Group Collaboration

[tzrtim]

Reading the posts in the topic could really do with a FAQ, So many helpful stuff from the users! - About to buy it and am happy that you can contact the maker so easy too

[Kevin Carwile]

So recommendation to IPS is to automatically rebuild themes on disabling of any applications.

That.

[Kevin Carwile]

New version in the marketplace - 1.1.9:

• new collab category option to include the category on forums index
• redirect forums pointed at collab categories will now show active category info
• redirect forums pointed at collaborations will now show recent collab activity
• new widget added to display a list of the currently logged in member's collabs
• updated collab header to display slightly smaller when not viewing collab homepage
• updated all GC templates to property indicate read/unread content
• improved collab listings in collab categories to display content breakdowns and latest post activity
• added new option to collab categories to require approval of newly created collabs

Future roadmap:

• Allow custom FURL per collab
• Add global option to all IPS widgets to choose display on either collab pages, or non collab pages, with additional option to target display to specific collab categories
• Send group based PM's
• Create a new "VNC" to display only new content for specific collabs
• Allow site admin to choose custom theme selection for collabs based on category
• Allow collab owners to choose from authorized custom themes for their collabs

[Ocean West]

nice improvements @Kevin Carwile nice to see the main index inclusion - is there any means to move the order somewhere other then at the very bottom of the forum index?

 

[Kevin Carwile]

nice improvements @Kevin Carwile nice to see the main index inclusion - is there any means to move the order somewhere other then at the very bottom of the forum index?

• redirect forums pointed at collab categories will now show active category info
• redirect forums pointed at collaborations will now show recent collab activity

In other words, create a forum as a redirect link and put in the link to either a collab category or a collaboration homepage and then you can re-order within the forums to achieve perfect placement.

Edited July 17, 2015 by Kevin Carwile

[Wayne B]

New version in the marketplace - 1.1.9:

• new collab category option to include the category on forums index
• redirect forums pointed at collab categories will now show active category info
• redirect forums pointed at collaborations will now show recent collab activity
• new widget added to display a list of the currently logged in member's collabs
• updated collab header to display slightly smaller when not viewing collab homepage
• updated all GC templates to property indicate read/unread content
• improved collab listings in collab categories to display content breakdowns and latest post activity
• added new option to collab categories to require approval of newly created collabs

Future roadmap:

• Allow custom FURL per collab
• Add global option to all IPS widgets to choose display on either collab pages, or non collab pages, with additional option to target display to specific collab categories
• Send group based PM's
• Create a new "VNC" to display only new content for specific collabs
• Allow site admin to choose custom theme selection for collabs based on category
• Allow collab owners to choose from authorized custom themes for their collabs

Kevin - You have in one update resolved the only frustrations that were outstanding to make this integrate beautifully with the rest of the suite. I can say no more other than AWESOME AWESOME AWESOME

Well Done and Thank You for listening to feedback. You really do take on board all suggestions and then just make them happen. AMAZING

[Wayne B]

@Kevin Carwile - Within the category itself the last post info shows the last post made in that collaboration inline with the rest of the suite. If you include a category on the board index irrespective of if you toggle the switch for the category to display or if you have it set up with re-direct forums where you would expect to see the last post info it actually displays the collaboration title that the latest post was made within and the community lead. Is there a way to change this to display the last post from any within that collaboration category and the last poster to keep it inline with the expected behaviour across the suite?

Happy to make a template edit if it's as simple as that?

Many Thanks

 

[Wayne B]

• updated all GC templates to property indicate read/unread content

It would also be really useful to be able to click on the Icons to mark a collaboration or section of a collaboration as read like you can on the main board with standard forums.

[Kevin Carwile]

@Kevin Carwile - Within the category itself the last post info shows the last post made in that collaboration inline with the rest of the suite. If you include a category on the board index irrespective of if you toggle the switch for the category to display or if you have it set up with re-direct forums where you would expect to see the last post info it actually displays the collaboration title that the latest post was made within and the community lead. Is there a way to change this to display the last post from any within that collaboration category and the last poster to keep it inline with the expected behaviour across the suite?

Happy to make a template edit if it's as simple as that?

Many Thanks

It seems like a simple thing on the face...

But then it becomes a lot more complicated as soon as you get past the surface, because collaborations can contain content from every app in the system.

For example, in order to show if there is read/unread content for just a single collaboration (and also which is the latest post), it becomes apparent that every app and every container ( forums, galleries, databases, etc ) inside the collaboration must be queried and cross referenced with permissions to see "where" the latest post is at that you actually have permission to see. This gets expensive quick, and will become only more expensive the larger the collaboration gets ( in terms of SQL, memory, processing, etc ).

For a category, that problem only becomes more compounded because now you have to lift that load for every collaboration in the category, and every time the page is viewed because it could change from moment to moment, and it also cannot be cached because it depends on not only site permissions, but the permissions within the group also.

Because of this, categories will only show the latest collaboration to have activity. You may think... well if you know that, then why can't you just show what the latest post was? It's because you may not actually have permission to see what the latest post was in that collaboration! So in reality, the latest ( that you are actually able to see ) may be in a different collaboration... but in order to know that we go back to the problem of having to check every collaboration in the category.

[Kevin Carwile]

Duplicate post.

Edited July 17, 2015 by Kevin Carwile

[Wayne B]

@Kevin Carwile Thank you for the explanation, makes sense and yes I can see the logic as to why you have created it the way you have.

One other thing that stands out from the changes (loving them by the way) is that when you look at the collaboration list within a category it displays X Contributions. I don't think it is calculating this correctly because it is actually just calculating a topic as one contribution irrespective of how many replies are made. I would have thought it should count all posts, images etc basically all content items and displayed the total figure here. Is this intended also?

[Kevin Carwile]

@Kevin Carwile Thank you for the explanation, makes sense and yes I can see the logic as to why you have created it the way you have.

One other thing that stands out from the changes (loving them by the way) is that when you look at the collaboration list within a category it displays X Contributions. I don't think it is calculating this correctly because it is actually just calculating a topic as one contribution irrespective of how many replies are made. I would have thought it should count all posts, images etc basically all content items and displayed the total figure here. Is this intended also?

Yes, intended. You can rename "contributions" to whatever you like but it is basically the content item count. I discovered a bit of an issue with tracking total comment counts (cross app) which made content item count seem more practical at the moment since it still gives a good idea of the relative depth of any particular collab.

But nothing is set in stone.

[Wayne B]

@Kevin Carwile It also appears that the sort order within a category is defaulting to Custom as opposed to how we had it before to by Title (Alphabetically) or Start Date etc

Also the date shown for the last post info is the topic start date and not the last actual response to that topic, can this be updated please as it looks like a topic has not been updated for months if its a long running thread.

[surinp3]

When watching VNC (New content), we see a link both to the topic replied in and to the group it was posted in.

Can that be changed, so the group doesn´t show on New content. Only the topic link?

[Wayne B]

@Kevin Carwile Could you add the ability to set a default sort order for the collaboration list within a category. That way we can set a category to show the list of collaborations by either last reply, creation date etc. ideally from the admin on a per category basis.

Thanks

[Wayne B]

Im not quite sure why some of the collars have a breakdown of the content and others don't. The one in the green box area have n breakdown at all. How is this controlled please?

Thank you

[kar3n2]

Hi

How do I make the images full size like background images for each category please?

At the moment when I create a category it allows me to upload (attach) an image into a text box and I added an image 800 wide to see if that might work but it simply resized the image.

Here is how the cats are displaying with a resized image and lots of black space    http://www.outdoormuckers.co.uk/forum/gc/

any ideas what I might be doing wrong @Kevin Carwile ?

[Kevin Carwile]

How do I make the images full size like background images for each category please?

Don't upload the image into the description text box. Instead, when you visit the category page there is a button in the category header to upload a background photo.

[kar3n2]

Don't upload the image into the description text box. Instead, when you visit the category page there is a button in the category header to upload a background photo.

awww yeah... now why didn't I notice that hmm ...   http://www.outdoormuckers.co.uk/forum/gc/      thanks @Kevin Carwile

 

looks like the image needs to be 800 by 200 to cover the black bit at the bottom

Edited July 19, 2015 by kar3n2

[Timothy Vinckier]

Can anyone tell me how to change the collab owner? I already did that, but can't find it anymore :s

nvm found it

[PrettyPixels]

@Kevin Carwile - Can the owner define tags specific to their collab?

[Kevin Carwile]

@Kevin Carwile - Can the owner define tags specific to their collab?

No. But I like the idea.

[surinp3]

We have another thingy on our forum, when it comes to joining and posting in a group.

Our members have finally approved the concept (after world war 21 on the forum), but with one issue.
The open groups should be 100% open. The benefit of this would be that members who created a group can still moderate their forum, but all members of the site can post and create content without having to "join" the group.

So my suggestion is to either have a 5th option for the group categories which makes this possible or the possibility for the admin to set the permissions in the flagged standard group, as it seems the permissions in newly created groups, do not follow the flagged group today.

Or if it could be done with your "Rules" application?

[surinp3]

Solved the issue with Rules and automatically joining members who visit the group or the group topic.
With a few conditions....

This way there is no need for members to join any group, but the group owner still has control over the members and content.
And most important, my members don´t have to click two times to actually join an open group, which apparently has been the worst thing in the world.

Have to say that your Rules application is by far the best thing that has happened to me as an admin.
Very big thanks for that...  

[Kevin Carwile]

Solved the issue with Rules and automatically joining members who visit the group or the group topic.
With a few conditions....

This way there is no need for members to join any group, but the group owner still has control over the members and content.
And most important, my members don´t have to click two times to actually join an open group, which apparently has been the worst thing in the world.

Have to say that your Rules application is by far the best thing that has happened to me as an admin.
Very big thanks for that...  

You may be making it more complicated than it needs be.

In the collaboration, the owner just has to give permission to "guests" to view/post/reply/etc. A guest is someone who is not an active member of the collab (i.e. everybody else on the site).