New Posting Features - New Thread Button Anywhere

Overview:

With mobile devices becoming more and more prevalent, the average IQ of people finding your site is declining...at a shocking pace. There was a time, not too long ago, before the pestilence of mobile devices and social media, that internet users were tech savvy people using desktop computers and forming complete sentences. Those were good times.

Increasingly, this new generation of internet users lacks the brain power to successfully navigate vBulletin's insuperable labyrinth consisting of "choose forum -> click forum -> click post new thread." To be honest, I don't particularly value such users or want them polluting the site with their pinhead musings, but hey, we've got to remain competitive and this requires dumbing things down a bit for the facebook junkies and iPhone users.

This product allows you do display a large, nearly impossible to miss button, directly below the breadcrumbs (on selected pages) that will make it easier for your users to post new threads. The added element consists of three parts: a message to the user welcoming them and instructing them on how to use the element to start a new thread, a dropdown menu from which they can choose a forum in which they have permission to post new threads (with forum categories in bold red and non-selectable), and a large button they can click once they have selected a forum which loads the newthread form to post a new thread in the forum they selected. You have 8 pre-defined linear gradient schemes (cross-browser compatible) from which to choose for the background color of the button, or you can use your own, with a choice to define separate schemes for each style using your StyleVars.



If a user has not selected a forum, then the tooltip for the button tells them they must choose a forum first. If they click the button anyway, then a popup alert repeats the fact that a forum must be chosen first. Once they select a forum, the tooltip for the button changes to tell them they may click the button to post a new thread in the selected form, and the name and description of the forum they selected is shown to help make certain they have made the correct choice.

They are essentially doing the same thing as if they had gone to a forum and clicked "+ Post New Thread," but now the button isn't carefully hidden behind the curtain of the link to the forum they want.

Everything is fully phrased and stylevars are used wherever applicable.

Updates:

Version 1.01:

• Added custom hook location to "navbar" template in case ads are turned off (previously used a global ad location as a template hook).

Version 1.1:

• Added support for Restrict Posting By Forum
• Added setting to allow for excluding forums from drop-down menu.
• Added setting to allow for left/right orientation of product element.

Version 1.1.5:

• Improved method for adding hook to "navbar" template to be more general.

Version 1.2:

• Forum exclusion now includes child forums.

Version 1.2.1:

• Added support for smaller screens.

Version 1.3:

• Added settings to allow for custom linear gradient on button.

Version 1.4:

• Changed custom color selection to HTML color pickers.
• Added "StyleVars" option to button color to allow for customization per style.

Version 1.5:

• Added support for when DBTech has replaced your "navbar" template.
• Combine plugins for adding custom hook and rending output.

Version 1.6:

• Added 5 more default button color gradients from which to choose.
• Removed need for explicit CSS for default button colors, greatly reducing the size of the template.

Version 1.7:

• Added support for manually placing the new thread button element within your "navbar" template using "{vb:raw markfl_newthreadbutton}".

Version 1.8:

• Fixed bug where forums with no parent and posting allowed were treated as categories.

Version 1.9:

• Adding setting to exclude usergroups from button access.
• Phrased "None Selected" drop-down menu selection.

Version 1.9.1:

• Phrased word "Category" in drop-down menu.

Compatibility:

Tested and working on VB 4.2.x and may work on all 4.x versions of vBulletin.

Backup/Warning:

This product does not alter your database, however it is always good practice to make regular backups and you should make a backup before installing ANY new mod.

As always, products are USE AT YOUR OWN RISK. I will provide support and do my best to help but no absolute guarantee is offered.

To Install:

1. Download and extract the attached .zip file.
2. Follow AdminCP -> Plugins & Products -> Manage Products -> Add/Import Product.
3. Click on "Choose File" and browse to the product .xml file that was packaged in the .zip file.
4. Click "Import."
5. You MUST enable the product in the settings before it will function.
6. Configure the remaining settings to your liking. Each setting has a detailed explanation of its use.

Support for this product can be found here:

• MHB - New Thread Button Anywhere
• TAZ - New Thread Button Anywhere

[f3_dl]

And thats how very good support works

Thanks for that realy fast answer - works perfectly and exactly as intended!

[MediaSVI]

I installed your plugin, thanks it a good one.

I am having an issue though as your plugin is making a bunch of forums (category) when they are forums and because of this users can not select them to post into.

The same thing happens in the Org Theme when I tray it. Please see picture.

Is there some way to fix this? Thank you for your time.

[MarkFL]

Originally Posted by MediaSVI

I installed your plugin, thanks it a good one.

I am having an issue though as your plugin is making a bunch of forums (category) when they are forums and because of this users can not select them to post into.

The same thing happens in the Org Theme when I tray it. Please see picture.

Is there some way to fix this? Thank you for your time.

Thank you for calling this to my attention...I have changed the way my code checks to see if a forum allows posting or not and so you should find it works correctly now.

Version 1.8:

• Fixed bug where forums with no parent and posting allowed were treated as categories.

[MediaSVI]

Originally Posted by MarkFL

Thank you for calling this to my attention...I have changed the way my code checks to see if a forum allows posting or not and so you should find it works correctly now.

Version 1.8:

• Fixed bug where forums with no parent and posting allowed were treated as categories.

That did it thank you so much!

[scottkoz20]

hey Mark - another odd ask, is this something that can be adapted to allow for posting in multiple sub-forums in a queue (I have a 30 sec delay) or simultaneously?

[MarkFL]

Originally Posted by scottkoz20

hey Mark - another odd ask, is this something that can be adapted to allow for posting in multiple sub-forums in a queue (I have a 30 sec delay) or simultaneously?

No, this simply gives users another pathway to the new thread form.

[scottkoz20]

Originally Posted by MarkFL

No, this simply gives users another pathway to the new thread form.

Like I said, odd ask

[Stratis]

Today I realized that unregister can see the button, they don't have the option to post a thread because select option for forum categories are empty. Do I miss some thing here?
Is there a way to hide all this from unregister users (waiting email confirmation)?

Thanks

[MarkFL]

Originally Posted by Stratis

Today I realized that unregister can see the button, they don't have the option to post a thread because select option for forum categories are empty. Do I miss some thing here?
Is there a way to hide all this from unregister users (waiting email confirmation)?


Thanks

When I log out from the 3 sites I have personally installed this product, it doesn't appear. I didn't test users awaiting email confirmation...users should typically only be in that state for a minute or two...

[Stratis]

Originally Posted by MarkFL

I didn't test users awaiting email confirmation...users should typically only be in that state for a minute or two...

For the history, I have deleted 834 user until now (with out confirmation), 10 minutes ago I delete 3 users that have been register without confirm from January.
I have 19 more, actually I wait about 6+ months and than delete them.


Any way thanks.