Since there is so much I want to do with the website, and so much I need to fix, I figured I’d create a roadmap style post about it. I’ll try to keep this up to date with what I’m working on, what needs to be done, and any features I’m hopeful for in the future. If you have anything you’d like to see added or updated here, let me know.
None are in any specific order.
[To Be Fixed]
1. When making a post on the forums, the Topic Title box background color and text color make it so that you can’t see what you’re typing.
2. On the forums, the post title and the box background are the same color. Need to get a better understanding of how the forums are applying CSS.
3. OK, just going to say that colors in general need to be fixed. The stylesheet isn’t labeled to match the html classes which is annoying, going to take a bit to track down each property that needs to be updated.
4. Fix email spam filtering. Seems like a lot of verification emails, update emails, confirmation emails, etc… are being sent to spam folders. Need to figure out why that’s happening and get it resolved. Might need to see if I can have the emails routed through the Dr Billiard server rather than from wpforo directly.
[Features in Progress]
1. Forums. This one is obvious, and will probably never be considered “complete”. As we discover how the forums will actually be used, my goals for it will change. Right now the primary focus is creating sensible categories and filling them with content.
2. Stream/Video Page. I want to place where local tournaments can host their live streams and VOD’s. There will also hopefully be some original content on there produced by Dr Billiard, though that is more of a future feature than an in progress one.
3. General website design. Self explanatory. Just need to actually finish creating the website structure and primary pages. Though my hopes for this site are more communal, I understand that as a business tool it will be much more informative than user active.
4. Services page. Making this a separate bullet point from #3 because I think it’s one of the more important pages to get up and working. My assumption is most website visitor will be coming to find out what services we offer and the cost of those services. Getting this information public will only help increase in-store traffic, as well as possible website engagement.
[Future Features]
1. Customer database. Not quite what it sounds like. I’m not going to try to build a database of user information to use for marketing or anything. What I want is to be able to make a database that is user editable, in which users can input their player information and equipment preferences. For example, I want pool players to be able to input what cue tips they play with, what hardness they like, how they like them shaped, and any other quirks that they like. This will allow me to pull up a customer in the store, and immediately know what tip they want installed, how they like it installed, and how they play with it. Would also store a history of what tips that player has tried, to know how to adjust when the player is looking for more out of their equipment. Will extent this to include shaft information, dart information, table details, etc….
2. Tournament Hub. I want a place where both tournament operators and players can go to interact with their tournaments. I would like it to be as full featured as possible, but even if it’s just a spot where people can create a page for specific tournaments and upload photos, videos, blogs, etc… as a central place to share information would be cool. Though the hope would be tournament sign-ups, calcuttas, brackets, calendars, etc…
3. Product orders. I don’t think I want to actually sell items online for shipment, but I think it would be cool if people could see what is in the store, and essentially “reserve” it on the website. That way I know you want it, and can take if off the shelf for you, so you can come pick it up. The main reason for this is I understand that our hours make it difficult for some people to shop with us due to schedule conflicts with work and everything else. By being able to reserve items online, you can ensure that you get what you want, but come and pick it up at your convenience.
[Wishful Features]
1. League integrations. It would be great if we could create a spot where people could go to find teams, join leagues, keep score, pay dues, etc…. This is a wishful feature because it would require the support and assistance from the leagues themselves, and I don’t expect national organizations such as the APA, BCA, VNEA, etc… to want to help with API integrations and data routing.
2. Mobile App. I don’t just want a web wrapper to help display the website on mobile, I actually want to create a pool app. One that players could use to find other players, join leagues, sign up for tournaments, and have a robust profile. I think it would be cool to pull up a player on the app, see what cues they use, what tips they like, what games they prefer to play, if they gamble or not, etc…. Then you could send a match request via the app that would say where you want to play, when you want to play, and what game. This is very much a wishful feature, because it would require actually hiring an app developer to create it. I don’t think I want my first foray into mobile app development to be something so feature rich. However, if you are an app developer and have any interest in this idea, please let me know. I think a really well made pool app would help increase player engagement world-wide, not just here in our little community of players.
