Thread display options

Hi, Percy.I occasionally post on a Mormon internet forum site, and, while I find that site less intellectually stimulating, less well moderated and less well designed overall, there is one feature there that I like quite a bit. Here is a thread from that forum (notice I picked one about evolution). At the top of the thread, on the right side, there is a "Display Modes" option. You can select "linear," "hybrid" or "threaded" mode.Threaded and hybrid modes display an outline of the thread, in which each message is listed underneath the message it replies to. It's problematic on that site because of the (relative to EvC) low level of computer and forum savvy there and the clunkiness of the system, but it has its advantages, and I would like an option like this to be considered for EvC.What I like about it is how it helps in searching a thread for specific content. When trying to join a thread that has been going for awhile, an outline format would be useful for finding where and how a particular vane of discussion started, and filtering the thread for the context of each sub-thread. It could also help organize the clutter of active, branching threads.Does this sound like something that you would consider?

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-Bluejay (a.k.a. Mantis, Thylacosmilus)Darwin loves you.

Motion seconded.Maybe there could be a "map" mode as well (unless that is what you meant by 'threaded' mode, 'jay) which displays only an outline of the thread; messages as nodes in a directed graph/tree with the links as lines connecting them.A mouse-over function could display the message's information like number, author, time and date, subject heading, rating, etc. while also clicking on the message node would take you to that message in the linear format.Having checkboxes next to each node so you can select which parts of the topic you want to read seems like another idea to add on; that way you can isolate messages by a given author or authors (and keep track of what they have been saying back and forth) or by considering which posts are linked (so that as Bluejay says, you gather the context of each message) or by just which ones seem interesting (like, looking at their ratings and the subject).

Too many new threads have been proposed in the past four days, and my suggestion got relegated to the second page of the "Recent Topics" list.

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-Bluejay (a.k.a. Mantis, Thylacosmilus)Darwin loves you.

If you click on the topic mood icon, to the left of where it says Message # of #, then you get the other display mode.

I didn't miss this thread, I just don't have a response right now, but I think there is some information that I'd find helpful. Many of this discussion board's unique features come from me feeling a need for a feature or improvement, and I do mean feel. I feel the need because I use the discussion board almost every day, and its limitations can become painfully apparent.The problem for me with your suggestion is that I don't feel the need for it. Intellectually I understand the need and what you want to be able to do, but I don't feel it. If I'm making any sense, can the people in favor of alternative thread presentations help me to somehow feel how important and useful it is? Explaining is sort of okay, but referencing me to specific pages and scenarios at other discussion boards would probably work best.

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--	Percy
	EvC Forum Director

Hi, Admin.An example would be, for instance, in Genuine Puzzles In Biology?.I just discovered a new post from herebedragons with the subtitle "Why plants are green." It isn't related to the posts directly above it, and it's been awhile since that subject was discussed, so I would want to reread the background on "Why plants are green."I can follow the "Reply to" links back or even scroll through looking for the subtitle, but I don't know how many messages back I would have to go, and the page has to reload frequently. If there was an outline map, I could find out where this line of discussion started and go directly there.Sometimes a message will have multiple replies, and will start branching off. A tree diagram would be more helpful in following all the branches than following the "reply to" links one click at a time.Also, I often find new topics accumulate posts very quickly, and I try to read the thread background before joining in to make sure I'm not being redundant. It's easier to read through a thread by following a single conversation than it is to read everything chronologically.I mean, I've learned to get by just fine without it, and I don't think it's strictly necessary to make EvC enjoyable or useful, but I like the idea of having that extra little bit of organization.

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-Bluejay (a.k.a. Mantis, Thylacosmilus)Darwin loves you.

Actually, you convinced me. I have the same problem finding the root of a discussion.The implementations I'm aware of just keep indenting with each reply, and I would strongly resist that approach. You mentioned tree diagrams. Is there a discussion board you can point me to that does it that way?Another possible feature would be to display only the messages in a chain of replies. Analogous to the "Bluejay Posts Only" link, it might be named something like "This Message Chain Only".

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--	Percy
	EvC Forum Director

I'm not one of those calling for such a change. I'm reasonably satisfied with what we have. However, since you are looking for examples, try this one:Comcast Jumps Into The Home Security Game - Though services come with a steep $770-$1100 ETF | DSLReports, ISP InformationAnd then, if you find what appears to be the head of a subtree, say the 4th post down (not counting the top news report), then click the "permalink" near the bottom of that post, and you have a flat view of the branch of the tree below that post.

I'm with nwr in being generally satisfied. But viewing only a message chain would be great, assuming it consolidates upthread to the branching point when I start with a recent post. Is that what you mean?If that's doable without too much distress, it seems that filtering a message chain so that I can read through a conversation between two posters should be a piece of cake.

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Dost thou prate, rogue?
-Cassio

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Real things always push back.
-William James

I had been considering this myself recently, funnily enough. Given the forum, a family tree (with periodic 'special creations' for general replies) seemed an amusing way to order the discussions here. I've not seen it before - but when I tried drawing it out, while fun it was a little clunky.When a back and forth occurs you end up with a long 'thread' that looks ugly and if a pile on occurs the diagram can get huge in all directions quite quickly.Ideas about having options of showing certain 'families' of posts led to the idea of message chains...perhaps with a small navigatable 'map' of the full tree - but then I realized I was getting ahead of myself and I've been struggling to come up with a pragmatic and aesthetically pleasing way of doing it. I hadn't thought it about it for a little while so it was quite surprising to see the idea on the boards

Hi, Admin.I only use this forum and the Mormon forum I linked to in the OP (but only when topics about evolution or science come up), so I'm afraid I can't help you by providing an aesthetically-pleasing view.I rather prefer the way lds.net does it to the way NWR's link does it: basically, lds.net just lists the message title and the author in the indented tree diagram, and you can click on a node in the diagram to view the chain of messages that starts there. It's useful as a quick reference to find the beginning of a certain chain, but it gets clunky when people don't use the "reply to specific message" feature, and when they become so convoluted that the outline diagram is a complete mess.But, threads here don't accumulate half-posts as rapidly as lds.net, and posters usually learn quickly to reply to the correct post, so the diagrams probably won't be as intractable here as they are there.I also like your idea of having a "message chain" link like the "Display this member posts only" link, but I don't think it does the same thing I'm thinking of here (not that that means I think it shouldn't be considered, because it is a good idea).

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-Bluejay (a.k.a. Mantis, Thylacosmilus)Darwin loves you.