"In reply to" Hack (threaded info for linear users)

vB3.0/hack version "frozen"; vB3.5/plugin version released
You can get the plugin for vb3.5 here. There will be no more releases for the vB3.0 version.

Description
This hack allows the display of the title and author of the post that each post is in response to. (See screenshot if clarification is needed)

The purpose of this hack is to provide missing information to linear view mode users. I got the idea from a board I visit that used to be UBB Threads, though my choice of presentation is a bit different.

See the attached screenshot for an example of how this can look. The hack itself only provides the additional items in $post, so it is up to the templates exactly how it looks. (The changes I used are included as an example in the hack instructions)

Complexity
This hack changes one file, requires no queries, and requires changes to one template.

Technical
This hack has been tested on vB3.0.3,vB3.0.0RC4 and vB3.0.0RC2.
It adds 1 query to showthread in linear mode, and adds 1 additional query in linear mode for each consecutive layer of deleted parents of posts displayed on a page. (If a displayed post is a reply to a deleted reply to an undeleted reply to a deleted reply to an undeleted post, 2 total queries are added to showthread, but if a displayed post is a reply to a deleted reply to a deleted reply to a deleted reply to an undeleted post, 4 total queries are added to showthread. If both examples are displayed in the same page, only 4 total queries are added to showthread.)

Update (v1.10 2004-03-01)
Version 1.10 released, which uses the beginning of a post as a title if the post does not have a title, and also trims long titles down to a decent size. Minor optimizations. regardinghackupdate.txt added for existing users, regardinghack.txt updated for new users.

Support
Please click the install button above if you install this hack.

The hack version of this modification will have no further updates, but I will still answer questions in this thread.

[Renada]

Originally Posted by Live Wire

This should be working in firefox also. Works for me

Doesn't seem to matter what I do I can't get it to show up in Firefox.

[WetWired]

Originally Posted by Renada

Hi,

Does anyone have a fix for Firefox? I have this working in IE but it doesn't show up in Firefox unless the user is logged out.

Thanks,
Renada

You're saying that the reply info only shows up for guests in certain browsers? Are you using linear mode consistantly? In this version, the info only shows on linear mode, and not hybrid or threaded mode (though this will not be the case when I release the plugin version for 3.5)

[Renada]

Originally Posted by WetWired

You're saying that the reply info only shows up for guests in certain browsers? Are you using linear mode consistantly? In this version, the info only shows on linear mode, and not hybrid or threaded mode (though this will not be the case when I release the plugin version for 3.5)

WetWired,

Thanks for your reply. The problem I was having was it would show up to guests but not to logged in users. I totally removed all the changes and redid it and it's working perfectly.

Thanks for doing this, its really really useful - clicks install.

Regards,
Renada

[BBH]

Hi,

I'm new to these boards and I've been running a small private board that was formerly on CompuServe. My users are screeming for this information.

I'm not really sure about the term "hack." Sounds like I'd be required to open up a PHP file and insert code. I'll have a look at the files, but my real question is two fold:

1) Has this been tested in 3.6.2?

2) Does a hack need to be "re-hacked" every time vBull updates the application?

I'm very new to this, so please be easy on my. I'm reading "PHP for Dummies;" but at the moment I'm dummer than Bush aranoid:.

[WetWired]

As indicated in the opening post, there is a newer version at
https://vborg.vbsupport.ru/showthread.php?t=93247
which is designed for 3.5 . That version does not require code insertion.

Noone has verified that that version works with 3.6, though it may; as simple as it is to add and remove the plugin version, it can't hurt to try (please post your results in that thread, either way).

[BBH]

Originally Posted by WetWired

As indicated in the opening post, there is a newer version at
https://vborg.vbsupport.ru/showthread.php?t=93247
which is designed for 3.5 . That version does not require code insertion.

Noone has verified that that version works with 3.6, though it may; as simple as it is to add and remove the plugin version, it can't hurt to try (please post your results in that thread, either way).

Hi,

I installed (I think) the modification is discribed in the 3.5 version. There was no change to the display at all. I am new, and I'm not sure at all what "style" (postbit-legacy or just postbit). This change would be fantastic; but I'm not getting it to work.

Bern

[WetWired]

While there are no manual code changes, you have to change the templates for the changes to become apparent.

You can edit the templates in "Styles & Templates"|"Style Manager". Click the <<>> button to open the list of templates. Double click "Postbit templates >>" from the list to see the postbit templates. The changes are pretty simple. You just need to search for the code snippets in the style and place the stuff above and below. The only complicated thing is that if you have horizontal postbits (the default), you need to edit the "POSTBIT" template using the stuff in the first section, while if you have vertical postbits (like here), you need to edit the "postbit_legacy" template using the stuff in the second section.

[BBH]

I pasted into Postbit the code for "horizontal" though just putting "Posted" above the if clause seemed a bit odd. I tried it with and without the word "Posted". With no joy. Today, I'll try it with BOTH styles changed, and get back to you with the result. I'd love to confirm your hack works in 3.6 and my users are going to kill me if I don't get something done soon. There is talk of going back to CompuServe.

If my next try fails, I will copy what I pasted into the styles to you and we'll see what I'm doing wrong.

Thanks for your help.

Originally Posted by WetWired

While there are no manual code changes, you have to change the templates for the changes to become apparent.

You can edit the templates in "Styles & Templates"|"Style Manager". Click the <<>> button to open the list of templates. Double click "Postbit templates >>" from the list to see the postbit templates. The changes are pretty simple. You just need to search for the code snippets in the style and place the stuff above and below. The only complicated thing is that if you have horizontal postbits (the default), you need to edit the "POSTBIT" template using the stuff in the first section, while if you have vertical postbits (like here), you need to edit the "postbit_legacy" template using the stuff in the second section.

[BBH]

I'll be damned. We're on legacy and that code works okay.

I'll let the members +++++ about how this is not good enough, and I'll get back to ya with any 3.6 hicups I might find.

Thank you VERY much for writing this hack.

Bern