🚀 go-pugleaf

sp@questor.wimsey.bc.ca (Steve Pershing) writes:

> After watching all the flack about waffle not accomodating colorful
> ANSI screens, my feeling is: why bother?
> 
> Some people claim to have lost "hundreds" of users, all because of waffle.
> "If only I were running _____us  or some other bbs, all would be so much
> better.
> 

I agree. Many users in this area do not call because waffle lacks ansi. 
However, I dont really see the need. If you are going to call to read 
messages and 'do the mail thing' then ansi is not really necessary. Big 
ansi screens are slow at low bauds and tend to get kinda annoying.

Chris

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In article <L9P3iB2w165w@questor.wimsey.bc.ca> sp@questor.wimsey.bc.ca (Steve Pershing) writes:

>The overhead associated with the "pretty ANSI" screens often exceeds the
>content of the message you are trying to get across.

The issue, at least with me, isn't the fancy colour, altho that _is_
important. The issue is whether or not the average user can find his
way around comfortably or not - and it is my contention that with
Waffle, he cannot.

This isn't the 'fault' of the basic Waffle system - we all know how
powerful it is. The 'fault' (if folks insist on using the term), to
me, is the lack of _choices_ about the interface.

>The *caller* should be responsible for how "pretty" he wants the incoming
>data to be.  *His* newsreader should be adding the colors.  There are already

Callers to typical dos boxes can decide whether or not they want
graphics - here they can't, but that's still not _my_ primary concern.
I'd like to see MENUS, which can be turned on or off as the user
prefers - then I could default new users to full menu,, and know they
would learn to navigate much more quickly.

>calls in, sees the lack of ANSI, and leaves quicker than a bullet.

It isn't ANSI, or its lack - it's the lack of friendly guidance. I've
done a lot of work with the 'menu' screens, but they aren't enough.

[comments about good guys using newsgroups and contributing to the net
omitted]

Perhaps - but that's assuming they stick around long enough to
discover where all those newsgroups ARE.

>Finally... the *awful waffle* files section:  It is up for a complete
>re-working, but WHEN TOM HAS THE TIME.  Again, I don't care if it *ever*
>gets re-written, as I don't care for file hogs to dial in anyway.

I am not concerned about file hogs - I have enough lines so they
simply aren't important to me one way or the other - the issue is the
same here - FRIENDLY or UNFRIENDLY?

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sp@questor.wimsey.bc.ca (Steve Pershing) writes something about ANSI...

        I added a hack to 1.64 that would look to see if a user was in 
ANSI mode and display .ANS file in the system or menus directory, if it 
existed.  When 65 is out, I am going to send a diff back to Tom with the 
ANSI code added.  I think Waffle could be so much better if it had 
color.

Charles Stephens
cfs@cowpas.waffle.atl.ga.us

>Ansi logon screen

I would never use ANSI in a logon screen, you never know if the caller's
terminal supports ANSI. If you want ANSI screens, put them after the logon 
screen, and at the users request only (if that's possible(!)), thus 
letting the choice of having ANSI to the user.
I always prefere not having ANSI at lower baudrates because it slows
things down a lot.