Add-On Releases - Welcome headers - Improve community registration rates

Out of the box, your forum isn't personalized to assist or address your visitors. As a result, guests entering on a page other than the homepage (which is most often the case) have no idea what to do or why to register. Additionally, there are no visible status indicators, making it confusing for unconfirmed, unapproved or new members to know what to do or where to begin. But with a little customization, the use of the vBulletin Notices System and Welcome Headers, you can solve these issues in just a few minutes.

What is Welcome Headers?

Welcome Headers is a set of predefined messages and rules designed to help you get started in personalizing your site's notices using the vBulletin notice feature. The default templates are just that, default ? I highly encourage you to modify and add to the language and rules to meet the needs of your actual community environment.

Modifications/ Instructions:

Plugins: 1 (notices entries, rules and phrases)
This template hack should take under 5 minutes to implement and customize.

Installation/ Upgrade Instructions

1 ? Backup any existing welcome header messages (upgrading)
2 ? Remove the default welcome header from your forum home template (new installs)
3 ? Install the attached plugin file
4 ? Now Required: Customize the messages to include your site's name

For detailed instructions on each step please view the install.html file included with this addon.

Support

Please post any enhancement or technical questions you may have and I will do my best to respond in a timely manner. Please note: I can not guarantee an immediate response and am unable to assist with integrating this addon with other addons or with HTML related questions.

Why use this when the notices system exists?

Welcome Headers have been around since before vBulletin 3.0 but as of 3.7 the functionality of the system was no longer needed as vBulletin added its own native feature to handle notices. However while the notices feature lets you show welcome header style messages it doesn't give you any to start with. This addon no longer adds functionality but instead provides a set of 4 notices that have been time-tested and help your forum grow and function better for guests and members.

Please be sure to customize and add to the messages from this addon to match the individual needs of your forum!

Older Version Support

While most users are choosing to upgrade to the notices system, there are some advantages to the "old" system mainly in that it does not rely on a rules system and can be configured as designed with code changes. Additionally, the "old" version has automatic interfacing with several other addons which the notices system does not. For this reason, the old version is still supported and remains fully compatible with 3.8.

Updates from 3.7

No changes have been made; the code needed for both is the same so upgrading is not necessary.

[Ted S]

This modification is a set of default phrases for an internal vBulletin system (the notices system). If you're trying to use the notices for other content and having problems you'd need to contact vBulletin support as I can only support the notices created by this modification.

[Burnt]

Can you have this on just certain pages? I only really want this on the forums part and not my vbadvanced portal front. http://tacclan.info

[Ted S]

Use the 3.6 version of this addon and you can customize where it shows with template conditionals.

[Carlos X]

Originally Posted by logicSix

where is the 3.8 download? the zip file is a 3.7.

I was just asking the same thing.

Not installing this until I see a full 3.8 version.

[KevinL]

Originally Posted by Carlos X

I was just asking the same thing.

Not installing this until I see a full 3.8 version.

Read the first post near the bottom...

[Ted S]

Originally Posted by Carlos X

I was just asking the same thing.

Not installing this until I see a full 3.8 version.

Just because 3.8 is a different forum doesn't mean it requires different code... The 3.7 version is the 3.8 version. There's no differances in the core vbulletin code that impacts the mod thus no need for different code in the mod.

[VBUsers]

I installed this but dont see anything. Im not sure if im missing something. i dont see anything now

[Ted S]

Originally Posted by VBUsers

I installed this but dont see anything. Im not sure if im missing something. i dont see anything now

Have you enabled it in any forums?

[MarlinNut]

I made the appropriate mods to the FORUMHOME template, which does remove the old messages, and installed the product, which does make the new notices show up in the notice manager. However, even though they're enabled, I don't ever see the messages appear. Is there some preference outside the Notice Manager that needs to be enabled?

[ph03nIX]

Originally Posted by MarlinNut

I made the appropriate mods to the FORUMHOME template, which does remove the old messages, and installed the product, which does make the new notices show up in the notice manager. However, even though they're enabled, I don't ever see the messages appear. Is there some preference outside the Notice Manager that needs to be enabled?

I had the same problem, I had to go to the Notice Manager and change the display orders. I think by default they are 1, 11, 21 and 31, I changed them to 1, 2, 3 and 4 and then it worked. Not sure if it'll work for you but it's probably worth a try.