CriticalFailure
5% Chance of Disappointment
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Put simply, I most preferred the XF1 textbox. In so many ways, it was the best textbox I had ever had the fortune of using on the internet, and I hope dearly that something close to it can be reacquired.
Thus, this thread is an attempt to gather and show various datapoints regarding the comparisons between the XF1 textbox, and the XF2 Froalla and TinyMCE textboxes, in the hopes that one of the two XF2 textboxes can be sufficiently modified to as close to the XF1 textbox as possible.
Other posters may comment and express their approval/support or disagreement as they wish in the thread, in the hopes we can come to a large enough consensus to convince the mods.
Now then...
Xenforo1 QuestionableQuesting textbox's convenience came in the form of a mix of two major factors for me:
1: it had every button immediately available, as much as possible. Rich text? Indents? Lists? Spoilers, quotes, links, the last color you picked? It was all available as with the click of a single icon, no need for dropdown lists or options. It had a clean, compact design. When I wanted something for what I was typing or pasting or modifying, it was within easy reach.
2: Responsiveness to image pasting. For whatever godforsaken reason, SB and SV now require you to click the stupid image icon/process to paste an image in your textbox. That means you have to copy the url, then click the picture icon, paste the url, and enter. As opposed to "copy+paste" and immediately getting the image on the QQ textbox. This deserves its own entry, it is THAT important.
Other minor considerations,
-Immediate functionality, regardless of internet connection. SB for example requires an internet connection when clicking the "spoiler" button (which itself requires a dropdown list!), or else it fails to appear. QQ1? Click the spoiler button, you get an automatic popup for a spoilerbox text or not, just press enter (keyboard or mouse) to move on if none.
- (and this is not noticeable for everyone) responsiveness to typing. This is only noticeable to someone who types really fast and uses modified (bolded/italics/etc.) text often, but the SB and SV textboxes for XF2 had some slight annoying lag with rich text, where typing immediately after un-bolding or un-italizing makes the text retain the modification. For whatever reason too, it processed large amounts of text easier, particularly experienced when transferring one of my quests from another site. Pasting large masses of text was easy.
- when I wanted to save a draft, it had a clear indication. I would receive a popup indicating the draft was saved. This functioned even if I did not edit anything about what was in the thread's textbox. For SB, I need to actually edit something, then click save, then the notification is pitiful, tiny green light. Which is sometimes possible to miss (and it LIES if you did not edit anything, no, the draft was not saved and the cooldown for deletion has not been refreshed). Also in general, one feels more 'assured' with the idea the draft was saved seeing the popup.
The two XF2 textboxes are lacking in many ways, feeling like the XF1 textbox was torn in half and the two pieces haphazardly pasted into two different incomplete interfaces.
Note: I am using Blackened High Contrast.
The Xenforo default textbox. Which means it is EXACTLY the same as what SB has. Not the initial froalla editor that QQ2 had, but a change entirely. Which means the most it can say is that sometimes it has something QQ1 had, but never that it has anything better than what QQ1 had. This would only matter if the other option is worse.
Notable functionality:
- none. At most, I can say it is functional, but it is strictly and heavily inferior to the old QQ1 textbox. But at the moment, more functional than the other choice due to certain reasons...
Missing/Lesser functionality:
- Certain frequently-used buttons (Spoiler, Quote, Horizontal Lines, and Alignment) are hidden behind dropdown lists, rather than immediately available for clicking despite all of that empty space available! Significant number of functions are like his.
- The Text color button does not have the "retains the last color you used, so just click once instead of having to look for and click the color you already used" function.
- retains the rich text input lag. Several times, bolded text (such as the paragraph right before this) did not stop after I clicked ctrl+B, and I had to annoyingly slow down. This is especially egregious if you decide to use variable rich text mid-word (such as distorting) rather than merely modifying a word or three.
-
Errors:
- When clicking Spoiler (not Inline Spoiler) while in Fullscreen, I do not see any popup or textbox or indicator about what it is I am typing. This works fine without fullscreen. But fullscreen, the popup appears 'outside' and thus I see nothing.
- The Word Count is NOT visible in Fullscreen.
Additional Suggestions:
- make direct image copy-paste work. VERY important.
- move the "toggle bb code" and "fullscreen" buttons separate from each other, to avoid accidentally clicking BBcode (which causes a loading and changes the textbox) when one is actually aiming for fullscreen.
- if possible, make the Word Count function like the TinyMCE, where the word count is on rawtext/bbcode calculation. Rather than being adjusted by Quotes and such.
- Make the "Save Draft" indicator be an actual popup, especially if it can function without having to edit the draft first, just clicking it and knowing it works. The XF2 save draft does not actually work if you did not edit the page.
-> semi-related question @alethiophile what is the timespan of a saved draft for QQ2? I know it was shorter than 24 hours in QQ1. How long is it now? Longer? the Same?
Appears to be an attempt to port over QQ1's textbox, and has the skeleton of it. But is missing huge amounts of functionality to really be worth it, at this time.
Notable functionality:
- Retains QQ1's typing. No input lag whatsoever. If I activate and then un-activate the bold or italics or whatsoever, no matter how fast I type, it follows.
- I can copy-paste pictures straight on without needing to go through the horrid "insert image" button.
- Retains the "use last color" button function for Colored Text. It also has both Text Color and Background color.
Missing/Lesser functionality:
- significant amounts of functionality are missing entirely! No Spoiler, no Quotes, no Save Draft, no Indent, etc..
- Redundant icons and functions. Particularly on the upper tabs.
->> Edit: undo/redo are already present without the dropdowns. Cut/paste/select all/etc. are available already as keyboard shortcuts or by holding down your finger on a phone.
->> View: utterly redundant. Fullscreen and preview are already immediately present as icons.
->> Insert: Utterly redundant. We already have Link, Tables, and Horizontal lines present on immediately available icons.
->> Word Count: Mostly redundant. Word count is already there on the bottom right, and you can click it for number of characters.
->> Format: almost entirely redundant. The rich text, tables, font and headings, etc., are already present below it. Only CODE is unique there, and that is better off being put among the present icons.
[for the most part, the upper tabs are a waste of space. They should just be removed, and whatever unique options they have parceled out into the open space. Or used to give way for more useful icons, like missing functionality such as Spoiler/quotes/etc. preferably in a lineup similar to QQ1]
Errors:
- The textbox is white. EVEN ON DARK MODE. The issue here is obvious, yes?
- Right-clicking causes a "link" popup instead. This is not a huge issue on desktop (but it does make certain functions more annoying, such as if I am trying to right-click and "search image" or "open url in new tab" something in the textbox. It IS a huge issue on phone! On phone, I cannot cut/copy/paste anything at all with that popup instead appearing whenever I hold my finger on the textbox.
- whenever you manage to add the save draft option, give it a popup so the user can be assured the draft was saved. Similar to the suggestion for Froalla.
Additional Suggestions:
- the textbox does encompass as much text as QQ1, as the text is oversized. You can see it in the spoilered image above. This is especially noticeable on mobile. If the font size could be adjusted to be similar to the old, that would be much appreciated.
- move the "toggle bb code" and "fullscreen" buttons separate from each other, to avoid accidentally clicking BBcode (which causes a loading and changes the textbox) when one is actually aiming for fullscreen.
[more to be added depending on comments and what else may be noticed. For now, this is what I have for both.]
@alethiophile I hope you are willing to comment on this. If nothing else, on what functions and changes I am asking for that you think is possible (and thus something to clamor for) or not possible at all (and thus to cross out sadly, but narrows down options too) to code in.
At the moment, I am using the Froalla editor, as the TinyMCE editor suffers from the text being off in size, serious highlighting issues on mobile, and does not shift to a dark color on dark mode, instead being stuck to a bright white color.
I am strictly a dark mode user, and thus the last is a huge issue, among many others.
Thus, this thread is an attempt to gather and show various datapoints regarding the comparisons between the XF1 textbox, and the XF2 Froalla and TinyMCE textboxes, in the hopes that one of the two XF2 textboxes can be sufficiently modified to as close to the XF1 textbox as possible.
Other posters may comment and express their approval/support or disagreement as they wish in the thread, in the hopes we can come to a large enough consensus to convince the mods.
Now then...
Xenforo1 QuestionableQuesting textbox's convenience came in the form of a mix of two major factors for me:
1: it had every button immediately available, as much as possible. Rich text? Indents? Lists? Spoilers, quotes, links, the last color you picked? It was all available as with the click of a single icon, no need for dropdown lists or options. It had a clean, compact design. When I wanted something for what I was typing or pasting or modifying, it was within easy reach.
2: Responsiveness to image pasting. For whatever godforsaken reason, SB and SV now require you to click the stupid image icon/process to paste an image in your textbox. That means you have to copy the url, then click the picture icon, paste the url, and enter. As opposed to "copy+paste" and immediately getting the image on the QQ textbox. This deserves its own entry, it is THAT important.
Other minor considerations,
-Immediate functionality, regardless of internet connection. SB for example requires an internet connection when clicking the "spoiler" button (which itself requires a dropdown list!), or else it fails to appear. QQ1? Click the spoiler button, you get an automatic popup for a spoilerbox text or not, just press enter (keyboard or mouse) to move on if none.
- (and this is not noticeable for everyone) responsiveness to typing. This is only noticeable to someone who types really fast and uses modified (bolded/italics/etc.) text often, but the SB and SV textboxes for XF2 had some slight annoying lag with rich text, where typing immediately after un-bolding or un-italizing makes the text retain the modification. For whatever reason too, it processed large amounts of text easier, particularly experienced when transferring one of my quests from another site. Pasting large masses of text was easy.
- when I wanted to save a draft, it had a clear indication. I would receive a popup indicating the draft was saved. This functioned even if I did not edit anything about what was in the thread's textbox. For SB, I need to actually edit something, then click save, then the notification is pitiful, tiny green light. Which is sometimes possible to miss (and it LIES if you did not edit anything, no, the draft was not saved and the cooldown for deletion has not been refreshed). Also in general, one feels more 'assured' with the idea the draft was saved seeing the popup.
The two XF2 textboxes are lacking in many ways, feeling like the XF1 textbox was torn in half and the two pieces haphazardly pasted into two different incomplete interfaces.
Note: I am using Blackened High Contrast.
XF2 FROALLA
The Xenforo default textbox. Which means it is EXACTLY the same as what SB has. Not the initial froalla editor that QQ2 had, but a change entirely. Which means the most it can say is that sometimes it has something QQ1 had, but never that it has anything better than what QQ1 had. This would only matter if the other option is worse.
Notable functionality:
- none. At most, I can say it is functional, but it is strictly and heavily inferior to the old QQ1 textbox. But at the moment, more functional than the other choice due to certain reasons...
Missing/Lesser functionality:
- Certain frequently-used buttons (Spoiler, Quote, Horizontal Lines, and Alignment) are hidden behind dropdown lists, rather than immediately available for clicking despite all of that empty space available! Significant number of functions are like his.
- The Text color button does not have the "retains the last color you used, so just click once instead of having to look for and click the color you already used" function.
- retains the rich text input lag. Several times, bolded text (such as the paragraph right before this) did not stop after I clicked ctrl+B, and I had to annoyingly slow down. This is especially egregious if you decide to use variable rich text mid-word (such as distorting) rather than merely modifying a word or three.
-
Errors:
- When clicking Spoiler (not Inline Spoiler) while in Fullscreen, I do not see any popup or textbox or indicator about what it is I am typing. This works fine without fullscreen. But fullscreen, the popup appears 'outside' and thus I see nothing.
- The Word Count is NOT visible in Fullscreen.
Additional Suggestions:
- make direct image copy-paste work. VERY important.
- move the "toggle bb code" and "fullscreen" buttons separate from each other, to avoid accidentally clicking BBcode (which causes a loading and changes the textbox) when one is actually aiming for fullscreen.
- if possible, make the Word Count function like the TinyMCE, where the word count is on rawtext/bbcode calculation. Rather than being adjusted by Quotes and such.
- Make the "Save Draft" indicator be an actual popup, especially if it can function without having to edit the draft first, just clicking it and knowing it works. The XF2 save draft does not actually work if you did not edit the page.
-> semi-related question @alethiophile what is the timespan of a saved draft for QQ2? I know it was shorter than 24 hours in QQ1. How long is it now? Longer? the Same?
XF2 TINYMCE
Appears to be an attempt to port over QQ1's textbox, and has the skeleton of it. But is missing huge amounts of functionality to really be worth it, at this time.
Notable functionality:
- Retains QQ1's typing. No input lag whatsoever. If I activate and then un-activate the bold or italics or whatsoever, no matter how fast I type, it follows.
- I can copy-paste pictures straight on without needing to go through the horrid "insert image" button.
- Retains the "use last color" button function for Colored Text. It also has both Text Color and Background color.
Missing/Lesser functionality:
- significant amounts of functionality are missing entirely! No Spoiler, no Quotes, no Save Draft, no Indent, etc..
- Redundant icons and functions. Particularly on the upper tabs.
->> Edit: undo/redo are already present without the dropdowns. Cut/paste/select all/etc. are available already as keyboard shortcuts or by holding down your finger on a phone.
->> View: utterly redundant. Fullscreen and preview are already immediately present as icons.
->> Insert: Utterly redundant. We already have Link, Tables, and Horizontal lines present on immediately available icons.
->> Word Count: Mostly redundant. Word count is already there on the bottom right, and you can click it for number of characters.
->> Format: almost entirely redundant. The rich text, tables, font and headings, etc., are already present below it. Only CODE is unique there, and that is better off being put among the present icons.
[for the most part, the upper tabs are a waste of space. They should just be removed, and whatever unique options they have parceled out into the open space. Or used to give way for more useful icons, like missing functionality such as Spoiler/quotes/etc. preferably in a lineup similar to QQ1]
Errors:
- The textbox is white. EVEN ON DARK MODE. The issue here is obvious, yes?
- Right-clicking causes a "link" popup instead. This is not a huge issue on desktop (but it does make certain functions more annoying, such as if I am trying to right-click and "search image" or "open url in new tab" something in the textbox. It IS a huge issue on phone! On phone, I cannot cut/copy/paste anything at all with that popup instead appearing whenever I hold my finger on the textbox.
- whenever you manage to add the save draft option, give it a popup so the user can be assured the draft was saved. Similar to the suggestion for Froalla.
Additional Suggestions:
- the textbox does encompass as much text as QQ1, as the text is oversized. You can see it in the spoilered image above. This is especially noticeable on mobile. If the font size could be adjusted to be similar to the old, that would be much appreciated.
- move the "toggle bb code" and "fullscreen" buttons separate from each other, to avoid accidentally clicking BBcode (which causes a loading and changes the textbox) when one is actually aiming for fullscreen.
[more to be added depending on comments and what else may be noticed. For now, this is what I have for both.]
@alethiophile I hope you are willing to comment on this. If nothing else, on what functions and changes I am asking for that you think is possible (and thus something to clamor for) or not possible at all (and thus to cross out sadly, but narrows down options too) to code in.
At the moment, I am using the Froalla editor, as the TinyMCE editor suffers from the text being off in size, serious highlighting issues on mobile, and does not shift to a dark color on dark mode, instead being stuck to a bright white color.
I am strictly a dark mode user, and thus the last is a huge issue, among many others.
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