Major forum update due soon

[Jo Pearson]

Remember a while back, I said that Proboards were in the process of upgrading the forum software and we were due to be upgraded sometime? Well, that time is upon us! I've just had a message telling me that, in the next two days, we'll be upgraded to the new V4.5 software. It should be a fairly quick and painless process, taking just a few minutes (although some larger forums could take up to three hours), so don't be surprised if you come here and find a message telling you that the forum is unavailable - it just means the upgrade is taking place.

After the upgrade, things should still be pretty much the same, although there's a chance that some of the tweaks I've put in place may stop working until I can upload an updated version.


Version 4.5 Features

New thread sort options, ascending or descending order:

• Order by subject
  
• Thread creator
  
• Replies
  
• Views
  
• Post order
  

Revamped poll system with many new options:

• Ability to select multiple answers
  
• Auto-locking polls at a given time
  
• Ability to hide results until users have voted/poll is locked
  
• Ability to retract votes
  

New sub-board permissions:

• Ability to have all sub-board posts appear in its parent board
  
• The ability to hide sub-boards when this feature is turned on
  

Vastly improved speed on post and member searches:

• 1,000 member limit for top posters has been removed
  
• All users can now be displayed in post order, irrespective of forum size
  
• Member lists can be sorted in any order
  

Character limit in posts and personal messages has been in been increased from 25,000 to 60,000 characters.

Listing of all users online over the entire day is now available.

Calendar entries displayed at the bottom of the page are now in date order.

Gradients can be automatically generated for your forums colors.

Ability to add a poll to an existing thread.

Ability to set default listing order to a board.

Ability to request a forgotten password by email address has been restored.

Category access can now be granted based on membergroup and/or post count related ranks.

Improved page jump, decreasing load times on large boards/threads/member lists.

Other small software fixes (eg "on Today" now displays as just "Today").

[mischaobsessed]

ohh yay,
that sounds great jo,
i cant wait ;D

[Mischa is my life!]

AWESOME!!!!!!!!

Character limit in posts and personal messages has been in been increased from 25,000 to 60,000 characters.

I bet this is your fave Jo lol

[california]

i didnt understand a word of that but it sounds awesome lol

[meeshhead]

california said:

i didnt understand a word of that but it sounds awesome lol

Hahaha! Welcome to my world!!

[california]

haha hi 5!

[Jo Pearson]

I'll try and explain just what it all means tomorrow...

[Jo Pearson]

Upgrade done! As the server is still in the process of being upgraded, some bugs do exist, such as the "new" button not working, but I've been promised by the ProBoards staff that this is just a temporary bug and, as soon as all of the forums on our server (#50) have been upgraded, these problems should go away.

If you do find any bugs, or seem to be having a problem, either post here or PM me and I'll see what I can do to help.


(Edit: The "v45" in the URL means that not all of the forums on the server have been upgraded - once this disappears, it means that the server upgrade is complete and everything should then be back to normal...

And I've just noticed the "Characters remaining counter!!!! Wooohoooo!!!!!! )

[mischaobsessed]

Ohh wow,
it looks so much better already!!!!
very jazzy!
yayyyy!!! ;D ;D ;D

[california]

wow i noticed a difference straight away. look-ing goooood

[Care Bear]

well good work..i like it

[Jo Pearson]

OK, so I promised to explain what all the new changes mean, so here's what I understand about it all:

Thread sorting: I'm still figuring this one out!

Polls: We can now have polls where you can vote for more than one thing, and where they automatically close on a certain date. Also, we can now add a poll to an existing thread - previously, you could only add a poll when opening a new thread. And, if you vote, and then change your mind, you can now change your vote.

We can also have sections of the forum where only those people with a certain number of posts can gain access - although I don't think I'll use this, as it creates an "elitist" mentality, and I'd like this forum to be as open and free as possible - Yes, we have the "Adult" section, but I think everyone here appreciates why that's so...

And, if you should forget your password anytime, you can now have it e-mailed to you.


I think that's all the really key stuff for you as users and ordinary members - most of the rest is only tweaks for the admins to use to control the overall layout of their forums.

[Jo Pearson]

The server update is now complete, which means that the "new" buttons are working again!!!!!

[Mischa is my life!]

Thanks Jo!!!!!

You're an angel!

[Jo Pearson]

Thanks hun, but, other than keeping you guys informed of what's been happening, I've not had anything to do with this update - It's all been done by the ProBoards staff...