# Off Topic > Suggestions for Improvement >  >  Forum Gurus should be highlighted

## Tony Valko

I think the forum gurus should be prominently identified by having their names appear in a unique color.

The admins names appear in black font and the mods names appear in green font. The guru names should appear in a unique color.

What do you think?

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## FDibbins

Testing colors

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## FDibbins

wow only after looking really closely did I see that my name is in green, compared to Tony's name in blue.  The difference, on my screen here at work, is so slight I did not even notice until you pointed it out  :Smilie:

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## Tony Valko

If you're at work you're gonna miss the Steeler game!  :Wink:

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## FDibbins

I am at work - and we have a tv here - and...no loss LOL.  they have rush hour 3 actually lol

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## arlu1201

I can find out if another color is possible.  A good suggestion, though.

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## FDibbins

Well at least the admins stand out :p  :Wink:

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## Paul

Perhaps a nice purple.  Or white?  White's a good color on a white background.   :Smilie:

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## FDibbins

LOL i like that 1, Paul, wht on wht

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## :) Sixthsense :)

+1 to Tony's suggestion  :Smilie:

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## Tony Valko

*How about a bold red?*

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## FDibbins

...danger danger, Wil Robinson!!...
lol

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## benishiryo

but what would be the purpose of highlighting our names?  so that OP can see who's online & PM us to look at their problems?  but you disallow PMs, Tony!   :Roll Eyes (Sarcastic):

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## Tony Valko

> but what would be the purpose of highlighting our names?



What's the purpose of highlighting admin or mod names?





> so that OP can see who's online & PM us to look at their problems?



They can see that you're online no matter what color your user name is (unless you use invisible mode like I do).

If being a "guru" is a prestigious achievement then I feel we should be  prominently identified as such.





> but you disallow PMs, Tony!



Yeah, I'm smart like that!  :Wink:

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## benishiryo

when i have technical problems, i usually look at the main page below & see which Admin/Mods are online.  OPs can see us all online, but they are unable to identify who are the admins/mods/Gurus.  so it makes it easier when theirs are coloured.  =)

that's my take on the colouring.  i'm not sure if it's done because it's a prestigious achievement, but you might be right~

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## Tony Valko

> OPs can see us all online, but they are unable to identify who are the admins/mods/Gurus.  so it makes it easier when theirs are coloured.



Yes, that's the reason why gurus should be highlighted also.

An OP might look to see who's online and feel they have a better chance at getting a robust solution when there are identified gurus, mods, admins online.

The first thing I do after I login is I look to see who's online.

The admins and mods are easy to spot because their names are in different colors and stand out. I think the gurus should also be easy to spot by having their names highlighted in some color.

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## FDibbins

for a steelers fan, you make a lot of sense, Tony  :Wink:

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## arlu1201

This has been implemented.  A bolder blue for the forum gurus.

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## XOR LX

Tony,

Since your arguments in favour of this change appear to be based upon general considerations, and the benefit of the forum as a whole - and seemingly independent of your own forum status - why weren't you pushing for this particular change _prior_ to your becoming a Forum Guru?

Regards

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## JosephP

> An OP might look to see who's online and feel they have a better chance at getting a robust solution when there are identified gurus, mods, admins online.



won't help much if all the gurus are invisible, will it?  :Wink:

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## Pepe Le Mokko

> An OP might look to see who's online and feel they have a better chance at getting a robust solution when there are identified gurus, mods, admins online.



English not being my mother tongue,I lack the words to express my feelings about this sentence. Does this mean that those who are not gurus are idiots and incapable of finding a robust solution? ( admin and mod being an administrative job does not imply they are better than anyone else for providing help).

I find such an allegation insulting especially from someone answering the way you do, Tony. Perhaps we should open a couple of sub-forums like " Answers by retarded" and " answers by geniuses" ?

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## john55

Honestly?! I,ve had the same thought since I had seen it!

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## Fotis1991

> XOR LX--JosephP-- Pepe Le Mokko--john55




I thought that only me was the bad quy here.. :Wink:

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## Pepe Le Mokko

> I thought that only me was the bad quy here..




I was thinking of adding " Vanitas vanitatum et omnia vanitas", but then again, TMS will get mad at me for quoting Latin   :Smilie:  .

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## Tony Valko

@ arlu...

Excellent!

Looks good and does what was intended.  :Cool:

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## Tony Valko

@ Ford...

That's how I roll!  :Wink:

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## Tony Valko

@ XOR...

I've wondered why this wasn't applied since the day I joined this forum.

I just finally got up the "nerve" to inquire about it.  :Cool:

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## Tony Valko

@ Pepe...

You're way off the mark!

Honestly, I can't understand why anyone would be against this.  :Confused:

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## arlu1201

The forum guru color tag was applied just to differentiate the gurus but it in no way undermines the effort put in by the others.  I hope we do not get a request to put a color for VFC and for FC too, then we will have the main page looking like a children's bday party  :Smilie: 

I just asked the tech team based on this request to check if its possible and they tried it out successfully.  However, if majority feel this is going to create a drift between the various user-groups we have, we would be glad to be rid of it.  We should be together as one forum, not divided by color codes.

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## Tony Valko

@ JoesphP...

Yeah, that's a possibility.  :EEK!:

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## Tony Valko

Seems you can't do anything around here without ruffling someone's feathers!  :Frown:

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## Tony Valko

> I just finally got up the "nerve" to inquire about it.



And after reading some of the replies you can see why it's "dangerous" to express yourself!

No matter how innocent your intentions, someone will be enraged!  :Confused:

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## daddylonglegs

I'm trying to be enraged but I haven't got the energy today  :Frown: 

FWIW, Tony I think it's a great idea, +Rep - to me it's just additional information, how people use or interpret that information is up to them

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## Pepe Le Mokko

> Seems you can't do anything around here without ruffling someone's feathers!



If you feel that saying that gurus provide more robust answers than other members, thereby implying their answers are worth less, I don't appreciate it and several other members were also offended. And you don't seem to have read that in my post which you interpreted freely as being against the coloring of guru names.

I hadn't given it any thought, I was laughing too hard.  :Smilie:

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## Haseeb A

I don’t know this is a bad idea or too funny  :Wink: 

In the main forum under who is online or somewhere more suitable, have a legend what does these colors mean? So new users can easily identify what these colors means.

I never think/thought colored users are best on this forum & providing best answers. It just for identify the colors, just like used in graph  :Smilie:

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## john55

> I thought that only me was the bad quy here..



nope, not a chance to be the only one...or do not be so selfish! lol

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## FDibbins

@ Tony, i hear you on this...




> Seems you can't do anything around here without ruffling someone's feathers!



Im sure your intention was not to discriminate, nor to suggest that non-guru's etc are all any less skilled than guru's.  1 of the biggest problems with written communication is that we cannot here the sound of a voice or see the expression used when giving the info, so we cannot always judge the intent  :Frown:

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## Pepe Le Mokko

FDibbins, congratulations for trying to moderate the thread, but I'm sure of the contrary. You only have to read Tony's posts to feel his condescending tone. ( not only in this thread)

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## FDibbins

Pepe, I understand your concern and how you feel  :Frown:   Another thing to consider is the cultural aspect of things.  

I was born in England, grew up and spend most of my life in South Africa (37 years), and have lived in USA for the past 11 years.  I have given up counting the times when I have said something meant as a joke, only to find that many people here too offence to what I said.  I have found the reverse to be true as well, where I have been upset by something someone said, only to find out that they meant nothing by it.

Different cultures "hear" things in different ways, and it is sometimes better to try and clarify exactly what was meant by a comment.  I took that particular comment to mean, that if a newbie joins, they are more likely to pay attention to a member with 5000 posts, than 1 with only 5, for example...even if the member with only 5, is in fact a newly joined excel MVP, and the 5000-post member has been here for 10 years and not really answered a question.

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## john55

@FDibbins, I understand very well your reply and yes, you are right! ...but you do not say anything about color, which is the purpose of it?  :Smilie:

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## FDibbins

It is just a way of identifying *some* of the levels in the forum.  Even if a new member does not know the difference between a *blue* name and a *green* name, they tend to stand out and catch the eye a little better than if we all had the same color.

To be honest though, until Tony mentioned it when he started this thread, I had never really even noticed that  :Smilie:

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## Pepe Le Mokko

Still think this color thing is discrimination between the "geniuses" and the common folks.

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## john55

I know, I know, I saw something similar in Tony's post! ...I was expecting to "repaint" it! lol

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## FDibbins

Im sure that there are some that would agree with you Pepe, just as Im equally sure that there are some that think it is a good idea - and others that couldnt care less either way (cant please em all, as they say lol)

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## TMS

I think it is useful to be able to identify the Administrators and Moderators more easily, although, unless you know what the colour codes mean it probably isn't that much value. It's probably less important to identify Gurus ... they can only answer questions like anyone else. They can't "fix" things, so what difference does it make?

Tony has made a suggestion and, with a few poorly chosen words, has offended some of the regular contributors.  Which is a shame.  Nothing wrong with the suggestion, although I'd be one sitting on the fence, even though I do quite like the colour blue.  Personally, I don't think it's a great idea and, had there been a poll, I'd probably have voted "no" or abstained.  Interesting that the change was implemented so quickly. Praise be it hasn't brought the site down  :Wink: 

It takes a while to earn Guru status, but it's clear that new members join and bring with them a wealth of knowledge and experience.  They may well be much more knowledgeable and experienced than the existing Gurus ... and that is not meant to offend any of them, just stating a fact.  I see some amazing answers to questions from people relatively new to the board and I cannot thank them enough for teaching me new tricks.

The suggestion that Gurus may offer better solutions was perhaps badly thought through? It'd be nice to think so, but there's a lot to know and I suspect very few people know it all.

So, maybe we should all take a step back and accept that no slur was intended, despite the way it may have come across.   And that we are all here with the objective of helping each other and the forum. 

Regards, TMS

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## JosephP

I'm in favor of more information-I propose that all forum experts who have declined the guru offer should be highlighted in pink. this is of course only to let people know not to nominate us again and not just because I like pink :-)

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## Fotis1991

Josie.I like Pink color! :Smilie:

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## TMS

Faint strains of "red and yellow and pink and green, orange and purple and blue, I can sing a rainbow" ...

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## john55

hmm...
Fotis1991  or Fotis1991   :Confused: 

lol

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## Fotis1991

> hmm...
> Fotis1991  or Fotis1991  
> 
> lol



Both are ok...! :Smilie:  but not for my name! :Wink: ...

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## Tony Valko

If I have offended anyone I apoligize.

That was absolutely not my intention.

Thanks to FDibbins for attempting to explain what was meant.

In the future I shall keep my suggestions/opinions to myself.

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## Tony Valko

@ Pepe...

To show you how wrong you are I will give you my Guru title if the powers that be are OK with it.

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## Fotis1991

> @ Pepe...
> 
> To show you how wrong you are I will give you my Guru title if the powers that be are OK with it.



Pepe is one of them that did't accepted the Guru title a long time ago...and the Mod title a very long time ago...

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## FDibbins

> In the future I shall keep my suggestions/opinions to myself.



Tony, Im sure we all greatly value your opinions and suggestions - I know I sure do.  Like I said before, sometimes things just get taken the wrong way

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## Pepe Le Mokko

> @ Pepe...
> 
> To show you how wrong you are I will give you my Guru title if the powers that be are OK with it.



Thank you very much Tony, but I already asked to stay VFC, my Excel skills are not good enough...

Let's call it quits - Cheers

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## :) Sixthsense :)

All these Contradiction / Conflicts just makes me to think about a formula created with a circular reference and a sheet change event without turning off the events.

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## XOR LX

"_In the future I shall keep my suggestions/opinions to myself._"

But why would you do that? 

Rather, like everyone else on the forum, you are at liberty to express your opinion as freely as you wish. But with that freedom must come the acknowledgment that not everyone may agree with that opinion (perhaps even be offended), and, that being the case, it could be argued that the appropriate and considered response might not be one which dismisses those objections as groundless, unjust attacks on an innocent:

"_Seems you can't do anything around here without ruffling someone's feathers!_" 

"_No matter how innocent your intentions, someone will be enraged!_"

but rather to engage with the objectors and attempt to find out what caused the offence in the first place. 

To respond in the first instance that anyone who objects to your suggestion is necessarily "enraged" or had their "feathers ruffled" is to immediately devalue that persons opinion before any proper debate has taken place, an action which, if anything, is only likely to exacerbate matters.

Regards

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## Pete_UK

I've been a bit too busy to log on much in the last couple of days, so I missed this thread. I did notice as soon as I logged on today, though, that my name had changed to bright blue, and thought that was a nice change (wasn't sure if it was IE 11 playing up again, at first). I see that it has been quite controversial, which I'm sure Biff (Tony) did not intend, but I quite like it now that it has been done.

(My 2p's worth)

Pete

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## Olly

I know my place.

 :Wink:

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## Pete_UK

> I know my place.



Nice one, Olly - taken from the classic Upper/Middle/Lower Class sketch on the Frost Report, no doubt !

Pete

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## :) Sixthsense :)

> I know my place.



No conflicts if everyone takes it in that way  :Smilie: 

I see my current title as a type of motivation from the site, not really what it refers to.

Because I know my place like you  :Wink:

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## Olly

> Nice one, Olly - taken from the classic Upper/Middle/Lower Class sketch on the Frost Report, no doubt !



The very same  :Cool:

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## Tony Valko

> Let's call it quits - Cheers



Amen to that!  :Cool:

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## Paul

I just find it humorous that, at the moment, half of the eight Forum Gurus logged into the site have "invisible mode" on.  Including the person who started this thread so that Gurus would be easier to spot.

:P

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## Tony Valko

I'm going visible!

The above is not a suggestion nor an opinion. It's simply a statement of fact!  :Wink:

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## Pepe Le Mokko

> I just find it humorous that, at the moment, half of the eight Forum Gurus logged into the site have "invisible mode" on.  Including the person who started this thread so that Gurus would be easier to spot.
> 
> :P



Nice one !

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## JosephP

so forum gurus get immediate action and the rest of us can go whistle? guess I shoulda said yes to the offer...

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## TMS

> so forum gurus get immediate action and the rest of us can go whistle?



Not sure what that relates to or what it means.





> guess I shoulda said yes to the offer...



Yes, you probably shoulda.  The offer was in recognition of your ability and your contribution.  And I doubt you would find it difficult to meet the guidelines set down to retain the status.   :Roll Eyes (Sarcastic):

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## arlu1201

JosephP,

As i mentioned before, it was done on a trial basis.  I had asked the tech team to check if its possible.  Since it was, it got implemented.  

If its going to create animosity among all the members, we can have it removed.

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## Pete_UK

As it was so easy to implement, why not have colour coding for ALL the levels?

Pete

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## arlu1201

IMO, it would be better to remove the forum guru color code if its creating so much of a ruckus.

It wouldnt be advisable to see a rainbow of colors on the home page.  People would be checking on the colors and who is at what level rather than assisting others or posting questions.

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## Fotis1991

> IMO, it would be better to remove the forum guru color code if its creating so much of a ruckus.
> 
> It wouldnt be advisable to see a rainbow of colors on the home page.  People would be checking on the colors and who is at what level rather than assisting others or posting questions.



Agree with that and also i didn't see any comments for Tms opinion in post#45, which is also my opinion.





> I think it is useful to be able to identify the Administrators and Moderators more easily, although, unless you know what the colour codes mean it probably isn't that much value. It's probably less important to identify Gurus ... they can only answer questions like anyone else. They can't "fix" things, so what difference does it make?

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## Kyle123

I'd like each letter of my name in a different colour, I think that would look nice  :Wink:

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## JosephP

Trevor,
my mom always said I talk too fast and think too slow. as usual she was right :-)

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## XOR LX

Whilst I welcome, and am fascinated by, the continued input from the more regular forum contributors on this matter (74 posts now!), since this whole debate began with the (rather contentious, as it turns out!) premise that:

"_An OP might look to see who's online and feel they have a better chance at getting a robust solution when there are identified gurus, mods, admins online._"

it would seem appropriate to also consider the opinions of these OPs (i.e. first-time or infrequent visitors to the forum) - whose very motives are assumed in this statement - on the actual degree of attention they pay to the 'status' of those who are online at any given time.

Would the forum consider implementing such a poll, the results of which could then be added to this whole debate and used as a basis for upholding/overruling the current decision?

Regards

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## Paul

What do you think we're running here, a Democracy?  If so, we'll need a Forum Czar, stat.

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## TMS

Does anybody really consider that a new OP, or even an experienced OP, is going to look at who's on-line, assess their capability to address a problem and think, "shall I post this problem now, come back later, or shall I go somewhere else where there's a better selection of 'gurus'".  I don't think so, somehow.

TMS

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## xladept

ROYGBV - Administrator, Moderator,Guru,Expert,VFC,FC - it's perfect!!!!

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## Winon

I actually like the new color for Forum Gurus. 

Not that it should indicate that they are more knowledgeable than a new Forum Member, but that they have earned it, and that they have also accepted the conditions, rules and responsibility that goes along with such status.

No offence to any other status levels!

To those who have declined Forum Guru status, you have done so out of your own free will, and I am sure you are also mature enough to accept certain exclusions as what might be applicable to any status level/s.

@ arlu1201,

I don't think you should change the color back to what it was before.


Regards.

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## Pepe Le Mokko

> but that they have earned it, and that they have also accepted the conditions, rules and responsibility that goes along with such status.



Could you please provide a link to the enumeration of these conditions, rules, etc..., I must have lost it - Thx

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## Winon

Hello Pepe Le Mokko,

Please see this link. :Smilie: 

http://www.excelforum.com/the-water-...n-ef-guru.html

Regards.

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## Pepe Le Mokko

Thank you very much

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## Winon

Hello Pepe Le Mokko,

You are welcome.

Thank you for your thank you. :Smilie: 

Best Regards.

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## jaslake

I'm color blind...didn't notice that Mods and Admins were a color different from all the rest of us...however, I CAN see the Guru color simply because it's so BOLD :Smilie: 

When a Thread Post has Yellow Font I can't read the text. When a Thread Post has Red or Green Font I can read the text but have no clue it's in Red or Green :Smilie: 

Bottom line...the Color Coding is meaningless to me...'cause I'm Color Blind...

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## Winon

@ jaslake,





> I'm color blind...didn't notice that Mods and Admins were a color different from all the rest of us...however, I CAN see the Guru color simply because it's so BOLD



My friend, if you Can see any color if it is in bold, why not invest in a pair of glasses that reads only in "Bold"? :Smilie: 

Kind Regards.

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## jaslake

@ Winon

Well, this is not the case



> if you Can see any color if it is in bold



and, I didn't know such things existed



> invest in a pair of glasses that reads only in "Bold"



Where do I buy such a pair?

 :Smilie:  :Smilie:  :Smilie:  :Smilie:

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## bsalv

reaction of a Low Class member,
this was the best qualification untill now.




> All these Contradiction / Conflicts just makes me to think about a formula created with a circular reference and a sheet change event without turning off the events.



Colors aren't that important.

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## Winon

@bsalv,





> reaction of a Low Class member



I honestly believe that this Forum don't have "Low Class" members. Maybe some relatively new members who have not yet earned a higher ranking. So please don't regard yourself as "Low Class". :Smilie: 





> Colors aren't that important



How dull would life be without some color? :EEK!: 

Regards.

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