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.

[JJR512]

I didn't use the pictures, I just made the links into text links using the alt tags from the images. However, because I removed the moderator column, where the links normally would go, and moved the moderator list to under the forum description, the text links create a somewhat cluttered look (although it would be even more cluttered if they were in the moderator column). I'm still working on finding a better way to set up the links, because I think I would rather have the text links.

[LuBi]

I dont know if anyone else notices this. I found that when I go to the site, the little J's are mostly grey even though new posts are in the forum.

http://forums.jjr512.com/showthread.php?threadid=27808

I hope that doesn't have to do with this hack! I don't see those links anywhere, do I need to register on your board?

[JJR512]

The gray Js (actually, I think of them as silver) indicate there are new posts. The dark blue Js indicate no new posts. I'm sure there's a legend there somewhere, I'll have to point it out to that member.

...Yeah, there actually is a legend on the main forums page, that says this:
New Posts
No New Posts

I think if you saw the colors of my forums (same colors as here, actually), you would agree the silver J icon stands out more, and thus is a better choice for ON than the blue icon, which blends in.

If you want to see those links, try looking at a category (like Computer Stuff of General), or at a forum with subforums (like Hardware or Mindless Blabbering).

[ethank]

Sorry I wasn't available to answer questions, I've been travelling for the past 8 days.

The icon implementation seems to work OK, as I haven't found a better way of doing it.

As for the instructions, I went off of a DIFF with my code to the release code, so all the little anomolies from yours to mine came from the 2.2 original. Odd.

Anyhow, has anyone else been installing it?

Ethan

[FWC]

Originally posted by ethank
Anyhow, has anyone else been installing it?

I'm going to do the 2.2.1 upgrade this weekend and then I'm going to go for this one.

[edward]

Originally posted by ethank

Anyhow, has anyone else been installing it?

Ethan

I installed in on a test board, and it appears to work as advertised.

My concern is with the hand editing of the files. Is it allowable under the vbulletin license for you to offer diffs from the original source? If so, that would speed up installation and eliminate the typo element that can make troubleshooting something like this very difficult.

diff -u old new > file.diff

then you can use 'patch < file.diff' to update the file, and avoid problems caused by copy/paste.

[ethank]

Originally posted by edward


I installed in on a test board, and it appears to work as advertised.

My concern is with the hand editing of the files. Is it allowable under the vbulletin license for you to offer diffs from the original source? If so, that would speed up installation and eliminate the typo element that can make troubleshooting something like this very difficult.

diff -u old new > file.diff

then you can use 'patch < file.diff' to update the file, and avoid problems caused by copy/paste.

If its OK with Jelsoft, then I'll do that. The only issue is my files are hacked with other enhancements as well, so the DIFF might not be accurate.

Ethan

[LDT]

Just installed this on vBB 2.2.1 and it works fine. Hack instructions aren't accurate for that version, but I found my way through it.

[ethank]

Originally posted by LDT
Just installed this on vBB 2.2.1 and it works fine. Hack instructions aren't accurate for that version, but I found my way through it.

Yeah, I need to update the instructions.

[Tommy Boy]

I noticed that when I call search.php?action=getallnew, posts which were moved while leaving a redirect would show twice: once correctly, and the other one (probably the redirect), is shown as a poll, and is clickable. When you click on it, you get an empty thread.

I first want to confirm the problem is on your hack, before I complain in the vBulletin forum, and if it is, can you please fix it?

Thanks! I said it once, and I'll say it again: without your hack, I wouldn't have bought vB

[ethank]

Originally posted by Tommy Boy
I noticed that when I call search.php?action=getallnew, posts which were moved while leaving a redirect would show twice: once correctly, and the other one (probably the redirect), is shown as a poll, and is clickable. When you click on it, you get an empty thread.

I first want to confirm the problem is on your hack, before I complain in the vBulletin forum, and if it is, can you please fix it?

Thanks! I said it once, and I'll say it again: without your hack, I wouldn't have bought vB

Not sure where the problem lies yet. Probably in my hack I'll look into it later, but I'm swamped right now.

EThan

[DarkReaper]

Um...doesn't vB track read/unread posts through the DB anyway?

[ethank]

Originally posted by DarkReaper
Um...doesn't vB track read/unread posts through the DB anyway?

Nope, it uses cookies.

Ethan

[DarkReaper]

It uses cookies to login, yes, but it does the checking for unread/read posts by comparing your last visit time(in the DB) with the lastpost times in the posts(in the DB)...

[ethank]

Originally posted by DarkReaper
It uses cookies to login, yes, but it does the checking for unread/read posts by comparing your last visit time(in the DB) with the lastpost times in the posts(in the DB)...

No, the time you marked read is not set in the database, it just uses last visit, which is set based on cookies.

So for instance, if you were idle for more than 900 seconds, it'd mark everything read. Its not persistent, hence "Persistent Mark Forum Read"

Ethan