Forum:Reintroducing CDN

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I do have a few concerns about the way it is currently proposed. Making sure to keep CDN updated and creating the March Archive along with updating the main CDN page. I really don't like just the note. While I would also disagree with adding the whole thing again, considering this will be just below the Mass Effect label on the main page, I think we should at least find a way to add the headline from the title. If that can’t be done, then that's fine, but it would be nice to have at least something to draw people to the page apart from that. The other one is mainly just the wording either way.

Well that's about all I've got and we need to get this resolved quickly. Lancer1289 16:50, March 21, 2011 (UTC)

Comments[]

Well, I'm not sure what coding would be entailed in getting the headlines to display on the notice, but I'll manually update the Main Page with each one if need be. I've updated my sandbox with an example of the notice with the headline of a CDN report; the headline links to the report itself. Is this agreeable? -- Commdor (Talk) 18:20, March 21, 2011 (UTC)

If that is what we have to do, then it is what we have to do. Personally I do very much like the second one. If we can code it, then I'm all for that as well, but this will do. We can sort out the code if necessary during the break before ME3 as this will kind of be an ongoing thing. Lancer1289 18:23, March 21, 2011 (UTC)

I lack some context for this discussion, so I apologize if this comment is completely off-base: Recent changes to the {{CDNLatestStory}} template should make it possible to display the story text on the main page again. I just thought I'd float the possibility here and see what you guys think about re-adding the full-featured story to the main page for this week of updates. -- Dammej (talk) 00:55, March 23, 2011 (UTC)

The comment isn't really off base that much, as this is a discussion about how to reimplement CDN. For now I would have to say that the Notice and headline are enough, but since this will be an ongoing discussion, mainly for the two weeks leading up to the release of ME3, maybe we could do it then. However if you wish to make a case for where to put full stories again, or to get them back onto the main page, please don't let me stop you. Whether it be for now, and/or leading up to ME3's release. This does need to be sorted out quickly I might add. Lancer1289 01:21, March 23, 2011 (UTC)

As I mentioned to Dammej on his talk page, I'll set up the notice to show the full reports ASAP as long as you and Spart are fine with it. -- Commdor (Talk) 01:26, March 23, 2011 (UTC)

Right now the problem I have is that the text will be extremely crammed if we display it all on the main page where it notice is. The only way I could see to do something with it, is to throw it on top of, or below the featured article again. Putting all of that text on the right just doesn’t look pretty, while in the middle it makes sense, not to mention looks a lot better. I would like to see a mock up first either way though. Lancer1289 01:33, March 23, 2011 (UTC)

Lancer: I'm not attached to either method (notice or full text), I just know that we used to display the full text. To my knowledge, this alternate solution was only brought up because CDNLatestStory wasn't behaving as expected when Commdor tested it out. It is behaving correctly now, so we could do it the old way, if desired. I just wanted to, as I said, "float the possibility".

Re: size/placement: my assumption was that the news would be placed in the same position as before. (Where the FA currently resides), and that the FA would be moved to its previous position (where the CDN notice currently resides). -- Dammej (talk) 01:39, March 23, 2011 (UTC)

It was decided that FA's new place would be where it is now. Since CDN was going to reappear for only a relatively brief amount of time, it would go in the right column in FA's old spot. I'm working it out, and there's really not much difference between the old format (pre-January 24th) and what we'd be doing now. CDN and FA have an equivalent amount of text. I'll have an image up momentarily. -- Commdor (Talk) 01:55, March 23, 2011 (UTC)

(Edit Conflict) And here we are. As I was saying, not much difference from before. I think it'll work, the question is do we do it now or wait for the final CDN reports? -- Commdor (Talk) 02:01, March 23, 2011 (UTC)

Well that looks a lot better than I thought it would. Anyway I think that would work for now and in the future as well. As it stands we jsut have to remember to switch back the layouts when necessary, but no objections. Lancer1289 02:04, March 23, 2011 (UTC)

(edit conflict)Yeah the major problem is that the featured article summaries are now quite a bit longer than they used to be, a small paragraph compared to a sentence or two, so just switching the two doesn’t really work as well as you might think it would. There would be just way to much content in the right column compared to the middle of the screen. The only way I can see that working is we would have to put the helping out section into the main column and then put CDN in the middle, and then put the FA back on the right. I really can't see another way of that working.

I don't know about the story with the notice either, so I can't really comment on it. Lancer1289 02:04, March 23, 2011 (UTC)

(reset indent) You are right, I hadn't thought of the longer FAs now. I'm not really a fan of the super-long CDN sidebar story as it currently appears. We ran into that objection when we first added CDN to the main page, as I recall. I'd personally advocate for both the CDN and the FA to be featured in the main column, both being long entities now.

Separate from that issue, I've modified Commdor's template to now use an automatically generated link to the latest page, which should hopefully make things easier and less error-prone in the event that the notice is kept. -- Dammej (talk) 02:16, March 23, 2011 (UTC)

Then I would need to see what that looks like. Right now Commdor's suggestion is probably the best thing, but if you can get them both into the main column without it being ungainly, then I'm all for it. Lancer1289 02:26, March 23, 2011 (UTC)

I think since we're running into some issues that warrant further discussion, we should set aside implementing the full reports on the main page for this week. It seems like everyone's fine with the notice, so we can let it stand. We can then take the time to discuss plans for the final two weeks of CDN without any pressure. What do you guys think? -- Commdor (Talk) 02:32, March 23, 2011 (UTC)

That would probably be a good idea. We can hammer this out over the course of the next few days, and if we do get it hammered out, then if there's still time, we can test it for however many days on the current run. This way no time pressure

As to other comments, since we do have longer FAs, we do need to figure out a way for both to be displayed in the main column without it becoming ungainly. Lancer1289 02:42, March 23, 2011 (UTC)

It seems wise to postpone any implementation. We obviously have a bit of disagreement on what would look best (and by we, it seems I mean me! :) ), so it's a good idea to wait. I'm certain that I'm not alone in my concerns about space in regards to Commdor's mockup. We could always do the 'blurb' idea that was introduced way back when, which would address my concerns with the space issue. (By this I mean that we display a portion of the latest story, say 400-500 characters, with a link inviting continued reading, instead of the entire story) -- Dammej (talk) 03:49, March 23, 2011 (UTC)

A plan for the Pre-ME3 release CDNs[]

I rediscovered this project and wanted to kick off some brainstorming sessions again in the hope that we could have a plan ironed out for that fateful day when the Cerberus Daily News feed restarts in anticipation of the release of ME3.

As I recall, I was the only bloke who objected (above) to the CDN being included in its entirety on the right-hand side of the page, though I have a vague recollection that Spart didn't care for it there either, way back when the CDN was first included on the main page. He never said that specifically on User talk:Commdor/Sandbox, but I somehow got that impression. :P

At any rate, I think that it would be best to include the CDN on the front page just as it was pre-hiatus: right under the 'contents' section in the main column of the page, with the FA being moved back over to the right-hand column.

Though the link deal was pretty nifty too, since there was that blurb about Arrival coming out soon along with it. I'm so conflicted! -- Dammej (talk) 01:04, June 29, 2011 (UTC)

Plenty of time to decide. ME3 ain't out until March of next year, so we won't be seeing the final CDN reports until February 21 or so. :) Right now, I've got no preference on what format to present those last reports. Spart may raise an objection to moving the FA back to the right column. -- Commdor (Talk) 01:14, June 29, 2011 (UTC)

I had a thought after watching a this E3 preview. At the beginning you can see a main menu screen for the demo. It's very similar to the ME2 menu screen, with the game options on a terminal on the left, and another, closed terminal (where the CDN displays in ME2) on the right, but a background that looks like the interior of the ME3 Normandy shown in concept art in Game Informer. This could be just a mockup menu for the demo, but what if it's the near-final menu? If so, there's definitely a space for an ME3 version of the CDN to be presented.
It's a big assumption to think there will be a news service in ME3, but I think we should prepare for the possibility. To that end, I'm now in favor of displaying the final CDN reports on the main page as we did before (I think we had some character limitation in place, so only a portion of the reports displayed). This way, if there is an ME3 news service, we'll have all the infrastructure in place and can make a smooth transition from CDN to "Alliance Daily News" or whatever. Even if there isn't an ME3 CDN, I don't think it can hurt to give the ME2 CDN a final few days in the limelight. -- Commdor (Talk) 23:11, July 3, 2011 (UTC)

Yeah I'm really going to have to say for the immediate future, we should put the CDN reports where they were before Arrival's release and if necessary we can change it afterwards if there is something in ME3 like CDN. But as stated we have over eight months before the release so we can take our time with this. Also I do have to say, after the success that CDN had, I think that BioWare not doing something similar, seems like a letdown. After all, they are concluding a story arc and even if it is only done for a year or so, having it absent, just doesn't feel right and probably wouldn’t sit right with fans. Lancer1289 17:11, July 5, 2011 (UTC)