Mr Lucky
Well-known member
I agree it shouldn’t, and it doesn’t - just that it makes it less easy to critique if you get locked out from viewing content after seeing three posts.
Idle Chatter | A General Discussion Community
- Thread starter Gemma
- Start date
VBX Co
Well-known member
Sorry, I did read that it was invite only, but didn't interpret that to mean closed. So why let visitors see anything, let alone allow them to see something, then pull the rug? Just seems counterintuitive to a closed community.
Not a criticism BTW, just idle curiosity.
Gemma
Well-known member
Not everyone who is invited knows what a forum is or will want to join without having an understanding of the content. I have areas that are only available to certain usergroups but this way I can let potential members view the majority of the site while respecting the privacy of those already registered.
I personally know the majority of my members in real-life, our site is a hub for interactions away from social media and in a safe online environment. I'm not interested in post counts or the amount of members, fighting spam or having anyone from forum "promotion" sites posting the same rubbish that's on a dozen other sites just to have content (people wonder why forums are supposedly dying...there's your answer but that's a different debate for a different thread). I've had open forums in the past and none have been as enjoyable as this one.
There may be a better way of doing things, I'm not very tech savvy, but this works for me and my members (and potential members) and that's what matters at the end of the day.
Gemma
Well-known member
Thank you. Some like it, some don't.
It has been a digital playground where some ideas have worked, others haven't and a lack of skills have limited me at times but I do believe you should try make your site look different and it is always fun trying to do that.
I think I'm done modifying things now and most updates will just be tweaking little things here and there.
80sDude
Well-known member
I think it looks great. It shows that you’re able to think outside the box. I wish I had the skills to edit my forum the way I want. The possibilities could be endless. I also wish I had the imagination. I remember your forum from thadminzone.com. I first saw it like two or three years ago. I was impressed instantly.
Gemma
Well-known member
Thank you.
The layout is based on the Nova theme by @Russ (PixelExit) which I've modified myself. I've no idea what I've spent on add-ons, a lot I've purchased and some have been donated by some lovely developers (they know who they are
) - I've never paid for any custom add-ons or design work so can't really comment on prices, you'd maybe get an answer in this forum
Gemma
Well-known member
Some more small updates...
Tidied up the layout of our media library and made the XFMG: Attachment Mirroring Album addon live and available to all.
Replaced my tabbed widget on my homepage - previously I was using Recent Posts by Siropu but I've switched the widget over to DragonByteTech Info Panels and styled the Latest Post widget to look like the other post/thread widgets on my site - and just like the other widgets, it updates automatically every 15 seconds too.
I've made my social group forums look like my customized thread list layout.
Fixed some bugs in the Member Stories archive within the User Panel, it now looks and functions similarly to the member profile tab
And, I've tidied up the content badges page layout on member profiles
There are other little bits and pieces around the site that I've refreshed and tidied up but nothing really worth mentioning here...
Also started working on my IMS feature which should hopefully launch in the next month or so.
Tidied up the layout of our media library and made the XFMG: Attachment Mirroring Album addon live and available to all.
Replaced my tabbed widget on my homepage - previously I was using Recent Posts by Siropu but I've switched the widget over to DragonByteTech Info Panels and styled the Latest Post widget to look like the other post/thread widgets on my site - and just like the other widgets, it updates automatically every 15 seconds too.
I've made my social group forums look like my customized thread list layout.
Fixed some bugs in the Member Stories archive within the User Panel, it now looks and functions similarly to the member profile tab
And, I've tidied up the content badges page layout on member profiles
There are other little bits and pieces around the site that I've refreshed and tidied up but nothing really worth mentioning here...
Also started working on my IMS feature which should hopefully launch in the next month or so.
80sDude
Well-known member
Amazing Gemma! You really do have an eye for style.
Gemma
Well-known member
Some wee updates took place in July, mainly to make things easier for my members to find content....and some just 'cause I like tinkering
Chatting with one of my members I realised that the filtering system wasn't being used mainly because it wasn't very accessible or visible
so I've added some widgets to various parts of the site - articles, blogs, recipes (showcase), and also in the TV, Movies, Music and Video Games forums - I just need to try figure out how to create a filter widget for general forums....my attempts have failed miserably so far 
I've also changed up my Latest Activity page and made it the site landing page...makes more sense as it is one of the first pages that members check when they sign in
I've added wee bits to my latest posts/threads widget - tried to show the majority of the changes via some poor Photoshop work - it has come a long way from the default look...
And finally, I've tried to get people to watch/subscribe to threads by simply adding a "watch" button to the editor, since adding it more threads have been subscribed to
There have probably been more changes....I lose track sometimes
Chatting with one of my members I realised that the filtering system wasn't being used mainly because it wasn't very accessible or visible
so I've added some widgets to various parts of the site - articles, blogs, recipes (showcase), and also in the TV, Movies, Music and Video Games forums - I just need to try figure out how to create a filter widget for general forums....my attempts have failed miserably so far I've also changed up my Latest Activity page and made it the site landing page...makes more sense as it is one of the first pages that members check when they sign in
I've added wee bits to my latest posts/threads widget - tried to show the majority of the changes via some poor Photoshop work - it has come a long way from the default look...
And finally, I've tried to get people to watch/subscribe to threads by simply adding a "watch" button to the editor, since adding it more threads have been subscribed to
There have probably been more changes....I lose track sometimes
Gemma
Well-known member
I have very little computer knowledge so this pushes me to my limits whilst learning but I do have funYou've certainly put a lot of work in to your site @Gemma - I hope you get enjoyment from it, and your members appreciate it.
Thank you!
I like to experiment! Some ideas work, some don't and I'll admit my layout isn't for everyone but I'd rather try to create something different. Nearly every website I see these days looks similar in terms of theme and even the members.
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80sDude
Well-known member
its definitely different and it looks great.I have very little computer knowledge so this pushes me to my limits whilst learning but I do have fun
Thank you!
I like to experiment! Some ideas work, some don't and I'll admit my layout isn't for everyone but I'd rather try to create something different. Nearly every website I see these days looks similar in terms of theme and even the members.
VBX Co
Well-known member
Love the retro look! I’d love to join! But it’s, uh, password protected
Read to the bottom of the first post ...
The site is invite-only but thanks for having a look
Gemma
Well-known member
A wee collection of updates we've introduced in the last month or so...
Member Profiles
Finally got around to styling the profile post comments to look more like our thread post comments and also did a small reworking of the profile header and tidied the feedback tab
I've reverted back to the thread list layout instead of using the addon by Joyfreak as my members prefer the more traditional look.
I'm still using the Joyfreak addon to display unread posts on the What's New page and I've tidied up the latest activity page too
Also made a minor change to our "popular threads" widget to highlight the amount of posts a user has made in a thread and latest threads/posts widget
Member Profiles
Finally got around to styling the profile post comments to look more like our thread post comments and also did a small reworking of the profile header and tidied the feedback tab
I've reverted back to the thread list layout instead of using the addon by Joyfreak as my members prefer the more traditional look.
I'm still using the Joyfreak addon to display unread posts on the What's New page and I've tidied up the latest activity page too
Also made a minor change to our "popular threads" widget to highlight the amount of posts a user has made in a thread and latest threads/posts widget
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