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Ross
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pmwwwgtalkvForum | Announcing New Posting System - A Complete Revamp (1st Apr 09 at 10:36pm UTC)
Rich Text Editor, Spell Checker and Image Uploader | | For a very long time we have been working on a brand new posting system. One which has all the features users want. Today I am very happy to announce what these changes include and give you all some sneak peaks as well as an overview of how we intend to move this all forward.
Feature 1: Rich Text Editor Interface (WYSIWYG)
Feature 2: Built in Spell Checker
Feature 3: Built in Image Uploader
Rich Text Editor
Also known as a WYSIWYG this gives users an interface where rather than entering old style UBB Code they can see what their post will look like as they create it. For example they can see font styles, images and colors. This interface is ideal for those who are unfamiliar with UBBC and are much more used to interfaces similar to programs like Microsoft Word.
Built in Spell Checker
I admit that I am a bad speller. And I'm sure there are other members who are too. It's because of this that an inline spell checker has been introduced. At the click of a button it will check the subject, description and message for any spelling errors.
Built in Image Uploader
I know this has been requested by many people at various places. Isn't it so much easier to have everything in one place, to be able to upload the image at the same time as inserting it into a post. Well we have introduced a basic image upload facility which we hope will alleviate some of that problem.
The Next Step
This feature has been announced a little bit earlier than originally intended. As some of you may have noticed a human error lead to me accidently leaking the Image Upload feature. However the systems are very nearly ready to move to open beta testing. I would be anticipating for this to happen on this Support Forum during the upcoming weekend or the beginning of the following week at the latest (WC: 06/04/09). Shortly afterwards a handful of live user forums could also be upgraded to the new system.
When will I get these features on my forum?
Because of the scale of this upgrade we want to ensure things run smoothly. This is why the whole development process has taken such a long time. As mentionned, I will be looking for a few forums willing to try out this feature along with a few other fixes and system changes. Anyone willing to take part in this testing should send me a PM with information on your Forum URL and if it is a test forum or a live site.
All other forums will be upgraded once we have confirmed that the system works well and meets all of our expectations. A date will be set when we know this information.
When do we get to see these sneak peaks?
Images of each section are located in the next 3 posts.
What if I find a bug?
As always, we have our bugs board for you to report anything unusual. Although extensive testing has already been caried out on most sytsems.
Is the design final?
The design you will be seeing in the images below still needs a little tweaking to tie everything in with one another. However it is important to note that the system you use on your forum won't use the same colours as we use here. The pop-ups all attempt to match your color scheme drawing from your title1, window1 and border colors. The editor buttons (Bold, Italic, Underline etc.) will be changeable via your admin panel; more details on this will follow as the skin/template system is also undergoing an overhaul.
What documentation will there be?
We intend to release an FAQ for end users - so they know how to use all of the functionality.
Will my codes still work?
Naturally, we wish to make the system as backwards compatible as is feasible. However I expect many codes which add 'UBBC' functionality will need minor edits.
As always, I am open to any questions or comments you may have. Please feel free to post them below or send me a private message.
Ross McLellan
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Ross
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pmwwwgtalkvForum | | Re: Announcing New Posting System - A Complete R.. (1st Apr 09 at 11:24pm UTC) | | 
The Rich Text Editor buttons are above the post box.
To insert a Link, select the text (or image) to make a link and click on the hyperlink button. You are prompted for the URL to link to and asked where it should open. If your message has anchors you can pick one of these to link to instead.
This is the message as seen on the post page. As you can see, text formatting such as bold, size and colour is visible. As are smilies.
This is the quick reply box. It has most of the controls as the main post page but all of the same functionality. (It has been cropped a little to make it fit nicely) | |
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Ross
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pmwwwgtalkvForum | | Re: Announcing New Posting System - A Complete R.. (1st Apr 09 at 11:27pm UTC) | | The contents of your message are sent to the spell checker which looks for spelling and typing errors. It offers you a choice of replacement text or you can choose to ignore it. | |
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Ross
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pmwwwgtalkvForum | | Re: Announcing New Posting System - A Complete R.. (1st Apr 09 at 11:37pm UTC) | | 1. Open the image dialog and pick the image to upload.
2. The image is uploaded in the background. No extra page views needed.
3. Once the upload is complete it will show you a preview of the uploaded image. You can change the size and add alt text
4. Click "Insert" and your image is added to the post | |
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dog199200
Guest | | Re: Announcing New Posting System - A Complete R.. (2nd Apr 09 at 12:11am UTC) | | | ok wow, looks really nice | |
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pmwww | | Re: Announcing New Posting System - A Complete R.. (2nd Apr 09 at 3:21am UTC) | | O_O OMG!!! That is awesome!! Sounds very interesting Ross! 
Edit:
One Thing that you should include is being able to delete templates. When I go to make a new template, I click home after creating the template, then if something is wrong. (Sometimes I forget that I created it, not edited it.) So I click back on my browser button. I do this for about 6 times, and before you know it you have 7 templates, and you want to delete the 6, but you can't because there is no option. 
So if at all possible would you be able to make a Delete button in the Manage Forum templates. So that we can check off which ones we want to delete.
Ive wanted to suggest it, but the suggestions are closed. | |
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pmskypemsnyahoo | | Re: Announcing New Posting System - A Complete R.. (2nd Apr 09 at 4:13am UTC) | | smexy  | |
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pmwww | | Re: Announcing New Posting System - A Complete R.. (2nd Apr 09 at 4:18am UTC) | | It sounds amazing , it looks amazing and its what makes vforums awesome .
Very nice features Ross .
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click here We have 15 Different Skins/Templates for your vForum |
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pmmsn | | Re: Announcing New Posting System - A Complete R.. (2nd Apr 09 at 1:48pm UTC) | |  Rossy teh brilliance!
O_O OMG!!! That is awesome!! Sounds very interesting Ross! Edit: One Thing that you should include is being able to delete templates. When I go to make a new template, I click home after creating the template, then if something is wrong. (Sometimes I forget that I created it, not edited it.) So I click back on my browser button. I do this for about 6 times, and before you know it you have 7 templates, and you want to delete the 6, but you can't because there is no option. So if at all possible would you be able to make a Delete button in the Manage Forum templates. So that we can check off which ones we want to delete. Ive wanted to suggest it, but the suggestions are closed.
Once all the planned changes are done - including upcoming modifications to the skin/template system like Ross mentioned - then the suggestions would be opened up again as soon as Ross is free or "free-er".  | |
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Michael
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pmvForum | | Re: Announcing New Posting System - A Complete R.. (2nd Apr 09 at 4:45pm UTC) | | Will UBBC still work for those of us that simply don't want to use this? Or a profile selectable option?  | |
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Ross
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pmwwwgtalkvForum | | Re: Announcing New Posting System - A Complete R.. (2nd Apr 09 at 7:28pm UTC) | | Will UBBC still work for those of us that simply don't want to use this? Or a profile selectable option?
A brief explanation on how this system works to ensure backwards compatibility & security. WYSIWYG editors effectively produce HTML code. Allowing users to use HTML as their message would be a huge security risk. To get around this issue, I have written a parser which takes the HTML produced by the WYSIWYG editor and converts that to UBBC. This UBBC is what gets stored in the database and is used to produce the message whenever it is displayed. So the benefits of this are:
1. No security risks from HTML (anything not recognised as having a valid UBBC equivalent gets removed)
2. Any UBBC entered into the message area will still be treated as UBBC - it will still work.
So to answer that in a word, "yes". | |
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Nick
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pmwww | | Re: Announcing New Posting System - A Complete R.. (2nd Apr 09 at 7:34pm UTC) | | Rossy teh brilliance! O_O OMG!!! That is awesome!! Sounds very interesting Ross! Edit: One Thing that you should include is being able to delete templates. When I go to make a new template, I click home after creating the template, then if something is wrong. (Sometimes I forget that I created it, not edited it.) So I click back on my browser button. I do this for about 6 times, and before you know it you have 7 templates, and you want to delete the 6, but you can't because there is no option. So if at all possible would you be able to make a Delete button in the Manage Forum templates. So that we can check off which ones we want to delete. Ive wanted to suggest it, but the suggestions are closed. Once all the planned changes are done - including upcoming modifications to the skin/template system like Ross mentioned - then the suggestions would be opened up again as soon as Ross is free or "free-er".
Ahh I see. | |
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ashkir
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pmskypemsnyahoo | | Re: Announcing New Posting System - A Complete R.. (2nd Apr 09 at 11:47pm UTC) | | | I half think this is April Fools. =/ | |
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Ross
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pmwwwgtalkvForum | | Re: Announcing New Posting System - A Complete R.. (2nd Apr 09 at 11:54pm UTC) | | I half think this is April Fools. =/
I was a little reluctant about posting it on the 1st in case people thought that. I know it sounds too good to be true but it is happening | |
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ashkir
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pmskypemsnyahoo | | Re: Announcing New Posting System - A Complete R.. (3rd Apr 09 at 12:19am UTC) | | I half think this is April Fools. =/
/tackle | |
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