Let's start with the basic changes.

For one thing, all our tags look like Twitter-style #hashtags now. Why did we do this? Basically because hashtags are cool. If having no spaces between words was good enough for the Romans, it's good enough for you.

As you can see, we also have some new tabs at the top of the page. One says "science" and the other says "overmind." These are handy ways to access a slice of io9 content. If you want to see all our science coverage and nothing else, click "science." If you want to see all our reviews, commentary and rants, click "overmind." We post a lot every day, and these channels can help you filter out what you don't want to read.

Now let's get to the really cool stuff. There are now three ways to comment on io9.

1. Comment on the topics you want, when you want.

Now you can send us tips, comment on recent TV shows, and let everybody know about scifi or science calendar events by posting in the "share" box at the top of the page.

Here's how it works. Say you want to post about a scifi-related event in your area, but the io9 calendar has come and gone. Now you can post about an event to the io9 #calendar page. Just fill in the box where it says "begin communication" and add the hashtag #calendar. Now your comment will show up on io9.com/tag/cmt/calendar. Or you can just click the #calendar hashtag on the front page.

2. Forums!

You've been asking for commenter forums ever since io9 launched, and now you'll have them. Want to create a forum to discuss #lastnightsheroes? All you have to do is go up to that share box that we discussed earlier, type in a comment like "I can't believe they are doing the whole mutant lesbian sorority plot," and tag it with #lastnightsheroes. Magically, a forum will now be created at io9.com/tag/cmt/lastnightsheroes. And anybody can go there to add their comments too.

3. Screw this - I just want to do things the old way!

Feel free. Comments work exactly the way they did before. You don't have to add these pesky #hashtags that all the kids are using. Feel free to ignore everything we just told you and go on your merry way.

But wait there's more!

You can read our Comment FAQ for all the nitty gritty details.

We also have this handy "notification" bar at the top of the page now, which will let you know when people have replied to your comments.

You can send us bugs!

Let's try this whole forum thing, shall we? You can post bugs here. If there's a bug that prevents that from working, just mail bugs to tips@io9.com with the subject line "bug." Please send screenshots if you can.

Thanks!

Our hardworking production and tech folks at Gawker Media worked their asses off on two different continents to bring you this redesign. They are awesome, and we love them. Thanks, folks!

Rule Number One: Make good use of wall space. As you can see from the picture of Zvezda's eating area above, every part of the wall has been turned into storage. Fruits and meals are strapped to the wall, along with utensils. The fridge is set into the wall over the table. Of course it's a little harder to strap things to the wall in Earth gravity, but there are still plenty of ways to make good use of wall space. You can put up shelves relatively cheaply, or get wall hangers for file folders and books.

Rule Number Two: Be sure there are a lot of windows and private spaces, even if they aren't very big. In the picture above, you see one of the Zvezda sleeping pods, which may be tiny but keeps the cosmonauts happy by having a closing door and gorgeous view from the window portal. The pods got a rave review from former NASA astronaut John Blaha, who slept in an identical space pod on the space station Mir:

You can kind of just lay there in your sleeping bag, look outside into space, and dream. You're either looking out at the stars, or you're looking at the planet (Earth), or you're looking at the horizon. It's like your bedroom. It's your place, and nobody else goes in there.

Rule Number Three: Every space should have at least three uses. Here you can see one of the astronauts talking on a ham radio that goes through a ceiling-mounted laptop (sorry, ceiling mounting may not be as convenient on Earth). Behind him, underneath the pictures, is a treadmill. So this area is for communications, computing, and exercising. Again, this is almost a no-brainer for Earth-dwellers. You can, for example, use a kitchen table as an eating area, work space, and entertainment zone if you've got a sturdy table, a few chairs, and a laptop.

Of course, the ISS doesn't always look uncluttered, as you can see. Here's their laptop farm:

Images courtesy of NASA.