I would like to add a few words about the need to implement a personal blog feature within user profiles (member_view page) on XenForo driven forums. Currently, user profiles include a relatively unused and somewhat ill-conceived section called “Profile Posts”, whose purpose remains unclear and seemingly redundant.
What Are “Profile Posts” Tab Supposed to Be?
The first question is: are Profile Posts meant to be messages from the profile owner, or messages to the profile owner? Why have public posts on a profile at all?
- If the posts are meant to be public updates from the user, the functionality is limited and lacks clear definitions.
- If they are meant for others to leave messages, why not use private messaging or forum threads?
- The "Update your status…" prompt appears both in Profile Posts and the “visitor menu body,” which only adds to the misunderstandings. Is this a feature for quick status updates, personal blogging, or something else?
This ambiguity causes confusion among users and undermines the usefulness of the feature. Some might speculate that Profile Posts are intended as something like “guestbook” messages or testimonials, similar to what we see on this forum user’s profile:
Example:
https://xenforo.com/community/members/chris-d.11388/
However, this use case is quite limited, and the feature remains underutilized.
The Missing Piece: Personal Blogs
Crucially, XenForo lacks a straightforward way for users to create personal blogs that are separate from forum threads. For many community members, the ability to share longer-form content, thoughts, or updates in a dedicated space—outside of specific forum topics—would be highly valuable.
The Profile Posts feature could serve this purpose if it were renamed to something more intuitive like “Blog”, with the following adjustments:
- Only the profile owner can create new posts.
- Visitors and followers can read and comment on these posts but cannot create new posts themselves.
- This setup would transform Profile Posts into a lightweight personal blogging platform embedded directly within the forum environment.
Addressing Objections: “XenForo is a Forum, Not a Social Network”
Some might argue that XenForo is designed strictly as a forum engine, not as a social networking platform. Here is why this is not an obstacle. XenForo’s own slogans emphasize building a community experience, e.g.:
“There is no better platform upon which to grow your community.”
“Engage your customers with the premium community experience.”
The term "community experience" is broader than traditional forums, message boards or BBS systems. It encompasses various interactive features that foster engagement and personal connections, including blogs. Consider LiveJournal, an early example of a thriving community platform centered around personal and group blogs. Such features helped create vibrant, engaged user bases.
In XenForo, community blogs already exist at the group or node level (e.g., separate forums or nodes dedicated to blogging topics), so the missing piece is the personal blog, tightly integrated with each user’s profile.
Technical Feasibility and Minimal Effort
From a development standpoint, this personal blog functionality is essentially already implemented:
- The current Profile Posts system can be adapted by removing posting permissions from guests and other users.
- Only the profile owner can post new content (i.e., blog posts), while others comment on them.
- This change would require minimal technical resources but offer substantial value.
Additional Improvement: Granular Follow Settings
Another feature worthy of enhancement is the Follow function.
Currently, when you follow someone, you receive all their updates, including: Profile posts or blog posts, New threads or posts they make, Their reactions and reactions on their posts.
However, I’d like to propose more granular control—allow users to choose precisely what they want to follow.
For example: I want to follow only personal blog posts from a user and new threads started by he or she. I’m not interested in every single post or reaction they make or receive. This flexibility aligns with personalized community experiences, helps reduce noise, and increases meaningful engagement.
