Owned Forums / Diaries for your members!

What this hack does
This hack will allow your members to create 'diaries' (the term my site uses)--forums that are "owned" by a member or group of members. The owner(s) will be able to add and delete other owners to their diary, and modify the title/description of their diary.

How it works
When a user would like to create a diary, they will visit /forumdir/newdiary.php and submit their application (username and description of their desired diary). To prevent abuse, the application will be moved to /forumdir/queue.php. An administrator can either deny or confirm the application. If denied, the application is removed from the diary_queue table. If it is confirmed, it is removed from the diary_queue table and created as a new forum.

The file located at /forumdir/diarycp.php will include the statistics of an owner's diary(s), including post count, thread count, latest post, forum name, as well as the 'Edit Diary', 'Add Owner', and 'Delete Owner' functions.

This is only tested on 3.0.5, but I don't see why it wouldn't work on any 3.0.x install. If it doesn't work on 3.0.7 please tell me and I will update my post. Estimated install time is 5 minutes.

This hack will add one table (diary_queue.php), and you need to add 11 templates. You don't need to modify any vB files.

See readme.html for more info .

Version 1.0.1 released July 28, 2005 and Zip updated! Read below for details all who have installed this hack!

Version 1.0.1 should resolve all known bugs.

The following bugs should be fixed:

• All files will be uploaded to the forum directory, not to a separate directory within the forum directory.
• prefs.php is now known as diarycpprefs.php
• The diary index is now /forum/diarycp.php.
• The incorrect file paths (including image paths, navbar paths, etc.) have been resolved.
• All MySQL queries now have a table prefix.
• Minor template bugs have been corrected, including placing the title tags after $headinclude variable to go along with the XSS issue with Internet Explorer 6 that has been corrected in vBulletin 3.0.8. If you have already installed this hack, you will need to change the following templates to place the $headinclude value before the title tag:
  
  • DIARY
    
  • diary_editdiary_addowner
    
  • diary_editdiary_deleteowner
    
  • diary_editdiary_editdiary
    
  • diary_newdiary_main
    
  • diary_newdiary_ty
    
  • diary_queue_main
  
  
• To upgrade, correct the above templates and delete the /diarycp/ directory, then follow step 2 of the installation guide minus uploading install.php.

[Andrew111888]

No idea at all, like I said I've been unable to reproduce this .

[Gutspiller]

I'm still a little confused how it works. So those that you set with "permissions" become moderators of these "forums" but anybody can make new threads and replies in them? Is that correct? I want something that is like a hosted forum.

I wouldn't mind seeing more screenshots or a link to a site running this. Anybody have em?

[Andrew111888]

You upload the Diary Control Panel files to your server and create the templates. When a user submits a diary application, it will enter the Diary Queue. As an administrator you can deny or confirm the diary. If you confirm it, it will be created under the parentid specified in the preferences file. The submitter of the application becomes the moderator of the forum. He can alter the title and description of the diary. He can also add and delete other owners to and from the diary, who all also possess the same permissions as he does. The forum created is still a forum in every sense of the word.

The details are covered in the readme.

[Andrew111888]

I have received a request for a feature to be added to this hack that would allow the diary owners to disable certain members from viewing their diary (the diary owners would control this).

I find this a great suggestion and I've thought of a fairly easy method to use to add this. My question is would anyone else like this added (so I know how "priority" it is to add this).

Thanks .

[Yorixz]

Sounds pretty good to me, something like a "Ban Member" option but just for the particular subforum. Would be great if you could add it!

[Gutspiller]

Originally Posted by Andrew111888

You upload the Diary Control Panel files to your server and create the templates. When a user submits a diary application, it will enter the Diary Queue. As an administrator you can deny or confirm the diary. If you confirm it, it will be created under the parentid specified in the preferences file. The submitter of the application becomes the moderator of the forum. He can alter the title and description of the diary. He can also add and delete other owners to and from the diary, who all also possess the same permissions as he does. The forum created is still a forum in every sense of the word.

The details are covered in the readme.

So the creator or requester becomes the mod of the forum as well as having the ability to add other members that have the same mod powers as he does. What about regular posters? Can anybody post to this new forum? I was wondering if this could be used to host clan forums, so a clan member requests their forum to be hosted through your site and it goes into the same type of queue and when the site admin sees and it and confirms it, that the requester of the forum has mod powers can create other members that have mod powers or NOT if he wants. As well as the option to hide the forum from other regular forum (the main forum) members.

[Gutspiller]

Instruction 6: In Admin CP -> Styles & Templates -> Style Manager -> (desired style) StyleVars, you will need to hardcode the URL for "Title Image" and "Miscellaneous Images Folder". Example: instead of /images/misc it would be http://www.siteurl.com/yourforums/images/misc to make sure your logo and navbit images will work correctly.

Won't this step mess up the entire forum EXCEPT for your hack? If other files are calling the directories and assume they are /images/misc and we change it to http://www.myforum.com/forum/images/misc ?

This seems like it could cause problems for anything else that uses the same template.

[Andrew111888]

As stated somewhere earlier, 1.0.1 resolves that issue and therefore that fix is unnecessary . And no, that wouldn't mess up your forums, either.

Also as stated... yes, everyone can post in this forum. It's a forum in every sense of the word.

I'm not planning to have an allowed to view list in the future... only a disallow list.

[Gutspiller]

Originally Posted by Andrew111888

As stated somewhere earlier, 1.0.1 resolves that issue and therefore that fix is unnecessary . And no, that wouldn't mess up your forums, either.

Also as stated... yes, everyone can post in this forum. It's a forum in every sense of the word.

I'm not planning to have an allowed to view list in the future... only a disallow list.

What do you mean "that fix"? I'm following the instructions and Step 6 right now and it has that in the instructions, so how can 1.0.1 fix is if I'm installing 1.0.1 and the step says to do it?

[Andrew111888]

I just downloaded the zip and the readme.html has absolutely no mention of what you're talking about so I believe you're using an old zip.