Feature Request: "Active Players"


This is a constant theme on the forums. The general concensus is that as long as the player sticks within the agreed timelimit for the game, then it should not be an issue. Therefore a one move per three days allows them three days for a move, regardless of what they do elsewhere.


it sounds like there is some room for configuration here. This is not a "fairness" or "patience" thing, it is just another filter, descriptive of a user's "personality". We don't have the benefit of being in the same room, seeing each other in person.
That opens up a lot more possiblities. For example, I don't usually play games all in one sitting, but other users might want to play other people who usually do so. That is a "personality" that might be preferred by another seeking a chess game. I can imagine quite a number of "personality" configurations.

We seem to have drifted off track a bit. Kevin's colour coding scheme is certainly a good idea.
I don't think it'd save me checking out an opponent, though. Whenever I play somebody new I read their profile. (If you don't to that you're probably missing a great chess.com feature.) I learn a lot of true and entertaining things about my opponents, although the things that are true are not necessarily entertaining, and the things that are entertaining...
Enough!
The other time I used to check out a potential opponent was when I received a challenge. The only thing I wanted to know at that stage was their time-out percentage. If a player times out habitually I don't want to start a game with him. Thanks to the improvement in the challenge-received notices that's no longer necessary. They're excellent. Thanks, Erik et al.
It may be a bit cold-blooded but I also edit my friends list from time to time. If somebody hasn't been on line for more than three months I assume he's not coming back and remove him from the list. (It keeps the list short and manageable, and makes it quicker to find somebody if I want to send them a message.)

I support that colour/activity system. It would allow tournaments to be organized more efficiently (one person couldn't hold up several others), and faster players won't get stuck with slow ones.



I like the idea of using colour for the handles. Not sure about activity and colour though, do we really want to encourage members to visit or post comments just so they get a colour reward. How about using colour to signifify how strong their chess.com rating is (Like martial arts belts).
Suggestions
>2200 yellow
>2000 orange
>1800 red
>1600 purple
>1400 blue
>1201 grey
1200 (Not Played) Brown
<1201 green
This would act as an incentive for people to improve and sometimes you want to have an idea of how stong some forumers are when discussing chess ideas. Only down side I see is possible clashes with user themes and there might be one or two people being put off.

Whether a colour scheme reflects activity level or rating, I foresee endless discussion about the colour sequence. Red or Orange should correspond to active - not sluggish!

it would be nice to see the feature *period*. personalization can come later.
As said originally:
>The only conflict I can see is with users themes. If that's the case, make it turn off if the theme conflicts with the color.
> Set up the feature. don't get complicated and let the users define the colors or else it'll never get done.
>Save that for your next pass when people say they like the feature but hate Orange on their page.

Was KevinGabbert's suggestion junked as being off-colour?

WA-Ha!
So there IS something like "Active Players" here on chess.com. I had created a group for those of us that live in Salem, Oregon,
(shameless plug: http://www.chess.com/groups/home/team-salem )
and I saw that apparently if you go to the "maps" section, you can get a list of active players plotted out on a map
http://www.chess.com/map/players
so I see that the bones of this feature already exist in the programming code..
It would be cool to see it integrated into a players display name
(This is also a lame attempt at trying to keep the issue alive, as I'd certainly like to see it happen)
Come to think of it.. that gives me an idea for ANOTHER feature.. How about some sort of flag that shows that the person you are playing lives near you. I am sure that would spark some conversation during the game. ..and *of course* make a checkbox on your account settings page for those that wish no one to know where they live.
but then.. that would affect the map as well... hmm..
Kevin

WA-Ha!
So there IS something like "Active Players" here on chess.com. I had created a group for those of us that live in Salem, Oregon,
(shameless plug: http://www.chess.com/groups/home/team-salem )
and I saw that apparently if you go to the "maps" section, you can get a list of active players plotted out on a map
http://www.chess.com/map/players
so I see that the bones of this feature already exist in the programming code..
It would be cool to see it integrated into a players display name
(This is also a lame attempt at trying to keep the issue alive, as I'd certainly like to see it happen)
Come to think of it.. that gives me an idea for ANOTHER feature.. How about some sort of flag that shows that the person you are playing lives near you. I am sure that would spark some conversation during the game. ..and *of course* make a checkbox on your account settings page for those that wish no one to know where they live.
but then.. that would affect the map as well... hmm..
Kevin
How would you handle stalky implications?
http://www.chess.com/forum/view/community/where-to-post-about-searching-of-partners and http://www.chess.com/forum/view/community/member-search---how-to-improve-it?quote_id=1500724&page=2
In keeping with the active theme and colors. Here is a consideration that I use before I challenge a player or accept a challenge. I always look at their page and determine there time outs or vacation time. I do not play players that have any vacation time. The only exception would be when I play tournaments because I do not have control over those who join tournaments unless I am the one setting up the tournament.
I have another suggestion for the site that should be easy to implement.
I see that our usernames have a star icon next to them, and rating, however, it would be really nice to see the "activity level" of a player up there too. Colors & meanings could vary, but here are some examples to get the idea across.
Green for "Very Active" (on once a day)
Blue for "Active" (on more than once a week)
Black for "Normal" (whatever normal is. or default in case this is an optional feature, or not enough data)
Orange for "sluggish"
Red for "Dude pops on once every 16 weeks, makes a move, then runs off for another 16 weeks."
It would also save bandwidth, as i am sure a lot of users (like myself) load up the page of a player to see when they have been on last.
This could be as easy as changing the color of their username.
The only conflict I can see is with users themes. If that's the case, make it turn off if the theme conflicts with the color. Set up the feature. don't get complicated and let the users define the colors or else it'll never get done. Save that for your next pass when people say they like the feature but hate Orange on their page.
Another way you could do it (to conflict less with themes) is put a halo or filled in circle behind the star icon that shows they are a paying member. for anyone is not a paying member, you'd just see the circle of the corresponding color.
This scheme would certainly inform my decision when selecting users on an "Open Seek". An add-on feature later would be an option on "start new game" to be able to only allow >= Blue users to start a game with me..