Beware of using Tapatalk and Forum Runner

[vijayninel]

Hi,

Mobile devices need a different lightweight kind of UI than the styles designed for desktop/laptop computers. Therefore mobile forum UI apps like Forum Runner and Tapatalk have gained popularity with forum users and admins in recent years. However there are problems with using these apps which forum admins need to be aware of.

The problem is, and I learned this the hard way that while these apps respect default vbulletin permissions, they don't work with custom mods that alter these permissions since the APIs don't call the hooks that these mods use. So what happens is that you may find that a mod which works perfectly with desktops will not work/can be bypassed with these mobile apps.

In Tapatalk most of these hooks are just commented out. You can uncomment them and get some of the mods working but this may not work correctly or it could prevent tapatalk from functioning correctly.

So if you have some custom mods that is necessary for normal functioning of your forum then consider that these mod may not work with Tapatalk/Forum Runner and users may be able to bypass any custom permissions that you have set. In some cases this may outweigh any additional functionality that these mobile apps offer and you may have to dispense with the use of these mobile apps altogether so that your custom mods work properly.

[BirdOPrey5]

All true- learned this long ago... I have kept them available since I felt bad users paid for them just for my site but now I encourage people to use the mobile style instead because one day I will be ending support for both apps- (when my users figure it out. )

[chefy]

So Tapatalk could be used to spy on restricted forums like admin sections?

[New Joe]

Originally Posted by chefy

So Tapatalk could be used to spy on restricted forums like admin sections?

I have known this to happen, yes.

[vijayninel]

Originally Posted by chefy

So Tapatalk could be used to spy on restricted forums like admin sections?

There you go .. http://support.tapatalk.com/threads/...ccessed.11096/

[BirdOPrey5]

Originally Posted by chefy

So Tapatalk could be used to spy on restricted forums like admin sections?

Not if you use the vBulletin built in permissions to control access. If you rely on a 3rd party mod to control access then yes.

One way to test would be to go to Admin CP -> settings -> Options -> Plugin / Hook System and disable it.

If you can access your "hidden" forums as a regular user with plugins disabled then so can tapatalk users. If you can't then you are safe in that respect.

But anything users can do with plugins disabled they can do on tapatalk.

[Gamelobby]

Good to know.
Also renders your Google ads useless.

[MySaltyreef]

is this a real concern guys ? as i have both loaded on my forum ?

[BirdOPrey5]

It's only a concern if you use 3rd party mods to restrict permissions. Built in permissions are respected by both plugins.

[MySaltyreef]

cool thanks, i dont use 3rd party, stick with VB as much as possible