CSS: Bae or Nay? Page 2

Started by Foxrally February 11th, 2016 6:49 AM
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  • 48 replies

gimmepie

Age 27
Male
Australia
Seen 7 Hours Ago
Posted 16 Hours Ago
As a new person to the entire forum itself, much less this section, I haven't had time to look at and learn CSS. The one that I use right now is the format Deceptio I think gave in the PMD RP. So to me, when I post with my sucky CSS/ no CSS, I feel really intimidated with all the other people posting their super fancy CSS and so it feels as if my post is inferior based on how it looks. I do like CSS, but if people could tone it down for people like me, I'd feel alot better in here rather than intimidated and inferior.
I assure you nobody i ever going to judge your posts based on the quality of your CSS, it's the content that's important and even then we don't exactly hold you to stringent quality control, after all this is just about having fun!
RPWLA&MVGGaming Journal
Male
Seen April 25th, 2018
Posted March 7th, 2017
229 posts
7.4 Years
I assure you nobody i ever going to judge your posts based on the quality of your CSS, it's the content that's important and even then we don't exactly hold you to stringent quality control, after all this is just about having fun!
:P Thanks. Although I don't actually think that people would, it's just the feeling it creates is like that and makes me feel awkward.
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Ice

Seen October 16th, 2022
Posted February 3rd, 2020
3,448 posts
8.8 Years
:P Thanks. Although I don't actually think that people would, it's just the feeling it creates is like that and makes me feel awkward.
I feel that, haha. Just think to yourself: "those guys put waaaay too much effort in that," everytime you see fancy css. That's what I do, haha

Foxrally

ya boi
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Posted 3 Weeks Ago
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10.1 Years
:P Thanks. Although I don't actually think that people would, it's just the feeling it creates is like that and makes me feel awkward.
I feel that, haha. Just think to yourself: "those guys put waaaay too much effort in that," everytime you see fancy css. That's what I do, haha
As a self-proclaimed css wizard, I can confirm that I put way too much effort in css, but just because I find it genuinely fun! It's like drawing in a sense, designing something perfect gives me joy :D
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moon

they/them
Seen 11 Hours Ago
Posted 23 Hours Ago
37,443 posts
15.5 Years
Uhm... why would we tone it down? Like thats... really dumb. Like I understand if people don't know how to do it, but you could always ask for help. I mean sure if you're just given a CSS its going to be basic, but thats because if its basic you can cut it apart and modify it much easier than if its 9000 lines of BB code. All of my CSS have been modifications of basic things people have given me, and yet I make them look pretty good in my not so humble opinion.

So moral of the story, don't ask others not to do work, instead if you feel inadequate why don't you take the time and ask them for help instead! If you go about it the lazy way, you won't have nearly as much fun! <3
For people who use css with a lot of images and colors and scrollbars and whatnot - would you be okay with people skipping over your posts because they feel like they are too tedious to read? An un-css'd post shouldn't be any problem since the standard font and colors are made to be legible on the forums. Would it be rude to not force oneself to look at your customizations? I guess mostly it could harm the RP if you depend on each other's reactions...

Not saying you personally make bad css lol
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Foxrally

ya boi
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Seen 9 Hours Ago
Posted 3 Weeks Ago
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10.1 Years
Would it be rude to not force oneself to look at your customizations?
how dare you not look at my
pretty
css
praise blarzigord
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moon

they/them
Seen 11 Hours Ago
Posted 23 Hours Ago
37,443 posts
15.5 Years
Exactly (:

I wouldn't skip over posts who are heavy in css, haha. I mean, roleplaying kind of requires you to read others' posts, it's kind of the thing haha. But I might not enjoy the actual text as much if there's too much going on around it. Likewise, many might not enjoy reading my plain, colorless posts xD So it's a matter of preference in the end. This whole "css makes things look intimidating" aspect aside.
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Mana

Age 31
Male
UK
Seen March 25th, 2023
Posted August 18th, 2021
10,075 posts
14.3 Years
If the CSS becomes more important than your post, or distracting people away from actually reading, then you're doing CSS wrong. Scroll bars, transparent image backgrounds, huge borders of bright colours, images bigger than your actual text etc. all inhibit the flow of the post.

CSS in the OP is good, in single posts often not.
Male
Junkertown
Seen April 17th, 2018
Posted December 1st, 2017
261 posts
9.3 Years
how dare you not look at my
pretty
css
praise blarzigord
Funnily enough, selecting the text here makes it readable.

Also I would like to point out that this is hardly what I would call "CSS". I'm just a fourteen year old kid, not some website developer, but Foxrally's post here isn't using a shred of CSS; it's using modified/simplified HTML to add elements. CSS is used to format HTML tags that have been designated what's called a class.

And ftr the "CSS table code" was just a cluster of div tags, hardly a table. You can't create a table in CSS. The cd BBCode tag allows for basic HTML, which in turns allows some formatting under the guise of CSS with the css-span tags (why you can't do these things with plain BBCode tags is beyond me).

Jauntier

Where was your antennas again?

Male
USA
Seen April 6th, 2018
Posted December 23rd, 2017
690 posts
7.8 Years
For people who use css with a lot of images and colors and scrollbars and whatnot - would you be okay with people skipping over your posts because they feel like they are too tedious to read? An un-css'd post shouldn't be any problem since the standard font and colors are made to be legible on the forums. Would it be rude to not force oneself to look at your customizations? I guess mostly it could harm the RP if you depend on each other's reactions...
I've only ever seen two examples on here of someone using so much CSS or poorly coordinating it that their posts were such a tedious mess to read, to the point that I lost complete interest at a glance. Those were GM posts, though. Just meant I wasn't going to consider those role-plays, frankly, if I can't even think to read the GM's posts without going through added steps. As a GM, you have to make it a point to be accessible to everyone, and that does include how you present your first post.

I actually find myself disengaged to read very long posts that are not formatted in CSS in role-plays, only because I think they are too wide on the page and stretch. A very simple div of width and activated overflow can constrain that nicely, and then it won't feel like I'm reading a never-ending report where I can see I have so much more to go and become distracted by that.

If you skip someone's player post because you're just "intimidated" by the CSS, that's your insecurity. If it's a role-play where there's hardly any interaction, whatever. But you're doing a disservice if it's an rp based in character interaction. If someone has tragically clashing text on a background color or image, why not go out of your way to ask them to adjust it? If they refuse, copy the text and plain paste it elsewhere to read. The end. CSS is just styling, you can still read the point of the post if you go out of your way to do it and not care about how it's being fronted.

But at face value--and that's all it is because it's superficial customization of a post--if you want to use CSS, just make sure your text is always easy to access and read. Images should be supplementary, not an overpowering focal point in the way it's arranged, especially to the point where I have to scroll past the damn thing to get to your actual text. As long as it isn't inhibiting or is in the way of your text, it's generally fine by me. Backgrounds should not clash with text nor distract the reader, but rather be an aesthetic. I use background images and font types to set a tone, and conjure an image or a feel of what my post or character is about. Be considerate of the colors you use. High contrast is used to have one thing stand out from another, and dark colors with light text makes a blessing for a long read. Too much bright and too much white can strain the eyes.

People complain about scrollbars. If there aren't so many and used arbitrarily instead of the balanced interest of space for text, it's rather whatever. If I could use webkits on these forums, I personally would have customized my scrollbars to look like those simple, fluid, contemporary iPhone ones a long time ago, because rectangular can be clunky and the look can detract.

That's my tuppence worth.

moon

they/them
Seen 11 Hours Ago
Posted 23 Hours Ago
37,443 posts
15.5 Years
If I could use webkits on these forums, I personally would have customized my scrollbars to look like those simple, fluid, contemporary iPhone ones a long time ago, because rectangular can be clunky and the look can detract.
I agree on the GM post thing. That if anything, should be easily readable and accessible c:

On the webkit thing, I have seen it been used before o: are you sure they don't work? However, I'm not too sure on how they work myself.
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Jauntier

Where was your antennas again?

Male
USA
Seen April 6th, 2018
Posted December 23rd, 2017
690 posts
7.8 Years
On the webkit thing, I have seen it been used before o: are you sure they don't work? However, I'm not too sure on how they work myself.
I should have rephrased. When I said "If I could use webkits on these forums", I mean in this instance that if I knew how to, if possible, use them. I'm still rather new to the idea of them, but with a guide on one half of my screen, I've made them work on sites that allow profile customization with HTML and CSS with no lightweight markup bypass. This site is run on PHP BB, so it'd be much more difficult.

If you can find a post where the scrollbar was customized, do link me. I'd be happy to dig through its code.

Loki

x

Seen March 23rd, 2022
Posted June 14th, 2020
6,822 posts
17.8 Years
Yeah I don't tend to skip peoples' posts even if their CSS is horrible-- UNLESS they choose one of those fonts that are really harsh on the eyes... Then I skip it. (Especially when it has nothing to do with my character anyway?) For the people who insist on blinding font colors, I just highlight the post and read it and it's usually enough to make it more legible. /thumbsup

Also, it might be because of the extension I have installed-- but my scrollbars are all either hidden or the nice simple thin iphone-style scroll bars :0
Female
Seen August 4th, 2016
Posted April 16th, 2016
64 posts
7.3 Years
As a newbie to the PokeCommunity forums and to CSS in general (back when I started RPing, CSS posts were Not a Thing), I picked up a simple template, made a few tiny edits (font size, font face, width, etc.) and am running with that. Not super fancy, but I think that well-done CSS templates frame posts very nicely and make them look better than just straight-up posting, if that makes sense.

One thing in particular that I am kind of picky about is width; I really hate how the width of PC forums flattens everything out. It's fine and doesn't bother me in OoC posts, but in IC posts I like my paragraphs to look nice and compact.

Re: other peoples' decisions on whether to use them or not, though, I'm largely indifferent; a nice template is just a little "Oh, that's nice" perk; a tacky one is only really a negative if it makes reading your post impossible; a total lack of one is also fine.

FireSnow

Show me that Fighting Spirit

Age 27
Male
Ambrette Town, Kalos
Seen August 20th, 2021
Posted October 3rd, 2020
2,644 posts
7.7 Years
Though I'm not so new to RPing anymore, I am still new to CSS having finally implemented my own basic CSS in an RP. Special thanks to those that helped me with that, yu know who you are :)

Back to the topic though, I can see the reasoning that it can be intimidating for new people when they see these awesome CSS's. How I see it though, I think it works as a good motivator for those that don't know how to make them or simply aren't so great at it to become better that do want them. That's my reasoning for why I finally got my own as I wanted one the second I started RPing but wasn't sure how to go about it. Thanks to some helpful members I finally have my own.

As for those who don't want one, I also have some experience there. It is plenty possible to make a good looking post without the use of CSS with a little effort. Second, what matters most is the quality of the post and as long as one does fairly well with that, it won't matter whether you do or don't have a CSS.

That's my two cents :)

Arylett Charnoa

No one in particular.

Age 31
Female
Seen January 5th, 2023
Posted October 18th, 2017
1,130 posts
9.2 Years
I actually find myself disengaged to read very long posts that are not formatted in CSS in role-plays, only because I think they are too wide on the page and stretch. A very simple div of width and activated overflow can constrain that nicely, and then it won't feel like I'm reading a never-ending report where I can see I have so much more to go and become distracted by that.
There is a really easy solution to this - just make your window smaller. Further, aren't there layouts here that ARE fixed width? I'm not really sure, but if they do exist, then this means you have more non-CSS options for your width.
Male
Tennessee
Seen 3 Weeks Ago
Posted 3 Weeks Ago
5,620 posts
13 Years
As I said, it isn't making them flashy to me. I would rather have them centered on my computer than go across my whole screen. It annoys the crap out of me. That is the only reason I started using CSS.

^ Example, this above goes across my entire screen on one line. It is true, I could change the site skin for myself, but I don't care for most of them to be honest. And they goods ones are holiday related. And a lot of them are far too bright for me. I prefer darker skins.

Shak

Male
UK
Seen March 15th, 2023
Posted March 14th, 2023
944 posts
8.3 Years
I haven't had the chance to read up on the debate yet, but my personal opinion on CSS is that I love it. If chosen well, it can really tell the story of a character simply through design alone. A wild go-getter character should have a brighter and more flashy CSS to go with their posts, while more reserved characters should have simpler and more organised looking CSS. Personally, I enjoy reading posts with nice CSS, and it's that simple.
I do wish it were easier to make, so I'm very grateful for those who have made it for me in the past, but I still cant join RPs without it. I also have to be thankful for the CSS template thread, which has been a major help for me.
Last thing, I'm calling out Oddball32 or whatever his username is, for using the same CSS as me in Venice. Try me, we will fight bro



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Jauntier

Where was your antennas again?

Male
USA
Seen April 6th, 2018
Posted December 23rd, 2017
690 posts
7.8 Years
There is a really easy solution to this - just make your window smaller. Further, aren't there layouts here that ARE fixed width? I'm not really sure, but if they do exist, then this means you have more non-CSS options for your width.
Yes, clearly, but I'm not trying to adjust my window for specifically certain PokeCommunity role-play posts, nor I am not going to change my entire theme when I've found one that I like the best, finding it personally easiest on my eyes in terms of contrast, all for one slight margin.

Like I said, I will be personally disengaged. It doesn't mean I'm going to outright avoid a post. I'm sharing my opinion of why I like CSS and how it can be utilized for nothing so fancy or "intimidating" as to constrain text in a way that pinching or expanding my window around or going through a list of site themes will not be the select response.

Sonata

Don't let me disappear

Age 27
Male
Indiana
Seen 7 Hours Ago
Posted March 25th, 2023
13,619 posts
10.2 Years
I'm too lazy to css half the time, but it does affect what i read and dont read. Some Css can really bring out an effect with the text, and others can just make me want to puke or look away because it makes everything so daunting and looks like its more than it really is. But I don't really like to read plain text since then its just like, okay theres 11 or 12 paragraphs, holy crap i dont want to read that. But with Css idk, its more inviting?

Nero

I like it.

Male
Route 230, Australia
Seen June 2nd, 2019
Posted June 2nd, 2019
371 posts
7.3 Years
Actually, I've never touched CSS before. HTML master race! I think PC's RPT is actually the first roleplay site/section where I've seen people use CSS. Apart from the odd few, everyone I know has stuck with plain old BBcode or just black on white nothing outside of GM posts. It might just be because I'm not used to it, but I'm not a big fan of CSS outside of small touch ups like borders or maybe a picture to the side. Smaller width may be nicer when I'm on my laptop and iPad, but it's a pain when I'm viewing the forum on my phone. I also find it better when the entire thread uses the same colours and keeps relatively to the same style, especially seeing as though I'm mostly on at night and my eyes are tired. I've yet to be turned off of a post due to extravagant coding like some people have said, but there's been a few nameless people that have tried to fancy up their posts and have made me think that it looks a bit… not right. My opinion on CSS as a whole? I'm gonna stay away from it, but it's not that bad if used right and I'm not discouraging it. Just one thing:

Keep it simple, stupid.
If you're using CSS, you should already know this.

Retro Bug

Seen July 18th, 2016
Posted May 27th, 2016
1,176 posts
14.8 Years
This was certainly an... interesting read.

People make terrible formatting choices with or without CSS. All I think you need to do is mention it to them. A lot of people are understanding and possibly don't see their choices as you do. As long as you're appropriately displaying your concerns or problems, I don't think there's any harm in it. If they have blinding colors in their posts and you can't read it, ask them to change it. If you want them to add a scrollbar or something, ask them to change it. I think a lot of these "problems" could be solved with actual communication not built up anger.

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jombii

Crobat is ProBat

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Philippines
Seen June 28th, 2019
Posted April 13th, 2019
3,412 posts
8.9 Years
I don't really like to read plain text since then its just like, okay theres 11 or 12 paragraphs, holy crap i dont want to read that. But with Css idk, its more inviting?
Yup. Same reason why I prefer CSS at some posts. It is also worth mentioning that JPs (which are really frequent in PCs RPT) are usually longer than most post since it's 2++ people playing. Adding a little touch of color might just be the thing people need to read it.