Mobile Options

[Simon Kirby]

This forum site is almost unusable on mobile. Am I doing it wrong or is the site just naff. I hav e to pan and zoom all the time and I want it to present itself so I can make sense of it on a smart phone and a layout that designed for a PC screen is hopeless (although the fixed-width presentation is also pretty horrible on a PC too).

[Andy Capp]

This forum site is almost unusable on mobile. Am I doing it wrong or is the site just naff. I hav e to pan and zoom all the time and I want it to present itself so I can make sense of it on a smart phone and a layout that designed for a PC screen is hopeless (although the fixed-width presentation is also pretty horrible on a PC too).

I've got used to it. I believe there are apps that re-render forums, but I have never used any.

[On the edge]

Must admit, I thought it was just me! Clearly not.

[Simon Kirby]

It looks like our version of IP Board, v2.3.6, was released in 2008, and that's ancient in IT terms. IPB is still supported and developed and there is a mobile version, but it's not free. Still, it would be nice if NWN could buy us an upgrade - all that insightful criticism and informed comment we contribute gratis must surely be worth the investment... How about it NWN?

[Simon Kirby]

I've got used to it. I believe there are apps that re-render forums, but I have never used any.

Hmm, actually I could write something to do that.

[x2lls]

Hmm, actually I could write something to do that.

Simon, I am not sure if it is possible if you can write an app(lication) for just your own phone. I would ask why?
I can write a function for my own PC/Server, so why not for a phone?

[x2lls]

It looks like our version of IP Board, v2.3.6, was released in 2008, and that's ancient in IT terms. IPB is still supported and developed and there is a mobile version, but it's not free. Still, it would be nice if NWN could buy us an upgrade - all that insightful criticism and informed comment we contribute gratis must surely be worth the investment... How about it NWN?

I think we can sing in the wind for that. No profit.

[Andy Capp]

Simon, I am not sure if it is possible if you can write an app(lication) for just your own phone. I would ask why?
I can write a function for my own PC/Server, so why not for a phone?

You can, but it depends on what phone or tablet.

[x2lls]

You can, but it depends on what phone or tablet.

Windows phone?

[Simon Kirby]

I think we can sing in the wind for that. No profit.

Probably, I was being tounge-in-cheek. Shame really, I think a discussion forum is a good thing.

[Simon Kirby]

Simon, I am not sure if it is possible if you can write an app(lication) for just your own phone. I would ask why?
I can write a function for my own PC/Server, so why not for a phone?

Sorry, I'm not sure what you're asking.

It would be relatively straight-forward to create a web site hosted on a third-party server that would re-format the forum for mobile, and then rather than visiting forum.newburytoday.co.uk you'd visit forum.somesuch.co.uk, but I can't imagine NWN being happy about that (though I don't see that it actually violates the terms of use).

The problem would be that you couldn't post because you wouldn't want to pass your username/password to that third-party site. You could instead do the forum access and reformatting on the client-side with javascript to try and take advantage of the client's login cookie but I'm pretty sure that unless that mobile page was served from the NWN server that wouldn't work.

But if you're going to access the NWN forum via some third-party site you'd be better off just finding some third-party site that would host a mobile-friendly forum itself.

[misc]

As a web developer, I strongly agree that this website and forum are a hideous outdated mess. To not offer a responsive design (or a mobile version of the site) in 2017 is ridiculous! Why not show some support for a local West Berkshire business and move over to XenForo?