Shoutbox & Calendar

Klaudia

New member
Hello everybody,

my name is Klaudia and we are trying to enhance our forum a little bit.
My English is not well enough to express myself professionally, so I have to ask as a lay person and start a new Thread about it.

We would like to add a shoutbox into our sidebar.
Furthermore we would like to have a spot where we can display a nice picture, which will change frequently.
Last but not least we would like to add a calendar to display any events or occasions like birthdays.

How can I do that and what do I need to do and where?

Can someone please help us?

Greetings, Klaudia
 
Klaudia there is a simple code to add a sidebar to the admin templates that create site pages.
Usually at the bottom of the template we can add

Code:
<xen:sidebar>
CONTENT
</xen:sidebar>
You can use this simple technique I use, adding this yourself to a list of templates - or see the addon in my signature.

See the simple way working on my pages on my site.
I have an external thing in it - the beautiful Earth Moon globes. That just needed a small code piece pasted in. So you can add widgets (additions) to it.

There is a portal system (another addon) called XenCarta. That also gives you blocks (boxes) in a sidebar. More complicated to establish but you can do more when you have it.
The same developer Jaxel does an Events addon which will do your calendar I think.

There are several different shoutboxes that work with XF here.
One of them does not go in the sidebar but I think the others do.
 
Thank you very much. I will try that.
One question though. Our Forum already seems to have a sidebar.
So I wanted to put an external shoutbox in to this sidebar.
Are we talking about the same?
 
Thank you very much. I will try that.
One question though. Our Forum already seems to have a sidebar.
So I wanted to put an external shoutbox in to this sidebar.
Are we talking about the same?

What shoutbox mod are you using? There is one here at the add on section that it ads it on the sidebar as well.
 
I am not so familiar witht he english expressions. What do you mean with shoutbox mod?
We do have a shoutbox, I suppose it would be called an external one: ishoutbox.
We are using a shoutbox from this provider in a vbulletin forum and since we are so satisfied with it,
this is the one we would like to have for our xenforo-Forum.
 
Klaudia

SIDEBAR - There is an XF sidebar on the front page. You see your picture at the top.
But if you do not place it yourself on other pages, it will not appear.
There are some special pages like Private Conversations, and Members, which have their own sidebar.
Most pages have none if you do not add one.

There are links in my signature to two different ways to do that. Mine is simple method but what you can do is limited. The other one will do more things but it is more complicated to start it.

MOD or ADDON This is an extra device, a piece of coding, you add to your XF. VB has them as well.
The addon or mod is made precisely to work with XF - or VB if it goes on VB.
Very often the same item like your shoutbox on VB cannot transfer.
Ask the people who made "ishoutbox" if it will work with XF.
If it does not work with XF, do not give up hope. Ask them to make a "bridge" or to "integrate it with Xenforo." The more systems their product can use the better their sales will be.

Keep asking things!
 
yes, I have according to all of yours instructions successfully added a block to the sidebar with our shoutbox.
I am truly excited, since I really don't have much knowlegde about all of that.
Thanky a million to all of you.

Now in this same way I think I can add a calendar.

Next question. This shoutbox is now on the bottom of the sidebar. I do not want to have it on the very top, I was kind of hoping to be able to place it in the middle. Like underneath the active visitors block. underneath that then I would like to eventually have our calendar. The forum statistics though, I'd like to have on the very bottom.

How can I change these settings?
 
Just rearrange the order of the code in the template.

You should be able to work out which bit is for which block, so just cut and paste it to where you want.
 
I have looked through all the templates that are in connection with the sidebar, or that I thought that would be.
Even if I chose to have the shoutbar below the visitors panel it ends up right underneath my avatar.
So I suppose I did not really find the template in which I could change the order.
 
99% sure yes

Do not fear.
Leave a big space after <!-- end block: sidebar_online_users -->.
paste it in
check frontend (public view of front page)
OK?
If not you can delete it nd try somewhere else.

See my tutorial.
 
thanks a million. it worked out.
my next project will now be a calendar and or picture.

The picture is easy to add as a static picture and you change the image yourself.
I am not a Big Coder so that is all I can do.

CREATE a sidebar container for your picture.
Anywhere you have added the sidebar, add this inside it.
If this is only for the front page use sidebar_online_users

Add this code
Code:
<!-- BEGIN CONTAINER FOR SIDEPIC DISPLAY -->
<div class="section" align="center">
<div class="secondaryContent" style="background: white">
<!-- BEGIN SIDEPIC DISPLAY -->
 
<!-- END SIDEPIC DISPLAY -->
</div>
</div>
<!-- END CONTAINER FOR SIDEPIC DISPLAY -->

This will create a contaner or box just like the other XF sections on the sidebar.
Background will be white (#ffffff) if you want it different try writing the colour like this
Code:
style="background: cream"
More colour names here http://www.w3schools.com/tags/ref_colornames.asp

Keep this page open to return.

GET your image path.
2 reasons.
You can use short URLs to access your images
If the structure of your site changes, so you move your images, just change the image path!

admincp/ Appearance/ Style Properties -> General -> Settings.

In the centre of the page, 1st item top - your image path is probably
styles/default
Copy what you see to keep in your notes.


UPLOAD the images you want into
www.yoursite/com/forum/styles/default
Width needs to be APPROXIMATELY 200px
Best to make their names as short and simple as you can.
Also as this is a specific project, start ALL the names with sidepic So you have
1sidepic-cat
1sidepic-sunset
etc
That will group all your pics for this project together at the top of the list. (The number 1 will put them at the top)

INSERT the image URL in that template where you put the container.

Rich (BB code):
<!-- BEGIN CONTAINER FOR SIDEPIC DISPLAY -->
<div class="section" align="center">
<div class="secondaryContent" style="background: white">
<!-- BEGIN SIDEPIC DISPLAY -->
<img src="@imagePath/sidepic-cat.png" / >
<!-- END SIDEPIC DISPLAY -->
</div>
</div>
<!-- END CONTAINER FOR SIDEPIC DISPLAY -->

Your image might not end with .png - could be .gif, or .jpg
Width needs to be APPROXIMATELY 200px

Change it when you wish.

Now I cannot tell you how to make the pictures change every say, every week, or when you press a button!
But I think this can be done with javascript.
You could look at dynamicdrive, a good javascript collection.
you need a script which does not require anything added to the page header. You could use one that does need this but it would take another step to do. Without anything needed in the page header a javascript pasted in your sideebar will probably work.
However it might need full image URLs instead of the clever XF image path URLs.
 
Now I just found out, that all my changes that I was successfully able to make, will dissappear again after an update has been made. So it was recommended to put the shoutbox into the sidebar as an add on.

Therefore I suppose I ought to add the picture or the calendar the same, through an add on.
Any tipps for me?
 
Klaudia I don't know who told you that. It is not true on XF.

When you upgrade the new version of the template you changed will install.
But yours will still be there. The system will store it as "outdated"
You can then get your code changes and do them again.

With the kind of careful technique I have described this will not be difficult.
You will see your spaces and comments in the template. So you know which bits to copy/ and paste to the new one.
Your picture files will not disappear. They will not be affected by an upgrade.

If it doesn't work with the newer system you will be with many others asking for help here.
But as you see help is fast with XF :)
This would be the same with an addon. Often addons don't work with an upgraqded system. Then you have to wait until the coder makes the addon upgrade. Some are fast and good. Some are not. :(
With my simple template changes you can do it yourself straght away.
 
Oh thanks. Now I have to find out, where the add on is, who now has the shoutbox, and I can't find it.
The add ons that I find, do not show me what I am looking for and that, what sounds similar, does not give me the option to change anything.
 
It looks like ishoutbox will work here. I visited their site and it is "remotely hosted."
That means the 'machine' (script) really runs on their site.,
What you put on yours will be a little piece of code which calls (contacts) their site. Their site then displays the shoutbox for you on your site.
Try it just like you did on VB
Keep notes of what you do!

By the way your first post sounds like you think there is something incorrect about getting help this way? This is a normal part of XF community. I am not staff. I am another forum owner like you. Many others here help me so I help too.
 
I was only a little shy, since I do not know all the expressions concerning templates, styles, add ons and so forth.
My English is good enough to have normal conversations, or about religions.
But this here is just something different, I have to get aqainted with.
But I see, you are all very patient and I am very grateful.
 
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