[proposal] forum subdomains | Bitcointalksearch.org

franky1

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Quote from: LoyceV on December 17, 2023, 06:13:17 AM

Quote from: franky1 on December 15, 2023, 09:08:45 PM

but when your sitting at a coffee shop having an old fashioned human vocal conversation, face to face in the real world..
trying to remember the board index to describe a link to someone is not as easy as just saying meta.bitcointalk.org
telling them to go to bitcointalk.org scroll to other click on meta. is also not as simple as meta.bitcointalk.org

That sounds a lot like a made-up problem, instead of a real-world situation. How hard can it be: go to the site, scroll a bit.
A more likely scenario is wanting to show a specific thread instead of a board, in which case a DNS shortcut isn't going to help you.

Quote

the usefulness of tinyurl.com

I don't know anyone who learns those URLs by heart. You could of course create meta.bct.name, and forward it to https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?board=24.0/ (and do the same for any other subdomain).

yes that is another way too.. theymos buying a new domain/tld which is just used for tiny urls
maybe

meta.btc.talk
amazon is the registrar of .talk TLD

where other things can then be utilised, where people could then do further things in later updates like

topic.btc.talk/5477847 (this topic)
user.btc.talk/459836 (loyceV)

however many will question if a different domain can be trusted to use . hense why i went with the idea of doing it using bitcointalks actual domain using subdomains

libert19

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Not really necessary, but sounds posh. Unnecessary because: 1) you can bookmark sections in your browser, 2) if you visit certain sections frequently your browser will automatically recommend them as you type couple letters in address bar.

Edit: I read comments after making this post and well I agree to some extent. It'd be easy if there were subdomains, at least in f2f talk, on Internet communication I don't think it'd have much value, here you can well, just copy link to meta?

PX-Z

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This is easy to implement actually, no need to mess the codes in the current software, admin just needs to set a redirection in cpanel (only if this forums software use it). Admin only will create subdomain then redirects to a certain URL with or without www.
About the SEO, no need to configure for that since this forum use canonical tags which is Google sees first if ever there's a redirection in the URL.

BenCodie

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Quote from: franky1 on December 14, 2023, 08:04:38 PM

Quote from: BenCodie on December 14, 2023, 03:38:34 PM

It's not a bad idea, and it's definitely easy enough to implement....
...
But so is a cybersecurity and privacy board but that hasn't been decided on in almost 12 months, while a good suggestion that's easy enough to be implemented, it hasn't been decided on. If that's any indicator, I wouldn't hold your breath franky

if devs had a mindset of "coz we havnt done it yet, lets just not do it".. nothing would progress
not a good mindset to have

I fully agree with you. Though how many developers do you see working on the BitcoinTalk forum? I'm not saying that it won't happen, also not saying it can't be implemented...I'm just saying, there is barely any development happening in this forum.

I think the most ironic thing about BitcoinTalk, is that it's centralized. If the forum was open source (as it damn well should be considering the "new forum software" debacle), then new developments would be constant.

This however, isn't barely even a case of development...It's a redirect. It's a matter of if it gets implemented, not if it can.

LoyceV

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Quote from: franky1 on December 15, 2023, 09:08:45 PM

but when your sitting at a coffee shop having an old fashioned human vocal conversation, face to face in the real world..
trying to remember the board index to describe a link to someone is not as easy as just saying meta.bitcointalk.org
telling them to go to bitcointalk.org scroll to other click on meta. is also not as simple as meta.bitcointalk.org

That sounds a lot like a made-up problem, instead of a real-world situation. How hard can it be: go to the site, scroll a bit.
A more likely scenario is wanting to show a specific thread instead of a board, in which case a DNS shortcut isn't going to help you.

Quote

the usefulness of tinyurl.com

I don't know anyone who learns those URLs by heart. You could of course create meta.bct.name, and forward it to https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?board=24.0/ (and do the same for any other subdomain).

shahzadafzal

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Quote from: franky1 on December 14, 2023, 03:17:10 AM

very simple idea,
the current forum url to get to meta https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?board=24.0
have
meta.bitcointalk.org aswell that redirects to board=24.0

for main bitcoin discussion https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?board=1.0
have
main.bitcointalk.org aswell that redirects to board=1.0

for for economics https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?board=7.0
have
economics.bitcointalk.org aswell that redirects to board=7.0
~

That's not a bad idea to be honest, keeping that bitcointalk already have subdomains, which mean bitcointalk.org can have more sub-domains (without any extra cost, i think so).

ip.bitcointalk.org

Is being used for image proxy

Simplifying the URLs with easy-to-remember addresses like meta.bitcointalk.org and main.bitcointalk.org would indeed enhance user experience and make linking to specific sections more convenient.

This redirection approach can be a practical improvement without altering the existing structure.

I can also see below sub-domain, but not sure if these are still up or where it's being used.

images.bitcointalk.org
beta.bitcointalk.org
omail.bitcointalk.org

Nice suggestion franky1.

SamReomo

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Quote from: julerz12 on December 16, 2023, 08:26:29 AM

With OP's proposal, it would be easy enough to type the board/section and send it to the clients (e.g. gambling.bitcointalk.org).

Yeah, I also think that if something that can happen on the forum then it would be more convenient for the users. Someone has to visit meta board directly can type meta.Bitcointalk.org in the browser will reach directly to meta board instead of visiting the home page and manually clicking on the Meta board's link.

I believe Franky's proposal is one of the unique proposals that would make it easy for users. I don't know how hard task it would be for Theymos or other developers to implement this feature but I'm sure it will improve the forum. I hope Theymos, PowerGlove, or someone else with proper web coding knowledge and web management knowledge reaches this topic and say something about the possibility of this proposal's implementation on the forum.

julerz12

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I can understand the reason behind OP's proposal.
I for one had many conversations with some of my clients (for campaign management) and had to send them direct links as to where they should post their announcement threads, the boards they should be aware of, where this post is, and that post is located, etc. With OP's proposal, it would be easy enough to type the board/section and send it to the clients (e.g. gambling.bitcointalk.org).
I would love to see this proposal take shape as it would be more convenient (conversation-wise) and well as newbie-friendly.
Since admins made recent changes in the forum, maybe this proposal along with the much-needed Cybersecurity & Privacy board can be approved as well.
cybersecurity.bitcointalk.org got some nice ring to it. Cheesy

franky1

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Quote from: LoyceV on December 15, 2023, 01:50:43 AM

Quote from: franky1 on December 14, 2023, 03:17:10 AM

but the point is it would make things easier to link to different sections using a easy to remember addresses

That's something your webbrowser can remember for you. If I type "Meta", it knows where I want to go. If I type "Service", I get the 3 most likely options even before I finish typing the word.

i guess you dont understand linking things to other people
yes you understand personal bookmarks for yourself where you can label things in your own web browser...

but when your sitting at a coffee shop having an old fashioned human vocal conversation, face to face in the real world..
trying to remember the board index to describe a link to someone is not as easy as just saying meta.bitcointalk.org
telling them to go to bitcointalk.org scroll to other click on meta. is also not as simple as meta.bitcointalk.org

a simple analogy.. the usefulness of tinyurl.com, people do want to use shorter easy to remember addresses

joker_josue

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Basically what the OP is suggesting is an entry link, which redirects to a certain location on the forum. Afterwards everything continues to function normally.

For example, I can create a forum.talkimg.com that when typing this in the browser automatically takes the user to the topic dedicated to TalkImg. As soon as the user enters the forum, everything works normally.

Is this what you were thinking @franky1? The idea isn't bad, I just don't see its usefulness, but maybe there is one.

LoyceV

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Quote from: franky1 on December 14, 2023, 03:17:10 AM

but the point is it would make things easier to link to different sections using a easy to remember addresses

That's something your webbrowser can remember for you. If I type "Meta", it knows where I want to go. If I type "Service", I get the 3 most likely options even before I finish typing the word.

franky1

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Quote from: BenCodie on December 14, 2023, 03:38:34 PM

It's not a bad idea, and it's definitely easy enough to implement....
...
But so is a cybersecurity and privacy board but that hasn't been decided on in almost 12 months, while a good suggestion that's easy enough to be implemented, it hasn't been decided on. If that's any indicator, I wouldn't hold your breath franky

if devs had a mindset of "coz we havnt done it yet, lets just not do it".. nothing would progress
not a good mindset to have

BenCodie

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Quote from: NotATether on December 14, 2023, 05:08:50 AM

Quote from: franky1 on December 14, 2023, 04:29:09 AM

my proposal is not about messing with SMF

its about subdomains of the hosting domain.. that redirects to the right page of SMF board numbering system

But that's the thing... you can't make a (sub)domain redirect to some page *inside* the domain the way SMF is set up. With a normal website it's possible, but on the forum everything is generated by an index.php.

When you go to a board, the url is index.php?board=x.x . For a topic, it's something like index.php?topic=x.x with no board number. If someone clicks a link to some Bitcointalk topic and it were to show the appropriate subdomain in the address bar, the only way to do that would be to perform a database lookup, which will be expensive since there are almost 5.5 million topics as of now.

And to do the reverse (as described in your quote) would either require a new design for the URLs for the subdomains e.g. meta.bitcointalk.org/proposal-forum-subdomains OR you'd have to stick the topic number at the end, which means meta.bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=5477847 is the same as bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=5477847 which would make subdomains redundant.

I think you're over analyzing. You can easily setup DNS records to redirect to the subdomain to the board URL, or create a blank index on the subdomain (which wouldn't be interfering with BitcoinTalk's SMF directories) and have a redirect setup there.

I see the use case here after Franky's further explanation, namely:

Quote from: franky1 on December 14, 2023, 02:29:29 PM

its not about SEO. however yes using other rest stuff like POST
and/or old fashioned subdirectory organisation to direct people to board indexs is another option

however the idea is when having conversations with people
instead of having to describe
go to 'bitcointalk.org' then scroll down to 'other' then click 'meta'

also if just linking people to meta, instead of memorising board indexes or looking it up

you can just say meta.bitcointalk.org

It's not a bad idea, and it's definitely easy enough to implement....
...
But so is a cybersecurity and privacy board but that hasn't been decided on in almost 12 months, while a good suggestion that's easy enough to be implemented, it hasn't been decided on. If that's any indicator, I wouldn't hold your breath franky

franky1

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its not about SEO. however yes using other rest stuff like POST
and/or old fashioned subdirectory organisation to direct people to board indexs is another option

however the idea is when having conversations with people
instead of having to describe
go to 'bitcointalk.org' then scroll down to 'other' then click 'meta'

also if just linking people to meta, instead of memorising board indexes or looking it up

you can just say meta.bitcointalk.org

seoincorporation

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Quote from: franky1 on December 14, 2023, 03:17:10 AM

for main bitcoin discussion https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?board=1.0
have
main.bitcointalk.org aswell that redirects to board=1.0

I don't get what's the goal for this idea, if the idea is to have better SEO on the site, then the right way would be:

Code:

https://bitcointalk.org///.../

That, with the right metas on the site, would bump it on the Search Engines.

But your idea to make subdomains isn't good for SEO, maybe the goal was to make it look pretty and it would be easy to implement, they only have to create the subdomain and add the next index.html

Code:

But i don't find sense on doing it, the plan B would be to split the forum, and make each subdomain run each branch, but that would be a bad idea because you will have to run a copy of the software on each branch, so, doesn't sound as a good change at all.

aoluain

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Quote from: NotATether on December 14, 2023, 06:43:27 AM

Quote from: examplens on December 14, 2023, 06:40:18 AM

This does not mean that a subdomain should be created individually for each topic.

Yes I knew that, but what do you guys plan on putting after the domain name, for threads in that board?

e.g. meta.bitcointalk.org/

Because I think just making it so that this subdomain redirects to a board is not useful enough.

for instance this thread address could look like....

meta.bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=5477847.0
or
meta.bitcointalk.org/[proposal]_forum_subdomains

I think franky1's idea is actually good and a step in the direction of simplifying the addresses,
easy to read and easy to get to a page straight by just typing the "board" address in.

electronicash

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basically, you just want to link a subdomain going to the real board.
so once you want to give a link to someone who was accusing someone in the forum of scamming, you can just give away the link where he can go like scamaccusations.bitcointalk.org without having to browse the main to copy the link.

that's easy to do in the cpanel and i think an html code will do to redirect. that's got to be hundreds of subdomains including the locals

franky1

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Quote from: NotATether on December 14, 2023, 06:43:27 AM

Quote from: examplens on December 14, 2023, 06:40:18 AM

This does not mean that a subdomain should be created individually for each topic.

Yes I knew that, but what do you guys plan on putting after the domain name, for threads in that board?

e.g. meta.bitcointalk.org/

Because I think just making it so that this subdomain redirects to a board is not useful enough.

baby steps
first of all you have to quash the idiots counter arguments opposing the simple idea
by showing that it can work without affecting the service.. but allowing more convenience of linking to boards
= done =

next you then introduce the next level of adding the GET parameters to direct to more specific pages

NotATether

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Quote from: examplens on December 14, 2023, 06:40:18 AM

This does not mean that a subdomain should be created individually for each topic.

Yes I knew that, but what do you guys plan on putting after the domain name, for threads in that board?

e.g. meta.bitcointalk.org/

Because I think just making it so that this subdomain redirects to a board is not useful enough.

examplens

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This is not a bad suggestion at all. I think it would also mean a lot for local boards and simplifying the navigation.

Quote from: NotATether on December 14, 2023, 05:08:50 AM

But that's the thing... you can't make a (sub)domain redirect to some page *inside* the domain the way SMF is set up. With a normal website it's possible, but on the forum everything is generated by an index.php.

When you go to a board, the url is index.php?board=x.x . For a topic, it's something like index.php?topic=x.x with no board number. If someone clicks a link to some Bitcointalk topic and it were to show the appropriate subdomain in the address bar, the only way to do that would be to perform a database lookup, which will be expensive since there are almost 5.5 million topics as of now.

Adding a subdomain does not require any change in the code structure of the forum script. It's all about adding certain records as part of DNS settings. You will get the same result if you enter meta.bitcointalk.org (or even bitcointalk.org/meta) or https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?board=24.0 in your browser. It's just that this solution with the subdomains that franky1 suggests is much simpler for humans.
This does not mean that a subdomain should be created individually for each topic.

Topic: [proposal] forum subdomains (Read 449 times)