2020-06-05 -
More upgrades and updates to the back-end software and development environments. Hopefully nothing or very little was broken; I've done my best to patch any deprecated functions and features.
Changes:
Added a donate feature.
Fixed a few deprecated features that were broken in the last upgrade.
2020-06-05 -
More upgrades and updates to the back-end software and development environments. Hopefully nothing or very little was broken; I've done my best to patch any deprecated functions and features.
2020-06-03 -
Changes:
Made several fixes and improvements to how post expiries work.
Updated all old posts to expire four days from now.
New posts will have a maximum duration of 30 days, unless a user has a subscription which will bump that up to 37 or 44 days (it's not intended to make a huge difference).
Removed the old placeholder subscriptions and added in 2 new ones with better benefits. I don't really expect these to generate any income for the site, but I guess they were fun to make.
2020-05-25 -
Major upgrades were made to the internal software and libraries for nubbl. Some new bugs may have been introduced and may take some time to identify and resolve.
2020-05-17 -
Refocused nubbl on making games and gaming as a secondary objective. Made many UI improvements and tweaks.
Changes:
Fixed a bug preventing projects and posts from being bumped on some pages.
Removed 'beta' tag from several areas on the site.
Fixed a few error messages where the user's browser would attempt to fetch files that didn't exist on the site, and an error would be presented to the user stating something along the lines of "User with the name favicon.ico could not be found."... This fixes some of those errors, but not all of them.
Changed numerous tags to lowercase text rather than uppercase. Uppercase was taking too much focus from other elements.
UI improvements to post listings. Moved title up to the top, tags below.
Renamed user 'Discription' to 'Introduction' and moved it up towards the top of a user's profile.
UI improvements to the user profile page.
Changed icon for posts that are offering things.
Improved descriptions for Discord invite links.
Improved the welcome page.
A whole bunch of other UI changes and improvements similar to the ones listed above.
2020-09-15 -
Looks like we're back to a one-man show. I'm going to take a nice long break from this to get a bunch of personal stuff sorted. Also I started playing Classic WoW, so there goes all my time.
2019-08-16 -
Two new people are now on the team and helping to work towards launching the creator side of nubbl. More details to come in a blog post. Some details have already been posted to #announcements in the Discord server.
Changes:
Added projects to the user dashboard.
Posts can now be bumped on a cooldown. Previously posts were bumped whenever they were updated, and there were no cooldown limitations.
Bumping system was made abstract enough to be implemented on other resources in the future.
Projects can now be deleted.
Posts can now be deleted (previously they could only be closed).
Added hourly messaging limitations to prevent spam.
Playing and Creating posts now have separate post count limits. Users can create more Playing posts than Creating posts.
Playing and Creating posts now have separate max durations. Playing posts can last for longer than Creating posts.
Subbed users can now create more posts.
Subbed users can now create more projects.
Subbed users now get reduced bump cooldowns.
Subbed users now get longer (or unlimited) durations on their posts.
Subbed users now get special highlights to their username.
Subbed users can now change their username.
Updated the subscriptions page, though it is still locked out on the production server.
Fixed some bugs with post creation not carrying values over on edited posts, or inputs not updating properly when switching between playing, creating, wanted, and offering posts.
Fixed a bug where reacting to your own content would notify you that you reacted to it.
Added Influencer and Streamer to creator roles.
Fixed navbar 'beta' link.
2019-07-17 -
We've been putting focus on developing our business model and marketing strategies more recently, but here's a few changes we were able to push out during this time:
Added comments sections to posts and projects.
Added an interactive 'Share' feature to posts, projects, and user profiles.
Added blogging support. There aren't any blogs yet, so there's nothing to show for it until we post one.
Added 'favorite' (star) feature for posts and projects. Added support for both browsing posts and projects and/or viewing an individual post or project.
Added 'like' (heart) feature for comments.
Added reply feature and reply chains for comments. (start separate comment threads in the comments)
Added notifications for when someone favorites your post or comments on it.
Added notifications for when someone favorites your project or comments on it.
Added notifications for likes on comments and comment replies.
Back-end refactoring and code quality improvements.
Fixed a bug where some posts weren't listing the author's level of experience. (eg. 2-4 years, 6-10 years, etc.)
Fixed bugs with posts where some fields were being emptied when the post was edited.
Various UI and UX tweaks and improvements.
Various bugfixes, back-end improvements, SEO improvements (including how your posts, projects, and profile show up in Google searches [and other search engines])
2019-06-28 - Fixed a major bug preventing any posts from being viewed.
2019-06-27 -
We're going through a new round of user testing with creators and we've received a lot of excellent feedback. Thank you to everyone who has been able to participate! Here's a list of the first round of changes, with more to come:
Added an upvote/'like' system for posts and projects. This system can and will be expanded to other areas of nubbl in the future.
Changed what features/UI shows up if you've registered as a creator and not a gamer. Previously, many gamer specific inputs were still shown/available, such as entering what games you play, or being encouraged to add your age. These are now hidden/omitted if you're not on nubbl to play games. This is in response to professionally in the game development industry pointing out these inconsistencies.
Added 'Agency' and 'Studio' to the list of available roles for creators.
Changed a lot of the copy in nubbl to read more professionally. Removed a lot of flavour text that was intended for a gaming audience, but really doesn't fit for the professional creator audience. Also made capitalization more consistent throughout most input fields.
Increased the username length from 16 characters to 20.
Added a system that separates gaming questions from creating questions in the Q&A section. If you're only here for creating and not gaming, you'll no longer see the gaming questions, and vice versa.
Other small improvements to the Q&A system.
Major bugfix to the feature that guesses a user's location and suggests it to them when they're putting in their location.
Placed a higher UI emphasis on 'Paid' and 'For Pay' posts.
Fixes to what goals are shown as active/inactive on your profile and dashboard.
Numerous fixes to how media is displayed. (images, video, rich links, etc.)
Bug fixes to how links are displayed when associated with a post or user profile.
Placed higher emphasis on creating a new post in the messages that appear to a new user near the top of the page.
Prompts for new users to fill out information at the top of the page no longer show prompts for gaming information if the user hasn't indicated that they're on nubbl to play games.
Sections such as games and gaming availability are now omitted from a users profile if they're empty and the user isn't on nubbl to play games.
Changed the dashboard layout to something very simple for the time being.
Fixed a bug when registering as a new user.
Various UI and UX tweaks throughout.
Various bugfixes throughout.
2019-06-18 -
nubbl has been moved into closed beta for controlled testing.
Please test as many features as you're able and use the bug reporting button in the bottom right of your window!
If you have any other questions or feedback,
email support@nubbl.com
or join our Discord and visit the #feedback channel.
2019-06-18 -
Changes:
UI fixes and improvements when viewing/browsing users, and browsing posts.
Improvements to how external links are shown on users and posts.
Added Pinball and Billiards to the list of platforms.
UI improvements to the Game Creator Details input page.
Rewrote the welcome page.
Added persistent bug reporting button to bottom right of page.
Re-instantiated signup code requirement for beta registration.
2019-06-09 - Changes:
Overhauled the homepage, about page, press page, and added a contact page. They're way prettier and nicer now.
Added new accent colors across the site. Went from flat grey to grey-blue. Looks far better.
Added payment processing support. (not live yet) All transaction processing has been secured and encrypted by Stripe.
Also added an order history page. (not live yet)
Added payment subscription support. (not live yet)
Added the ability to cancel, resume, change, and subscribe to multiple tiers of subscriptions. (not live yet)
Added one-off payment processing support. (not live yet)
2019-05-21 - Changes:
Quests have been renamed to 'Posts'.
Completely overhauled Posts. (alpha -> beta)
Completely overhauled Projects. (alpha -> beta)
You can now add rich media (images, videos, etc.) to Posts, Projects, and your Creator Details.
Various fixes to how you can link external profiles on your nubbl profile.
Added various new data inputs for posts. (how you'll pay someone, how much time you require or have available, how your pricing works, how experienced of a person you need, etc.)
Many improvements to filters for posts, projects, and users.
Reworked posts to better work as a game development classifieds system.
Fixes and improvements to the top menu.
Fixes to closing posts.
UI improvements for tags. (ie. games and creator skills)
Added local game store support for communities.
Improvements to event waitlist.
Improvements to event page's UI.
Numerous other unlisted tweaks, improvements, additions, and bug fixes.
2019-05-10 - Most of my time recently has been spent better understanding how I can move nubbl to a viable business model which will allow it to sustain itself. I've also been putting time and effort into finding people to work with in a more serious manner, as it's clear that I won't be able to make this happen on my own and I appear to have someone who is serious that is willing to come on board.
2019-04-18 - Dev vlog about refocusing on making nubbl a better service for game creators. This was always part of the plan for nubbl, but it was previously "phase 2", while the services for gamers was "phase 1". I am having to flip these phases around.
2019-03-26 - The last few months have been about how to make nubbl more viable as a business centered around gamers. One avenue that was explored was the idea of better catering to local game stores. Lots of time and effort was put into an event that was going to take place at the end of this month, but has been cancelled as it's become clear that this path will not work as a viable business in the short term. I will now put my focus into how to make nubbl work in a different way.
2019-03-11 - I was recently asked for more details on what I've been working on. The answer: Loads of stuff! My days are pretty jam-packed with work on nubbl, and in some ways that might not be so obvious!
2019-03-11 - Changes:
Renamed 'Groups' to 'Communities' as it fits in better with the aesthetic and meaning of what groups are supposed to be on nubbl.
Added the ability to add local storefronts as communities on nubbl. Storefronts can be the pillar of local gaming communities and it is important that they are represented.
Added a feature that allows users to add a community or storefront to nubbl that they do not own. The rightful of the owner can then claim that community (claim must be accepted before it goes through). This is to allow the population of more communities on nubbl. Given that nubbl is largely for Discovering new communities, this is a good thing.
Lovely user interface improvements to the search pages for Gamers, Creators, Events, Communities, Quests, and Game Projects.
Added a feature that will attempt to guess a user's location and suggest it to them when they are entering their location for the first time. (not yet activated at the time of this writing)
Revamped the welcome/tutorial page to explain the core features of nubbl in a very easily digestible manner.
Added feature that will redirect users back to the tutorial when major changes have been applied. Previously when new features were rolled out, existing users would be left in the dark about them, with no information or explanation given.
Revamped homepage that does a far better job explaining what nubbl is to first-time visitors.
Fixes for group and event commenting permissions for members, attendees, and the public.
Communities and Events have had some noteworthy UI improvements. (searching, showing, creating, and editing these have all been improved)
Tidied the dashboard.
Various small user interface and user experience improvements.
Various small bug fixes.
2019-02-24 - Changes:
Notifications for when someone viewed your profile now have a cooldown of 24h. (previously you wouldn't get a second notification if they visited your profile again)
Added random sort for browsing users.
Added groups to dashboard.
Changed top menu to show secondary 'create' links when in desktop or tablet view. (not in mobile)
Added event waitlisting system.
Dashboard now shows events and groups you've been invited to.
Can now invite people to group from group page. (previously had to go to member management page to do this)
Fixes for quest, event and group filtering and highlighting on the dashboard.
Fixed issue where editing an event that was still being planned required a game and date to submit.
'Private' events are now labeled 'Invite Only' if the event is visible to the public.
Waitlist has been fully implemented for events. (including attendee management for waitlisted users)
Added embedded links to markdown support. (previously attempting to embed a link via markdown would show the whole link instead [this was on purpose])
Events and groups pages have been tidied up a bit.
Sharing links to events and groups now shows beter metadata and imagery on social media.
Top nav bar will now always show full details when outside of mobile view. (create group, create event, etc.)
Bug fixes when displaying individual Rep.
Added 'Rep back' button beside Rep you've received to encourage people to return the favor.
Added web-friendly URLs for events, groups, and quests.
Various bug fixes and UI tweaks.
2019-02-20 - Changes:
Added new Rep system. Go to the profiles of people you know to give them some Rep!
Events and Groups now support 2:1 aspect ratio images. (rectangles instead of just squares)
Updated dark theme for better contrast and crisper colors.
Quests browsing page has been reorganized for easier reading on the eyes.
Changed quest icons for wanted/offering to something more sensible and obvious.
User distances are now rounded to within 10km or 5 miles, never showing anything more exact than that.
User profiles now give 'quick views' for the quests that they have available rather than having to navigate to the Quests tab to see them.
Fixes to the positioning and size of user, group, and event avatars for mobile devices.
Cake game is now shown on the dashboard by default. (was previously hidden until you had already started a game)
Creators now have their sample images shown on their profile. (previously users had to follow links to see them)
Creators now have their first sample image shown in the user search page. (creator search only)
Can now edit quest expiry date so long as it hasn't already expired.
Now showing a notification next to messages you haven't responded to. Tidied the messages page a bit. Fixed a bug where you'd send a message and it would get delivered to the wrong thread if you had multiple threads open with the same recipient.
Various minor bug fixes and visual adjustments throughout.
2019-02-06 - Changes:
Added a page where you can see who you've recently viewed, and who has viewed you. There are also notifications for when someone views you!
Fixed a bug preventing games you have in common with someone from being highlighted.
Fixed a bug that broke some links to external profiles.
2019-01-29 - Changes:
Removed a bunch of Google Maps services. They increased their prices an insane amount a while back and Google Maps will cost too much to use. This is the first step in completely replacing Google Maps. (Google Maps went from 775,000 free map loads per month to 28,000. They started charging $7.00 per 1,000 loads after that instead of $0.50 per 1,000. Same story with a bunch of the other calls I was making to Google Maps)
Fixed a bug with setting an event's location.
Minor updates to group and event UI.
2019-01-26 - Fixed a minor bug when showing enabled quest filters. It was showing the wrong ones, not that it was affecting the actual search.
2019-01-22 - Changes:
Minor UI improvements for: references, messages, dashboard.
Added missing text to email notifications for user references and responses to user references.
Fixed several bugs found when creating/editing/responding to user references.
2019-01-20 - Changes:
Quests can now have *no* expiry date.
Fixed various bugs with quests and changing their states. (closed, open, reposted, etc.)
External profile limit raised from 6 to 12.
Added better icon support for some common external services that users might link to from their profile. (Art Station, Deviant Art, GitHub, GoG, Google+, Instagram, LinkedIn, Nintendo, Playstation, Reddit, Steam, Twitch, Twitter, Xbox, Youtube)
Added generated links for the same services that have publicly viewable profiles.
2019-01-17 - This marks the turning point where I can start putting focus back into promotion and growing the community again.
2019-01-14 -
Changes for the latest release:
Added a questing system which basically acts as a Gamer Classifieds Wanted/Offering system. (this replaces the 'Posts' section previously found on your profile)
Added a currency system. They come in three tiers of rarity: Keys, Hats, and Dice.
Added user reference system. To leave a reference, you need to end a quest together. (succeed, fail, abandon, or revoke the quest to leave a reference) More options for leaving references will be added in the future. Multiple references from the same user will stack and can all be viewed, but only the latest reference will be counted. Expect the reference system to be tweaked over time.
Added a dashboard where users can view a number of things at a glance, including their quest log, quick links to each of their games or platforms, upcoming events they've joined, and more.
Games and platforms that you have in common with someone are now highlighted when browsing users, and shown ahead of all of their other games/platforms.
Added incentive to fill out your profile for the first time by offering Keys as a reward. Users who have already filled out their profile have been retroactively rewarded.
User profile has been redesigned considerably for desktop, tablet, and mobile views. Should be less overwhelming for new users and easier to digest. Empty fields/sections now display nicer messages.
Added ability to collect Keys daily. Stacks for up to 4 days.
Added ability to offer quest rewards, or charge for people to accept your quest.
Dark theme is now the default when signed in and signed out.
Improved link colours for visited links.
Many links now open in a new window. For example, you can click on a user's profile to visit it in a new window without losing where you were in the search page.
Added email verification. Currently the only feature with a hard requirement that your email be verified is when you go to create a new quest. Can extend to other features in the future.
A system allowing users to negotiate quest prices has been implemented, but disabled/hidden. I don't yet have a clean way to incorporate this with the UI without it being slightly confusing cluttered.
Added a tab to show quests on the user profile page.
Quest offers now show alongside messages, complete with ways to interact with those quests.
Messages have been made more compact.
Removed the old 'Post' system where you could add/edit multiple Posts at once. Now you can only add/edit one Quest at at time. Should be a much nicer user experience.
Added ability to see all incoming quest offers for a single quest at a glance.
Added a Quest Search Page, complete with filters. Went with a compact design, in contrast to the large design currently used for searching users, goals, events, and game projects.
Added a new top navigation menu for finding users, quests, groups, events, etc.
Rather than time being displayed as '1 hour ago' between 60-120 minutes, they are now shown exactly. eg. '61 minutes' or '119 minutes'. Days are the same up to 60 days, and months up to 25 months. I just hate reading '1 hour ago' or '1 month ago' when it's actually 61-119 minutes or 31-59 days.
Added ability for users to respond to references.
Added new email and on-site notifications for interactions with users and quests. (New quest offer, quest accepted, rejected, completed, failed, revoked, abandoned, turned in, re-offered, reference given, reference responded to) Complete with email unsubscribe for each.
Improved design of how users are shown when browsing users. (cleaner, more organized)
Improved design for lists throughout nubbl. (cleaner, more organized, better use of iconography)
Removed some excess info from the event search page, but there's still lots of room for improvement.
Fixed a game-breaking bug on mobile that prevented users from adding games.
Messages now display the most recent message at the top rather than the bottom.
Fixed top nav dropdown menu styling for mobile.
Improved contrast and organization of the top nav dropdown menu.
Has anyone ever found the nub-nub easter egg?
Fixed several UI issues for the top nav bar in mobile.
Quests, Events, Groups, References, and Projects are now hidden behind tabs on the user profile page.
Top notification panel for filling out your profile has been improved.
Landing page for nubbl has been improved. There is still very clear room for improvement.
Re-styled and cleaned up the platform(s) and game(s) pages.
Welcome page for onboarding has been improved.
Tidied the sitewide footer. Moved the Discord logo down there and removed some unneccessary bits.
UI for filling out profile info for the first time has been made much clearer.
Bug fixes for the user search page. Some data was not displaying as expected.
Consolidated the dev textual and videos updates into one list.
Updated and upgraded some interal stuff which nobody will ever notice a difference from... but I will. Go me!
Many other small UI and feature improvements and tweaks throughout.
Many small code improvements and bug fixes throughout.
My major releases look more impressive when I go back and list the things that I did.
2019-01-13 - Rolled out many, many new changes and updates... still putting together a proper change log for all of it!
2019-01-01 - My intentions to get work done while I was in a different city and busy doing other things for three weeks has proven... difficult. Changes in development since mid November should be released in around two weeks (mid-January).
2018-12-12 - Loads of new updates in the works over the last three weeks. Expected to be released in the next 1-3 weeks. Once the features are out and tested, it's time to start with promotion again... because none of it is useful without active users.
2018-11-27 - Feels good to be back to focusing on nubbl itself, and not business management. I'm working on some new features ahead of an actual marketing strategy in the works for early 2019. Yay!!! :D
2018-11-15 - Added Markdown support for most text fields. Also, bug fixes and UI improvements.
2018-11-13 - UI for Groups and Events have received some tender loving care. And bug fixes. Along with other misc. changes throughout nubbl.
2018-11-13 - Still in the weeds with turning nubbl into a business, much of the last two weeks have been spent networking and preparing what is necessary for getting in front of investors - and finding those investors. A big part of that is figuring out where the best opportunities are for starting up a tech startup.
2018-11-12 - Improvements to user onboarding. Onboarding hadn't seen any love since the launch several months ago and it didn't take into account several new features. Now it does. Woohoo.
2018-11-07 - Finally, user reports and user feedback don't just get stored in the database. I will now receive email notifications when you submit them.
2018-11-06 - Users can now have 100 games and 25 platforms. (up from 10 and 8) You can now sort games while editing them for users, events, and groups. Events can now have 20 games. (up from 1) Minor UI tweaks for events and groups.
2018-10-31 - Last two weeks:
- Going to promote nubbl to a specific city so that there's a high concentration of users there and to help prove/test nubbl. The resources needed to do this won't be available full-on until January.
- Enough things are starting to happen that I have to turn nubbl into a legit business, so I'm looking at what it will take to incorporate it as well as what this means from a financial and legal point of view.
- I've begun the process of reaching out to potential investors to help fund nubbl so that I can hire people on, market, and get the support needed to grow nubbl.
- Vishnu has officially stepped down as co-founder. When he came on last spring, he expected to have lots of time available to work on nubbl, but things quickly picked up for him outside of nubbl and he didn't end up having the time he's expected. He's helped a great deal in setting the direction of the project, but hasn't been available to help implement a number of things which were planned. It'll just be myself going forward for the time being.
2018-10-18 - Fixed a bug where search notifications weren't displaying properly. Fixed a bug where adding games to an event was not working properly.
2018-10-17 - It's been a while. Lots of things on my end have changed, and it's taken me quite some time to get to somewhere stable enough to resume work on nubbl. I thought I was there a month ago, but a lot of things came up in my personal life that I didn't realize were going to be as big of issues as they were.
2018-10-18 - It ended up taking another month to find the stability necessary to resume work on nubbl, but all of that should be settled for now.
2018-09-18 - Improvements to group creation, editing, and viewing have been made. Group UI/UX should now be more in-line with the event UI/UX.
2018-09-18 - I moved back to Canada. And was very sick for two weeks. And spent a week in Norway. But now I'm back to work!
2018-08-23 - Polls have been released after about two weeks of planning, implementation, and testing. Users can now vote on games that should be in a group or event as well as dates and times that an event should take place. I wrote the code for polls in such a way that I can easily add them anywhere else in the site, and they can later be utilized to allow users to create polls for anything they like.
2018-08-23 - Polls have been added as a way to help people organize groups and events. Also, the plan for the next two months as I move from one country to another.
2018-08-07 - Events feature early alpha announced. You can now add avatars to events. Group already had this feature.
2018-08-07 - I've released an alpha of the new events feature, allowing you to organize gameplay with other people. There's still more work to be done though!
2018-07-13 - 'Groups' feature released in early alpha.
2018-07-13 - Various bug fixes and UI changes from the last month.
2018-07-10 - Lots of planning for the long term! Feature roadmapping! Development! Things! I've just completed the alpha of group support for nubbl and will begin working on a number of other features to help compliment it!
2018-06-17 - An update on what's been happening over the last two weeks, and what's to come. In summary, there's been a lot of planning and groundwork being laid to allow nubbl to thrive and continue as a full-time project, and this was preventing development from moving forward. Development will now resume and new features will be coming in the following weeks.
2018-06-12 - For the past few weeks, I've been working to move nubbl into a position where it can grow and scale beyond what I alone can accomplish as a solo dev. This won't happen overnight and will take a lot of work, planning, and collaboration. This is an extremely exciting development, and I'll be sharing news on this as it becomes available, so stay tuned. :)
2018-06-01 - You can now upload custom avatars without going through Gravatar. Yay!
2018-05-30 - SEO optimization. Links to nubbl profiles shared in social media will now have customized descriptions.
2018-05-29 - Platforms page alpha has been added. These pages make it easier to see who is playing what and discover new people.
2018-05-29 - Platforms and games are now clickable while browsing users.
2018-05-28 - Games page alpha has been added. You can now see how many people favorited a specific game and search games. It has some bugs, most of which will be ironed out soon.
2018-05-25 - IT'S OVER 9000!!! nubbl is now pushing the brink of 10k users. nubbl went from just under 600 to nearly 10,000 users in a week, and that's pretty freaking phenomenal.