So whats next (after v1 final)

[Adam Howard]

I would imagine it would be bug fixing the small bugs others will find. But over all, what do you think they should work on next or will work on next?!

I'm hoping for an official blog or bridge. While I know the majority maybe hoping for a CMS.

 

[D.O.A.]

I hope xenforo keeps surprising me with new stuff rather then making a pretty vbulletin, I see plenty of posts here "I cant move to xenforo yet because it lacks x vbulletin standard feature", well, use vbulletin then. Also If you cant move because your users will miss an arcade mod, you must be running an arcade based discussion forum? No? well then *lol*. Tell them to get over it and focus on your real content. I did, people posted more and we've never looked back. Same with a reputation system, if you feel it's that vital your users can digitally pat each other on the back above all else, I'll add another LOL.

Think outside the box rather then jamming old sh*t into a new one.

Now that my sites "happening" with a well tuned xenforo setup I'm getting 50-100 new registrations per day and loving it. My members don't ask for the old vb crap anymore that I always considered a sideshow, they are too busy posting content related to our topics, facebooking links and liking stuff. It's amazing how this forum software encourages people to post so easily and share it with even more people we haven't 'met' yet.

I'm hoping to see in future better moderation tools (the infractions mod here is excellent though) and ignore features for users with issues with other members. Other then that, surprise me

Blogs, reputation systems and stuff seem trivial, sounding more like something a modder can do. I'm actually a person who needs a blogging system so I just intergrated my users with a wordpress install, and as much as people will moan for this IB or xenforo will never have a cms that can do 1/3rd the stuff wordpress & addons or joomla, drupal and the like can achieve, they can only borrow ideas from them.

Bottom line, be creative not repetitive.

 

[Ryan Kent]

I'm for keeping things fairly simple and keeping un-needed junk out. But community software should support a blogging system. It should be something that is optional, for those who do not want it. But something developed and supported by the core development, as not to leave everyone depend an a "maybe". Modification came and go, but the core system for any community software typically remains.

Until such a system is in place. I'm sadly stuck with vBulletin or maybe forced to some day switch to Invision Powered.

If you need a blog then Onimua's product works, and is being further developed to make it better.

If you require a professionally developed blog then you can go with WordPress or other alternatives.

Not using XF as a forum solution because it doesn't have integrated blog as part of the core is like saying you wont buy an awesome car because it doesn't have the radio you want factory installed. What XF does have is:

- the absolute latest/greatest forum software on the market
- integrated SEO
- easy styling without any HTML/CSS knowledge through the Admin Control Panel
- Alert system, too much more to list out....

In car terms, XF has focused on the engine, transmission and body. If you purchase a forum or any software product based on which one offers the most features, then good luck. You'll need it.

 

[Kier]

Yes. I really can not depend on a 3rd party developer. Modifications seem to come and go, no matter what product you buy into (vBulletin, IPS, XF, ect.....). It's the core I need to be working and stable.

Interesting that you think that official add-ons have shown stability...

Anyway, notwithstanding the history of other systems, XenForo has been engineered to provide the most stable and flexible platform for add-on developers ever seen in forum software. Add-ons inhabit the same space as the core code, have access to all functionality and can themselves be the subject of further add-ons, so if we have a situation where it is decided that 3rd party developers can not be relied upon, a large part of the point of XenForo has been missed.

 

[ragtek]

Anyway, notwithstanding the history of other systems, XenForo has been engineered to provide the most stable and flexible platfor for add-on developers ever seen in forum software. Add-ons inhabit the same space as the core code, have access to all functionality and can themselves be the subject of further add-ons, so if we have a situation where it is decided that 3rd party developers can not be relied upon, a large part of the point of XenForo has been missed.

Once the add-on coders understood the framework it's really easy to create add-ons (my linklist took me 30min coding without an real design)


(I know i#m getting boring with the story, but once again )
BUT for example had my expensive lesson with the rss feeder and an client.
I started coding for him, after some time xenforo released the next beta and the client canceled the project.
I knew that this would be a basic feature in the future but i didn't thought that it will be included soo early...
Because of this, i stopped the plans for ALL "basic" features which are missing in xf, because i don't want to waste my time.

That's the same now with "thread prefix". We all know that it is a REAL IMPORTANT feature, there are several request threads for it.
Mike also said, that it will be definitly included, but he didn't say when (1/4 year, 1/2 year, 1 year???)

So, if we would have a SMALL roadmap, with the planned features and shedule for 1.1we could know if addon "foo" is worth coding it ourself or not..

Feel free to surprise us with real WOW features and your secret plans, but thread prefix, moderation log, etc... aren't real wow features (all your competitors have this already) so why not say your users if you plan to include it in the next months, or if it will need at least 1 year, etc.

 

[Kier]

I think it's safe to assume that features which are common to all forum software but are not yet present in XenForo will be added in short order. Thread prefixes are definitely slated for 1.1.

 

[ragtek]

I think it's safe to assume that features which are common to all forum software but are not yet present in XenForo will be added in short order. Thread prefixes are definitely slated for 1.1.

And why not make an announcement so everybody could read this, instead of 100 postings were the same people (including me ) ask always the same questions and brogan replies with the same answer (4 links to your posts..)


PS: brogan, now you can add an 5. link to thread prefix => http://xenforo.com/community/threads/so-whats-next-after-v1-final.13245/page-4#post-177502

 

[Ryan Kent]

1.0.0 has been live FOUR DAYS. Sure we are all anxious to know every detail we can. What's next in 1.1? When will it be released? What about 1.2? We all have these questions and many others. How about we all back off a bit and ask again in 6 weeks? I am pretty sure the picture will be a LOT clearer then. For now the focus is probably things like...bugs, tickets, documentation, review all enhancement requests, prioritize them back of level of difficulty and urgency, etc.

A favorite quote of I've heard...."people who avoid commitment understand what a big deal commitments are". It sounds like you are looking for a commitment of what's going to be in XF. If you are provided with that commitment, next you will push for a date. If either the date is moved back, or any feature you were looking forward to is pushed back, you will be disappointed. Based on my experience many do not handle such disappointments well.

Don't you think the XF team wants to share all their thoughts? They probably want to scream it from the roof tops. But there is a need for caution, and prudence. XF finally went gold. Let's celebrate.

 

[RobParker]

so if we have a situation where it is decided that 3rd party developers can not be relied upon, a large part of the point of XenForo has been missed.

The problem is that we know the core product will continue to be updated and if something breaks it will be fixed. The same can't be guaranteed about 3rd party add-ons and it's far riskier to rely on their functionality as the developer might not update it for whatever reasons. For example what happens if Jaxel gets a new job and no longer has time to update his add-ons?

I understand your point and recognise that XF is very well set up to grow a great development community around it but at the end of the day it's only the core we can 100% rely on.

 

[ragtek]

For example what happens if Jaxel gets a new job and no longer has time to update his add-ons?

The same that happend withi this vBulletin Add-ons => will be unsupported

I understand your point and recognise that XF is very well set up to grow a great development community around it but at the end of the day it's only the core we can 100% rely on.

hm, like the vBulletin Project Tools?
Even official add-ons aren't 100% safe

 

[RobParker]

Even official add-ons aren't 100% safe

That's why I said core ;-p

 

[ragtek]

Don't you think the XF team wants to share all their thoughts?

No.
They are sharing there thoughts in the threads and that's IMHO horrible.
We need to read EVERY posting from kier & mike to know what's going on, (or hope that brogan will be up2date and link to all this stuff.

So what's wrong with an SMALL announcement?


People will always want a roadmap.
Some are happy with a small "what's comming next"(at least they will shut up once it's available), some other will not stop asking for "all coming features and dates" ...

 

[3dsoft]

The problem is that we know the core product will continue to be updated and if something breaks it will be fixed. The same can't be guaranteed about 3rd party add-ons and it's far riskier to rely on their functionality as the developer might not update it for whatever reasons. For example what happens if Jaxel gets a new job and no longer has time to update his add-ons?

I understand your point and recognise that XF is very well set up to grow a great development community around it but at the end of the day it's only the core we can 100% rely on.

Currently I am using a different forum software with an addon from a 3rd party developer who has chosen to abandon his addon. The problem is that our community depends on that addon and I am not able to update the core software because of that at this moment. Nevertheless I appreciate the work of 3rd party developers a lot because they often provide the missing stones. Furthermore I would encourage 3rd party developers always put a price tag on their addon so that a lack of motivation won't happen too easily.

 

[ragtek]

Furthermore I would encourage 3rd party developers always put a price tag on their addon so that a lack of motivation won't happen too easily.

That's the problem.
If users pay for something, they want ( expect) that the developer give super support & includes so much wishes as possible into the add-on.
What if the coder is now 3 weeks away or he stops his business? People get angry, start crying, etc... (just check what happend with gars & photoplog )

 

[Paul B]

We need to read EVERY posting from kier & mike to know what's going on, (or hope that brogan will be up2date and link to all this stuff.

Whenever I spot a comment from Kier or Mike regarding a possible future feature, I will update my profile - just click on the Information tab to see the latest list.

 

[MilesDB]

Currently I am using a different forum software with an addon from a 3rd party developer who has chosen to abandon his addon. The problem is that our community depends on that addon and I am not able to update the core software because of that at this moment. Nevertheless I appreciate the work of 3rd party developers a lot because they often provide the missing stones. Furthermore I would encourage 3rd party developers always put a price tag on their addon so that a lack of motivation won't happen too easily.

Exactly. If there are no financial incentives for an add-on developer he/she can last just for that long. I was once accused of undermining this community for mentioning it.

 

[Alpha1]

Interesting that you think that official add-ons have shown stability...

The abandoned Project tools and badly integrated vb social groups and vb blog come to mind.

But none the less, once the sole developer and copyright holder of an addon disappears, goes completely inactive or passes away, this is a disaster to communities that rely on the addon. (NuHit, GARS, LDM) Once you find yourself in that situation, you will be extremely cautious with relying on new addons. Addons are great, but not for major functionality.

 

[Kier]

vBSEO, vBAdvanced.

 

[James]

I personally don't feel a need for 1.1 right now. Imagine if we were upgrading every 2 weeks? That'd be tiresome.

I think the developers just need to have a couple of weeks to deal with any bugs that arise, take a break and answer a few support tickets. After that, I'm sure we'll see some kind of insight into what's coming for 1.1.

I understand people's haste when relying on add-ons, but have you never installed a plugin for software before? What about a Chrome extension? Firebug? Maybe an IDE plugin... you rely on these daily and it's not really different for forum software.

 

[Jaxel]

The same that happend with his vBulletin Add-ons => will be unsupported

I didn't abandon my vB4 media library because I ran out of time... I abandoned the vB4 version as a stand against Internet Brands. If they can't treat their customer's right, then I don't want to help further their goals. In a way, I was just a rat deserting a sinking ship.

The only things I think are ESSENTIAL are:

• Merge Users
• Infractions

 

[Shelley]

I didn't abandon my vB4 media library because I ran out of time... I abandoned the vB4 version as a stand against Internet Brands. If they can't treat their customer's right, then I don't want to help further their goals. In a way, I was just a rat deserting a sinking ship.

Well said and well done. I did the same and won't even loose a nights sleep over it. Not that I sleep.I support hard working companies/ people who build quality products and are passionate in what they do. In short, care about their customers as well as the product they build.

edit: On-topic - I'm not really fussed what goes in but at some stage I would like to see a nice backend/frontend smiley manager and that will make me happy.