Hi phppp,

Your points are well taken.

I need quite a bit more than just a forum, but the forum is a critical part the community interaction.

That's exactly why, before I choose my successor CMS/Portal package, I'm looking to see how much interoperability each one has, and what 'additional lenses' are available ;)

Thanks for your time.

I wish you well.

Always,
-Lion

Quote:
1. News module?
2. With 2.2 we will have some very powerful tools for module makers to add to the user profile
3. Yeah, well... some like it, some don't
4. Interface - can be done with templates
5. Calendar module
6. Again, the dynamic user profiles will make it possible for a calendar module to add a birthday field to the user profile and have a block with current birthdays
7. no comments
8. And not an impossible one to add to XOOPS
9. Templates in XoopsMembers/Profile module?
10. Yeah, they are nice
11. Interface - template work
12. We have talked about this, allowing modules to be installed by just using the admin interface and a tar.gz file - but security-wise, we have yet to find a good solution
13. Define "extensive" please
14. I don't deal with "somehow"
15. The ranks system seemed rather similar to XOOPS' but there may be subtle improvements
16. No idea what this is
17. GIJOE has an autologin hack for XOOPS
18. Interface - done with templates

I'm not dizzing your impressions or feelings, but just trying to outline the work that is needed to get your requirements fulfilled.

Perhaps if a good designer approached phppp, the interface could be "sharpened"?

Quote:

1) Sorta kinda. I think they use javascript to achieve the fader. Would be cool for this to be a module in Xoops. To show either a AMS or News headline in a fader as a link. It seems that theirs doesn't use many resources. This is more of a toy rather than a tool. But a cool toy.

2) Yeah, I saw your post on profile enhancements. I am looking forward to them.

3) Yeah, for me the whole DHTML drop down menu thing kind of doesn’t do it for me. I’d rather glance across a post and let my eyes “soak up” info from the post. IM icons, gender, avatar, the post itself, etc. To me the DHTML menus hide this info from my eyes. Plus they’re too blocky to be attractive. Also if you are using an 800-600 theme you cannot incorporate all the dropdown menus or else the post overflows to a second line that make it look like cr@p. Simple attractive buttons add color, use less space, and are more easily moved around inside a post layout.

4) This would be nice as the default option inside the admin menu.
5) Yes true, calendar module. But which one? That’s an entirely new debate tho. :)

6) Not only as a block or better yet as an understated display option inside CBB’s main page near the bottom. Also, an e-mail to your members saying “Happy Birthday” would be a classy touch.

7) I agree this is a hot button issue. Each of the WYSIWYG developers have done a fantastic job laboring on each or their incarnations. To me tho, all I want is an editor such as what SMF uses. One that properly places tags in their correct places in firefox and does the job and nothing much more.

8) True, again a cool toy to have.

9) Not to sure what you mean here.

10) :)

11) Yes, again would be nice as the default rather than as a template hack

12) Yes, a new can of worms indeed. But the benefits I can foresee from this would be enormous from a noob end user perspective.

13) I guess what I mean by this is more features that I can shake a stick at activating/deactivating. To go into depth here would prolly involve a new, more specific thread.

14) I’ll give you two examples from two of my sites. Forum main page Example 1: Site A / Site B. Forum post example 2: Site A / Site B.

15) Improvement is always good. I can remember spending 2 hours on custom rank icons. I could have cut that down to ¼ of the time with this type of rank icon implementation, and done a better job at them as well.

16) This from the SMF site: Description: This Mod will allow you to give visual warnings to your users in FOUR stages: 1 - A basic warning - nothing more than an instant message and a green warning mark next to their name. 2 - Post Moderation - all users post must be approved before they are seen. 3 - Mute - an instant message and the inability for the user to post polls/messages. 4 - Ban - user is gone.

17) Yes, I am aware of this hack. Somehow (I don’t know how) SMF make it seamless from one visit to the next to appear online, even if you’ve been gone for a few days. All this without clicking any type of login button. I can understand security issues may arise from this but it does make it much better for the end user this way.

18) Yes, but the default look can be improved upon.

I take no offense to your opinion. I am enjoying this dialogue.

My point with going through each item is that SMF, phpBB, IPB, YaBB etc. all have a "better" starting point when it comes to integrating the forums in the site - since the forums ARE the site.

With XOOPS we have building blocks that are not necessarily connected to the forums - but to the site.

The templates issues could be solved with other templates - I'm not saying that the issues are not there or are diminishing because you can just make new ones. My point is that it is not a feature problem, but a matter of finding the right designer to do the templates. There is a lot of work in it, but it is not difficult as such.

Regarding calendar and birthdays etc. my main point is that this has nothing to do with the forums and should not be in the forum module. It should be in a calendar module (but which? and who will implement these features? I don't know - but it is not a forum module problem and your request should not go to phppp, but to wjue, zollou or GIJOE since they make calendar modules)

Similarly member lists is not a forum key area - it should be in a member module.

About autologin and easier module installation, I agree that it would be userfriendly - but so it would for me not having to push my PIN code every time I use my debit card... however, I wouldn't like it if anybody could withdraw money from my bank account just with my card and no authentication.

GIJOE has an autologin hack that seems to work well and securely, but I haven't had the resources to evaluate the possible security problems (however small they may be).

Above all, my point is that newBB/CBB are perfectly fine modules - the interface can be improved. The administration toggles can be improved. Everything (or almost everything) else is a matter of developing other modules and perhaps adapt the core to support certain things in them.

Mith:

Thanks for the dialogue.

phppp:

What is your current development situation with CBB (If you don't mind me asking)? Are you the sole developer? If you are what kind of help would you need to make development progress at an accelerated pace? Would a fee developent model similar to AMS help expedite your development of CBB?

I am not trying to rush you, but on the contrary I want CBB to be given every chance to succeed as I feel that it is a crucial component to the community going forward.

@kainaij,
From the SMF features you listed above, the only ones valuable to me are
13) Extensive admin features
and
10) Forum stats

the 13) is planned in the next major release of CBB while 10) is kind of an addon.
The others, either they are implemented in CBB in an alternative way or they are XOOPS-wide features.

CBB does have some shortcomings but no one mentions, and I am not going to disclose them now :)

As the current situation of CBB, I have to say it is quite unformal at this moment and a team for sure need to be established: coders, designers, graphics and more. I am afraid the team has to wait for XOOPS 2.2 release but it could be prepared from now on.
Your help would be appreciated.

Then let this be a call for developers, template designers and graphic artists to contact phppp and discuss how the development should go.

The dev forge is at your disposal and of course, newbb already has a dedicated forum in the developer-only forums that can be renamed to CBB no problem.

Waiting with implementing changes until the structure of 2.2 is fixed is good, but preliminary planning and organisation can start very soon.

Count me in. I'd very much enjoy having a hand in this projects development. I can offer my graphics artist skills oficially, and unofficially I have great ideas on achieving a great "forum feel".

Invite me whenever you do put together a forge space.

So the CBB is now taking the place of the NewBB 2.02?

not to sound tetchy, but has or is anyone actually developping an SMF bridge of any kind, Seems this post has drifted into an NewBB promotion subject :|. Although newBB/CBB is not by any means a bad product, its just not everyone's personal choice.