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.

[LuBi]

Is this hack really worth it? I've installed over 17 hacks plus I have no SSH or telnet so only my server can restore their backups

Originally posted by JJR512
The install was mostly OK, aside from the one issue I just mentioned, and a few instances of not being able to find things because of the equals-sign usage... what I mean by that is sometimes, original code is in the format "x=y" and the hack instructions might say to look for "x = y", or the other way around. Those spaces mean what you're searching for and what's actually there won't match, so it makes it a bit more difficult to find what you need. that's whay I always ask so many questions, so far I've been fine but this hack and another about prefix's are very unclear..

As for if the hack actually works or not, that remains to be seen. First, I can't really test it at all right now, as this is a very slow time of day for my board, and there aren't a good amount of new posts to mark as read. The board itself still works, and that is always a good sign. I suspect this hack will work OK; I installed ethank's earlier version, and it worked OK, too, although there was some anomalous behavior noted by some people. But the 2.2.0 upgrade was due out soon then, and I knew that similar functionality was built in, so I didn't bother to troubleshoot it at the time. But we'll see what happens now.

I would suggest to go ahead and install it. Make sure you make a backup copy of your database first, as well as have backup copies of all files you need to modify. If you have installed any other hacks at all, make sure you actually have current backup copies of your files, and don't rely on the originals, as they will not have any hacks applied to them.

[JJR512]

Don't quote what I said like it's something special here. You should make backups before installing any hack. I just said that to remind people that if you make a backup first, you have nothing to fear by trying something out.

[LuBi]

lol well in my case you have everything to fear... either it works or you lose the forum. No telnet or ssh and the backups are daily so I'll lose most of the work anyhow... not fun!

[JJR512]

Well, I have had this hack installed for about a full day now, and I can say that I've had no problems with it, have heard no complaints about it, and it seems to do what it's supposed to do. I especially like the way if a subforum had new posts while a parent forum did not, and I mark the subforum as read, the parent forum will not continue to show as unread as it does with the built-in mark read function.

[LuBi]

Can I get a SS of what those pictures included with the hack look like and where they show up maybe.. please

[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.