Updated Community Bulletin Generator

SPECIAL NOTE for those upgrading to vBulletin v2.0.0: You will need to make changes to the default RC3 files, as you did with the previous version files. The files are member.php and admin/index.php. After you upgrade to RC3, the link in your Admin CP will no longer be there. In order to find instructions for upgrading, go to http://yoursite/forum/admin/commbull.php and click the link for Instructions. Make these changes to your files, and reupload the two modified files. The link will then be back in your Admin CP.
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With Kier's permission, I am rereleasing this hack. It has been updated, but most of the credit still goes to Kier. I just added a couple things. Namely, I took Kier's starting point for birthdays and reworked it a bit so they can now be included. I also added 3 new sets of Latest Threads input, and added a sorting option to get topics with no replies (aka "Virgin" topics).
I also added a box to change the section separation character (Kier had it as a "-", now you can change it) and the list item character (Kier had it as an "o"). There are also instructions on how to integrate it into your Admin CP.

To install, just upload it to your Admin directory and go to it in a browser.

If you had previously installed Kier's original version, simply overwrite the commbull.php file on your server, and make this change to your admin/index.php file:
Find

<a href="email.php?s=<?php echo $session[sessionhash]; ?>"> Email users </a><br>

and right below it, add

<a href="commbull.php?s=<?php echo $session[sessionhash]; ?>"> Send Community Bulletin </a><br>

Upload your admin/index.php file and go to your Admin CP. You should see the new option under "Users" on the left-hand side.

Hack version: 0.98

Changes since v0.97: Fixed a stupid bug that screwed up the script when you posted a copy to a forum and that forum didn't count posts toward post totals.

Changes since v0.96: Fixed a minor bug that was causing large problems when the number of emails to send was more than it was set to per page.

Changes since v0.95: Minor cosmetic changes; fixed "copy post to board" function so it actually works; added option to exclude threads from being used more than once (if doing multiple blocks); fixed sorting by most replies/most views so they don't return threads with 0 replies or 1 view, respectively;

Changes since v0.93: Option to post a copy of the email to your board, to a forum you specify using a username your specify (If you do this, there is a function to exclude certain parts (for example, the user info section that details username/password etc) and it parses URLs so the message on your board has hyperlinks to the threads/polls/etc); various cosmetic upgrades; minor little things here and there; fixed/changed "Only include threads that have been started or replied to since this date?" so it doesn't defeat the purpose of specifying a date.

For version: v2.0.0

Info for Clean Install -------
Files needed: commbull.php

Files to edit: admin/index.php, member.php

Templates to edit: none

Instructions are in the script itself. When you first run it, it will tell you what you need to do. If upgrading from Kier's original version, see instructions above.
End Info for Clean Install -------

Info for Upgrading from v0.90, v0.91, v0.93, v0.94, v0.95, v0.96, v0.97 ------
Files needed: commbull.php

Files to edit: none

Instructions: Upload the commbull.php file from the commbull98.zip file.
End Info for Upgrading -------

Please do not bug Kier about this hack!
Please also DO NOT contact me via AIM, ICQ, PM, or email about this hack. Post your question/problem here and I will try to help you.

[RobAC]

Tubedogg,

I assume that if I install this hack now, I'll have to re-hack this after each forum software upgrade, correct?

[JJR512]

I've discovered a tiny little bug in this.

In the instructions that show up from commbull.php, it says to add to the admin/index.php file this:

PHP Code:

<a href="commbull.php?s=<?php echo $session[sessionhash]; ?>"> Send Community Bulletin >/a><br>

The very end should say ></a><br> ... In other words, you are missing the < in </a>. As far as I can tell, this only affects the way the link is displayed in the admin cp. It works, it just shows up wrong.

[tubedogg]

Yes you're right I'll put up the fixed version in just a minute. Just a minor change, no need to upgrade if you've already installed it.

In admin/index.php, find

<a href="commbull.php?s=<?php echo $session[sessionhash]; ?>"> Send Community Bulletin >/a><br>

and replace it with

<a href="commbull.php?s=<?php echo $session[sessionhash]; ?>"> Send Community Bulletin </a><br>

Fixed. Thanks JJR.

[tubedogg]

RobAC: Yes, you will have to rehack member.php and admin/index.php, however they are minor changes.

[tubedogg]

I have updated the first post in this thread with new v0.95, which has new features as detailed in that post.

[JJR512]

Question about the upgrade. What I have is commbull92. Do I just simply upload the new file and that's it? Or do I need to run it and do all the instructions again, or what?

[chrispadfield]

Couple of suggestions if anyone is interested...

1. Threads only get set once. My worry is that for the threads like "top ten recent activity" i am often going to get the same ones coming up, like "word game" sort of thing. Perhaps nice if you could add a field to thread to turn that thread of after it has been used once (also preventing the same thread appearing more than once in each mailing). This would be quite a big hack i presume and perhaps not worth it.

2. Automatic

This would be mega useful. Basically, the way i see it happening is having a slightly different version of the script in which you hard code your options (not hard me thinks) and then that is run by cron at your set time.... but..

3. Option in profile for frequency.

To make it trully automatic have a frequency setting in profile (perhaps limit this to daily, weekly or monthly). The mailer the cron script then runs through but only sends to those on weekly if it is a monday and only to those on monthly if it is 1st of month.

anyway, that whole automatic cron thing would be cool if someone is interested...

[smelialichu]

I have some suggestions. the statistics, I was hoping to use this to send outg weekly stats. It would be useful to have it so you can show statistics from the start and from lets say the last week? Also it would be nice to include new stories. We have a news forum and it would be nice to email our users a copy of the text. Only of the first post though?ome more stats would be nice, or you could help me get more stats

[JJR512]

I almost forgot, I have two suggestions, too.

1. Add an area on the page where you set your options of what you want to send, etc., for you to type in some text to be included with the message. A textarea thing. So you can add some thoughts or comments, or maybe a promo message, something that you might want to change each time.

2. Right now a user can disable receiving this for himself by editing their options. I'd like to have the same thing in the admin cp part of editing a user, so I can disable it (or enable it ) for a user, myself.

3. (Yes I said two, but this just came to me!) The preview feature doesn't show you exactly what you really end up getting. Could you include a way to send a test email to just one address, like your own address?

[Kier]

Originally posted by JJR512
I almost forgot, I have two suggestions, too.

1. Add an area on the page where you set your options of what you want to send, etc., for you to type in some text to be included with the message. A textarea thing. So you can add some thoughts or comments, or maybe a promo message, something that you might want to change each time.

Ummm... you already have this ability.