Idea for the 2010 hurricane season

[Cookie]

my spell checker has broken so sorry for the bad spelling but i have an idea and dont think my Dyslexia should stop me sharing it with you.

when the atlantic season gets under way we end up getting threads which end up being really long and when you're trying to find the latest hurricane imagery, eg posted by HURAKAN it very hard to find if you're in a rush or like to compare privous sets of images.

so i was woundering evern just for a trial period. if we could have 3 threads.

eg

one in depth techincal disscusion from the pro mets etc.

one just for the genral conversation the system

and final one just for the hurricane imagery and satellite images etc

any thoughts back would be great

[RL3AO]

I would support the idea of a satellite image and graphics thread. A discussion thread, a satellite/graphics thread, and models thread.

It might make it easier for some, especially those with slower connections.

[KWT]

I also agree, though the problem is there will be BIG overlap I feel between the discussion thread and the Sat/Graphic threads, because in the end you need images to show what you talking about...

[somethingfunny]

I also agree, though the problem is there will be BIG overlap I feel between the discussion thread and the Sat/Graphic threads, because in the end you need images to show what you talking about...

And we want to talk about the images, too.

We need to push the use of thumbnail images that don't load the full resolution until you click on them. That way the pages can load much easier.

For example:

Thumbnail


vs.

Full-sized image


A page filled with thumbnails should load just fine, but if they're all like that full-size image, we're going to have problems.

[KWT]

Yeah plus the page won't be so long either andas you say it'll help the sever load I'd have thought!

[TreasureIslandFLGal]

And it would be great if folks could limit the quotes, upon quotes, upon quotes that make a single message take up half a page.

[cycloneye]

my spell checker has broken so sorry for the bad spelling but i have an idea and dont think my Dyslexia should stop me sharing it with you.

when the atlantic season gets under way we end up getting threads which end up being really long and when you're trying to find the latest hurricane imagery, eg posted by HURAKAN it very hard to find if you're in a rush or like to compare privous sets of images.

so i was woundering evern just for a trial period. if we could have 3 threads.

eg

one in depth techincal disscusion from the pro mets etc.

one just for the genral conversation the system

and final one just for the hurricane imagery and satellite images etc

any thoughts back would be great

When invests pop up in the Atlantic,we have a general discussion thread for x invest at Active Storms forum.Also there is a models thread at that forum where the members post the model runs for any system. If there is recon to investigate a system,there is a recon thread.About a thread for satellite images only,surely any member can make a thread for that at Talking Tropics forum. About the pro mets discussion,apart from the Tropical Analysis forum where they post in depth discussions,they as we have seen,post comments in different threads.

[southerngale]

While I like the idea of a separate satellite image and graphic thread, I agree that it would constantly be overlapping, so I'm not sure it would work as well as we'd want it to. I REALLY like the idea of using thumbnails, or even just the link to the image. If someone is interested in seeing the image, they can click the thumbnail (or link). Many people are just looking for relevant info and it can be a nuisance to scroll through a gazillion, large sat images. It would also force people to save the images instead of posting them with the original links, which will eventually change, and then you have a disparity between between images and accompanying comments. We've requested this numerous times over the years, but many people still hotlink.

[somethingfunny]

My problem with the thumbnails is that while I can post a direct link to my image (the big one) and keep the rest of my images private, I only had the option to post a thumbnail image which goes to my imageshack album, giving everybody who clicks for the larger image access to the rest of my online photos as well. I mean there's nothing I'm concerned about being public posted there (it's the Internet, obviously)... so all you can see in that album is a few hundred photos I took during the freak snowstorms we had in Dallas this winter. But still I can see many people would feel uncomfortable doing that. I'm not so comfortable with it myself.

There's probably a way to post a thumbnail which links to a separate direct link, I just haven't discovered it yet. If someone knows how to do that, posting a thumbnail without providing access to the entire album, then we should probably provide a how-to thread and sticky it on every forum. It would save a huge amount of bandwidth both for people on slow connections as well as the S2K server. Saving a hotlink image into a static imageshack link is great because I hate going into a historical thread and seeing the remnants of some December invest that had a floater instead of the storm at peak intensity that I'd been reading about....but it is an awfully time-consuming hassle to save and upload every image like that. We have the ImageShack Toolbar but I've never been able to figure out how to use that one.

[southerngale]

I guess if someone is uncomfortable with everyone being able to view their other pics, they can just post the link to the image. I know that some people like seeing the images in the the threads, but it's rough on those with slower connections, not to mention annoying to those who are trying to read for updates (when there's a gazillion of them). We can't please everyone and someone won't like how it's done, but hopefully, we can find a good solution that benefits the majority of the users, as well as the server, and push that.

There's a sticky in this forum where we talked about this, as well as other, issues.

ImageHosting.com uploads pics, as well as thumbnails. That could be a solution for those not wanting to link to their ImageShack accounts.

[brunota2003]

One could also create a separate account for images they plan on loading specifically onto S2K...that way there is no worry about what people could see.

I know how rough it is...Iraq's "high speed internet" is no better than dial up in the states. It takes me an hour just to upload 5 photos from my camera onto facebook.

Luckily, for images on the threads though, it only takes a few minutes to load a couple images. Though if you imagine during the peak of a storm here, in that few minutes, 2 or 3 new pages of posts could be there once I click "refresh" after the images finish uploading!!!

Another thing that really kills are the animated images. Don't get me wrong, I love radar loops and sat loops, but they take forever to load up!

[wxman57]

And it would be great if folks could limit the quotes, upon quotes, upon quotes that make a single message take up half a page.

You can also remove the image tags if you quote someone who posted an image. No sense in posting the images twice.

[Ivanhater]

Is there any way to just have storm2k automatically shrink images posted even more. Perhaps down to the size of a thumbnail? It is far easier to post an image with the IMG tags. If it automatically shrunk the images even more than it does now, that could work.

[Derek Ortt]

how about no hotlinking... that would solve the issue of slow loading pages

[southerngale]

Is there any way to just have storm2k automatically shrink images posted even more. Perhaps down to the size of a thumbnail? It is far easier to post an image with the IMG tags. If it automatically shrunk the images even more than it does now, that could work.

I love this idea and will check on it.

People would still need to save the images and upload them through Imageshack, TinyPic, etc.

[Macrocane]

You can also remove the image tags if you quote someone who posted an image. No sense in posting the images twice.

That would be great, it's very annoying when someone quotes a post with an image, and it's even worse when someone else quotes that quote.

[somethingfunny]

I guess if someone is uncomfortable with everyone being able to view their other pics, they can just post the link to the image. I know that some people like seeing the images in the the threads, but it's rough on those with slower connections, not to mention annoying to those who are trying to read for updates (when there's a gazillion of them). We can't please everyone and someone won't like how it's done, but hopefully, we can find a good solution that benefits the majority of the users, as well as the server, and push that.

There's a sticky in this forum where we talked about this, as well as other, issues.

ImageHosting.com uploads pics, as well as thumbnails. That could be a solution for those not wanting to link to their ImageShack accounts.

Oh.

[TreasureIslandFLGal]

I don't know if it is possible, but it would also be great if the system could prevent people from posting the exact same comment multiple times. -and on multiple threads.

I love going through the different threads of a storm for the relative data that should be contained in those threads, but often times found that someone would post their same observation in all 3 locations. I mean, we all read all the threads, so nobody has to drill their point across like that. haha.

Maybe the site can also automatically refuse to post any messages with less than, say, 10 words in them. That would screen out all the "I agree!", "me too", "OMG!", and other useless comments. -which are often the ones that people add after they quote a quote (and another quote!) to say!

Please don't get me wrong, I don't want to sound like I think this site is just a hassle. I love it! I have for years! -but some "common sense" posting etiquette seems to escape some of our posters. -and the childish feuds that can erupt here can also get way out of line and deter new members or our revered professionals from continuing to visit the site.

As much as I support young folks being interested in weather and science, I wish there was a way to exclude those under a certain age from here unless they are "sponsored" by another older member. -maybe who knows them personally or knows them from another such site and can vouch for their posting behavior. There were many times over the last especially 2-3 years when we both were finding ourselves so frustrated just trying to weed through the garbage to get to the "good" weather discussion and get to the critical information that we were looking for. -and I know there were many others who felt as we did, since the comments about waiting "...until the kids go to school...", or "...go to bed," were common amongst the "old timers" who wanted to return to the site's original quality discussions.

It is a great place to learn and practice the art (and science) of weather analysis and forecasting, with a great mix of pros and novices alike. Everyone needs to treat eachother with respect and patience no matter the skill levels represented here. -but we should not allow those who do not display courtesy and respect to others, or behave immaturely, to be allowed to stay. (jumping down off my soapbox now)

To the Mods: you guys are great! I can't wait for another great season on this site! (time to go donate now...)
~Chrissy

[southerngale]

Your "I agree!" and common sense posting comments reminded me of a thread I made years ago: http://www.storm2k.org/phpbb2/viewtopic.php?f=37&t=85432&p=1328654#p1328654
We do get a lot of young people who are interested in the weather. While they are sometimes over-zealous, often times they just need to learn the ropes a little, then they settle down. Also, some of our best posters started posting here as teenagers. And we've had teenagers who are much more mature than some adults.

Believe it or not, for all the "useless" one-liners you see, you probably can't imagine how many we're deleting in the background. We do treat the Active Storms forum differently than TT. The staff tries to keep the threads cleaner, deleting comments like "I agree," "Wow," "me too," etc. but depending on the thread (threat), it's often impossible to keep up. There have been many days in the past where some of us have spent nearly the whole day on here, tending to the threads and other problems that arise, yet we still can't catch them all. So we do ask that you exercise some patience as we're doing our best. But please, use the "Report this post" feature for any questionable posts that you think might need staff attention. An alert shows up that all staff members can see. We do our best to go through the threads, but we also rely on you guys to report problem posts. If you're not sure, that's ok. We'll check it out and see if it needs further attention.

[brunota2003]

Lyke, OMG, I agree! Sorry...I had to do it =]

The thing I fear is the use of SMS...a lot of today's incoming teenagers have pretty much been raised on "smsing", and they do not understand that sms is supposed to be used on phones (oh how I hate it...if you text me, please write in full sentences, if you have to send me more than one text, so be it!) and NOT on forums...or anywhere else on the internet for that matter. I understand some may have trouble with grammar and spelling, that is perfectly fine, and I give you kudos for at least trying! Heck, I know I have to go look up the spelling of words quite a bit, so...(add on that mild dyslexia and ocuh!)

With the age thing, I started posting here when I was 14 (19 currently, 20 in September...woo!) and must say I have learned a lot through reading discussions on the boards here, along with posting questions and my own thoughts. I also agree that a lot of my peers, when I was 14, would of probably done nothing but spam this site (whether it was for the fun of it, or on accident)...but there are a few of us out there that are interested enough, or care enough, to want to be on a site such as this.

This random rambling brought to you by: The Dining Facility's wonderful choice of food.