SEEKING MEMBER INPUT: ATS.5/3 - give your feedback -- UPDATES May 28, 2013

Hey just noticed this thread.

I have an idea that i have mentioned a couple of times.

I Think we needs "mod's pick" forum

A forum were threads of a very high quality, beyond the "look at my pretty picture/youtube/random link" threads or the "i think/ here are a couple of paragraphs about my star-child/Confirmed/I predict" type of threads. A forum were threads with multiple links, vids', opinion and analysis go and scream with originality and hard work.

The reason i suggest this is because lots of these types of threads with loads of information and lost of hard work put into them very quickly fall down the "recent posts" page and get lost in all the other stuff on ATS.

It would be really nice to have a forum that only allows very high standard threads that rewards members for some of the very hard work that goes into creating these type of threads.

say a really good thread is posted in the UFO forum that the mod's pick up then they have the power to move it into a "mods pick" forum.

it would really encourage people to write much better threads and reward them for it.

just an idea...

reply to post by OtherSideOfTheCoin


Excellent idea. Can't wait to see it on my mobile.

reply to post by SkepticOverlord


Yeah. You gotta keep a dark option. With that interface, my photosensitivity would force me to do a Greasemonkey mod on this website.

reply to post by SkepticOverlord


I searched trying to find what the newest version is (the one I am currently looking at) and think this is the newest thread.

Please please please take my advice on this. What I am looking at now (well at the present its a white background but presumably the black background is the intended version ) is terrible. First off I hate this strive to make everything facebookish. Be the exception. You are even using an exact facebook graphic. The fact that members names are in a separate space than the text just take up superflous space and is confusing (the older version had it perfect) The last version was infinitely more navigable and I'm not the kind of person that hates just because its new. The whole site looks like the license agreement pop up on a smart phone.

Also, very important, the mobile version is one of the worst mobile versions I've ever seen. There are tons of bugs (like positiin of avatars and the fact they are cut off). Its bad.

My advice..if you want to change a website drastically do a slow morph from current to the final idea. These drastic changes are annoying. You shouldnt feel like you have to learn thw whole site over at one time. Instead you should get used to tweaks as they happen. The last layout was so much better.. you've just pulled a microsoft on us.
The verdict is if this is the futurw of ATS I will not come here as much and its not out of spite. . Its just a prediction and I've been posting a lot lately so I don't want to stop.. it will just fall off.

This is coming from someone with thousands of posts and hundreds of stars.

reply to post by GogoVicMorrow


The half moon at the top of the page changes it to the dark option, maybe you already know that. I like the Dark because the white was hard on my eyes. Yeah, I would have to agree about the mobile avatars. I am hoping that will change eventually. I even uploaded it in the setting that now have an area to upload an avatar for Mobile use.

Also, I can't figure out why my meteorite in my avatar is repeated at the bottom in my background image? Skep, anyone else? Plus, the images in the background are all moved around? Anyway, Everything else I like thus far. I love the layout and the dark option. Nice job guys. ~$heopleNation

Folks, we've been tossing out sneak-peaks for months, have been opening this up to members for about a couple months, and have had an open member beta test for almost a full week.

Everyone got a U2U urging them to test the new site and provide commentary in this thread:
Open Member Testing: ATS.5/3 Final Release Candidate
If you didn't participate in an unprecedented open test and request for feedback, why are you doing so after launch?

Please stop starting new threads and use this one thread for your comments.


And for the purpose of communicating, yet again, the rationale behind the redesign, here is what was posted in the open test thread...

By now everyone should have received a private message with the username/password that enables access to the Final Release Candidate version of the new ATS.5/3.

This is the fourth round of user testing (first being staff-only, second being invited beta-testers, and third being an open-beta test to all members) and is intended to accomplish the following:

1) final testing of the site UX (user experience) on a wider variety of user scenarios

2) final refinement of of the color scheme of the two UI (user interface) options

3) establish an understanding of the new interface/structure for a less jarring cut-over

4) begin the offered opportunity for a member collaboration on new smilies


This open test is not intended as an opportunity to offer significant alterations to the UI/UX in any way. Months of work, preceded by months of research, and that preceded by months of analysis of existing "upgrades" to so-called discussion board frameworks (XenForo being the best of a lackluster bunch).



The Primary Goal

What you are testing is not "change for the sake of change." Two massively important factors have been the driving force behind such a significant re-think of what a discussion board platform should be.

1) While the number of in-bound new users (roughly 85% of all daily traffic) has remained relatively flat, the user-engagement (content/thread pages viewed) has been falling off for months.

2) Across the Internet, nearly all discussion boards are experiencing a very similar phenomena. The decline in engagement is seen everywhere, even in large long-established video game forums.

The reason, is relatively simple: the audience has changed. The percentage of people comfortable with the rigid/tight discussion board format is decreasing, while the percentage of people accustomed to the more open sensibilities of contemporary flat design is increasing. It's a clearly quantified (and has been) fact of life for online operators.


Our mandate at AboveTopSecret.com, for more than ten years, has been to create and maintain a venue that showcases the quality content created by our members. A big part of that mandate has been consistent attention to search engine optimization. Another big part has been the delicate balance of advertising to provide the revenue needed to support big traffic, our own advertising, and growth. But the biggest part of that balance has always been finding ways to push the boundaries of a discussion board platform so that new users have the best possible chance to discover your content.

Right now, discovery is falling. Action is needed.

So every decision from font-size to color to mobile responsiveness has been from the vantage point of "what best highlights the content." The content is first. The content is second. And the content is third.



I'm not saying your input isn't important

That's why this is the third time we've opened the development site up to members. But if we didn't place a high priority on ensuring your content is both discovered and lingered-over, all we'd be doing is talking amongst ourselves and no one would have encountered the long-list of content that you created, that became important on thousands of other websites and hundreds of news sources.

This IS for you.






this thread is closed.