"Sticky" Suggestion
 

This is a minor quibble, but there are a few folks that are bothered by the sticky threads; mainly how it's difficult at first glance to distinguish them from normal ones. My suggestion would be to replace the text arrow with a picture, namely a pushpin of some sort:

http://communities.msn.com/_Secure/0...hpin_16x14.gif http://communities.msn.com/_Secure/0...hpin_14x12.gif

http://communities.msn.com/_Secure/0...pin2_17x17.gif http://communities.msn.com/_Secure/0...in2a_14x14.gif

So: good idea, or should I just sod off? :)

:thumbsup:

Why do you want to distinguish them from other threads?

If there's no need to have them distinguished from other threads, then why make threads sticky at all?

Replacing the generic '->' with a push-pin probably isn't a bad idea, since presumably these threads are marked as sticky to grab people's attention in the first place.

My problem is that there's too dang many of them. And how about a ONE AND ONLY petition thread. Get off my lawn, you fool kids.

I'll ask again, why do we need them distinguished?

The goal of a stcky thread is to garner attention and have it be read (correct?). By distinguishing it more prominently, it will be easier to ignore.

I think you should limit it ot 3 or less, IMHO.

Actually, with only the titles of the threads showing, I am less likely to read them. Typically, I'll read the announcements and the sticky's for the pure fact that they ARE distinguished. As of right now both are completely distinguished with either a question mark or an arrow.

However, the announcements are much easier to see. I think it would help people to know that they are important with one of those push pin graphics.

Maybe everyone else on this board clicks on each and every thread they see, and I am the anomoly. Somehow I do doubt that.

A sticky thread by definition has already been distinguished. They're set apart from other threads, and they're marked with an arrow indicator. At least, that fits the definition of 'distinguish' that I've always heard... :)

So certain discussions are made sticky to draw attention to those threads, but replacing the current sticky indicator with a graphic would be a mistake because it would draw attention to those threads? I'm sorry, but I don't really see the logic there. I would think that by distinguishing a thread more prominently, users would see those threads as having some sort of importance and perhaps more worthy of a click than others.

On the other hand, the uniqueness of the pushpin would really grab the attention of a new member, and it would also allow the regulars to easily see where the sticky threads end and the regular ones begin. Especially in the DVDTalk forum, this has been distracting me of late.

As for your limit of three to a forum, I definitely agree with that.

-David

Not really. A sticky tread remains up top. Short of '->' there is nothing else that makes it appear any different.

Amazingly I never said or implied either. Put your 'Jump to conclusions' mat away, Adam;) I am saying that people would quickly learn to ignore anything with a red pushpin next to it. Evidence? How about the death of the banner ad? People taught themselves to remove it from their visual fields yielding them far less impactful. I'm sorry if my reasoning lay in hard facts and goes outside the world of conjecture and simple logic, but real world evidence is always more appealing to me.

Now *this* line of argument I am completely open to. It may be the case, but I think that it would only apply to new forum members and not to currentmembers who would be resistant to such 'advertising'.

It's still being distinguished in some way, though, and for people who visit less frequently, the difference is even more obvious. Sticky threads, at least those in the forums I read, infrequently get responses, so the 'New Post' icon tends to be a different color than those below it. Sticky threads stand out considerably to me, at least.

You said that "the goal of a stcky [sic] thread is to garner attention" but that "distinguishing it more prominently" would result in fewer clicks. If the goal of a sticky thread is to distinguish it as being more important from other threads around it, how would an attention-drawing graphic defeat the purpose? I don't buy the argument that users will, at least to any significant extent, ignore them.

Are people learning to ignore any threads with a '->' next to it? Are people ignoring the announcements that are marked with a '?' and the word "Announcement" listed next to them?

Banner ads are a rather poor example. Banner ads are far bigger than, say, a 15x15 pixel graphic, and banner ads also aren't part of the content of the site I'm reading. Again, I can only speak for myself, but an icon would draw my attention to a thread, and if the subject sounded worth reading (in other words, if it's not another worthless petition), I'll probably click on it due to its perceived importance. The icons Aghama posted would blend in well with the other forum graphics and would accentuate threads, not distract or annoy.

There's no need to resort to this sort of snide tone, but I can't say I'm surprised...

I'd ignore sticky threads if they were consistently promotional in nature ('special deal!' or 'shop here!') or if the threads being made sticky were consistently worthless (like petition threads). As long as I didn't associate the icon with tripe, I personally don't see the presence of such a graphic as being negative in the slightest.

Just returning the favor on the sarcasm.:)

Removing the smiley from the first comment changes the tone drastically, and I meant it more as a playful jab in the first place. The second comment wasn't meant to be sarcastic. But anyway... :)

My observation is that sticky threads are either used to convey information to new users or to keep a thread that is relatively important or pertinent to that forum from being swept off the front page.

In the case of the former, an eye-catching graphic could only serve to draw more newbians to the thread.

For the latter, the thread is usually a one-time visit (e.g. petitions) or one that users can visit when they need or are providing specific information (DVD covers, Good Trader List). I think both of these types of stickies would benefit from being more easily distinguished.

Well said. I was creating a post that said the same thing but my cookies seem to be messed up and my post was lost. :(

Bushdog,

I think I was too tired when I first read your post. Are you saying that you think that by making the threads stand out more than they already do, that people will just start to ignore them?

If that's correct, then, while I see your point, I would have to disagree. Pretty much for the reasons Aghma gave.

And also, those pushpins look pretty damn cute! :D

Yep, you got my point, Blade. Fine that you disagree, and there is no real way we'll come to an agreement.

Plus, there's the special after-hours pin: http://communities.msn.com/_Secure/0...shpin_lewd.gif

:lol:

Yes, after reading all the points I'm still for the push pin; as long as it is not "animated." :D

Well, I can't speak for everyone, but in my case, yes. When scanning a forum page, my eyes will skip right over the Announcements and '->' threads until it comes to the first non-sticky, more often than not.

However, this is also true. In the DVD Clubs forum, I always know right where to find my FAQ thread, and all other times, I just ignore it.

There are so many stickies in DVD Talk, though, that I've just stopped scanning them, even for new ones.

I think a graphic would help distinguish it more for newbies, and won't necessarily be detrimental for regular users, given Aghama's reasons above.

IMO, the idea of a new icon for the sticky threads is an excellent one. I also think there should be a time limit on how long the thread remains a sticky... say 2 weeks perhaps? ;)

I dunno, what do you guys think?

<img src="http://www.aloha.com/~tabanger/dvdtalk/pushsticky.jpg">

i think as it is now.. i tent to look right past the sticky threads out of habit
one of those icons, would definitly draw attention to them everytime I look at the thread list

So we have a few 'yea's and a 'nay'. Anyone else want to chime in?

I like the pushpins a lot more. It makes it stand out more, and hopefully newbies will be more likely to see them and read them before posting redundant threads.