What do you think of BLF's forum software?

The only thing I really miss is the ability to +1 a post (i.e., without having to make a new post).

Browsing on smartphone sucks. Engine should be updated and support Tapatalk.
Mike

Smart Phones Suck……

https://www.serendipity.li/smartphones-suck.htm

Probably ur right, but hard to carry PC when travelling.
Engine should support smartphones and Tapatalk.

Hi everyone,

Thanks for all your thoughts an comments.

So yes, for now we are running on Drupal 7, which is still receiving security updates, so from an IT standpoint it’s still fine to use. The reason I haven’t upgraded to Drupal 8 yet is because it simply doesn’t have the most basic functionality that we need to function as a forum. Since I launched BLF on Drupal 6, Drupal has turned into more of a do-it-yourself programming framework and offers much less out-of-the-box functionality. There are still some developers creating plugins for Drupal 8, but it appears that most are as reluctant to upgrade as I am. Eventually they’ll probably port more plugins to Drupal 8 as the EOL date of Drupal 7 gets closer.

As for forum functionality, it’s somewhat ironic that the do-it-yourself framework traits of Drupal that I mentioned in the previous paragraph actually prove to be a huge advantage for us in other area. For example, our community spam moderation, email notification, and post reporting systems are custom solutions that I put together with relative ease despite not being a true web developer. There are also a ton of other options that I can use to throw together temporary controlling measures for trolls and other repeat problem users. That’s by far the best part still about Drupal, and no other web software is as comprehensive.

So I’m still committed to adding new functionality where it’s practical to do so. The thing about emojis appears to be an underlying issue with the specific server configurations that I’m using, and also complicated by the fact that the database tables were originally created a long time ago with a much older schema. Since I don’t really make heavy use of emojis I’ve never thought much about this limitation. But I’ll look into that to see what can be done. As for image uploading, it’s always been possible with Drupal, but at the time it didn’t seem like a wise decision, given that the external image hosting solutions seemed very robust and best suited to the task of managing images back in that time. I recognize that isn’t necessarily the case nowadays, so I’ll keep looking at the different options. But it’s not a decision to be taken lightly from a technological planning standpoint.

Thanks for being a part of BLF! I’m really glad to have you all here.

I have looked into options for that, and they do exist. I just never thought of it as a particularly necessary function, since here’s it’s not like in many other forums where they’ll jump down your throat if you post a +1 or otherwise violate their strict posting protocols. We really try to be more laid back here, at least within reason whenever it doesn’t cause major annoyance to a large number of users.

Yeah, I’m sure our forum theme will eventually be refreshed to adapt to smartphone screen sizes.

Tapatalk, on the other hand, probably never. That’s Tapatalk’s fault, as they dragged their feet for years on Drupal support and eventually abandoned it altogether. From what I can tell, quite frankly it’s no great loss, and many Tapatalk users aren’t at all happy with it.

Considering how much it costs me to be part of this community (0$$:money_mouth_face:.
I’m pretty darn happy with the reliability and look of things.
All the Best,
Jeff

I like the BLF forum software just fine, with TK’s After Dark style.

I like the simplicity/reliability of how BLF is set-up/run and managed (KISS) I can depend on it like a Small Block Chevy or my Kawasaki :smiley:

. :beer: Thanks SB for all you do! :wink: :+1:

Posting photos method is archaic.

It’s the Briggs and Stratton 5HP mini bike engine, might not be the fanciest but is damn dependable and stands the test of time.
Leave her just as she is.
It is calming to know it will look and function today as yesterday, no annoying Yahoo/Ebay/etc. reconfiguration where you have to search for the tab you want if it even still exists.

Thanks for all you do SB.
Later

Keith

To most that have been forum members for a long time and have made many,many posts and a lot with hosted photos the status quo is good enough.

New members that are also members of other types of forums with modern software might quickly be turned off by the steeps needed here to do simple tasks.

Good software costs money and that is usually the underlying factor why upgrades are not done.

I also run TK’s After dark plugin. Alot easier on my eyes.
I dont have any problem with the forum but as others suggested about having to use a external source for hosting pics.
It takes a little effort to post a pic but nothing that hard.
I too would probably post more detailed mods if it was easier to do.
I have had detailed mods before that I wanted to share with the forum but dreaded the time it was going to take to post all off up until the point to where I just put it off indefinitely. Moved on to the next mod.
I do feel if it was easier like a drop and upload box more people would share more from my own experiences, it takes less time from the user.
.
The biggest problem I saw when I was over at the other forum and here with hosted images is that these free image hosting services sometimes go out of business or become a pay to play service. If you dont pay your images are blocked and the whole forum is littered with post with blank images. Alot of times the images hold all the details to a mod or detailed information. Without the image, the post becomes almost useless. You know it can be done but there is no image telling you how it was done.
When it happened to me, I was pretty pissed that all the time and info that was in my pics I had posted was lost unless I paid, held for Randsom. I had to find a new free image service and spent many hours getting my images downloaded then uploaded to the new hosting service. Then relinked in the right places. I still have some images here and there that aren’t fixed. FYI - some 'new' Fujitsu laptop batteries - #153 by moderator007
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This is all just my opinion and I don’t know the associated cost or the time it takes to implement image hosting. That’s all SB’s territory and he knows better than any of us.
I’m good with what ever SB decides and I trust his decision. I do feel that one feature would help the forum tremendously but there is a cost to do so.
Ill adjust to however the forum runs but I do have to consider where and to what I spend my time with also.
Of all the forums I have ever seen or been a member of this one is still by far the best. :smiley:

007,excellent post!

I like this forum just like it is.

Not the great on IOS. When posting, Apple emojis don’t work right. Not mobile friendly.

This forum is not compatible for uding with Tapatalk app. The user interface feels dated and inferior to other forums run by more modern forum engines.

The content is however more valuable. In my opinion, the content and the community friendliness are what keep BLF forum popular. I like it better than CPF forum and flashlight sub-reddit.

I like the look and feel of this forum, and the colors are easy on my almost 50 year old eyes. I don’t post very often because I can usually find the information I need by using the search feature. As others have stated its a bit of a pain posting pictures using a smartphone, especially if you want to post more than one. But for the zero dollars it cost to be a member I can’t complain.
I have always felt welcome here since my first post and this is a great community to be apart of.

Honestly, it’s pretty good.

Very efficient, works well even on mobile devices.

The only thing that would make it better would be a gray mode, so it would be easier on the eyes at times.