bad for users with various problems - colour-blindness, dyslexia... (There are standards - Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI) - home page ) that the VBulletin designers may already have taken into account with their out-of-the-box design. If they have, it would be a shame to undo their work with a home-made 'improvement'.)

b