Apologies if this has been done before.
On occasion, I’ll find myself on a page that has no link back to the Board. What I mean is that, for example, if I run a search that turns up no results, or if I click on a user’s email address, I’ll end up on a page that has no links on it but those you find on the bottom of every page on the Boards: Contact Us, Straight Dope Homepage, Archive and Top. Why can’t there be a link to the Straight Dope Message Board in there as well?
(Yes, I realize the “Back” button also works. I’m just asking why the design is as it is.)
The forum jump bar appears in both the examples you gave, and so you can get to any forum or the boards front page (when the bar is set to the default “select one”) from there. I assume that’s in place of a simpler “back to the boards” link.
Right…I mean, I know that. I was simply asking on behalf of people who might not be as observant as I am.
Every so often, I’m reminded of why I should measure twice and post once. :o
Mods, please feel free to lock this one up.
Actually I think ya got a good point!
Checking the Front Page I notice that while there are links for the message board, there’s nothing that’s really “in your face”. I’d suggest using the same banner on all pages, with a link to the Front Page (like it is above) and adding a link to the boards (with text like “Got a question for the teeming millions? Visit the SD Message Board!”). It might draw more traffic from the Front Page to the boards and be a better “back to where I started” option than what there is now.
CMC +fnord!
I’d suggest a complete redesign of the entire site so it doesn’t look like a reject from 1998.
But apparently that’s not on anybody’s agenda.
A matter of taste of course, but I like the design of the board. I can’t think of another one that I like better.
I think GuanoLad was referring to the Straight Dope front page, rather than the board, in which case I agree with both of you, but I could be wrong.
Well, the board just uses the default design, because they’re all too scared to touch its workings in case it breaks. I’d be happy if they just upgraded the boards to the latest version, though it also needs a visual spruce up.
But I was really talking about the main website itself, which is poorly structured, primitively designed, with a simplistic application of HTML, and no imagination whatsoever.
There are many web designers on this board who no doubt would willingly donate their time and talents for free, including myself, if only to get some of the ugliness and inconsistency sorted out.