One Line Results

**Wyzcrak** · 08-10-2006, 02:46 PM

I noticed recently that, when viewing search results in the forums, the page layout didn't make the best use of the horizontal space on my screen. That is, it used multiple rows to show about each result information that I'd just as soon prefer to see in one row. This essentially doubled the time it took me to visually scan the page vertically, moving down through the search results.

I've modified the search results layout for myself by authoring a userscript for use in the Greasemonkey Firefox extension. Anyone may use it if he likes. I've called it, simply, One Line Results.

The userscript modifies the results page you see when you search the forums. In short, it shows each result's information in a single line of text, which makes it easier to see more results without scrolling. The only ugly I ever get from it is when the name/pagescount/authorname text of the thread combine to be very lengthy, in which case character overlapping occurs. This is rare, and I accept it as the cost of what is an otherwise-satisfying modification.

I recommend this userscript only for those running higher resolutions, as it thrives in the greater-width browser window.

onelineresults.user.js

If you have any questions about how to install or use this, please do use Google to educate yourself minimally about Greasemonkey before asking questions.

If you do use this, please do provide feedback in this thread. I anticipate there's much room for improvement here.

**Rincewind** · 08-10-2006, 02:52 PM

Thanks, Wyz!

Lorian · 08-10-2006, 05:43 PM

Nice idea Wyz, looks cleaner now, thanks.

**CingularDuality** · 08-11-2006, 07:36 AM

Can't give you rep again yet, Wyz.

I like it, except for one thing. It no longer displays the forum name, and more importantly, therefore doesn't have a link to the forum that the post is in. I often find that I want to go from the "New Posts" search results, directly to a particular forum to see older threads or other new threads in that forum.

Is there any chance that you could make the "legend" icons hotlink to the forum that the post is in?

**Wyzcrak** · 08-11-2006, 10:38 AM

Yes. I'll get that done during the next week.

I had a similar problem, which is why you see the tooltips over the legend icons, showing the name of the forum. I'll make them clickable soon.

Thanks for the feedback and kind words.

**CingularDuality** · 08-11-2006, 02:29 PM

Sweet!

Thanks!

Ooh, and if you're taking requests, I would love if you could include a toggle for this! I also find myself looking to see the time of the last post in a thread. A toggle would kill both of my issues with one stone!

**Wyzcrak** · 08-11-2006, 04:08 PM

How about this:

Clicking in the "whitespace" (not the link, not the button) of the fourth column toggles the text of its link back and forth between the name of the most recent poster (currently displayed) and the time of the most recent post (not yet implemented). In either case, clicking on the link takes you to the most recent post (current behavior).

Does that meet the need? Did you have a different idea for it?

**Wyzcrak** · 08-12-2006, 06:39 AM

I've added the following functionality to the download in the first post:

Clicking in the "whitespace" (not the link, not the buttons) of the third or fourth columns toggles the text of the link in the fourth column back and forth between the name of the most recent poster (displayed by default) and the time of the most recent post. Clicking on the former takes you to the profile of the most recent poster. Clicking on the latter takes you to the most recent post.
Forum icons now link to their respective forums.

**CingularDuality** · 08-12-2006, 07:12 AM

Outstanding! That is precisely the functionality that I was hoping for. Thanks!

**CingularDuality** · 09-09-2006, 09:32 PM

I forgot to mention that I've been unable to use this script because deleted threads (still visible to admins/mods) break it and prevent any results from being displayed.

**Wyzcrak** · 09-25-2006, 02:46 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CingularDuality

I forgot to mention that I've been unable to use this script because deleted threads (still visible to admins/mods) break it and prevent any results from being displayed.

I think I've got this fixed. It's not pretty, but it works. I doubt I'll ever make it pretty, as working with the column count logic is nasty enough with the happyday scenarios. Once I start trying to guess how the forums are going to show information when threads are specially managed, it gets nasty.

You see more deleted threads than I do, Cing, so test drive the latest version (see first post). If you still have problems, let me know.

**CingularDuality** · 09-25-2006, 05:34 AM

I'll let you know if I have any problems. Thanks!

**WhiskeySix** · 03-27-2007, 01:16 PM

<bump> for widescreeny happiness!

**WhiskeySix** · 05-11-2007, 04:21 AM

Updated: OneLineResults.v03.user.js

I made several changes so this wouldn't require wide-screen, and because the toggle functionality before was annoying to me

User now has four display modes for "last post" column (Date&Time of Last Post, Last Poster, neither, or both)
I found it incredibly annoying that the Last-Post column would toggle every time I clicked the "go to first unread" icon. I made it stop doing that.
Changed some things around to make it useable at low resolutions... down to 1024x768 even (Minimum cell-widths added, text-overlap restricted, option to hide last-post column, etc)
Clickable area for the "Go to first unread"-icon was expanded for easy clicky happiness.
Added header row with titles for each column.

Header row and Toggle option#1:

Toggle option #2 (default):

Toggle option #3:

Toggle option #4:

for reference, here's v01:

ok... let me know if you have any issues with it!

**WhiskeySix** · 11-15-2007, 02:13 PM

Updated to remove annoying toggle action - Latest version works for monitors of all widths, so it's not necessary: OneLineResults.v04.user.js