Mod Name / Version: Hide a Forum from Everyone

Description: Hides a Forum from EVERYONE for which you can provide a link.

Working Under: UBB.Threads 6.5

Mod Status: Beta

Any pre-requisites:

Author(s): id242

Date: 07/26/04

Credits: Suggested by coloradok5 and based on id242's notes

Files Altered: ubbthreads.php, /admin/viewboard.php, /admin/doeditboard.php, templates/admin/viewboard.tmpl, languages/english/admin/generic.php, templates/default/admin/createforum.tmpl, admin/docreateforum.php


New Files:

Database Altered: yes one field added to the Boards Table

Info/Instructions:

Disclaimer: Please backup every file that you intend to modify.
If the modification modifies the database, it's a good idea to backup your database before doing so.

Note: If you modify your UBB.Threads code, you may be giving up your right for "official" support from Infopop.If you need official support, you'll need to restore unmodified files.

DUDE, you just made subforums, did you not? All you have to do is make the forums, hide them, and then add the links in the right place in the forum description...????

Isn't that right?

I could make subforums in my sleep. I actually hit upon the formula when I created my shop mod. I had endless subcategories going but I decided it was bestter to limit it to one sub cat.

Oh my golly goodness. I am being needing of the subforums very badly. You are not knowing how bad I am being needing of them. They are mostly of the great importance to me.

I have a neat little trick on my site www.rollspel.nu where I can set some categories to only show if they have been explicitly entered in the Cat variable in the url. It's only a couple of lines of change to ubbthreads.php really.

Do you think they would be upset if you or someone created a mod for subforums and released it.

By mod I mean a full working mod to show how to add the catagory to the main forums page and link it to the sub forums.

there has to be a hidden agenda as to why they don't do subforums.. I mean if ya really look at it.. forums are actually subforums of categories.. all ya have to do is add another field to track parent and child and you have subforums of forums. now this sounds easy it does take a little work. But I figured out the fomula with my shop mod when I created endless subcategories. so until they actually do it to threads I would only consider this in a pay situation and right now I am busey converting over the vb arcade to threads which is about 90% done

Sounds logical and not to hard but you lost me at "all ya have to do is add another field to track parent and child and you have subforums of forums" lol

I can see why they would not want to add it as an option and support it because thats what makes vb set apart from threads. (my opinion only) If they were both the same there would be no reason bother going from one to the other.

totaly understandable.

while installing this mod I came to the last step in the process...

[] in languages/english/admin/createboard.php add to bottom

$ubbt_lang['HIDDEN'] = "Should Forum be shown in Main Index?";
[/]

In 6.5b1, I dont see that file...

there is createcat, creategroup, and createisland....


Also, in admin/viewboard.php there is this section to change but im not sure I get it...
[] ***find
list($Title,$Keyword,$Description,$HTML,$Expires,$Markup,$Moderated,$Cattemp,$Catnum,$Groups,$WGroups,$ThreadAge,$RGroups,$header,$stylesheet,$forumimage,$bonum,$boactive) = $dbh -> fetch_array($sth);

***add to the end, ",$HIDDEN" / change to
list($Title,$Keyword,$Description,$HTML,$Expires,$Markup,$Moderated,$Cattemp,$Catnum,$Groups,$WGroups,$ThreadAge,$RGroups,$header,$stylesheet,$forumimage,$bonum,$boactive,$bohidden) = $dbh -> fetch_array($sth); [/]

the part I dont get is where it says "***add to the end, ",$HIDDEN" / change to"? do i add that terxt to the end after I change it?

change the find it. I need to edit add to the end, ",$HIDDEN" / out also in b1 theres no createboard.php in the languages/english/admin directory? there is in 6.5br4

look at the admin/createboard.php file then and see what language it calls. thats the one the string needs to go into.

bah, a no go there too. I downloaded 6.5b4 and dont see it in there either.

Im going to restore the files from the backups and wait and see if someone can get this to work for them

actually you are right that should have been languages/english/admin/viewboard.php I will update the instructions now

actually I moved that language string to the /languages/english/admin/generic.php

sweet! Very much looking forward to the vb arcade in ubbt

[]scroungr said:
there has to be a hidden agenda as to why they don't do subforums.. I mean if ya really look at it.. forums are actually subforums of categories.. all ya have to do is add another field to track parent and child and you have subforums of forums. now this sounds easy it does take a little work. But I figured out the fomula with my shop mod when I created endless subcategories. so until they actually do it to threads I would only consider this in a pay situation and right now I am busey converting over the vb arcade to threads which is about 90% done [/]

Yeah, JustDave did something like that on a site I saw.

IMO, Infopop leaving out subforums, was a very serious mistake.

I agree Josh.

Not only because there are a lot of threads users requesting it, but also because there are a lot of potential customers closely comparing threads and VB and that is one area where VB really "ONE UP'S" threads...IMO.

With this mod will a hidden forum be excluded from searches?

I got it installed and working on 6.5b1.

One last observation for you though. In the directions where you have
[] ***find
if ($boactive) {
$boactive_checked = "checked="checked"";
}
[/]

In 6.5b1 it is written backwards like this
[] $boactive_checked = "checked="checked"";

if ($boactive) {
}[/]

So I just reversed what you said to add below it to look like this and it works perfectly.
[]
$bohidden_checked = "checked="checked"";

if ($bohidden) {
}
[/]

I know I saw that line to and just chalked that up to a bug cause it made no sense...

[]Gardener said:
I have a neat little trick on my site www.rollspel.nu where I can set some categories to only show if they have been explicitly entered in the Cat variable in the url. It's only a couple of lines of change to ubbthreads.php really. [/]

Isn't this default - unless I am missunderstanding you.

If I am perhaps you can share your code / what you mean

Thanks.

[]Ian_W said:
[]Gardener said:
I have a neat little trick on my site www.rollspel.nu where I can set some categories to only show if they have been explicitly entered in the Cat variable in the url. It's only a couple of lines of change to ubbthreads.php really. [/]

Isn't this default - unless I am missunderstanding you.

If I am perhaps you can share your code / what you mean

Thanks. [/]

No, by default all categories are shown on the forum index, and thus all forums. I've opened a new category which can only be viewed from a special forum index so that they won't show up on the main forum index but can still be viewed by clicking on a link in the menu.

In the link I've added Cat=5 when I want to show the list of the forums in the "hidden" category. This will keep the user in this category, only showing these forums when clicking on the "Main Index" li until they click on the link to get back to viewing (almost) all categories.

I did this because I wanted to open some users to be able to have their own forums for their own little projects, without them taking up space and load on the main index.

Why I mentioned it is because it sounded like it was very similar to the mod in this thread, and if that is what sub-forums are used for I might finally have understood what the fuss about them are.

The code is very simple, I add the numbers of the categories I want to show in a config option and if that number is not in the Cat variable it isn't included in the list of forums read from the database.

Oh I see in the index page - I do likewise.

I think the thing with sub-forums, is that the forums are also shown in the breadcrumbs as an extra layer or two. This enables quicker navigation.

I have a similar set-up on www.nonleague.com - where a limited number of forums are shown on the index page, but links are provided in the forum descriptions. they then show up the different categories in the URL.

I think it is vritually impossible to list all the categories on one page on my site.

I would like to add more forums to my site, but without sub-forums, I do not think I can.

I am not sure if this mod does the same thing - perhaps someone could show an example with it in use.

Ian

actually I may try and make subforums for 6.5 a mod once it goes out of beta

did I read what I think I just read?

Also, Did I meantion that I love you. (not in that way)

Is this possible on the 6.4 I am not to sold on 6.5 yet

BTW this a very cool and glad somebody finally cracked the wall of subforums.

[]scroungr said:
actually I may try and make subforums for 6.5 a mod once it goes out of beta [/]

Sounds Good I am just in the process of upgrading to 6.5 and am genuinely struggling to see how I can organise my forums without sub-forums/sub-categories.

It is a bit like have all your files on your computer in the root - it looks a mess

ok, i'm a little confused here, so go easy on me

what i'd like to do is set up an "announcements" forum that is not viewable on the main index, but is viewable on the entrance IIP page

whats the best way to go about that?

You should be able to use this mod - and turn off the button that says display on the index page - it should still display on the entrance if you select it within IIP

Slight correction to the instructions...


Run the following mysql command

ALTER TABLE `w3t_Boards` ADD `Bo_Hidden` VARCHAR( 3 ) DEFAULT 'OFF' NOT NULL;


should be


Run the following mysql command

ALTER TABLE `w3t_Boards` ADD `Bo_Hidden` VARCHAR( 3 ) DEFAULT 'OFF' NOT NULL

(I think )

I finally got this installed and I have a problem. When moving a thread from another forum into the hidden one, it doesn't show up. However if you go into another thread in the hidden forum and hit "prev" or "next" it is there. It just doesn't show in the list.

Also is there a way not to have the forums listed in the "Jump to" box?

I checked to make sure it wasn't a fluke and imported another thread into another hidden forum and it is the same thing. It is there, just not visible.

Has anyone else tried to move a thread into a hidden forum? Or am I just an unlucky guy? LOL

haven't tried it.

Well I guess that we'll just call it a bug then. Now it's off to uninstall it.