Upcoming XenForo Features

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System0

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I've been using XenForo since last year. No forum software is perfect but XenForo ticks the most boxes for me at the moment.

My existing forum is for my WordPress blog. As such, I don't need many features such as blogs etc.

I'm launching a new dedicated forum in the next week or so. I'm currently in the planning stage so looking at skins, my options, mods available etc.

Before I purchase my second license, I have a few questions :)

  • I love the design of IP Blog (and to a much lesser extend the VB blog option). Giving users the option of adding their own blogs is something that I think will prove very popular with my new community so I'm keen to implement it from the start (or at least after a few months). The [LN] Blog add on looks promising and I'm actually pleased with the fact that it's going commercial as this suggests to me it's going to be well supported and updated often. Can someone post some links to some forums which are using the add on. I'd love to see it in action.
  • IPB and VB both have good mobile solutions. This is something that XenForo lacks though I was pleased to read that this will be implemented soon. Is there any more news about this - e.g. demo, screenshots, expected release date etc.
  • I posted today about the new facebook app feature for VB. I was pretty impressed. I'm not expecting something like that to be released for Xenforo though I'd love to see an add on for integration with Facebook fan pages in some way. This would be a great way to encourage users to come back to my forum on a regular basis. Any plans for new social media features in 2012?
  • I did a basic mod of XenForo for my current forum and blended it in with my existing blog design. Whilst I know CSS, HTML and a little PHP, I am far from being a designer, therefore I'm on the lookout for a light minimal style for XenForo. I'm sure I would be able to create something using the style editor but I'd rather pay $30 for a design and put my own logo on it than spend 2 or 3 days creating my own style.
  • VB has a fairly decent advertising integration for adsense. It's possible to do this with XenForo using the template system and if statements etc though I'd love to see better ad integration in the future, particularly ads in the first post etc for non logged in users (I do realise that this can be done via templates but something more user friendly would be welcomed).
For me VB is wayyy too expensive for what it offers and if I'm honest, I think the company that are running it are idiots who know nothing about customer care. IPB does seem like a good product as I am looking for mobile support and a good blog templating system for users - but I love the speed of XenForo and the support here has been second to none (and I feel comfortable using it).
As always, any advice would be appreciated :)
Kevin
 
Not had a response yet though as I already have a license, I have another question.

Am I allowed to upload xenforo to a test area in order to try out some things for my new website and see if xenforo is right for it. I know there is a demo option available though I want to try out some mods like ln blog and xenporta etc. Is this ok?
 
ok. I have created the account for my website on my server but will not be changing the dns until the website is designed and everything is ready. I assume that a private area such as that, that is blocking the search engines etc should be sufficient.

Also, could you get back to me on my original questions. At the moment I'm still not 100% whether XenForo is the way to go for this new project. XenForo is much quicker and has a better styling system - though there isn't a great selection of premium skins and xenforo currently lacks the blog option for visitors, good advertising integration and gallery options (I'm aware some mods are available for these things but they aren't as feature rich). I'm still swaying towards XenForo due to it's speed, low load, support etc.

Also, on a side issue, my last post was not intended to bash IB or vBulletin. Only yesterday I was praising their new Facebook application and how I'd love to see it here - I appreciate that those types of threads can turn into a slagging match though I stress that my intention was not to bash vBulletin/IB or create any heated discussions here :):)
 
You won't get any answers at all about upcoming features. Unlike IPB (for example) there is no development blog and historically, Xenforo has not seemed overly interested in posting about features which are in-progress. Kier used to do the occasional "Have you seen" video teaser but he has not posted for some time and remains conspicuous by his absence. As a result I would imagine it is hard if not impossible for prospective customers to evaluate whether Xenforo can meet future needs, all you can do is judge it as it stands now.
 
Thanks for taking the time to reply Ingenious.

You've got a good understanding of my current situation. XenForo is perfect as a support forum for my blog but for a dedicated community, additional community features such as blogs, galleries etc would be really useful. IPContent looks ok too though I've been impressed with XenPorta too so.

IPB have these features already but I like XenForo and like how quick it is etc. I don't mind waiting a few months for the mobile style etc to be added but would like to at least know what direction the script is going as far as additional features as I don't want to switch forum in 6 months or a years time.

I've been playing around with IPB and it's not too bad. The templating system is a bit crappy but there are more premium themes available for IPB so in the grand scale of things it isn't a major thing for me. The advertising integration is pretty good too.

In addition to a good default mobile design, SEO is important to me. There seems to be many conflicting reviews on the web about which SEO system is best. Some say vBulletin with VBSeo is the best whilst others say that it isn't as good as it once was. Others say xenforo is the best for seo and others say IPB. At this moment I get the impression that there isn't much between them with regards to SEO.

I love the look of the mobile suite and facebook apps for vBulletin but I've been reading their forums and at the moment they are very buggy. So vBulletin isn't really in the equation.
 
You won't get any answers at all about upcoming features. Unlike IPB (for example) there is no development blog and historically, Xenforo has not seemed overly interested in posting about features which are in-progress. Kier used to do the occasional "Have you seen" video teaser but he has not posted for some time and remains conspicuous by his absence. As a result I would imagine it is hard if not impossible for prospective customers to evaluate whether Xenforo can meet future needs, all you can do is judge it as it stands now.
That forum is used to showcase new features in an upcoming release (like before 1.0 was public, again before 1.1 was in public beta, and likely we'll see new things added before we get our hands on 1.2 Beta 1).

Just in January we got a general update about progress, and between then and now we've been seeing the Resource Manager being used here and developed based on customer feedback as well as see the Enhanced Search add-on get released. We are now entering Q2 in which we can expect XenForo 1.2 details to be released as well as in-depth information about the new features coming with it.

The topic of "XF doesn't say anything!" has been discussed to death and has been proven to be false over and over again. If you and others continue to not see it that way, so be it. :)
 
You won't get any answers at all about upcoming features. Unlike IPB (for example) there is no development blog and historically, Xenforo has not seemed overly interested in posting about features which are in-progress. Kier used to do the occasional "Have you seen" video teaser but he has not posted for some time and remains conspicuous by his absence. As a result I would imagine it is hard if not impossible for prospective customers to evaluate whether Xenforo can meet future needs, all you can do is judge it as it stands now.
http://xenforo.com/community/threads/development-update.25726/

Yeah, they never announce when new features are coming. Not at all :rolleyes:.

Every time they've stated they're close to releasing a new major version they have always given a few features that will be shipped with it. No, it isn't a development blog, no it isn't a roadmap, but it is pertinent information that is readily available.

XenForo has always had the stance that you should buy the product for what it has available now, and to not assume so and so feature will be there in the future.

EDIT: I'ma kick your ass Onimua, you ******* ninja.
 
http://xenforo.com/community/threads/development-update.25726/

Yeah, they never announce when new features are coming. Not at all :rolleyes:.

Every time they've stated they're close to releasing a new major version they have always given a few features that will be shipped with it. No, it isn't a development blog, no it isn't a roadmap, but it is pertinent information that is readily available.

XenForo has always had the stance that you should buy the product for what it has available now, and to not assume so and so feature will be there in the future.

EDIT: I'ma kick your ass Onimua, you ******* ninja.

You do realise that post was made way back at the start of Jan 10th, 2012. That's nearly 3 months ago now? So going of that time frame, we can expect to see on average only 4 update posts a year at most?
 
I will state for the record that my view on the general lack of development communication from Xenforo is a personal opinion, it is not a view shared by the majority of other licence holders here who will point out compelling evidence that I am wrong. However that is my opinion and expressing it is what a forum is for, as a licence holder I think I am entitled to raise issues which I think need to be improved, after all, I have invested my community (and money) in the product, I only want what is best for it. I'll also state that I am very pleased with the product itself, having evaluated it alongside IPB3.2. Nonetheless, prospective customers continue to ask what's coming and continue to get the stock answer which is "We can't tell you"...
 
This seems to be straying into a debate as to whether XenForo update their customers or not. :)

My own position is that I am an existing customer who is pleased with the product and a prospective customer who loves XenForo but is looking for some more advanced forum features to be implemented (I don't want it to be bloated either though I'm aware it's hard to balance this).

There's not really any difference between IPB and XenForo. IPB is $175 plus $50 a year. XenForo is $140 plus $40 a year. Money isn't the main issue for me. It's time and commitment etc which is involved in building a community and customising it etc against the time in switching later. This is why I'm keen on finding out about future features etc. :)
 
You do realise that post was made way back at the start of Jan 10th, 2012. That's nearly 3 months ago now? So going of that time frame, we can expect to see on average only 4 update posts a year at most?

Development isn't quick, simple, or necessarily immediate.

Since that announcement Elastic Search has been released, the resource manager has been put into use, and is undergoing constant and apparent development.

1.2 is going to take longer as it is another major version. 3 months isn't that long of a time when you take into account the amount of work they have on their plate.

I will state for the record that my view on the general lack of development communication from Xenforo is a personal opinion, it is not a view shared by the majority of other licence holders here who will point out compelling evidence that I am wrong. However that is my opinion and expressing it is what a forum is for, as a licence holder I think I am entitled to raise issues which I think need to be improved, after all, I have invested my community (and money) in the product, I only want what is best for it. I'll also state that I am very pleased with the product itself, having evaluated it alongside IPB3.2. Nonetheless, prospective customers continue to ask what's coming and continue to get the stock answer which is "We can't tell you"...
Funny... Onimua and I both shared a link that shows whats coming for the latest version of XenForo.

Just because there aren't as many updates as you would like, or as much information as you would like doesn't mean there is none at all, which is how you and others often word your posts regarding communication here.
 
That didn't take long, did it?

This thread has already gone the way of every other.
Now the OP can see why I was reluctant to even make a basic response.
 
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