Beemaster's International Beekeeping Forum
BEEKEEPING LEARNING CENTER => GENERAL BEEKEEPING - MAIN POSTING FORUM. => Topic started by: beemaster on October 27, 2006, 03:01:26 am
-
This is NOT a DRILL.... This is message one of several to follow, designed to prepare you for the changes coming concerning the FORUM SOFTWARE we currently use and the SEEMLESS TRANSFER to the software we will be moving to soon.
Now, we use PhpBB, it has served us well for 2.5 years, but it is time to put it to death and move on to a MUCH BETTER program which has many of the following features:
For Users:
*You will seemless move to the new program, all your posts will move as well as your avatars.
*You will have many new posting features and options, creating dynamic looking posts.
*You will have easy image posting and free/interactive image storage.
*You will be able to easily send messages to mods and admins through hot keys allowing you to report poor or unwanted behaviour of other members or spammers.
*You will receive special rating (ranking) from 1 to 5 stars based on your participation levels.
*Many features which will make your time spent here
For Admin and Mods:
We will have dozens of new features for expelling any spammers, easily track posts by members we receive complaints on.
We can thread scrolling messages to keep you update on events.
We can mention club meetings and post newletters.
We can BULK DELETE pages of spammers (say they are carried over from the existing software) within minutes, we can delete all spammers, literally 50 at a time.
Features TOO RICH to describe - all designed to make YOUR EXPERIENCE exactly what it always should have been, hassle free, family friendly and commercial free.
__________________________________________________
POST NOW IF YOU HAVER POSTED BEFORE
To members who have joined, yet never posted (and using the new interface I see that there are HUNDREDS of you, many who have logged in recently, you really need to POST at least ONE MESSAGE in ANY FORUM so that you aresegregated from the NON-POSTERS who are going to be eliminated during the change.
My point, we are not only moving, but I want to eliminated unnecessary content, such as 1) posts never answered to 2) members who have never posted 3) members who have registered but never logged in and finally 4) posts greater than 2 years old (this latter one may never have to happen as long as we have a good active membership) and not hundred and hundreds of members who are either no longer with us or never went beyond the sign up process.
______________________________________________
Your existing username and password will work, your avatar will be the same, all your posts and replies will be there, the only difference is that the pages will look a little different, but friendlier to use and more feature rich.
Estimated time of Arrival ( hopefully within 2 week or less ) prepare yourself by making sure you have your password ready to sign-in. You should have the option now to have it auto-emailed to you, so if you are not sure what it is - get it now and write it down.
NEW MEMBERS will be going through a registration process including decyphering a 6 letter jumble text/numeric code they need to type to get through the registration system - this will be the FIRST FIREWALL to keeping spammers out - the second is hand-picking out people who go through the registration JUST to hand post spam links in the forums. These people will be eliminated immediately and I feel confident that the membership numbers REFLECT the actual people and not an inflated number that gives validity to spammers - we will again be a closer group, with a real community of members and AS ALWAYS "The BIGGEST LITTLE BEE FORUM ON THE INTERNET!"
Peace and preparation. You will receive several more notices prior to the BIG MOVE, but be aware, it is closer that you may expect, do not expect November to end before the move is complete - it should not be anywhere near that long. So make sure your username and passwords are in order and post if you haven't, otherwise, just wait for next announcement and wish us a speedy and sucessful transition.
-
Can't wait to see the results. Thanks again, Danno
-
Danno and Others:
I am demo testing (along with a few others) the new software and I am very impressed at everything I see - I know members will greatly enjoy the added features and interface.
A simple (nice touch) feature is that the TOPIC TITLE is posted above EACH REPLY, a simple one line reminder of how the topic started, this helps the replier to keep on track and not spin off too much and it is just a class act, so many neat touches to count and as far as admin'ing, you can't imagine how it will improve the way the forum is managed.
As we near the change over, I hope to allow a read only version for the membership to view (pretty sure we can do that) or at least point to similar forums to show the look and feel. It is surely NOT the same software, but already we have a functional working and fully migrated version running (thanks to the talents of Robo who surely is the horse-power and brains behind this move) and I'm learning all the admin (as well as member) features, so that I can be as knowledged as best as can be when we go LIVE with the membership.
Last thought, the membership numbers will shrink to a more realistic number - it will represent ACTIVE MEMBERS and MEMBERS WHO HAVE POSTED at least once ONLY. This is a decision I have made for several reasons. Anyone who has been around long enough but chooses to read-only can re-register, but in the long run getting rid of spammers and non-active members is best for the forum.
I have no inflated ego that will be crushed if our number drop by 70% even, what matters is that the numbers reflect our active membership. Having someone who posted a single message more than 2 years ago and has NEVER been back is foolish to keep around. If that same person showed up as having posted only once BUT has logged in several times over that same period is a keeper. Luckily the software allows for differentiating between the MIAs from the shy and quiet members, hopefully I have the wisdom to use the knowledge available to note the difference.
The goal at the end of the day is to have a slim-lined forum, keeping its rich history files of 30,000+ posts (minus all posts NEVER responded to) and a realistic membership count that we can all be proud of. I've said this before, our forum may not be the biggest, but it surely is a wonderful community that I'm very proud of and the future will be one with continued growth and learning for us all.
-
After becoming new member I've gone thru hours of posts. Have started like so many trying to provide Bee's a home, wanting to know as much as I can and do "right" for these little hard working GOD's creatures. I'm so glad there is so much information in here; I may end up killing my printer! :shock: Hope you folks will be patient with me as I'm not use to interacting in forums, chat rooms or things like this site of any kind. I see looking thru member list why you need to clean some of membership out. So I'm getting my feet wet sending in hoping make sure I'm not lost with the trash that will be swept out. Looking foward to everyones help. I've read so much last few days some of you folks I feel like I already know you?! :roll: May GOD bless all of you and yours and all you do.
-
Wrongway:
Glad you found the forum and really glad you are finding enough info to keep the ink business afloat - ugh. I agree the post/replies are amazing with tried and true examples of how many people from around the globe keep bees. From this, you can create or improve your own style and from that become a better keeper of bees. It is a win win situation for us all.
No fear when the forum moves, you will see SEEMLESS post transfers and an even easier method of printing, bookmarking and following favorite posts.
Welcome again, I'm glad you see the problem we have with spammers, it has gotten beyond the ability to manage, thus the change - the new software virtually eliminates ALL computer generate spam, and since NOTHING prevents real people spam, at least TRACKING and BANNING features of the new software (including a MEMBER CAPABLE REPORTING BUTTON) where you can inform mods and admins of possible trouble, eliminating the need for us to search all posts for possible violators.
Being new here, you have come at a good time - please post often, if you get a chance to make your way to VOICE CHAT there is always someone to help you tweak the settings if you are having any minor setting issues. The group of voice chatters is growing every day, with people from the states, Australia and now Croatia and the UK - being able to talk bees and other friendly topics is a great way to expand the forum's features to the next level. Welcome and hope to talk again.
-
John,
I have not posted often, but only because I am able to find the answer to most of my questions by using the search function. I am learning a pile of info every week on this forum. I think I am ready to see my girls through their first N.E. Pennsylvania winter! Count me in going forward.
-
Pauly:
Thanks for writing, and I'll be sure to keep you safe in the transfer files. I surely don't expect people to post when they choose to read only. Luckily, I find that the new software ALSO tells me which people have LOGGED IN and when the last time was, not just that they have registered - so being able to differentiate between spammers and quieter members will be easier than I thought.
I have an obligation to the membership, that is to do my best to keep the crap out of the forums and we have a great group of mods to help, honestly, the mods are better at catching the spammers than I am, my own work schedule makes it very tough for me to be around the forums as much as I'd like.
I'm in the position where I can offer the service to the membership, and I'm blessed to have a trusted and helpful assistant's which fills the void that my own situation creates. A great added feature of the new forum will be YOUR ability to report abuse, making every member a watch-group for keeping the forum safe for our youngest of members, they are the ones I worry about most, and although no member should have to be subjected to objectionable material, at least adults can better handle and filter the material content.
Soon we'll all be working in the new forum software and get to see the differences. At first glance, you may not see added features, but clicking around and testing the different options will surely let you know that you are working with greater powered software, a program that you feel more empowered with and that is always a good feeling. Thanks for writing.