Heya!


I was given a suggestion by a friend which I have to agree with. Would it be possible to change the comments on file download pages so that newest responses are at the top and older responses are at the bottom. That way the most relevant info is available at the top as opposed to responses that might be weeks or even months old.

 

Thanks For Reading! 🙂

Edited November 30, 20205 yr by UnknownBastion

^I would second this.

I wonder whether it could even be a customisable option...

1 minute ago, Charlie686 said:

^I would second this.

I wonder whether it could even be a customisable option...

Maybe...but it should still default to newest on top. Not only will it give people the information they need quicker, it helps people make a quick informed decision about whether or not to download a mod.

I agree as well, that could be helpful

Generally sounds like a good idea, but I would prefer it being a customizable option.

There is already an option to take you to the latest comment when you open a thread, if it helps.

It does sound like a good idea for file uploads as well.

I disagree with this. It's a simple enough thing to hit the "end" key to jump to the bottom. While this might seem to make sense for a support forum, people would just read the last comment that says "that fixed it kthxbai" conveniently at the top, and type "i have the same problem too!!!1" without reading any of the diagnostics.

 

For files, latest first does make sense.

Edited November 29, 20205 yr by EvilJackCarver

6 hours ago, EvilJackCarver said:

I disagree with this. It's a simple enough thing to hit the "end" key to jump to the bottom. While this might seem to make sense for a support forum, people would just read the last comment that says "that fixed it kthxbai" conveniently at the top, and type "i have the same problem too!!!1" without reading any of the diagnostics.

To be fair, it has it's pros and cons so I think a customizable option would be nice.

If a thread is pretty long and is still unresolved, you'll have to get some information on what the problem is before trying to assist. Would be a bother scrolling back 20+ posts to read the original problem.

After all, the decision to add it or not depends on if the Staff thinks it's a good idea.

 

I have since edited my original post as it was brought up to me by that friend that I misinterpreted what they said. That being said, I would still, personally, like to see threads done the same way as well. So the most relevant info is near the top and readily available.

2 minutes ago, UnknownBastion said:

I have since edited my original post as it was brought up to me by that friend that I misinterpreted what they said. That being said, I would still, personally, like to see threads done the same way as well. So the most relevant info is near the top and readily available.

Doing it for files would be a good idea. I hope they take it into consideration.

As for topics, you seem to have a mixed opinion on this thread.

If I had read through this from latest posts to oldest, this thread would make no sense.

After all, getting context is the most crucial part of understanding something.

Yeah, when I made the suggestion, I was specifically talking about the comments on mod download pages. Since, comparing to other mod sites (Nexus Mods, Steam Workshop, etc) it is done by newest first. This is specifically so that users can see whether or not a mod is up to date and is working quickly and efficiently.

 

Older posts could be pinned by the OP if important.

 

As it stands, there is no real reason to have Download Page Comments sorted by oldest first, as it does not contribute anything to see someone's comment from 2019 about an outdated version of the mod.

 

P.S: On Forums more specifically, I can understand the need for oldest first but being customizable would be nice, as oldest first for forums provides a clear flow of events throughout a conversation, especially a support situation for example.

Edited November 30, 20205 yr by Vari

5 minutes ago, Jeffdadawg said:

Doing it for files would be a good idea. I hope they take it into consideration.

As for topics, you seem to have a mixed opinion on this thread.

If I had read through this from latest posts to oldest, this thread would make no sense.

After all, getting context is the most crucial part of understanding something.

It would best fit for Support Threads. Everywhere else wouldn't make sense.

Thinking about it, even on a support thread this could cause a lot of confusion. For example, lets say there's two issues and one is fixed then the other, someone could see "hey that fixed it" and get confused thinking that can fix one problem when it really fixes the other. Someone could also see "no that didn't work" and just be put off by that when a solution for their problem is actually right there. Hopefully I said that in a way that made sense

10 minutes ago, Vari said:

P.S: On Forums more specifically, I can understand the need for oldest first but being customizable would be nice, as oldest first for forums provides a clear flow of events throughout a conversation, especially a support situation for example.

^

I think this perfectly sums up my opinion with the idea.

 

1 hour ago, Mud said:

Thinking about it, even on a support thread this could cause a lot of confusion. For example, lets say there's two issues and one is fixed then the other, someone could see "hey that fixed it" and get confused thinking that can fix one problem when it really fixes the other. Someone could also see "no that didn't work" and just be put off by that when a solution for their problem is actually right there. Hopefully I said that in a way that made sense

Tbf, that same confusion happens with the current system. I have been going through threads helping people only to realize someone that had an issue wasnt even the original poster. Either way, the issue of people hijacking threads cant ever be negated. 

Just now, UnknownBastion said:

Tbf, that same confusion happens with the current system. I have been going through threads helping people only to realize someone that had an issue wasnt even the original poster. Either way, the issue of people hijacking threads cant ever be negated. 

I think that the better solution to this wouldn't be a "newest first" sorting method but instead a Q & A format like most support forums do (StackOverflow, Quora, etc) Where the question and answers are pinned at the top. On top of that, OP marking to distinguish OP and other users.

2 minutes ago, Vari said:

I think that the better solution to this wouldn't be a "newest first" sorting method but instead a Q & A format like most support forums do (StackOverflow, Quora, etc) Where the question and answers are pinned at the top. On top of that, OP marking to distinguish OP and other users.

This would be lovely for the Support Threads. And I believe was suggested before.

7 minutes ago, UnknownBastion said:

Tbf, that same confusion happens with the current system. I have been going through threads helping people only to realize someone that had an issue wasnt even the original poster. Either way, the issue of people hijacking threads cant ever be negated. 

Yes it is true the confusion already exists but my point was it could become worse.
 

6 minutes ago, Vari said:

I think that the better solution to this wouldn't be a "newest first" sorting method but instead a Q & A format like most support forums do (StackOverflow, Quora, etc) Where the question and answers are pinned at the top. On top of that, OP marking to distinguish OP and other users.

That would be amazing to have here.

I think it's not a bad idea to have latest comments first by default and an option to sort oldest first. Personally I hate seeing newest first, since reading the response to something first and not understand the context is annoying. However, I can see the benefits of seeing latest comments first when just wanting to download the mod since something from 2 years ago isn't relevant anymore. It would also help with moderation as we tend to see people responding to some accusation or argument that was resolved later in the comments (or later instructed to knock it off by a moderator). 

 

Edit: specifically referring to file comments here. Forum posts I believe should remain as-is. 

In regards to forum posts, I don't think it's how people in general expect forums to work and would likely cause confusion.

I know the community software we use (IPS/IPB) used to have this option a very long time ago but no longer does. I don't know if it would be the worth the effort to do custom work around this and it's not something I'm hugely thinking of exploring.

 

As for downloads, I will explore the work required and see if I can add it as an option.

13 hours ago, Vari said:

I think that the better solution to this wouldn't be a "newest first" sorting method but instead a Q & A format like most support forums do (StackOverflow, Quora, etc) Where the question and answers are pinned at the top. On top of that, OP marking to distinguish OP and other users.

This would probably work more if the questions asked were Q&A format. A lot of topics in the support forums really don't fit into that paradigm.

3 hours ago, Cyan said:

In regards to forum posts, I don't think it's how people in general expect forums to work and would likely cause confusion.

I know the community software we use (IPS/IPB) used to have this option a very long time ago but no longer does. I don't know if it would be the worth the effort to do custom work around this and it's not something I'm hugely thinking of exploring.

I assume that doesn't include download comments?