Beyond Forum Upgrade

[rage2]

So after a couple of weeks of prep work, moving the existing site to AWS, deciding on what forum software we want to upgrade to, it's finally getting there!

http://i.imgur.com/AceQeOX.jpg

Took a while and a ton of late nights to get to the point where we have all the data migrated into a vB4 test site so we can start poking around. Took a while to fix all the corruption issues with 15 years worth of data (thanks MySQL), but 2am last night, I have last week's snapshot in vB4! :clap:

Next steps is to start optimizing back to the beyond look and feel, adding mods, and generally try to make things feel familiar again. Vanilla vB4 sure is ugly.

If you guys have any feedback for us for what you want to see, let me know! At some point when we're closer to the final product, I'll make the site public for you guys to test drive and make more suggestions, find bugs, usability problems, etc.

[shakalaka]

Sweet! Looking forward to the new look, it's about time.

As long as there is a section of 'new posts' where all the posts with updates since my last visit are listed, I am happy.

[spikerS]

Awesome, can't wait to check it out!

[D'z Nutz]

A couple of my wishlist items, which I'm pretty sure are standard features now:

- When quoting a post, I'd like a link back to the original post to be included (usually in the form of some sort of icon) so I can go back and get the context.

- Being able to search for something within the thread

- Being able to search for all threads started by a user

- A PM box with an accurate message count :rofl:

- "Report this post" fixed

- An option to pick subject prefixes when starting a new thread (ie: FS, WTB, WTT, Stolen, News, etc)

[eglove]

WOO HOO!

can we get mentions?

and keep the front page the same where you can't click the username who replied last. edit: i guess this doesn't matter as much as there is quite some distance from the last thread button and username unlike the old VB

User ratings reset to 100? :p

[ExtraSlow]

bring back the cul-de-sac??

[speedog]

Keep the BIMG tag if possible, really annoys me when I visit other forums and people post up these absolutely massive pictures - give me a preview and also the option if I wish to see a bigger version.

[D'z Nutz]

Originally posted by eglove
User ratings reset to 100? :p

I knew it wouldn't take long for people to ask for this.

There's already a way to reset it back to 100.

[civic_stylez]

A "like" button. All the other forums i frequent have them. L4P allows you to see things youve like for future reference and who has liked things youve said or posted.

[D'z Nutz]

Originally posted by civic_stylez
A "like" button. All the other forums i frequent have them. L4P allows you to see things youve like for future reference and who has liked things youve said or posted.

I hate this feature and think it's so stupid. This isn't reddit or facebook.

[NoPulp]

Originally posted by eglove
can we get mentions?

+1

I'd like a notification if I've been mentioned or quoted.

[mr2mike]

Originally posted by civic_stylez
A "like" button. All the other forums i frequent have them. L4P allows you to see things youve like for future reference and who has liked things youve said or posted.

Fuck that... a 'dislike' button. With then the option to select the poster directly or just the post. :poosie:

[rage2]

Good thing we waited 15 years to upgrade, most of these requests are out of the box. Low expectations FTW! :rofl:

[revelations]

- beyond has 300,000 members?? probably 300 are regulars (lurkers) and 100 active posters within the past 3 months.

- optional colour themes would be nice

- what was the main reason for the update? (so that Mar cant hack the site anymore??.... haha)

[rage2]

Originally posted by revelations
- beyond has 300,000 members?? probably 300 are regulars (lurkers) and 100 active posters within the past 3 months.
We have 25k unique visitors per day, believe it or not. But yea, post counts have definitely dropped since 5 years ago.


Originally posted by revelations
- what was the main reason for the update? (so that Mar cant hack the site anymore??.... haha)
I've got 3 months of vacation banked and forced to take some time off this summer. :rofl:

Not looking forward to vB4 0 days. Pretty interesting how many they've had over the years.

[ercchry]

Bigger inbox?

[roopi]

Originally posted by D'z Nutz


I hate this feature and think it's so stupid. This isn't reddit or facebook.

I feel like civic_stylez would give you a dislike for this.

[revelations]

- custom user titles plzzzz

[eglove]

Originally posted by D'z Nutz


I knew it wouldn't take long for people to ask for this.

There's already a way to reset it back to 100.

I was joking hence the ":p"


multiple themes would be nice, a darker theme when cruising beyond at night would be wicked.

[mr2mike]

On email post update notifications, a small snip of the new post would be nice. But I guess that entices people to not click the link as much.

Also total post count rather than posts/day.

I think ExtraSlow or Kilaramos would like to see a weekly post meter ;)

[Kloubek]

Originally posted by shakalaka
As long as there is a section of 'new posts' where all the posts with updates since my last visit are listed, I am happy.

That is useful for sure. For me, I primarily want to see new posts in any thread where I had contributed, and/or a way to get a notice if someone had quoted me in one of my posts.

[ExtraSlow]

Like / Hate, that is correct.

[mr2mike]

Background music when you log on like My Space used to have.

[OU812]

More active Ask Leo.

[jwslam]

Originally posted by D'z Nutz
I hate this feature and think it's so stupid. This isn't reddit or facebook.
Makes more sense than 10 posts quoting +1, +2, me too, +4 etc

[btimbit]

Nice, I'm looking forward to it. I had it on my site before I sold it and loved working with VB4 when it first came out.

Some Add ons/plugins that I really like

Miserable Users - This one was fun. You know the type of user that just won't go away? You can ban them, but they'll just come back with another account and keep being a dbag. This add on just creates a user group that you could add them into, making the site very frustrating to use so hopefully they just stop coming. Stuff like increasing their load times, chances of them just getting re-directed to the homepage, or getting a server error, etc. I think it was something like 10% of the time they'd actually be able to get to the page they wanted too. Basically a much more subtle and funnier version of the old "tachy goes to coventry" mode vb used to have

Reputation systems - There's lots of these, like "Thank this post" buttons, but my favourite are karma systems that are sort of like a cross between a "Thanks" button the user rating system on beyond now. Basically each post would the option for users to give posts a + or -, but instead of showing up as a rating per post like on Reddit it contributes to that users overall rating

vbRides - Garage - Thought of this one right away for Beyond. Basically adds a bunch of profile fields and a section for users to post their cars. Here's their demo site http://www.action-network.com/vbrides.php

Taptatalk Signature remover - Automatically removes that annoying "Sent from my xxxxxx via tapatalk" signature from all tapatalk users

[civic_stylez]

Originally posted by jwslam

Makes more sense than 10 posts quoting +1, +2, me too, +4 etc

my point exactly.. quoting a wall of text that makes a thread 10 pages long just to post :thumbsup: most other forums use it but i guess we can keep it primitive.

[RX_EVOLV]

Search within individual thread?

e.g. "Glenlivet" within the scotch thread.

[btimbit]

Originally posted by RX_EVOLV
Search within individual thread?

e.g. "Glenlivet" within the scotch thread.

Yup, VB4 has that feature stock I believe :thumbsup:

[eglove]

Originally posted by btimbit


Taptatalk Signature remover - Automatically removes that annoying "Sent from my xxxxxx via tapatalk" signature from all tapatalk users


OMG THIS, so annoying.

[ercchry]

If this new version is going to have tapatalk can we PLEASE not have that god damn tapatalk popup when you browse on mobile?

[rage2]

Looking for some feedback on Tapatalk. How many of you guys actually use it? Do you use it to browse multiple forums? Or would you prefer a dedicated beyond tapatalk app for it? End of the day, that may decide how much we invest in it if there's enough people using it.

Personally, I'm not a huge fan of Tapatalk, I don't even like mobile themes. I like the desktop experience on my mobile devices, at least until my eyes start failing me.

[firebane]

Originally posted by rage2
Looking for some feedback on Tapatalk. How many of you guys actually use it? Do you use it to browse multiple forums? Or would you prefer a dedicated beyond tapatalk app for it? End of the day, that may decide how much we invest in it if there's enough people using it.

Personally, I'm not a huge fan of Tapatalk, I don't even like mobile themes. I like the desktop experience on my mobile devices, at least until my eyes start failing me.

Not a fan of tapatalk or mobile site layouts. Always use Desktop mode unless the mobile experience is better.

[RickDaTuner]

Tapatalk really limits the forums features, and is just a pain to navigate. Honestly when I go on a forum and it directs you without asking to the tapatalk interface, I immediately switch to the full desktop version.

Does the new forum have hover over preview? That's my biggest request.

[sabad66]

How about hiding individual user avatars/signatures instead of disabling them completely for all users?

There's a few borderline NSFW avatars/sigs for certain users that i don't want to see while at work but i don't want to disable them completely.

[eglove]

^
The individual avatar hiding is a good idea


Never use tapatalk

[btimbit]

Originally posted by rage2
Looking for some feedback on Tapatalk. How many of you guys actually use it? Do you use it to browse multiple forums? Or would you prefer a dedicated beyond tapatalk app for it? End of the day, that may decide how much we invest in it if there's enough people using it.

Personally, I'm not a huge fan of Tapatalk, I don't even like mobile themes. I like the desktop experience on my mobile devices, at least until my eyes start failing me.

I'm with you. Hate Taptatalk and hate mobile themes, always browse full sites even when on my phone. 10 years ago they made sense, I don't feel like they do anymore. They just limit the experiance

[D'z Nutz]

I hate Tapatalk. In fact, when I'm browsing on the shitter and I go to a forum that has it and I get that annoying popup, I just close the page and wait until I'm at my desktop or laptop before I go back (if I even remember).

I don't mind mobile themes if it's done right, like with responsive CSS. But please don't make a mobile URL unless you have some Javascript that detects the device and redirects to the appropriate layout. I hate when someone sends or posts a mobile URL and I view it on the desktop and I get the watered down version of the page and I gotta figure out the full page URL.

If you're going to have a mobile layout, at the very least have a link at the bottom of the page to flip between mobile and full. Amazon's the worst for that in that it doesn't even have a link back to the full version.

[mr2mike]

Settings for if you're on a mobile device to change the view for your personal preference. Then it's set for good.

[Maxx Mazda]

Tapatalk fucken sucks. So do mobile themes.

Can we please keep a desktop theme for the mobile devices? Or at least an option for those who want to see the mobile theme.

Custom user titles would be nice as well.

[rage2]

Originally posted by Maxx Mazda
Can we please keep a desktop theme for the mobile devices? Or at least an option for those who want to see the mobile theme.

Custom user titles would be nice as well.
Don't worry, I'll make sure that's the case because that's how I prefer it too.

As for custom titles, that'll continue to be earned. :poosie:

[shakalaka]

Taptalk no, designated mobile Beyond app sure like Bimmerpost. Only if possible though.

[CompletelyNumb]

Tapatalk is garbage. 1% of active users on my forum use it. With vb4, the less addons the better.

Make the main theme responsive. No mobile theme.

And thank you for not choosing vb5.

[legendboy]

Originally posted by rage2
As for custom titles, that'll continue to be earned. :poosie:

:poosie: haha

[benyl]

I don't mind tapatalk. Makes adding photos to a post so much easier as the app resizes the attachment for you. I only use it to browse mtbr.

[swak]

The only concern i've ever had was some issues uploading pictures with a web link.
Don't usually have this issue with other forums? Is there some sort of coding nightmare with this? Or just user error on my part :dunno:

[jwslam]

Originally posted by rage2
Next steps: adding mods
How do I sign up?

[ercchry]

Originally posted by jwslam

How do I sign up?

Oh god, max_boost 2.0 :rofl:

[Kavy]

I echo that Tapatalk sucks. Mobile view isn't bad if its done properly, if its not it can be terrible.

[jwslam]

Originally posted by ercchry


Oh god, max_boost 2.0 :rofl:
:poosie: :poosie: :poosie:

[rage2]

Some progress being made. This is nowhere near the final product, but gives you an idea of the direction we're moving towards.

http://i.imgur.com/x7ExK3D.jpg

Thanks to all the moderators stepping up and helping us troubleshoot issues. Making things move forward at an awesome rate! :thumbsup:

[Disoblige]

Looks good so far, thanks Beyond team for all the hard work.

[Mitsu3000gt]

Looks great, thanks for all the hard work.

It would be nice to have an "agree" or "thanks" button below each post, which might help limit unnecessary posts, or show some sense of credibility over time of various posters to new users/lurkers?

The other feature I've always wanted is to be able to sort a thread by user(s) - especially in really long threads you could weed out the posts you know are garbage and only read the important or credible stuff. I was reminded of this again recently while pouring through 400 page technical threads on computer forums - being able to filter the manufacturer employee's posts or the credible members would be amazing.

Multi-quote buttons would be great, but it probably already has that.

Just some suggestions anyway - not sure if any of that is even possible with vb4.

[flipstah]

Looks clean. Thanks, peeps!

[eglove]

It's progressing quick, can't wait for the upgrade!

[BerserkerCatSplat]

Originally posted by speedog
Keep the BIMG tag if possible, really annoys me when I visit other forums and people post up these absolutely massive pictures - give me a preview and also the option if I wish to see a bigger version.

I'm no VB expert, but I think it's a standard feature to show a small preview image with a "click to expand" text that will blow up images within the post. Works very well.

[NoPulp]

Late to the tapatalk discussion, but I hate it. Never use it.

Surprised by the reaction of here. On the forum I mod, when I suggest to not use tapatalk and use desktop version instead I always get some butt hurt response from someone that can't live without it. Some many people seem to use it but constantly complain about it.

Remove the tapatalk sig please

[ercchry]

Should I be worried or is this part of the upgrades? Have had it happen twice in the last little bit

https://i.imgur.com/jRobpJQ.png

[kenny]

There is a ddos attack in progress so to verify legit users that screen will pop-up.

[Tik-Tok]

Originally posted by kenny
There is a ddos attack in progress so to verify legit users that screen will pop-up.

What browser would condemn me as a haxxor?

[shakalaka]

Originally posted by ercchry
Should I be worried or is this part of the upgrades? Have had it happen twice in the last little bit

https://i.imgur.com/jRobpJQ.png


First time it happened to me just now...on Safari.

[kenny]

Taken from Cloudflare's website:


Cloudflare's Browser Integrity Check (BIC) is similar to Bad Behavior and looks for common HTTP headers abused most commonly by spammers and denies access to your page. It will also challenge visitors that do not have a user agent or a non standard user agent (also commonly used by abuse bots, crawlers or visitors).

[rage2]

We actually left the attack running for a couple of hours to see how the system scales. It actually worked out awesome, system scaled up automatically to 8x the normal capacity without any human intervention and ate the load up like a pornstar. :poosie:

I'll be turning off the browser check once the attack stops. For those that find this stuff interesting, our bandwidth usage today.

http://i.imgur.com/FG75a5D.jpg

[Kavy]

Originally posted by rage2
We actually left the attack running for a couple of hours to see how the system scales. It actually worked out awesome, system scaled up automatically to 8x the normal capacity without any human intervention and ate the load up like a pornstar. :poosie:

I'll be turning off the browser check once the attack stops.

I would like to thank you for this post especially the last line that i decided to read exactly when i was taking a drink. As such today was the day I used my extra work shirt that has been hanging in my office for a month.

[JAYMEZ]

I thought I was being Haxored haha.

[tonytiger55]

Just a sideways question... Is there potential for the forum to look like outlook express..? :)

[QR25DE-SER]

Forum updates looking good :)

[rage2]

Originally posted by QR25DE-SER
Forum updates looking good :)
Thanks!

Lots of progress behind the scenes this week, hoping to do another migration this weekend with this week's vB2 backup. Getting closer to D-Day!