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| General Altitude Discussion Discuss anything Altitude related that doesn't belong in another forum. |
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#1
11-26-2011, 06:25 AM
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Testing phpBB as the new forum home (closed staying w/ vbulletin)
hey everyone, for various reasons we are looking for alternative forum software and it seems like phpBB is the "best". We set up phpBB and ported over all the forums. Please take a look at it and let us know if phpBB doesn't do something that you think is necessary. Also let us know if there are any plugins you think we should install.
https://altitudegame.com/phpbb_309/phpBB3 Edit: note we are merely evaluating phpBB -- this (vBulletin) remains the primary forum and we won't be making any changes until we've considered all of our options. Thank you everyone for all your input. With all your feedback we have decided it's best to stick with vbulletin. Last edited by Karl; 11-28-2011 at 03:43 PM. 
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#3
11-26-2011, 07:13 AM
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Looks fine... the only real problem I see is a lack of vBulletin tag support, so clan top pages will have to be redone a bit, etc. It won't look polished until the older posts fade into the background.
But people will figure out BBCode quickly enough: http://www.bbcode.org/reference.php.
__________________
"Beagle, your words move and inspire me -" and of course they do, you silly little muppet, that is the intent
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#4
11-26-2011, 07:16 AM
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It would be cool if you implemented the activity overview that I see on sites like mafiascum.net. It's really helpful for mafia games where you want to easily get statistics on when someone last posted in a thread, how many posts they made in the thread, and a link to all of those posts. much more convenient than the current searching method. mafiascum's layout looks similar, so i'm assuming it's also phpbb
EDIT: Example
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#7
11-26-2011, 07:45 AM
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i like vbulletin better
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#8
11-26-2011, 07:47 AM
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Could you elaborate on "various reasons"?
I've trashed phpBB several times in the past because I didn't have the patience to deal with the frequent exploits and the not-so-frequent security fixes. In my experience, it was just a bloat of useless features, security holes and daily backups. Furthermore, not that you guys seem to be interested in using templates, but they're not very well thought out, and you have to learn some half-assed markup language to make them. It's like they completely forgot they were building a system for... you know, the web - where you have fancy initialisms like CSS and PHP. Not sure you worry about the processing power it would take, but it's a lot. My friend had a graph where he tested five of the most popular forum options with default setups -not sure where it is now-, but I can tell you phpBB was the worst, by far. Overall, it seems the developers and contributors have a really short attention span - someone suggests a feature they like and during the next three months it takes them to come up with half the functionality the feature intended, your phpBB already got hacked, defaced, deleted, flooded, and/or spammed ten times. Unless phpBB is miraculously providing some API to integrate new game features or something that would let you improve Altitude's web presence (and possibly get rid of the Loopy), my vote stays with vBulletin. It seems to me that you need a robust forum package for a video-game company and its growing community, not for a video-game clan with 20 members who will vanish within a few months anyway. Last edited by Juin; 11-26-2011 at 08:43 AM.
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#9
11-26-2011, 08:17 AM
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To be honest, it looks like a forum from the early part of last decade.
It's...not great. I'm unsure of what "features" this forum is lacking compared to phBB, but I haven't had an overwhelming longing for anything save perhaps a youtube embedding thingy. Anything else that this one has limited (number of images, etc) is simply something I should not be allowed to play with, unless you want an 8,000 word, 500 image treatise on why biplane is the cause of unrest in the Middle East.
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#10
11-26-2011, 08:38 AM
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The reason they are most likely switching is because vBulletin is expensive. And You have to keep paying for it every bloody year.
I agree 100% with Juin' Karl, Lam.. please take a look at SMF. It's far more customisable and scalable than PhpBB and is generally noted to be more secure with a very solid community backing it. If you want free forum software, go with SMF (SimpleMachinesForums) imo. I'm sure there exists vBulletin to SMF convertors.
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#11
11-26-2011, 08:41 AM
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We haven't committed to switching (to phpBB or anything else), but we are evaluating our options.
Here's what we don't like about the current software: 1) Awkward interface, especially for several common moderation and administration tasks, including... 2) Annoying update process, which wouldn't be so bad if not for the... 3) Constant stream of exploits and patches, which doesn't inspire a lot of confidence in the security of the enormous mass of PHP running the show, and forces... 4) Annual upgrades ($$$) 5) Widespread feedback suggesting the major development trunk (4.x) is full of bugs and generally inferior to the version we're currently using (3.x) and represents a shift in focus away from forum functionality (the only thing we care about) towards CMS, blogs, and other products. The $$$ involved is not enormous, so the main concern is the quality of the interface, the ease with which we can remain up to date and secure, and the long term health of the platform. It looks like phpBB is very actively maintained and powers some enormous boards (minecraftforum.net came to mind -- though I notice they very recently switched to IPB...hmm!) so we decided to look into it. Feedback and suggestions are appreciated, especially from anyone who's administered or moderated a large forum. Last edited by lamster; 11-26-2011 at 08:45 AM.
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#12
11-26-2011, 09:12 AM
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The annual upgrade fee for vBulletin sucks.
I have administered an SMF forum before and my brother also has hosted several forums including vBulletin, phpBB, MyBB and SMF. MyBB is also very much like vBulletin but the community is probably not as actively developed like SMF or PhpBB but it probably also has fewer exploits. Be sure to check SMF http://www.simplemachines.org/ Don't be put off by the new default theme. Looks can be very easily changed. They have a vBulletin to SMF converters too: http://www.simplemachines.org/commun...hp?board=134.0
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#13
11-26-2011, 12:06 PM
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ofcourse, all the fonts and codes etc. can be changed. but i'd have to agree with hollywood. These forums just.. don't fit in with what i've been using the past 2 and a half years =/
vBulletin just seems easier for users.. i don't know if this is just because vBulletin is what i use 80% of the time or because it just looks like... crap? I mean, if you can come up with a design which is really 'altitudeish' then ofcourse it might be amazing, but for now I would stick with vBulletin. (^^^p.s. i really have no idea about the costs etc. this is just a user's opinion^^^)
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#14
11-26-2011, 12:40 PM
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I've never liked phpBB. The look and feel of the board just puts me off it. SMF is a really good second choice, IMO.
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#15
11-26-2011, 12:54 PM
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Mmmh... vBulletin has always felt more comfortable for me. The separation between posts makes threads easier to read imo. Also I know these can be changed, but phpBB's colors and round shapes make it feel kinda toy-ish.
__________________
"thats not wut jk means "olld timer" jk means joking" - from $WN Fillichio KGB and tgleaf, Rhetoric Master Classes, 2010 Edition
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#16
11-26-2011, 01:58 PM
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Lam/Karl, you have literally stuck this forum into everybodys heads. Don't expect good comments from anyone. I don't really like it, it's kind of cramped, and well sorda
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For example, how the hell do you even find out who's online? This is a big downside. Also, when you go into lets say Clan organization, WHY THE HELL IS EVERYTHING MOVING ON THE SIDE?! It's giving me freaking seizures!!! No I DISAGREE (although changes are nice), BUT I STILL DISAGREE!
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#18
11-26-2011, 06:31 PM
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Looks can be easily changed for most forum softwares.
If you go with the customizabilty of the forum software, SMF was way ahead of customizability and user options than phpBB last time I checked. Might be phpBB has caught up a bit in the mean time Very fine-grained User permissions = SMF win. You can tweak SMF like crazy without installing broken 3rd party mods.
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#19
11-26-2011, 06:34 PM
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apparently my browser cannot get style data. i guess firefox just isn't hipster anymore
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#21
11-26-2011, 09:33 PM
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#23
11-27-2011, 05:03 AM
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Or internet explorer. Yes, I know, I'm a dinosaur.
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#25
11-27-2011, 11:02 AM
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#26
11-27-2011, 09:18 PM
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Have you guys checked out IP Board? It's not free, though.
 http://www.invisionpower.com/products/board/
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#27
11-28-2011, 12:35 AM
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This might help you decide: http://www.forummatrix.org/compare/p...Board+FUDforum
At the bottom, you can add/remove forum software to compare further.
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#28
11-28-2011, 05:48 AM
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#30
11-28-2011, 11:20 AM
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Genuine question btw
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#31
11-28-2011, 12:08 PM
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Security is always overlooked until you get bitten badly. hacking the forums and getting passwords for all users etc. wouldn't be that bad since we don't have personal stuff like credit card info. here, but if the database is compromised and they are able to wipeout stuff it can be tricky to restore unless regular backups were done. But still, having not to worry about security too much is good especially if you're paying money for it.
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#33
11-28-2011, 03:53 PM
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Before you set anything up, or make anything for Altitude, prepare yourself. The preparation may begin by laying on your bed. Get comfortable. Lessen your breathing, but maintain a rhythm. Close your eyes. Enter a world where everyone is 10 years old. Everyone has an extra chromosome, but that won't keep them from cleverly attacking you and your ideas from all angles. Search the web for the traditional security measures that apply to your project. Implementing these measures took roughly an hour, right? Good job. Let's stop for a drink. Now repeat the last web search, but replace traditional with all of the following terms: paranoid, exhaustive, and intimidating. Get to reading. Sleep. Read. Sleep. Read again. This time you might want to stay up instead of sleeping: you're so close to that finish line. Read more. Your eyes feel heavy. They're tired. You're tired. But why sleep, when you're so close? Get a caffeine rush. This isn't good for your body, but you're young and strong. Keep reading. Now you understand the grand scheme of the security measures you must implement. Start implementing. You're dozing off. More caffeine. Your heart feels funny - let's call it the tachycardia of champions. You're done. You're a champion. How many people could have envisioned what you did, the way you did it? Zero. It's time to shine. Whom will you tell first? Never mind - you're done for. Sleep now, but leave your project published in hopes someone might see it and provide some feedback/ego fuel. It's a new day. Embrace the sunlight. No, no time for that. Food? Nope. Rush to that bright, brain-leeching screen. Not many people saw your project; no problem. That was expected. Play with it to confirm how awesome you are today. It's broken. The children found it. The children found your project. And they broke it. Go back to bed. Repeat.
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#35
05-29-2012, 01:04 AM
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Via another game, I've become aware of a forum software that I really like, XenForo. The features I've seen from it as a user are amazing. For example, it has alerts for when someone has either responded to you or has posted in a thread you have posted in.
My demo instance User Pass Moderator01 Moderator01 BaseUser01 BaseUser01 ask for admin Demo forums last 3 days, and are easy to request from the main website. The software cost $140, which is the software with 12 months of support and upgrades, and $40 to renew the support/upgrades. Looking though the available styles, they are made by other users, some free, I saw one at $35, and didn't dig much farther. This suggest that for some amount of money, a cool theme could be purchased. OTOH, we've been on a default theme here for so long, this may be unnessiary. Requirements: PHP: 5.2.4+ MySQL: 5.0+ PHP extensions: MySQLi, GD (with JPEG support), PCRE, SPL, SimpleXML, DOM, JSON, iconv, ctype PHP safe_mode off Importing data from vBulletin Active forum with this software I don't remember the phpBB trial, but reading some post on here saying that it was cluttered worries me that those users won't like XenForo. I would appreciate it if those users took a look at the demo and gave an opinion. Quote:
Last edited by Aki1024; 05-29-2012 at 01:13 AM.
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#36
05-30-2012, 01:40 AM
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They have been stuck in a lawsuit with vBulletin. vBulletin shouldn't win, but they are bleeding away XenForo's money through legal fees. Its a shame since XenForo seemed so promising. I am hoping they recover, but they have been really quiet over the last few months and no one really knows what is going on. vBulletin is still one of the best forums out there, certainly superior to phpBB. It sounds like vBulletin is announcing version 5 soon. Version 4 was a poor product. It is starting to get a little better now, but too late really with version 5 coming soon. and hopefully they have learned from their mistakes. Not sure why we still use the default theme. We should at least have an Altitude logo up top. Logo and colors are easy to change.
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Linear Mode
