Forum Software Changes

[Stevie]

I spotted this post on another Proboards forum. As the post states, if you have an advert blocker and have "one click" sign-on and / or no recollection of your password,or if you are one of the growing number of contributors using "smart" 'phones where you don't see the ads and have password remembered, then you may be unaware of the carnage to come...


Quote:

You may have noticed a banner, right above this post, notifying us all of new software that Proboards will be bringing online within the next month. If you don't see it, you're probably running some sort of "ad-block" software, which is one reason I'm repeating the notice here.

You will have to re-logon with your password after the change. If you have your password auto-entered for one-click sign-in, you'll need to remember what it is, so you can re-sign in.

As the notice notes, if you don't recall your password, it's best to enter a new one that you will remember before the change goes through. This can be done on the "Modify Profile" page.

Unquote.

[SoloBill]

Hi,

I can see the notice as I don't have ads blocked but well spotted as I can't see a notice on the Proboards Support Forum about it.

The other Forum I frequent has opted out of the upgrade until the end of this year.

Bill

[Michael Messer]

Steve,

Thank you for making this announcement. I think just to be sure I will PM your post to all members.

I have seen the upgraded forum and it seems to work pretty well. It has some similar features to Facebook, such as a 'like' button and that type of thing.

Shine On
Michael.

[Michael Messer]

I hope it works and doesn't screw up our forum!



Shine On
Michael

[Michael Messer]

I have a feeling that when ProBoards update the system to their new ProBoards v5 forums that we may have some teething problems for a week or so.

I have seen a sample of the v5 system and a few things that I take for granted at present, are not so straightforward with v5. The idea is to bring it up to date and make it similar to FaceBook with 'like' buttons and a few other tricks. Personally speaking, I would be quite happy if they left it as it is, because for the past nine years it has worked perfectly and I can moderate and administrate without having to think about it.

What I would like the ProBoards team to look at is the app I have on my iPhone. The app is great, it works really well and can be quicker and easier to use than a computer. However, there are no moderator or administrator functions available on the App. So when I am away from my computer I am unable to access the admin functions. This can be very frustrating, if I am away on the road and I check in to find that someone has smothered the forum with kitchen equipment ads and I can't delete them from my phone, which was the reason I asked Mark Makin to be a moderator.

I hope ProBoards know what they are doing and don't screw up our forum!

Shine On
Michael

[Stevie]

From the perspective of the moderator, is it possible to "back up" the forum in its entirety? That may offer some protection against losing the lot, although that seems extremely unlikely...
I assume that Proboards must have gone through all this before. The basic text entries will survive the migration, but perhaps some or many of the links may dry up?
I eschew Facepage / Twitter and even though I'm aware that I'm one of a rank minority, -1 (sic) for any attempt to emulate those institutions.
Actually, other Proboards forums have had something akin to the "like" facilty for years, so it must have been at the moderator's discretion. The new V5 must formalise that "feature"?

[Michael Messer]

Hi Steve,

I have tried a few times to find a way to back up the whole forum, but I have not found a way to do it, other than manually one page at a time!!!!

This is an email I received telling me all about the new v5 forum....

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

This message was only sent to the "admin" account on this forum

ProBoards v5 is coming soon!

We're excited to let you know that on April 29th we will begin to upgrade all forums to ProBoards Version 5. This free upgrade to this forum contains literally hundreds of new forum features and improved functionality. Below are just a few of the great things you can expect with this free upgrade!

The "Colors & Theme Creator" section of the Admin Panel makes it extremely simple for you to customize the look of your forum.

Host all your forum's images directly on ProBoards! No more relying on third party image hosts!

The new Forum Dashboard helps you keep track of what's happening on all your ProBoards forum accounts all in one location.

Create custom web pages and Forum Portals directly on your forum using our new Custom Pages feature.

A new Member Groups system that allows you to categorize your members into multiple groups allowing you even easier member management.

New Live Search functionality that brings you search results as you type; Never wait for your answers again.

A Shoutbox integrated directly into your forum!

Join multiple forums and transition between them seamlessly using a single account with our ProBoards Global Login.

Notifications to help you stay on top of the latest updates to threads you've participated in and more.

Send a personal message to multiple people in the same conversation, or even entire groups!

Create a unique, custom avatar inside of your forum with the new Avatar Maker.

Per-user activity feeds with the ability to follow other members.
Better moderator tools that make moderating your forum a breeze.

The ability to "Like" posts!

A new Visual Editor for creating posts. See exactly what your post will look like while you make it!

Upgraded attachments system that allows you to easily attach even more files to your forum posts!

Lightning fast forum navigation on every page with our new drop-down navigation tree and improved hotkey support.

At the top of each page you can see if any of the topics you've participated in have been recently updated.

Direct access to the forum's HTML and CSS for those hard-to-reach tweaks.

tagging to bring a member's attention to a post.

Coming Soon: Our new Theme Library and Plugin Library provides you with one-click installation for custom themes and plugins. No coding knowledge needed to make your forum look great and add new functionality!
... and so much more.

If you don't want to wait until the end of April to upgrade, you can upgrade early here! For forum admins that are not quite ready to make this upgrade, you do have the option to opt-out until the end of this year.

Have questions about ProBoards v5? We have answers.

We know that ProBoards v5 is a big upgrade, and a big change for forums. In the last few months we have quadrupled our support team to ensure that we are able to handle all of your ProBoards v5 questions. If you need any help at all, our team is available 7 days a week at support.proboards.com!

More updates on the way

We will be sending another update in the coming weeks with useful information prior to the ProBoards v5 upgrade. Stay tuned!

--------------------------------------------------------
Well, as the Thunderbirds crew would say...."anything could happen in the next half hour!"

Shine On
Michael.

[Ian McWee]

Hi guys!

I'm a firm believer in "if it ain't broke ~ don't fix it". As Michael has mentioned (and is listed on the notification from proboards above) most of these updated 'services' would probably never be used by moderators or forumites - so why couldn't you have an 'opt-out' button to keep things as they are.....yep - it could all go "t*ts-up' & lose the best slide guitar forum on the www!

Several of my competitors constantly up-rate their websites to the latest flashy 'bells & whistles' formats.....when all you really need is the relevant info, and a simple way to order your products!

Michael.....that quote was from Commander Sam Shore in Stingray

Slide On!

Ian.

[Michael Messer]

Ian, I am with you about the forum. I have seen a demo of the new format and once we all get used to it, it will be fine.

"anything could happen in the next half hour" ....may well have been in Stingray, but it was also used regularly in Thunderbirds. Same script writers, same sets, same puppets.... The GREAT Gerry Anderson!

Now....back to MM Forumv5

Shine On
Michael

[Stevie]

The wise money would be on exercising the opt-out and see whether there's any collateral damage? There's nothing to lose...

[Deleted]

The proposed 'shout box' could be interesting. There's one on the Rory forum I'm a mod on. It gets a bit lairy, but it's OK there 'cos were all friends. Could it be a problem here where generally some decorum and good manners are expected?
TT

[Michael Messer]

I have no idea exactly when, but sometime between now and the end of May the forum will be updated to the new ProBoards Version 5.

I hope they know what they are doing, it would be terrible to lose stuff from this forum. It goes back nearly nine years and has many irreplaceable threads.

Shine On
Michael

[Michael Messer]

....It's coming.....



Shine On
Michael

[oldmanblue]

Apr 25, 2013 11:03:00 GMT Ian McWee said:

Hi guys!

I'm a firm believer in "if it ain't broke ~ don't fix it". As Michael has mentioned (and is listed on the notification from proboards above) most of these updated 'services' would probably never be used by moderators or forumites - so why couldn't you have an 'opt-out' button to keep things as they are.....yep - it could all go "t*ts-up' & lose the best slide guitar forum on the www!

Several of my competitors constantly up-rate their websites to the latest flashy 'bells & whistles' formats.....when all you really need is the relevant info, and a simple way to order your products!

Michael.....that quote was from Commander Sam Shore in Stingray

Slide On!

Ian.

i am in total aggrement with the above gent.

[DaveRed]

The breathless enthusiasm given by the presenter from Pro Boards doesn’t exactly fill me with optimism. It looks like software made by Bob the Builder. As with a lot of recent softwareit is garish and pictorial with lots of “helpful” buttons to click on. Like Stevie observed earlier I too eschew Facebook and Twitter, I simply don’t trust them. I feel they could jeopardise my personal internet security but I also feel also they encourage the over personalisation and trivialisation of subject matter through the use of such instruments as the “shout box”.
This forum has always felt a safe place to participate in. It is full of well considered opinions and all the members treat each other with respect, there is never any attempt to abuse or dominate other members with opposing opinions,
As Ian points out “if it ain’t broke don’t fix it” but then again organisations often feel that they have to constantly re-invent themselves to appear to be progressing. Welcome to the brave new world.

Dave