learly there is a need (and an ability) to make each zone look different to the eye so that the user is aways reminded of and aware of the zone they are in
It's pretty simple, really. Before you lose your temper and start insulting people, just scroll up to check what forum you are in. If I can manage it, anyone can. How do propose to make it obvious on every page of every thread in every forum what Zone it is in?
Gee, OL, what ever prevents you from losing YOUR temper and insulting people because you do it all the time. And do tell me where on this page it says what ZONE you are in? You forget that you are here FIVE YEARS and am picking a page with only one post on it. What about when you are a new member, or have 35 posts in your Alerts you are rushing through to read and reply too, are late for dinner, with lots of other things on your mind and are highly upset and agitated by what you read with your mind wholly focused on your reply? Are you going to stop, hunt down and research what zone every one of them is in first and all the myriad rules that apply tucked away in some obscure folder? Maybe you never get 35 alerts. Let's stop making EXCUSES for what should have been done right IN THE FIRST PLACE when with the new software, it is finally addressable and fixable here with benefit to all.
And just why should I explain any more to you here when you decide NOTHING around here. I just guarandamntee you that if I could just show you simply what it is I envision or would offer as a set of fixes, that I bet 9 out of 10 people here would be all for it, love it, and the other one just wouldn't care. But that topic is better carried out in PM or a whole thread dedicated to the topic.