Official Let's hear your forum improvements!

Unit One

Unit One

Administrator
Staff member
Administrator
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Hello Terrarians! It's been a while since we had an official thread to take some of your forum suggestions, and with an influx of quite a few new members (hello all! welcome! :guidesmile: ), we wanted to be proactive and look into making some improvements based on what the community feels is needed. We can't promise that we can do everything, but we promise that we will look over everything and do our best.

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Give us your thoughts!
  • Why did you first come to the Terraria Community Forums? (example: to report a bug, find other players to play with, figure out why your house isn't valid, etc.)
  • When you were a newcomer, what do you remember was easy to navigate, and what were you confused about?
  • What works well? What functions of the forums do you like, what do you think is fine the way it is, what's your favorite part of the forums?
  • What could be improved upon? What features do you wish were here, what would make things easier, what isn't working as well as it could?

If you read an idea from someone else and you like it too, be sure to add on and let it be known that you agree, so that we know which ideas are resonating with the community. Thanks so much Terrarians! We'll be keeping an eye on this thread.



UPDATE - MONDAY, JULY 10, 2023

Thank you to all the Terrarians that gave feedback and suggestions! We have been looking over each of them and will try to implement some that we think can benefit the forums and members. There are also some that we wish we could do, but may not be able to, we'll have to see.

First up, we heard that quite a few of you found it hard to find the correct forum, that it was too cluttered, and that there were too many sub-categories. So you'll be seeing over the next bit of time (might be days, might be weeks) the forums will be going through some streamlining, in terms of simplifying forum sections. Some sections will be combined to lessen the clutter, some will be moved.

This will be done step by step to make the transition as seamless as possible, and to not interrupt the forums. When one portion is done, other portions will be focused on, so please excuse any construction dust as things get moved around. You shouldn't run into any problems, but if you do, wait 15 minutes, and if there still is a problem, let us know. :guidesmile:

COMPLETED July 10:

COMPLETED July 11

COMPLETED July 12
  • All sub-sections from Player Suggestions are now combined into the new Game Suggestions section (be sure to click the label before a thread title to sort for just that category)

COMPLETED July 14
  • Client/Server Mods & Tools Released section and Works-in-Progress section combined into the newly named Mods & Tools section, which is now under its own Modding section
  • General Mod Discussion renamed Modding Help
  • Player-Created Maps and Resource Packs (both Release and Works-in-Progress for each) combined into the Maps & Resource Packs section
  • General Map Discussion and General Resource Pack Discussion combined into the Map & Resource Pack Help section

COMPLETED July 16
  • Threads from PC General Talk, Console General Talk, and Mobile General Talk sections combined into the General Terraria Talk section (renamed from Crossroads section)



UPDATE - MONDAY, JULY 17, 2023

Announcement regarding the Mature Discussions section

Hello Terrarians, as we’ve gone through streamlining and simplifying the forum‘s layout and sections, we took the opportunity to re-look at some of the sections that may not be enriching the forums anymore. As we strive to make this the best place to discuss and talk about the game, as well as making it a safe haven to just hang out and chat with other Terrarians, the Mature Discussions section is falling into neither of those categories.

We love when Terrarians from around the world come here to talk about one of their favorite games, and it’s a treat when they stick around to keep discussing it, or stick around because they found a group of Terrarians to hang out with here, and that includes all of you reading this. :guidesmile:

So while we continue to focus on building a site that keeps the spotlight on Terraria discussions, and having a quaint corner of the forums dedicated to keeping the neighborhood and community feel alive (profiles and Non-Terraria Topics section), we are going to have to let the Mature Discussions section go.

This decision wasn’t made quickly or lightly. It’s been a discussion point behind the scenes for years, and we feel that now is the right time to move forward with it, as there are much more suitable places than these forums for the discussions of polarizing and controversial topics.

So what’s next? For now, the Mature Discussions section has been closed to new threads and new posts. At the end of the week, it will be removed, and going forward we’d like to keep the focus on Terraria and community, making this your friendly neighborhood Terraria hangout. With that in mind, topics that are controversial or polarizing should be taken off forum, and discussed elsewhere.


UPDATE - TUESDAY, AUGUST 22, 2023

NEWS FEED & LATEST ACTIVITY
We heard from quite a few of you that the News Feed (a feed that includes only people you follow), and the Latest Activity (a feed that includes all members) could benefit from a change, specifically if the reactions were excluded from this list, so that you could see more of the actual content that was posted, and I'm happy to say that we are trying out that new function starting today.

Ideally, it would have included a toggle - to show reactions or not - but we are limited to them either being off or on, and I'm hopeful that the benefits of having more actual content in the feeds outweighs the fact that we can't toggle it.

Along with that, there is now the ability for live updates - the feeds update live as new content is created - and, you can scroll farther down before having to hit the "Show older items" button.


UPDATE - TUESDAY, AUGUST 29, 2023

Terrarians, we have another update for you! I didn't think that this one would come so quickly after our last update, but who is going to look a gift horse in the mouth, right?

PIN PROFILE POSTS TO YOUR PROFILE
Our latest improvement that we think a lot of you will come to like immensely is the ability to pin your own post on your profile. If you ever wanted to sticky one of your own posts to appear at the top of your profile, we've made it happen. You'll see a "stick profile post" button option now, and you are able to have three pinned posts. Unstick them at any time you want.

Pro-tip: After you hit the "stick profile post" button, and it says "your changes have been saved", do a Refresh of the page to see the changes. :merchantwink:
 
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- I legitimately forgot my reason to come to the community fourms, but now since I'm using it more, i just have it as another place to check out Terraria stuff within the community without being in the official Discord server.
- I guess that everything works as it should? I'm familiar to GBATemp, which uses the same engine, so familiar stuff is taken place in the community fourms.
- I don't know anything that could be improved. for me, All I could say is that this place could be is a bit more active? I legit don't know how to answer this for myself. Everything works for me.
 
I have a feeling this will be suggested by about the entire roleplaying community here: A way to save custom text colors more easily. Currently I basically rely on chrome's autofill, but that's cleared out every time I switch devices or reinstall windows, and it does take a bit of poking before it adds a color. Being able to name saved colors would be helpful too because when you have hundreds of text colors it's hard to tell the codes apart aside from the ones I've memorized very well.
And on a similar note, ever since the 2021 forum update, my phone sometimes decides I'm not allowed to use text colors, as it won't close the selection window unless I actually tap the okay button, which usually overlaps with the post button, resulting in that button being less "apply text color" and more "Post the post you were still working on".
And I miss being able to edit the name of a poster in a quote without having to go into BBCode mode, but that's not something that can be fixed I think.
Other than that and that suggestion I made in the past (About making signature displaying preferences device-specific, which I'm guessing still won't happen anytime soon), I can't really think of anything, this site has been one of the most useable ones I've ever seen!

As for why I came, it was the vanity contest that brought me here, and the roleplays and community that made me stay.
 
Esther said:
I have a feeling this will be suggested by about the entire roleplaying community here: A way to save custom text colors more easily. Currently I basically rely on chrome's autofill, but that's cleared out every time I switch devices or reinstall windows, and it does take a bit of poking before it adds a color. Being able to name saved colors would be helpful too because when you have hundreds of text colors it's hard to tell the codes apart aside from the ones I've memorized very well.
And on a similar note, ever since the 2021 forum update, my phone sometimes decides I'm not allowed to use text colors, as it won't close the selection window unless I actually tap the okay button, which usually overlaps with the post button, resulting in that button being less "apply text color" and more "Post the post you were still working on".
And I miss being able to edit the name of a poster in a quote without having to go into BBCode mode, but that's not something that can be fixed I think.
Other than that and that suggestion I made in the past (About making signature displaying preferences device-specific, which I'm guessing still won't happen anytime soon), I can't really think of anything, this site has been one of the most useable ones I've ever seen!
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i agree with this one :guidegrin:
 
So, I suggest something that was in Spacebattles. Threadmarks - an inside-thread bookmark accessible to everyone who visit said thread.
Why?
It makes turn-based roleplays and character sign-ups easier to handle. Also, it makes for more convenience for artists, suggestion makers, lets-players etc.
 
Honestly over the past year I haven’t had many issues. The forums are pretty easy to navigate and it was fairly easy to figure out how things work. I really only have two suggestions.
  1. It would be nice if I could have a feed of the people I follow minus what they are reacting to. I would actually use the “Your News feed” tab if that were an option.
  2. I wish there was a way to make custom colored text more readable without highlighting it. I understand that people like to do it for fun or their characters but somtimes it’s impossible to read with the theme I use.
Oh and it would be cool if we had Zoologist emotes, we need some 1.4 NPC rep!
 
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1. I don’t remember how I came here, but I think I was looking up something.
2. I think the site is pretty easy to navigate, except I thought it was strange that AMAs are in the introductions section. I was also very confused by RPs and still kind of am, but that’s not a site structure problem.
3. I like conversations and profile posts, and I like the way threads are categorized as well. I think the overall site structure is great.
4. I think it would be nice to be able to see how certain titles are earned, because there isn’t a way to now as far as I’m aware.
 
Dark Axe Lancer 🪓 said:
4. I think it would be nice to be able to see how certain titles are earned, because there isn’t a way to now as far as I’m aware.
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forums.terraria.org

Trophies

You can earn trophies by carrying out different actions. This page shows a list of the trophies that are available.
forums.terraria.org forums.terraria.org
There is!

Edit: @Russ Guss Doodles🌈🪨 your second idea I agree with, it would be nice for people who want to see hard to see text. Maybe it could be similar to what Flight Rising has?
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They have a button that reverts at least the font size and color to the default settings temporarily (Until the button is pressed again, or the page is reloaded), only affecting your side and not that of other users.
 
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Unit One said:
Why did you first come to the Terraria Community Forums? (example: to report a bug, find other players to play with, figure out why your house isn't valid, etc.)
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I don't remember.
Unit One said:
When you were a newcomer, what do you remember was easy to navigate, and what were you confused about?
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I don't remember any real trouble navigating.
Unit One said:
What works well? What functions of the forums do you like, what do you think is fine the way it is, what's your favorite part of the forums?
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Honestly, I'd say the forums function pretty well in general. Not sure what I'd call my favorite part.
Unit One said:
What could be improved upon? What features do you wish were here, what would make things easier, what isn't working as well as it could?
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I'd really like to have a way to pin messages on my profile.
 
Heya! Glad to be here!

- I followed Redigit and a few of my friends. I was thinking about making a forum account a while back, but to be honest I couldn't really think of a reason to use it.

- I can't say much since I'm *still* a newcomer in a way, but since I've used forum boards before it wasn't too hard. I think the only thing I had trouble with was how trying to find threads was a bit hard, which is also something I've seen a lot of people say.

- Personally, I like the bunch of emotes that are here, and the several different reactions you can give people. Overall, the flow is pretty nice, although that might just be because of my previous forum experience.

- Extra reaction types can always come in handy. The one thing I'd really like, though, is an easier way to private message people on here. It's not too bad with the thread system, but it feels almost impractical sometimes. Well, not that a forum board is the best place to be DMing people anyway haha

That's about it though! Thanks for working to improve this all! Really enjoying it so far :guidegrin:
 
Esther said:
A way to save custom text colors more easily.
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I decided to make a crappy mockup of how it could look! My idea is that it could be a second tab when selecting a text color (the default tab being the one we have now, I would still use that a lot for the colors I have memorized a little too well (*Coughs* Olive, Navy and Myrica) and the one default color I use), though I have no idea if it can be pulled off like that. Still feel like showing it though!
Saved Colors Mockup.png

(I chose a few random colors of mine, Ilara because I had her color selected in GIMP, Navy because theirs is easy, and then Pai and Snowy were random choices from my color list)
 
Can we bring back the social groups please, I miss them.


In all seriousness,


  • I was a simple Terraria fan, of course. (also might be because of the roleplay social groups, but not sure)
  • Pretty sure around 2018 or 2019 is my debut, also social groups were nice, organized roleplay into one big thread with their own sub stuff.
  • Alot of it works well, I can't say any specifics, also roleplay.
  • I find it annoying that you can't search up "common words", also there are no social groups or even a underworld theme for that matter

Yeah, I don't have much to say...
 
Razor_Typhoon said:
Can we bring back the social groups please, I miss them.


In all seriousness,


  • I was a simple Terraria fan, of course. (also might be because of the roleplay social groups, but not sure)
  • Pretty sure around 2018 or 2019 is my debut, also social groups were nice, organized roleplay into one big thread with their own sub stuff.
  • Alot of it works well, I can't say any specifics, also roleplay.
  • I find it annoying that you can't search up "common words", also there are no social groups or even a underworld theme for that matter

Yeah, I don't have much to say...
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Social Groups? What are those?
 
Timburr471 🌳 said:
The one thing I'd really like, though, is an easier way to private message people on here. It's not too bad with the thread system, but it feels almost impractical sometimes. Well, not that a forum board is the best place to be DMing people anyway haha
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Well, there are conversation mssages, which I've found to work quite well normaly. So, are you referring to something outside of that, or...?

DragonMals said:
Social Groups? What are those?
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They used to be a feature of the forums before I joined, not entirely certain of the complete functionality, however they had to be removed for stability reasons.
I think if you go to te internet archives you can see an old version of the site when they still existed.
 
Dragonwolf73 said:
They used to be a feature of the forums before I joined, not entirely certain of the complete functionality, however they had to be removed for stability reasons.
I think if you go to te internet archives you can see an old version of the site when they still existed.
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I see.. Hopefully they get a resurgence! That sounds like an awesome feature that they should bring back.
 
Dragonwolf73 said:
Well, there are conversation mssages, which I've found to work quite well normaly. So, are you referring to something outside of that, or...?
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No I'm referring to that, I use those already but I've already reached about 10+ pages of messages in the past few days (don't ask). It just feels...a little inefficient? This isn't discord though so I don't mind
 
  • Was :red:ing around on the internet and thought this place looked cool. I was super into terraria at the time. Came for the game, stayed for the community. :guidegrin:
  • It was a little overwhelming being here at first, but I was able to navigate it with enough time and effort. I think the sheer content of the forums was the biggest hurdle to jump through.
  • I really liked the change to double posting. While it was a little annoying at first and took some getting used to, it really helps prevent spamming.
  • Since I primarily use the TCF and like, literally nothing else, I've always built my expectations around here. There hasn't really been a tool that I've needed yet. Changing how the Search tag functions would be nice, since I'd like to be able to find things easier, but it isn't really top of mind for me.
EDIT:

Being able to pin something in a discussion, public thread or private, would be cool. There are some things people say that are great and I would like to be able to get those replies higher up so others can see.
 
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I joined the forums to complain about medium core :/

The forums has always been pretty easy to use and I’ve like how it’s set up

The ability to pin a message to the top of you’re profile and being able to use short words in the search function (For example you can’t search for the thread Rate the Jam because of how the search function works)
 
DragonMals said:
I see.. Hopefully they get a resurgence! That sounds like an awesome feature that they should bring back.
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I've generally heard that they've wished to, but I don't think it was just one thing to plug in, it was more pieced together from several things. Though you may need either a mod or admin to get th full explanation.
Either way, as far as I'm aware, it's mostly been a case where they don't want to bring them back unless they know it can be supported into the future, so they don't have to go through the process of removing them again. And I don't even know if anything exists right now or not, I'm not that deep into the technical side of things.

Timburr471 🌳 said:
No I'm referring to that, I use those already but I've already reached about 10+ pages of messages in the past few days (don't ask). It just feels...a little inefficient? This isn't discord though so I don't mind
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Eh, I've used both TCF and Discord. Personally TCF is nice for sending longer messages, or using more formatting, stuff like that. Discord does seem a bit better for short messages though, but in the end I feel like they both fill separate niches.

Unit One said:
Give us your thoughts!
  • Why did you first come to the Terraria Community Forums? (example: to report a bug, find other players to play with, figure out why your house isn't valid, etc.)
  • When you were a newcomer, what do you remember was easy to navigate, and what were you confused about?
  • What works well? What functions of the forums do you like, what do you think is fine the way it is, what's your favorite part of the forums?
  • What could be improved upon? What features do you wish were here, what would make things easier, what isn't working as well as it could?
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And to actually answer this...
  • Roleplay and forum games honestly. From what I remember, I kind of just read things here without an account for a while, then somewhat drifted away, and came back a bit later. Started off reading some forum games that moved here from the Legend of Maxx forums, then moved on to other things. Eventually made an account so I could actually participate in things. So, in some ways I suppose I came here to interact with people?
  • It's been a while, so I'm not entirely certain. But generally I remember it being easy enough to find my way around.
  • I'm not entirely sure at the moment of an example of something that works particularly well, but generally most things seem to be decent enough. I definitely do like the forum themes however, and it is one thing that I find makes TCF stand out.
  • Better navigation in general. I've found the search function to have issues, such as certain times just giving you every post instead of ones just containing that term, or just in general seeming to have certain issues. I think it may also be bugged or have an issue as for some reason it's not giving me the option to see older posts unless I use advanced search right now? Though, something else that may be nice could be subscript and superscript? It may be niche, but you could combine it with anchors for navigation within posts. Bookmarks in conversations would be nice if that becomes possible. Not certain what else at the moment...
 
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