A few years ago calls for MyBB to add VB like features were all over the place. But the past 6 months there has been a dramatic increase in the requests for Xenforo like features.
Just curious about how others feel about this trend. I personally don't feel MyBB should worry too much about what other software offer.
A lot of people suggest things better off as plugins because not everyone who uses MyBB will use them. Plugin authors, especially paid ones, could greatly benefit from making such XF features like notifications.
It has to move with the times in my opinion. I posted my opinion in the "notifications" 2.0 suggestion thread. Now, I'm not saying we should add every query-happy feature in the world filled with jQuery madness, but I do think a notifications system and a couple "social" type features should be added, like "likes".
People like to know their posts are appreciated. If a new user signs up, makes a thread, gets a like for it, it will encourage them to post more. We can ramble on about how content/activity/design affects that more bla bla but features like that have massive impact. You think the mass amount of people using Xenforo are using it for the design? It's ugly, it's one dimensional and their is no uniqueness to it. But their features are the best around, and just because MyBB is free software, it doesn't mean it has to stay on the same level as other free softwares like phpbb. Everyone here knows it's the best free forum software by a country mile, some people use it even when they can afford premium forum software like IPB, Xenforo, vBulletin. I'm one of those guys - there's many more, so why not actually implement features to actually compete?
Sure, it'll be more hassle for big-board owners but the ultimate goal for MyBB has to be to attract more and more users to use its software right? Status updates, likes, following, notifications, it's all being added to forums because users want it. I love signing into gfxforums atm and having an alert telling me if someone replied to my thread, or quoted me, instead of me hunting through user cp to see if someone has replied.
I don't think I should have to rely on plugin authors to make these features. I shouldn't have to spend $30 on a status plugin which we have massively edited ourselves, just because it's not included in core. Sure it's cheap and I was happy too have a unique feature, but a lot of MyBB users used MyBB initially because it was free, because they can't afford premium software, why make them have to pay for the best features? Awards for example, see how many forums use myawards? Rewards for activity is included in most software now, but not MyBB? It's a must, it helps activity SO much.
I also don't think users are requesting it because other software developers have added it to theirs, I generally think it's a needed feature. The "nudges" system on Runegear is used a lot. Our status update plugin and like plugin are the two most used features on the site, we've had thousands of statuses already. We recently added comments to it since it was in demand.
To summarise - I think it's necessary for a built in notifications system, but users are going way over the top requesting stupid things because other software's do have them.
Rambled on, it's 1am.
I would say lets discuss it on a feature by feature basis. Everything has its ups and downs.
Quote:It has to move with the times in my opinion. I posted my opinion in the "notifications" 2.0 suggestion thread. Now, I'm not saying we should add every query-happy feature in the world filled with jQuery madness,
Notifications really aren't new though. I recall seeing a lot of requests for SMF like notifications. Now they want XF style notifications.
Quote:People like to know their posts are appreciated. If a new user signs up, makes a thread, gets a like for it, it will encourage them to post more.
MyBB has a rep for posts option. I don't see how a "like" button is all that different. I personally do not believe a "like" button encourages any extra activity. There are more enticing features you can add imho.
Xenforo does have some cutting edge stuff but only because it was recently coded and by serious forum professionals. Also the reason it took off so well is because the ex-VB coders had a loyal following. Xenforo wasn't even released and it probably was outpacing MyBB for daily visits. IMHO it's only because many viewed it as a VB fork.
Quote:Sure, it'll be more hassle for big-board owners but the ultimate goal for MyBB has to be to attract more and more users to use its software right? Status updates, likes, following, notifications, it's all being added to forums because users want it. I love signing into gfxforums atm and having an alert telling me if someone replied to my thread, or quoted me, instead of me hunting through user cp to see if someone has replied.
MyBB has exceeded SMF in many regards and it has done so despite SMF having these notifications. I think people forget that.
I'm sure MyBB 2.0 will have a ton of new zippy features. That's practically a guarantee. They wouldn't bother with the coding from zero unless there was massive benefits and features planned.
I just don't see why so many "Want X feature like Xenforo" threads have to exist. Why people can't simply want features that make sense to their forum and the software. Not just because the other guy does it. MyBB should imho find ways to be innovative and stand out. Their approach to forum software was imho a real winner when it was released and has stood against many other platforms very well.
The goal should be for other forums to say "I want X feature like MyBB". We should demand that more than Xenforo features.
Quote:Notifications really aren't new though. I recall seeing a lot of requests for SMF like notifications. Now they want XF style notifications.
Probably because they're more familiar with XF style notifications since it's very similar to Facebook. I know you're not a fan of forums being like Facebook, but it's definitely a system that is incredibly useful for any forum. It generally does boost activity, content, posts etc.
Quote:MyBB has a rep for posts option. I don't see how a "like" button is all that different. I personally do not believe a "like" button encourages any extra activity. There are more enticing features you can add imho.
Yep you're right it does. However, users are more familiar with liking, instead of post rep. Also, it's quicker. The rep system is too long now for modern forums. Click the button, new window, type the reasons, click ok, close window. Where as with a like, you simply like the post and it's done, if it's fancy, you could like it and a little box pops up (not a new window) where you can type a reason. Things like that would become popular.
If users see "X likes your post", they're definitely flattered and more motivated to post more. More likes = more respect, more respect, ultimately all new members want to be really respected on a forum they sign up on. You of course know that running HF. This all could be done with the rep system of course if it's tweaked.
Quote:Xenforo does have some cutting edge stuff but only because it was recently coded and by serious forum professionals. Also the reason it took off so well is because the ex-VB coders had a loyal following. Xenforo wasn't even released and it probably was outpacing MyBB for daily visits. IMHO it's only because many viewed it as a VB fork.
You're probably right, but you can't dismiss the fact many have gone there/moved there for the features. Their use of jQuery puts all others to shame imo. By the way, I'm no XF fanboy, I wouldn't move my forums there, it's behind even MyBB when it comes to styles.
Quote:MyBB has exceeded SMF in many regards and it has done so despite SMF having these notifications. I think people forget that.
Agreed. This just shows adding features like this pushes us even more ahead, and have more users choose us over premium software.
Quote:I'm sure MyBB 2.0 will have a ton of new zippy features. That's practically a guarantee. They wouldn't bother with the coding from zero unless there was massive benefits and features planned.
Oh definitely, as much as 2.0 is a pain for many, it'll have awesome features (hopefully). I just think notifications or something similar is necessary now.
Quote:I just don't see why so many "Want X feature like Xenforo" threads have to exist. Why people can't simply want features that make sense to their forum and the software. Not just because the other guy does it. MyBB should imho find ways to be innovative and stand out. Their approach to forum software was imho a real winner when it was released and has stood against many other platforms very well.
The goal should be for other forums to say "I want X feature like MyBB". We should demand that more than Xenforo features.
Completely agreed. I don't know of any other features other than notifications that MyBB needs to copy from others, the rest should be unique and as you say, have users saying "[...] like MyBB has".
I predict in 3 years people will laugh at all the "like" nonsense. IMHO it's a fad.
It's like how forum arcades were so big for a while and so were forum galleries. Both features are much less important now. It's a gimmick. It serves no real purpose.
Notifications probably do increase activity but my argument has always been resources and misuse.
(2012-03-27, 03:17 AM)labrocca Wrote: [ -> ]I predict in 3 years people will laugh at all the "like" nonsense. IMHO it's a fad.
It's like how forum arcades were so big for a while and so were forum galleries. Both features are much less important now. It's a gimmick. It serves no real purpose.
Notifications probably do increase activity but my argument has always been resources and misuse.
Well technically "likes" just falls into recognition like reputation is, that will always be there. People like to see appreciation for their posts. As for the resources argument, if it's a feature that can be disabled what's the problem?
I'm sure it can be optimized though, however that's not my area of expertise at all, you'd be able to tell me whether it can.
Quote:Well technically "likes" just falls into recognition like reputation is
Reputations include actual content. Likes are simple ticks of a counter. Remember website counters? How many of those do you see now? Eventually people will tire of likes. That's my prediction. When everyone has a gazillion likes that have built up over time it will be much less important and probably some other glitzy feature will become popular.
Quote:As for the resources argument, if it's a feature that can be disabled what's the problem?
No problem at all actually. I just simple don't advise anyone use such a feature. First off if you're forum does grow you'll run into a brick wall of resources providing you with 2 choices. One is pay more for resources. The second is to disable the feature. Neither of those choices is imho a good one.
Noob admins who don't know what they're doing will suffer imho. It's a classic forum admin mistake like adding a shoutbox. I feel bad for anyone demanding these features.
Personally, I agree somewhat with both sides of the coin...somewhat. A "Like" system, imho, is not something that's a necessity for a forum software. The forum can function fine without it, and as Labrocca stated, can probably run smoother without the unnecessary bloat it brings.
However, the same can be said about the current rep system. True, it may help members feel appreciation for what they are posting and thus entice them to continue, but so can a simple post stating... "Great post! Thanks for sharing!"
However, since we already have a rep system as a core feature, maybe the devs should truly consider tweaking and improving upon it. Maybe an option to use the Classic Rep or a Modified Rep with a similar post counter to the Like system that we can enable or disable in the admin panel.
Having said this, I don't mean tweaking it so it is viewed as a carbon copy of other software...but something that forum admins can use as a base to add to their forums and if needed, further improve upon it themselves.
The same is true for the notifications systems. Imho, they are not a necessity but just look at all the requests for a similar feature. I hate to say this because I tend to side with Labrocca and others that feel it will add unnecessary load, but in order to help move MyBB into the mainstream and keep it on the same level as other competitors, some of these features may have to be considered. However, an option can always be added to enable/disable these features so as to allow the owners to decide if it is something they need or not.
I only hope, as I stated earlier, that forum admins don't get themselves in the mindset that MyBB should be a carbon copy of Xenforo, vBulletin, or any other software for that matter. The reason so many people enjoy and support MyBB is because of it's simplicity and features like the plugin system. It is afterall, a forum software, but the question remain...should we travel down the same road as other forum software and introduce some of these features into the package? Or should we remain a stripped down alternative?
My only concern with adding these features is that in time to come, people will always want more. When other software introduces a new option, people will want it. Where do you draw the line?