GTAGaming V2

[Zidane]

GTAGaming 2.0 is currently being worked on. There will be a new news/comments script, new forums, new designs, and more. Now, we won't list all the new features yet, but rest assured we are aware of problems and things people don't like, and they are being fixed/improved to the fullest. Please comment on what you don't like and be constructive because it can impact the future of the site. If you don't like something, voice your opinion now so we can help make it better.

[ScoobyDoo82]

when will GTAGaming 2.0 be released?

[Zidane]

Soon. ;)

[Boot Legger™]

how soon

[Evan]

This sounds sweet. I suppose this had to happen some time. To update and "refresh" GTA Gaming. I'm all for it. Sounds like a good idea to me. I have some suggestions.

1. Dont allow unregistered users to post comments or post in forums.

2. Improve the affiliation system, unfortunately hosted sites such as mine cant affiliate with GTA Gaming but make a decent system for the rest of the GTA web public.

3. Bring back old features, such as the Precedent, that was sweet. Like maybe having a weekly stunt contest.

4. Use better quality image destinctions for your header, such as high quality .jpg.

5. Make the pages slightly more attractable, dont get me wrong I love the GTA Gaming layout. But try and include more image's etc. into the page like in the navagation bar's etc.

You can improve some error's in scripting. Such as how bugs appear when using Mozilla Firefox, as many people use this browser such as myself.

There could possibly be a file submittion script allowing users to upload their favourite GTA mods and allow admins/moderators to accept them before they are found in the pafiledb.

Allow users to delete and edit their own comments. It would be very useful.

The ad banner's found under the header's at Edge have bugs, I can prove this if anyone wants to know more about this problem.

Yes there is a long list, but it's all to make GTA Gaming a better place.

Edit: If there are going to be new forums will that meen our post counts will be lost?

[brokenfish]

Originally posted by Boot Legger
how soon why do you people ask stuff like that?

. Bring back old features, such as the Precedent, that was sweet. Like maybe having a weekly stunt contest. hey, the tri-daily stunting contest is at the mod shack. i already took this idea :p

[rappo]

i agree with Evan, dont let unregistered people post comments. they are always negative. at least if theyre registered, we've got their IP.

[brokenfish]

you know, that used to be how it was. i tried turning off posting for guests but it didnt seem to work.

one more thing
Use better quality image destinctions for your header, such as high quality .jpg.thats not always good. you have to think about the whole site overall. sometimes optimization isnt always in the images ;)

[Evan]

I should be an admin here.... :-> I wish LoL. I would really like to see the Precedent back here, that would be sweet. And yesh, I hate the meeningless posts from un-registered guests in comments. I dis-like it so much.

[PyroHazard]

Could you at least give us a screencap preview? Anyway, I hope 2.0 has easier navigation :)

[stoudimaire]

from all the fansites i've seen, this is the best looking one.

oh yeah Zidane, Kodo, whoever, I remember your site before Vice City came out and you guys had all those previews and stuff about it. do you guys still have like cached images of the old layout?. i just wanna see what the old site looked like again, with the miami trees as the banner i remember :) i dont kno, just wanted to see it... for nostalgic reasons i guess :)

[Kodo]

I was thinking about writing a page called The History of GTAGaming, not really for anyone, just for my own nostalgic and archiving purposes ;p It would have how the site was created, trials, successes/failures, bumps along the road we'd like to forget, and all the different designs and hosts. I'll add this for GTAGaming 2.0 then heh.

I have the old designs saved on my computer, but I don't have time now. I'll see if I remember to upload a screencap after work tomorrow.

[Evan]

Being said that there will be a new design, does this meen that the GTA Gaming layout will be different from the Edge layouts? Or will it be running under the Edge layout?

[Kodo]

Edge layout but different GTA themes with improved navigation. I guess they would be more like improved skins but we'll call them new designs.

[Evan]

Sweet, im excited. Without giving away to much will there be a release date given for when GTA Gaming V2 will be released, or is it coming in very soon? Will we have to wait weeks?

[G T A god]

sounds great!

I'm cool with all of this as long as we don't have to re-register or something like that.

[free2play]

I still want the Countdown to SA on the site

[Lynk]

Sweet
I'm just up but this sounds cool:D

[steelhawk]

First off, great job on this site no matter what, and here is my constructive criticism/ideas.

1. Any possible news or places to go, for ANY TYPE of merchandise for GTA be it keychains, hats, shirts, bags, anything. Maybe a merchandise section.
2. I love checking out forums, but i cannot stand seeing racist remarks and the RIDICULOUS posts that have nothing to do with GTA. I hate censorship, but I can't stand when i want to read about GTA these kids are swearing and being so stupid. More restrictions on posting, not stop swearing cause I BELIEVE IN FREEDOM OF SPEECH AND NOT CENSORING ANYTHING, but if you could keep these posts in a seperate forum, if they have nothing to do with GTA. Thanks, and keep up the great work!!!

[.:Mouldy Punk:.]

The navagation definatly needs to be fixed, and so do the overall colour scheme. The pink is like Vice City, but its a dirty pink and doesn't look good in my oppinion. Also, now that san andreas is on the way, I think it will be good to have san andreas colours. Maybe even have a colour/theme chooser, have a orange/black/white one for san andreas, pink/white/black one for vice city, black/grey/white for gta 3.

[GTA_Dealer]

I don't know whether it will be feasible, but some sort of voice support would be nice, like a voice-enabled chat or a voice - enabled forum. And also I'd like to see more (violent) smileys and maybe a Flash navigation menue that will replace the one to the left, in other words, more ocular bling will be welcome.

[Chris]

Edge layout but different GTA themes
You mean there will be more than one theme?
that would be cool, like a different colour scheme for each gta game?

also i think that the new design should go away fom these dark black colours, it should be more lighter.

and whoever said about users uploading files, just get the upload hack for pafiledb but modify it so they have to be a registered edge member so you dont get guests uploading viruses etc
actually thinking about that its bad because anybody could then upload anything they want

sounds cool so far anyway

[$kyline]

1. Is there any way to make the downloads be straight from gtagaming.com instead of edge files, because when I go to download a car or something when I click download on the page it brings me to edgefiles...it sounds dumb but it really irratates me that I have to go back to gta gaming after im done downloading if i want to download another car.....

2. MORE MODS
gtagaming is supposed to be the #1 source for GTA but it doesnt have as near a many mods as codenamevice,gta-series,gtanetwork,and the old mod-shack...

[.:Mouldy Punk:.]

One more thing....fix the table thing with firefox, just put a valign="top" in the td cell that the forums are in.

[rappo]

1. Is there any way to make the downloads be straight from gtagaming.com instead of edge files, because when I go to download a car or something when I click download on the page it brings me to edgefiles...it sounds dumb but it really irratates me that I have to go back to gta gaming after im done downloading if i want to download another car.....

well, the gtagaming server is capped at 5.0 kb/s so i doubt many people will like that. for me, it's no difference because ive got a 56k,... but i know some people will be mad at that :p

2. MORE MODS
gtagaming is supposed to be the #1 source for GTA but it doesnt have as near a many mods as codenamevice,gta-series,gtanetwork,and the old mod-shack...

working on that constantly. it's not easy just to pop mods out of a hat. but i would also like to point out that some sites (i won't be naming anything) just grab whatever they can (even if that means stealing) and throw them on a website.

You mean there will be more than one theme?
that would be cool, like a different colour scheme for each gta game?


yes.

and whoever said about users uploading files, just get the upload hack for pafiledb but modify it so they have to be a registered edge member so you dont get guests uploading viruses etc
actually thinking about that its bad because anybody could then upload anything they want

thats in the making also. but its not a pafiledb hack... so hang tight for that. and no, not everything people upload will just appear in the DB. admin approval will be needed, of course.

The navagation definatly needs to be fixed, and so do the overall colour scheme. The pink is like Vice City, but its a dirty pink and doesn't look good in my oppinion. Also, now that san andreas is on the way, I think it will be good to have san andreas colours. Maybe even have a colour/theme chooser, have a orange/black/white one for san andreas, pink/white/black one for vice city, black/grey/white for gta 3.

as kodo said, there will be different themes.

[codman]

I cant wait!!!!!!!

[RyanSE]

I think its time to design the whole site arounf the theme of San Andreas.. just like you guys did for VC. Whatever you guys do.. redesign or not. im sure ill love it either way.

[Shawn]

Since it's me doing a bulk of the work on this redesign (not to take the spotlight away from the actual staff on the site who work every day on the site!), I just thought I'd make a post on this thread. It will be quite long but hopefully will answer any questions.

The Design:
--------------
I'll be sticking with the edge skeleton still, some people don't like but the staff do and the recent poll suggests people like fixed-width designs, or at least the way the site currently is. So, for simplicity the skeleton design is the same.
GTAGaming is one site, it's not like those other sites who devote a domain per game. The staff and myself all agree that is a waste. But we also agree what we have is completely disorganized, my fault really as I'm the programmer/designer. They've done the best they can to make it easy, but in the end this is supposed to be my job.
With that said, when you load the San Andreas part of the site it will almost be as if it is it's own site. The theme will obviously be San Andreas, news page will show only San Andreas news, so on so forth. It will take time for ALL of this to be completely finished (ie. showing files ONLY about San Andreas, POTDs ONLY for San Andreas, etc), but the first "version" of it isn't TOO far away.


Files:
------
A HUGE issue I'm aware. EdgeFiles Sucks! EdgeFiles Sucks! Don't use EdgeFiles! I hear it all the time. If it's any consolation the GTAGaming staff don't like it either. EdgeFiles is not a luxury option, it's not something we're doing just to inconvenience you either. EdgeFiles is a necessary evil - bandwidth costs money. EdgeFiles' purpose is to alleviate costs by spreading the usage over several servers. GTAGaming itself - JUST WEB TRAFFIC - does around 10gb/day. Not including it's hosted sites who, btw, get bannerless hosting as long as they don't use TOO much.

With that said, although this also won't take effect straight away, our network sites starting with GTAGaming are going to have EdgeFiles built into it. However, we still have to place additional ads to cover costs on the file pages (rest of site will still use standard banner at top of page), but you will not have to be linked to edgefiles to download first.


Forums:
---------
This will take the longest to implement. Say goodbye to edgeforums, I know a lot of you also don't like this setup. Those of you who do, if anything you've just grown comfortable with this site instead of preferring it. The staff are severely limited for customization here, for reasons that are my fault also. I like vBulletin but it costs way too much to have one on every site, hence why edgeforums was created - one vBulletin for all network sites.
Well, that's going to change. The new idea is to setup a forum on each network site, using Invision Board or PHPBB (undecided). This will give the staff complete control over it, instead of "Junior Member" you might be a "Thug" to fit in with GTA theme. Not only that, but you'll be able to choose a GTA3/ViceCity/SanAn theme while using the forum.
All sites' forums will still tie to edgeid, you will not have to worry about that at all.


Any questions?

[Shawn]

News:
-------
I wanted to add. When you load the default news page (http://www.gtagaming.com/), for good reason it will show all news posted. However, if you simply do not care about anything other than San Andreas, you will be able to customize the main page so that it shows only the news you want to see. Want to see only Vice City Mods AND All San Andreas News, but nothing else? Ok, you can make it do that.

Other Features We're Not Telling You About
------------------------------------------------------
We have a few other ideas on little things just to make your stay at the site that little bit cooler. These aren't big things, they won't change a lot, they'll simply make you say "hey neat". And that's all any of us will say on the matter :)

[brokenfish]

id say go with invision power board. from my experience with both, id say invision is easier to integrate into a site (especially one that uses coding, not just html) and it contains a huge load of features that phpbb currently lacks. sure the invision license costs money (or are you planning on indefinitely "evaluating" it? :p ), but the staff works hard for it. phpbb has been "stuck" on a version for a while now. the staff says theyre working on 2.2, but thats been "worked on" for over 2 years now. still no real progress. its still in the 2.1.x stages after two years. im guessing itll be another two years for them to reach 2.2.x.

vbulletin might seem like a more affordable option ($40 less than ipb) if you were to actually buy a license. it comes with many features too, and doesnt seem too hard to use.

also id like to just say that youve done a great job with gtagaming and without you, it probably wouldnt have gotten this far. stop focusing on "your faults" and look on the bright side of stuff. im a pessimist and perfectionist too but i have reason to be like that. youve already achieved this much, and are about to go beyond it. congratulations.

[Evan]

Very good stuff there Shawn, not to sound corny here but im willing to devote time for designing, html coding and imaging, I am willing to help out, as im fluent and have much spare time as im on holidays. I have the ability to code my entire site (hosted under GTA Gaming ofcourse) I would love to help with V2. One thing Shawn, will at these additions be released as finshed or will be halted until all are finshed and the complete release will be made?

[Shawn]

Although I'm the type to do a complete release, I think it'd be more appreciated if the design+themes+news+"sections" is released as soon as possible.

[Evan]

Would it be possible if I could help out with anything, im more than happy. If not it's fine but I would love to help out.

[Neil]

Perhaps you should spend time updating your own site, Evan.

I'm sure Shawn can cope on his own. :)

[rappo]

Oh, and expect more GTAIII mods... if you check now, you can see that I am periodically uploading more.

[brokenfish]

:)

if Shawn wants me to div-ize the site (should load a bit faster, might look nicer, maybe), id help too. but last time i checked no help was needed ;) Shawn is the independent kind of guy.

expect me to release more mods too. mission ones of course. :p theyll be quick ones that wont take up any real time. stuff like real NOS or just brokenBoost, among other things

[Evan]

Will we be allowed to see some screen shots of the new layout(s). I think it would be good if we, the general public get to see the layout design progress instead of keeping it private until release.

[.:Mouldy Punk:.]

I think they should keep it secret. I like suprises. If they show us a bit more each time then it won't be much of a suprise when the changes happen.

[brokenfish]

yeah. i dont think shawn should even have told us about this.

[.:Mouldy Punk:.]

well...I think that was a good idea. Because everyone might love this layout to bits and he could put all the effort into making a new one....then people won't like it as much.

Ok...I don't think that made sense...but hopefully it made enough sense for you to make sense of it :)

[brokenfish]

uhhh... :evil3:

i think that makes sense but i dont remember anyone suggesting layout ideas to him and i dont remember him asking for any. :confused:

[free2play]

I think there should be more forum categories like a graphics category.

[.:Mouldy Punk:.]

I don't like the look when there are loads of forums but I like the idea of sub forums. Like have an off topic forum, then in that forum have "graphics" "other games" and stuff. Otherwise it makes the forum homepage look cluttered.

[rappo]

Will we be allowed to see some screen shots of the new layout(s). I think it would be good if we, the general public get to see the layout design progress instead of keeping it private until release.

it's nto only the general public... i haven't even seen it yet :p

[SIG Loco]

Yo wass up i think u should change up the color a lil bit but keep it dark colors o and maybe adding like some u know maybe games like lil mini seires games or like short stories off Grand theft auto and stuff like that but this is a great site well good luck o and do let unregestered memebers post comments but as a name they want like anonoymous or bigboi4576 yeah but don't let them in the furoms just comments in the lastes news

[phreak]

Originally posted by SIG
Yo wass up i think u should change up the color a lil bit but keep it dark colors o and maybe adding like some u know maybe games like lil mini seires games or like short stories off Grand theft auto and stuff like that but this is a great site well good luck o and do let unregestered memebers post comments but as a name they want like anonoymous or bigboi4576 yeah but don't let them in the furoms just comments in the lastes news

Hehe. I was having a hard time translating what you just said. But the part about the gusts posting, I just don't think they should be able to. They should register first and THEN post their comments. I mean, a guest could be banned member making a comeback or something. We wouldn't want that, would we?

[gtaplayer]

2 words CHAT ROOM

[free2play]

Can you give us a hint top when V2 is coming without using the word"soon" or any other word like that?

[$kyline]

so when when will GTAGaming v2 be out?

[Kodo]

Soon-ish

[brokenfish]

for anyone else that may be thinking about it, dont ask again. PLEASE

[Lance]

I would like to see the max size for an avatar increased from 70x70 pixels to about 100x100 pixels. Since most pics from google are just under 100 pixels it would be easier then to have to decrease the size and all. Chat room is also a good idea and alerts when a private message is received wouldn't hurt either.

[Bye all! :(]

V 2.0 sounds like it's gonna be sweeeeet.

[Olin]

Originally posted by Lance
I would like to see the max size for an avatar increased from 70x70 pixels to about 100x100 pixels. Since most pics from google are just under 100 pixels it would be easier then to have to decrease the size and all. Chat room is also a good idea and alerts when a private message is received wouldn't hurt either. The avatar settings effect the entire forum. So 'everyone's' avatar on Edge can be up to 100x100 pixels.

Don't think that will happen.

[Firestorm]

I can't wait to see the outcome of this.