My Little Pony: Sidebar Magic

June 21, 2013 8:03 PM

Can we have sidebar items link directly to the post or comment rather than Best Of?

As it stands, I click the sidebar summary to get a Best Of summary rather than just getting the content in question. And, frankly, Best Of isn't adding much outside of an extra sentence or two over the sidebar link.

posted by bfranklin to Feature Requests at 8:03 PM (69 comments total)

I agree.
posted by Curious Artificer at 8:22 PM on June 21, 2013 [35 favorites]

I agree with Curious Artificer.
posted by cgc373 at 8:25 PM on June 21, 2013 [2 favorites]

I've been meaning to bring this up as well. The existence of the Best Of blog is nice, but having each sidebar entry take me to an identical Best Of entry which I then have to click through again to get to the actual content is surprisingly annoying.
posted by hattifattener at 8:26 PM on June 21, 2013 [48 favorites]

Yes please. I've pretty much stopped clicking sidebar links because I know the summary on the "Best Of" site is mostly contextless linkbait - and I've got a long-ingrained habit of turning around and backing right away from interstitials.

If Matt et. al. really want to keep it as another linkbait-y entry point for MeFi, that's fine - but please make the sidebar links point straight to the MeFi post/comment, not the SEO blog.
posted by Pinback at 8:26 PM on June 21, 2013

What, don't you guys like the pictures? I like the pictures on the BestOf blog. It's fun! Count me as "in favor" of the current functionality.
posted by Doleful Creature at 8:39 PM on June 21, 2013 [1 favorite]

I also would prefer to go straight to the post/comment in question.
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 8:44 PM on June 21, 2013 [1 favorite]

I like the best of blog, but I hate that the sidebar takes me there.
posted by jeather at 8:48 PM on June 21, 2013 [6 favorites]

This has sometimes annoyed me, also.
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 8:52 PM on June 21, 2013

I like this pony. Think of all the wasted energy spent on those extra clicks.
posted by arcticseal at 8:57 PM on June 21, 2013

It's like sites that want you to download their app and door slam you. Kind of frustrating.
posted by ishrinkmajeans at 8:58 PM on June 21, 2013

This is a thing we can do! Turns out it's already built into the way our back end tool works but I wasn't really clear on how to make it do the right thing. We will start doing this henceforth!
posted by jessamyn (staff) at 9:00 PM on June 21, 2013 [77 favorites]

YAY
posted by wallabear at 9:01 PM on June 21, 2013

My Little Pony: Desolation
posted by homunculus at 9:05 PM on June 21, 2013

I'm glad this is being changed. I used to visit each link in the sidebar but stopped once it started taking me to the blog.
posted by alligatorman at 9:06 PM on June 21, 2013

Double yay!
posted by SLC Mom at 9:07 PM on June 21, 2013

This pony is awesome. jessamyn, you are awesome.
posted by thisclickableme at 9:26 PM on June 21, 2013

Awesome. I grew to dislike bouncing back and forth for content that originated here.
posted by iamabot at 9:31 PM on June 21, 2013

I kinda wish that the sidebar and Best Of were not identical. I like the idea of Best Of but would prefer that it had more content than the sidebar has. Like, the sidebar is really the best stuff (but also maybe just things of site/community importance) while Best Of goes a little deeper into good stuff in the mefiverse.
posted by Ivan Fyodorovich at 9:42 PM on June 21, 2013 [17 favorites]

*brings rosy red apple for prancing pony already in garden*
posted by infini at 10:01 PM on June 21, 2013

I was gonna chime in with 'I agree' but then I realized I got a pony! A pony!
posted by From Bklyn at 10:07 PM on June 21, 2013 [1 favorite]

I guess the third time's the charm for this particular pony. Hooray!
posted by asterix at 11:00 PM on June 21, 2013

Yay, I had stopped clicking on the sidebar and will now resume such forthwith.
posted by threeants at 11:14 PM on June 21, 2013

Thank you. I too will resume my sidebar clicking.

Hey, what do you feed a pony?
posted by JohnnyGunn at 11:27 PM on June 21, 2013

Oh yes please and thank you.
posted by shelleycat at 11:33 PM on June 21, 2013

Okay I am in favor of this (yay!), but it is not working for me. I even logged out, cleared cookies and cache, but clicking on the sidebar still takes me to the Best Of blog and not to the site post.

Buh? (Firefox 21.0, Windows Vista)
posted by trip and a half at 11:44 PM on June 21, 2013

Hunh. It's not working for me either. Which is sad. Because I think the concept is great.
posted by medusa at 12:09 AM on June 22, 2013 [1 favorite]

Hey, what do you feed a pony?

Rosy red apples.
posted by infini at 12:11 AM on June 22, 2013 [2 favorites]

Like red delicious?
posted by Night_owl at 1:14 AM on June 22, 2013

Okay I am in favor of this (yay!), but it is not working for me.

That's just because nothing new has been posted since we made the change. I just edited Jessamyn's last post to give it a separate sidebar link, so the most recent one will work the new way.
posted by taz (staff) at 2:15 AM on June 22, 2013

What a coincidence, just minutes ago I was looking at the sidebar and following links there for the first time in months and was annoyed that I was pointlessly being taken to the blog (with photos not in the original threads nickle & diming my bandwidth cap). Then, I happen to look at MetaTalk for the first time today and see this thread.

Thanks for making the change back.
posted by D.C. at 2:33 AM on June 22, 2013

Three beers/cheers!
posted by Joseph Gurl at 2:34 AM on June 22, 2013

I had given up on the sidebar too. I really appreciate this.
posted by werkzeuger at 4:48 AM on June 22, 2013

You feed a pony a balanced diet of hugs and schmoopy.
posted by double block and bleed at 4:50 AM on June 22, 2013 [3 favorites]

Would it work to allow user submissions on BestOf that don't rate a sidebar, but are cool? I promise not to only submit Flo's one liners.
posted by Potomac Avenue at 5:32 AM on June 22, 2013

I promise to only submit Flo's one-liners.
posted by mintcake! at 5:42 AM on June 22, 2013 [1 favorite]

This is great news, thank you. It makes the sidebar great again.
posted by Talkie Toaster at 5:48 AM on June 22, 2013

Yay! Thank you!
posted by bfranklin at 5:51 AM on June 22, 2013

Would it work to allow user submissions on BestOf that don't rate a sidebar, but are cool?

Usually the way we look at things is

- BestOf is sort of a "for MeFi and everyone else" blog about cool things on MeFi
- sidebar is for more inside baseball stuff that MeFites either would like or should know about.
- we have a way to put things on the sidebar in abbreviated format and BestOf in longer format that I wasn't clear on before

Flagging stuff as fantastic and/or emailing us about it is a great way to get us to put stuff in one or both places, with the general understanding that we try to showcase a wide variety of stuff and not just the usual suspects who make consistently good comments.
posted by jessamyn (staff) at 6:59 AM on June 22, 2013 [1 favorite]

Hey, what do you feed a pony?

Bright, shiny, organically-raised clicks. This diet makes their coats smooth and glossy.
posted by GenjiandProust at 7:06 AM on June 22, 2013 [1 favorite]

I was going to also comment that I did not love the side bar --> best of --> comment detour, so thanks.
posted by Slarty Bartfast at 8:03 AM on June 22, 2013

It used to work this way, right? I remember the first time I clicked a sidebar link and got the "Best Of" blog and thought, "wtf is this". Yet here everyone is acting like it's always been this way. I feel like I'm taking crazy pills.
posted by Steely-eyed Missile Man at 8:05 AM on June 22, 2013

everyone is acting like it's always been this way.

It had been that way since the Best of Blog came into being. The sidebar predates Best Of, thus there was quite a while when it can't have linked to it.
posted by zamboni at 8:10 AM on June 22, 2013

I like this pony! Thank you!
posted by gauche at 8:16 AM on June 22, 2013

I like the idea of crazy pills. I imagine them as a kind of Bizarro World phenom. You'd need a doctor's prescription to stop taking them. They'd be designed to make you horribly, dangerously, unpleasantly batshit, like Will Graham on bath salts. Luckily, they'd almost never work as designed, and all of their side-effects would be wonderful. May cause euphoria, brilliance, superhuman strength and virility, and true wisdom. Some patients reported spontaneous wealth. Common side effects include beauty, peace, love, and understanding. Tell your doctor if you experience any of the following symptoms, as they may indicate a serious condition: immortality; telepathy; telekenesis; teleportation. Ask your doctor if not taking Crazy Pillz right for you. May cause synesthesia, multiple orgasms, and puppies. Kitties, ponies, and manatees have also been reported. Crazy Pillz: When time right, make sure you not right in mind. Not approved by FDA. May not actually exist, we not sure.
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 9:18 AM on June 22, 2013 [5 favorites]

I think those crazy pills would live in the same world as Bruce Bond's Pill, where he imagines an existence in which we are high all the time, save for moments of fleeting clarity after taking a sobriety tablet.

If the world worked that way, imagine how much you'd pay for one of those pills.
posted by dersins at 10:46 AM on June 22, 2013

Crazy pils is the condition that makes you want to drink American lite beer.
posted by GenjiandProust at 11:49 AM on June 22, 2013 [1 favorite]

Pony request: please refrain from providing requested ponies until after I log in and make my feelings known about them...

This was an excellent idea and I hate to have gotten on board sixteen hours after it was implemented.
posted by SMPA at 1:08 PM on June 22, 2013 [1 favorite]

Previously the answer was "no."
posted by Nomyte at 8:13 PM on June 22, 2013

We didn't know it was possible to make everyone happy but it turns out that it is.
posted by jessamyn (staff) at 8:18 PM on June 22, 2013 [11 favorites]

I love this pony and will hug him and love him and schmoop him forever!
posted by blurker at 8:59 PM on June 22, 2013

We didn't know it was possible to make everyone happy but it turns out that it is.

...ooh yes it is!
posted by everyone at 10:52 AM any day [+] [!]
posted by Namlit at 1:54 AM on June 23, 2013 [1 favorite]

This might be the very first Metatalk pony that hasn't made me want to see the proposer get kicked by a horse.
posted by PeterMcDermott at 6:32 AM on June 23, 2013

This may not be the right moment to ponyficate, but if you've ever seen anyone who's been kicked by a horse...
posted by Namlit at 7:38 AM on June 23, 2013

Whoo-hoo! I love it how someone else *always* seems to ask the questions I want to ask, but am afraid to.


We didn't know it was possible to make everyone happy but it turns out that it is.

*swoon*
posted by polly_dactyl at 7:51 AM on June 23, 2013

Most of the links still go to the Best Of blog here.
posted by thelonius at 4:25 PM on June 23, 2013

Yes, they will. This is a thing we have to change with how the posts are made on our end moving forward. Newer posts will function properly, older posts will still be the same old wretched disaster. For which we are truly sorry. But stay tuned for better posts. Real soon now!
posted by jessamyn (staff) at 4:29 PM on June 23, 2013

but if you've ever seen anyone who's been kicked by a horse...

Years later, and still afraid of ponies. And peonies too. Those nasty little faces they make.
posted by Mr. Yuck at 4:43 PM on June 23, 2013 [1 favorite]

Ah I see, thanks!
posted by thelonius at 5:07 PM on June 23, 2013

You're thinking of pansies, Mr. Yuck. Peonies are only scary because they are full of ants.
posted by maryr at 9:29 PM on June 23, 2013 [1 favorite]

Peonies are what unicorns call their indentured servants.
posted by zamboni at 10:29 PM on June 23, 2013 [2 favorites]

Never would have occurred to me to ask for this, but I'm happy it's here.
posted by BrotherCaine at 12:04 AM on June 24, 2013

We didn't know it was possible to make everyone happy but it turns out that it is.

Magic shmoopy for the win.
posted by BrotherCaine at 12:05 AM on June 24, 2013

Peonies are only scary because they are full of ants.

Really? In my neighborhood, the peonies hang out on the sidewalks, smoking, blocking passersby for kicks and, no doubt, contemplating crimes.
posted by GenjiandProust at 5:31 AM on June 24, 2013

I know I'm late to the party but I am happy about this decision. I too like the BoB but having the sidebar go directly to the thread works better for me.
posted by Wretch729 at 7:52 AM on June 24, 2013

Related question: this has improved recently, but when did the sidebar get so allergic to capital letters?
posted by acidic at 2:28 PM on June 24, 2013

The obvious answer is "When I started making updates from my phone..." but I don't update from my phone. Also, I just checked and I have no idea what you're talking about. It's possible that the BestOf blog automatically title-cases stuff and the sidebar just shows titles in however we types them in so we see the BestOf version and think "Looks okay!" This is another PEBKAC-y thing that we can adjust.
posted by jessamyn (staff) at 2:41 PM on June 24, 2013

Check the latest entry. Does that work right?
posted by jessamyn (staff) at 7:20 AM on June 25, 2013

Looks absolutely lovely, J, want to try the red leather belt with it? ;p


*runs fast
posted by infini at 7:38 AM on June 25, 2013

> We didn't know it was possible to make everyone happy but it turns out that it is.

Flagged as fantastic.
posted by desuetude at 7:58 AM on June 25, 2013