Persistent Mark Forum Read

Hack: Persistent Mark Forum Read
Version of VB: 2.2.5
Current version: 1.3
Description: This hack replaces the bahavior of vBulletin's "Mark Forum Read" and "Mark All Forums Read" with a system that uses a database to track when forums are set read. By eliminating the use of cookies for this feature, a user can come onto your boards, read a bit, mark forums read as they go through and logout. The next time they come into the forums, the status of which forums they've read and which they haven't, as well as new posts since the last time they read is preserved.

This functions a lot like EZBoard and Chatspace's Webboard.

Included in this hack are three search routines: searing the entire forum for new messages, an individual forum and a section of the hierarchy (parent + children)

Also: Mark All Forums Read, Mark Individual Forum Read and Mark Hierarchy Section (Parent + Children) Read

Note: The install is not all pretty yet and requires a degree of knowledge of MySQL (to add a table) and PHP (as it requires heavy modifications to core files). It is recommended that you backup everything before using this.

After installation, behavior might be a bit odd until a default "markread" record is created for users. This is created when they first login if one does not exist.

This hack has been tweaked to now not add more than two queries to your index page. It will add load on sub-forum pages currently if you have a lot of nested forums. This will be fixed in the next release.

Instructions:

Follow the instructions in the included text file TO THE LETTER. If you run into problems, post here so we can work through them and improve the instructions. Look for a better install utility soon.

I recommend doing the text editing using a DIFF utility to see where you made changes, it honestly helps.

Place the images in your vbulletin image folder. I included PSD files for them if you want to change colors.

[InvictuZ]

Anyone get this going with 2.2.7? I really want too. The default Vb mark all read, and new post indicators are driving me to bits. I'm sick of looking at a new post indicator on my main page, then going into the thread to see nothing new. Or nothing is being mark'd read and the post indicators are off, when there is a new post... :devious:

[SWFans.net]

I still have the hack working (as it was in this release) in 2.2.8, but have one problem. The query count in forumdisplay is petrifying when a forum contains several forums with sub-forums. I’m thinking that the replacement code for forumdisplay.php needs to be optimized like index.php was. I've played with it a little trying to emulate what was done in index.php and it does knock the query count down, but new post indications don't appear for subforums when viewing forumdisplay.php. :\

[SWFans.net]

Nevermind my previous post. Using the same replacements for index.php in forumdisplay.php did work, I was just putting one piece in the wrong place, and it did fix the query counts as well. Down from over 300 to now only 18

[fury]

Originally posted by Cynthia Blue
Ok.. actually, it's not quite working right, either. I don't have child forums, I have different categories. When you click one forum in a category as read, it marks all the forums in that category as read.

This is my site: http://www.ilsikhaucil.com

This is the code that is in the template next to each individual forum... in the forumhome_forumbit_level2_post template:


help... thanks.

Mind telling us how you fixed it? I'm having the same problem...

Nevermind, fixed it by moving all forums out of a category (I was going to do that eventually anyway, the category being there was just a result of the conversion from phpBB to vBulletin)

I must say, this hack is farking genius

The more I use it, the more I become addicted to it... damn, now gotta add it to my other board!

[Arshes Nei]

Also I get an undefined function updatelocation{} in search.php when I add the 3rd search type into the file.

I get this error as well. Does someone have a solution to this? I'm using 2.3.0 right now

[Paul]

I'm about to try and install this on 2.3.0... I'll post the results we get

[Arshes Nei]

Nevermind, I didn't realize that the version I was using was not the most recent hack.

I have one problem however, in 2.3.0 whenever one marks a post as read it marks the entire forum. Anyone know how to fix this?

[sraposa]

so, has anybody successfully installed this on a vb2.3.0 site? if so, is it a public site i can play with?

i'd like to have something better than the default read/unread functionality, but i'm concerned that this hack hasn't quite made it into 2.3.0 territory.

-s

[InnerSelf]

in some way it wont work here.

i installed the hack on a fresh new board to see where the problem was.

its the modification in index.php with me.

i have to replace this and then it goes wrong

PHP Code:

REPLACE:

// do light bulb
        if ($bbuserinfo['lastvisitdate']=='Never') {
          $forum['onoff']='on';
        } else {
                    if (isset($bbforumview[$forum['forumid']]) and $bbforumview[$forum['forumid']]>$bbuserinfo['lastvisit']) {
                        $userlastvisit=$bbforumview[$forum['forumid']];
                    } else {
                        $userlastvisit=$bbuserinfo['lastvisit'];
                    }
          if ($userlastvisit<$forum['lastpost']) {
            $forum['onoff']='on';
          } else {
            $forum['onoff']='off';
          }
        }
        
WITH:
    
    
 // do light bulb
        if ($bbuserinfo['lastvisitdate']=='Never') {
          $forum['onoff']='on';
        } else {
// ** CODE ADDED BY ETHANK TO SEE IF THE FORUM WAS MARKED READ SEPERATELY
        /* Select id from forum where parentlist like forumid
        cycle through, for each if lates thread is greater than mark read time or bbuserinfo, select lastpost, limit 1, if true flag
        */
        $forum['onoff'] = 'off';
// Need to find forum children
        $children_array = find_children($forum['forumid']);       
        for ($i=0;$i<count($children_array);$i++)
        {
            $childrenid = $children_array[$i];            
            $forum_array = $forumsarray_markread[$childrenid];            
            $readtime = $forum_array['readtime'];            
            $latest_thread = $forum_array['lastpost'];
            $forum['last_thread'] = $latest_thread;            
                //Check to see if this thread's last read is < than the markread or base mark read
            if ($readtime != '')
            {
                         if ($readtime<$latest_thread)
                        {
                            $forum['onoff']='on';                            
                        }                         
            }
            else
                {
                $forum_info = $forumsarray_list[$childrenid];
                $latest_thread = $forum_info['lastpost'];                
                 if ($bbuserinfo['lastvisit']< intval($latest_thread))
                        {
                                $forum['onoff'] = 'on';                                
                        }
                }            
        } 


anyone can see if there a sign missing or too much??

[Christine]

Hi Ethan!

Still going strong on this hack -- from 2.0.6 through 2.2.6!

I am working on upgrading straight to 2.3.0 and haven't stayed on top of the code changes. Does anyone know where bbarraycookie (forumdisplay.php line 34 and 294, member2.php line 450, showthread.php line 192, 311, etc..... ) came from? How does it relate to the vbsetcookie that it seems to be replacing in some of these locations?

If anyone can get this running in 2.3.0, post and let us know what you find!