# Community Feedback: We Are Live!



## Admin4Tee's (Sep 3, 2013)

We are excited to announce that we are live on our new forum platform!

It’s been a long time coming. Let’s face it. Sometimes older forum technology lags behind other parts of the internet. Although seeing the same format for a long time is comforting, the member experience shouldn’t include dealing with outdated, unsafe, slow software.

The transition to a new platform will never be 100% smooth but the days of dealing with out of date forum software are over. We have teams dedicated to building a world-class community for you. The development has been steady with regular software releases since May 2019. Asking members for feedback and coming up with ideas for improvement is what we want.

*Speed and Reliability Are Key*
No one should have to wait for information. This site has been built to be much faster and more reliable, period.

*New Homepage Experience*
Our algorithm will serve a personal customized feed based on your prior engagement with content on the site. If you’ve liked and or commented, or are following certain topics that are of interest to you, similar content will appear at the top of the homepage.

*Search*
We have introduced new search algorithms, powered by an industry-leading AI platform, to help you find information faster. We plan to roll out new features to continue improving search, and to power many additional areas of the forum.








Due to the volume of content, our search platform may take some time to complete indexing over the first few days after migrating. During this process, you may see a limited number of posts until indexing has been completed. We appreciate your patience.

*Finding Your Way Around*
We have made the design clean and simple to use. Near the upper right-hand corner of the community, you will see navigation icons.

The first icon is for what’s new on the site.








Clicking on it, by default, will take you to new unread posts. On that page, you can click on additional tabs as well, such as Popular, if you prefer to view active topics.








Clicking the list icon next to “NEW” will bring you to the full forum listing.








Clicking your avatar will give you a drop-down menu for all things related to your account.








You can also navigate more by clicking the 3 vertical dots.








*Dark Mode*
We have introduced Dark Mode. One of our favorite features allows you to access the site with a power-saving, and easier on the eyes dark mode. You can access it in the drop-down menu under the 3 vertical dots.

*Save Bookmarks*
Now you can save your favorite discussion threads and posts! Bookmarks are a handy way to remember and easily find great content or stuff you want to read later.








We also wanted to make it easier for new users to understand the lingo of forums. We have cleaned up various language to more commonly recognized phrases including:

*Following* - Thread subscriptions, and Watched are now known as Following
*Conversations *- Private Messages or PMs are now conversations and can be accessed from the user avatar drop-down in the main navigation
*Showcase* - Showcase is designed for users to "showcase" items/projects through the use of uploaded images, text descriptions and custom content categories. It’s a way to visually and textually provide detailed information on the content you wish to share. The showcase would be similar to a catalog, whereas the gallery would be like a photo album. It can be accessed from the drop-down menu with the 3 dots.
Take a tour and look around! Check out the Help section for some quick *FAQs* about the new platform.

Please keep all feedback, questions, concerns, requests for help, etc.regarding the new platform right here in this Feedback thread. This will help us make sure not to miss a request for help and also let us pass along your thoughts to our Product team. The Admins and I will be here to help along the way taking note of your comments.

- Community Support


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## Admin4Tee's (Sep 3, 2013)

I will be here during your transition to the new platform, to help with any questions, help with navigation or how to do things, and to listen to your feedback so please don't hesitate to holler at me. I want to help. You can also check out our *FAQs*.

I do want to take a moment to introduce myself. My name is Cricket. When I was born, my father told his friends I was the ugliest baby he had ever seen, and that I sounded just like a cricket (I was born with the hiccups.) so yes, I have been Cricket for 58 years now. I live just outside of San Antonio, Texas. I spend most of my free time out in nature and exploring the back roads. During late autumn when it starts to finally cool down, I disappear from the world for a bit for camping trips and hiking.

Please don't be afraid to explore and test out things to see how they work on the site.

Although you can certainly use the "insert image" icon to upload an image to your post, you can also just drag and drop it to the text editor or even copy/paste it into there!








You can easily share videos just by adding the URL directly into the text editor!






Gif links from sites like giphy.com will display automatically just by adding the gif URL directly in the text editor. Try it!






I am a huge fan of the dark mode for the community. What is your favorite feature?

We will be seeing regular updates to the site which are largely based on community feedback so we absolutely want to hear your feedback!

I have worked with our community support team for just over 5 years but I have worked with forums for closer to two decades. I won't always know the answers to your questions, but I can find someone who does, as needed. 

- Cricket


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## binki (Jul 16, 2006)

Do you have an app for the phones too?


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## Admin4Tee's (Sep 3, 2013)

binki said:


> Do you have an app for the phones too?


The site is responsive, so it will adjust automatically for you from any device desktop to tablet to mobile.

Have you tried accessing it from your phone browser yet?

Try it and let me know what you think! 

- Cricket


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## NoXid (Apr 4, 2011)

Thanks. Looks and works good. Double thanks for Dark Mode; my retinas are forever in your debt


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## Admin4Tee's (Sep 3, 2013)

Take a moment to browse through our *Community FAQs* and let us know if you have any questions.









FAQ







www.t-shirtforums.com




- Cricket


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## DrivingZiggy (Apr 24, 2017)

Cricket: If you are in San Antonio, why does your flag say you're from Canuckistan?

Question 2: Same Cricket from RAM1500Diesel forum?


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## Admin4Tee's (Sep 3, 2013)

DrivingZiggy said:


> Cricket: If you are in San Antonio, why does your flag say you're from Canuckistan?
> 
> Question 2: Same Cricket from RAM1500Diesel forum?


If you haven't filled out your location it will automatically use your IP. Since I often use the work VPN it will go back and forth between the US and Canada.

- Cricket


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## Admin4Tee's (Sep 3, 2013)

*Setting Your Location*

Click on your avatar, near the upper right-hand corner of the site. Select account settings from the drop-down menu.








On the account settings page, scroll down to location.








As you start typing your city, it will offer you choices appear in the drop-down menu. Click to select the one that displays your location.








If you prefer to only display your state, simply type your state, and then click on it in the drop-down menu.








Within discussion threads, you will see your country flag displayed under your username.

*User Location Privacy Settings*

Click on your avatar and select Account Settings from the drop-down menu.








Your Account Settings page will open with more options. From the left-side navigation bar, select Privacy.








On your Privacy page, you will see options regarding your location.








Use the drop-down menu to select who can see your location information.

Save your privacy settings.






- Cricket


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## DrivingZiggy (Apr 24, 2017)

Yup. After ignoring my other question twice and "answering" the way you do, it's pretty clear that you are the same Cricket.


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## Admin4Tee's (Sep 3, 2013)

DrivingZiggy said:


> Yup. After ignoring my other question twice and "answering" the way you do, it's pretty clear that you are the same Cricket.


I am not certain I understand. It displayed a different flag when I was using a work VPN to access the site.

- Cricket


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## DTG Merch (Apr 21, 2019)

Congrats!!!
In my opinion, you all have done a great job. 
Everything looks fresh and stylish. Very good choice on graphics. The overall website user experience, so far, is very positive. Easy to navigate and faster, for sure! Love the dark mode!
All the best and keep up the good work!


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## NoXid (Apr 4, 2011)

DrivingZiggy said:


> Yup. After ignoring my other question twice and "answering" the way you do, it's pretty clear that you are the same Cricket.


 Same outfit runs a _whole bunch_ of forums, including several on car related topics that I'm also on. I saw a panel on the lower right of the landing page (?) that listed some other forums. I've no idea if this Cricket is your Cricket from the other forum ... hell, there might be 10 people using that same Admin account across dozens of forums, or maybe just one. Obviously they aren't into giving out clues about practices and procedures, which seems reasonable. Don't want anyone figuring out how to Phish our admin


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## seacookie (Apr 29, 2015)

Me like my new dark theme 
Me like bunch of smileys 😁
Me need to read how to use new forum now 👨‍🎓

I need to change avatar now


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## Admin4Tee's (Sep 3, 2013)

*How To Change/Update Avatar*

Click on your avatar near the upper right-hand corner of the site and select “account settings” from the drop-down menu.








That will bring you to the account details page.








Once you click on your avatar, then click to choose your file.








Make sure to click “okay” afterward.






Cricket


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## TSF_Bruce (Sep 28, 2020)

Looks Great! Thanks Cricket


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## TeedUp (Apr 22, 2020)

It seems all my bookmarks I had prior to the upgrade are GONE!


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## splathead (Dec 4, 2005)

TeedUp said:


> It seems all my bookmarks I had prior to the upgrade are GONE!


All mine still work in Firefox.


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## TeedUp (Apr 22, 2020)

splathead said:


> All mine still work in Firefox.


Win10 Chrome
zero of about 140


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## TeedUp (Apr 22, 2020)

OK, I think they're all under "Following"\"Followed Discussions" (not bookmarks)

I don't know if that's a change, or I was just used to finding it in a certain spot and didn't really pay attention to what it was called.

Thank you.


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## binki (Jul 16, 2006)

How are the 'Recommended For You' calculated? I would prefer my start screen be new posts.


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## binki (Jul 16, 2006)

Ok, and how do I delete a post?


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## into the T (Aug 22, 2015)

binki said:


> Ok, and how do I delete a post?


try the hamburger menu in the upper right of the post you want to delete

nope, i thought i had seen a 'delete' option there

ok here it is, and i don't like it one bit
you have to waste your time messaging a mod,
and then get them to waste their time to delete your post
you are either a baby, or you don't own your thoughts
could be a deal breaker for me:

*Only moderators and admins are able to delete a post, as needed, for situations such as duplicate posts. Simply report the post for staff assistance. *


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## splathead (Dec 4, 2005)

binki said:


> How are the 'Recommended For You' calculated? I would prefer my start screen be new posts.


Me too. I set my browser bookmark to this link: New Posts


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## DrivingZiggy (Apr 24, 2017)

I just click on the big ol' "NEW" button next to the sign in button.


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## webtrekker (Jan 28, 2018)

into the T said:


> try the hamburger menu in the upper right of the post you want to delete
> 
> nope, i thought i had seen a 'delete' option there
> 
> ...


I'll second that! To me, the forum is great and much improved, especially for mobiles, but I'd prefer to delete my own posts, thanks.


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## splathead (Dec 4, 2005)

into the T said:


> ok here it is, and i don't like it one bit
> you have to waste your time messaging a mod,


This was the case on the old forum too. After a day or two of post creation, or if there were replies after yours, the 'delete your post' option disappeared. This is to insure the continuity of the thread. Nothing worse than replying in depth to a post only to have that post deleted by the poster. Makes you look cray-cray with your reply.

We rarely delete posts, FYI. Mainly for the reason above. But many times just because the original poster's question was answered, they want the thread deleted. We don't do that.


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## webtrekker (Jan 28, 2018)

Ok, here's a post that I'm going to delete as soon as I've posted it, which is something routine that virtually every other forum on the net allows you to do instantly.


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## webtrekker (Jan 28, 2018)

Oh dear me! No way to delete that last post. That sucks!


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## webtrekker (Jan 28, 2018)

Here's another example:

1+1=3


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## webtrekker (Jan 28, 2018)

Oops, sorry, I got that wrong:

1+1=4


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## webtrekker (Jan 28, 2018)

Oh no! I'm having a Senior Moment! I've just Googled it and:

1+1=2

Now,does it really make sense to not allow me to delete those other 2 posts?


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## TeedUp (Apr 22, 2020)

There are many boards that allow you to delete your own post, but ONLY until someone posts under it. Makes a lot of sense, you don't want to disrupt the content that others have based responses on, but you should be able to quickly remove for error or duplicate.

Then again, just editing it to remove all the content presents its own issues.


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## webtrekker (Jan 28, 2018)

TeedUp said:


> There are many boards that allow you to delete your own post, but ONLY until someone posts under it. Makes a lot of sense, you don't want to disrupt the content that others have based responses on, but you should be able to quickly remove for error or duplicate.
> 
> Then again, just editing it to remove all the content presents its own issues.


Yes, being able to delete duplicate posts is another reason. We all know how the old forum suffered with duplicates! At least allow us half an hour or so to be able to delete a post unless someone has posted immediately below us.


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## binki (Jul 16, 2006)

I asked about the delete because of a duplicate post when the screen froze and it posted twice. It was more my ISP latency than anything but it was annoying. That was the big problem with the old site on a mobile, you had no clue your post made it. I could always tell when someone made a post from their phone. They posted 15 times the same thing.


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## splathead (Dec 4, 2005)

binki said:


> I asked about the delete because of a duplicate post when the screen froze and it posted twice. It was more my ISP latency than anything but it was annoying. That was the big problem with the old site on a mobile, you had no clue your post made it. I could always tell when someone made a post from their phone. They posted 15 times the same thing.


Report your duplicate and it'll be deleted.


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## Admin4Tee's (Sep 3, 2013)

binki said:


> How are the 'Recommended For You' calculated? I would prefer my start screen be new posts.


Are you referring to the homepage?






- Cricket


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## Admin4Tee's (Sep 3, 2013)

*How To Delete A Duplicate Post*

Only moderators and admins are able to delete a post, as needed, for situations such as duplicate posts. Simply report the post for staff assistance.

Special Note: If a thread is deleted, it then deletes all the responses and thus other people’s posts too. Or, when deleting a post, people may respond. Then, if you delete one post, the following posts will not make sense - because one is missing it, it destroys the understanding and flow.

- Cricket


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## Admin4Tee's (Sep 3, 2013)

*How To Find Subscribed Threads*

Click on your avatar near the upper right-hand corner of the site and select “following” from the drop-down menu.








This will bring you to a page where you can choose to view followed discussions, forums, your discussions, and participated discussions.













- Cricket


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## webtrekker (Jan 28, 2018)

Admin4Tee's said:


> Are you referring to the homepage?
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Go to this link in your browser and drag it to the Bookmarks Toolbar - New Posts Then a single click on the bookmark will open the New Posts page.


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## seacookie (Apr 29, 2015)

I am glad I have edit option available. I really need it, I make bunch of typos and bunch of mistakes cause of language barrier.

About deleting posts I will gladly bother stuff members, so they will not be bored and they will have more work. 😁


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## splathead (Dec 4, 2005)

seacookie said:


> About deleting posts I will gladly bother staff members 😁


Of course, it's never stopped you in the past.

You may want to reconsider your avatar since it's kinda obsolete. Folks might think you're racist.


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## seacookie (Apr 29, 2015)

splathead said:


> Of course, it's never stopped you in the past.








Now, off to find me a nice avatar 🤟


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