For nearly a year now I have been running my site www.cache-community.co.uk using Mambo/Joomla bridged with SMF and have been more than happy with the functionality this offers.
Recently however, I stumbled accross TP, whilst looking for some bits i'm considering for a redesign of my site, and have set up a test version of it on my server and imported my forum db to see how it looks, and I've been really impressed. In fact so impressed I am even considering converting my site to use SMF and TP.
I need to weigh up first though which of Joomla's features I use and require, and which features TP offers (and what I can add myself, or get help with here). I am certainly considering it though.
Excellent work Bloc.
Oh, just in case anyone fancies looking at the test site I'm playing with, its here http://www.cache-community.co.uk/tp/index.php
Not sure what version you're using, but upgrade to the latest, then see what you think of it...
http://www.tinyportal.net/smf/index.php?topic=1840.0
I think 0.8.1 is coming out soon too.
Quote from: anunlike on January 04, 2006, 05:03:08 AM
Not sure what version you're using, but upgrade to the latest, then see what you think of it...
http://www.tinyportal.net/smf/index.php?topic=1840.0
I think 0.8.1 is coming out soon too.
I doubt that he can see that page.... I know that I cannot...
0.8 hasn't been released to us in the general public yet...
Quote from: Rasyr on January 04, 2006, 10:46:58 AM
Quote from: anunlike on January 04, 2006, 05:03:08 AM
Not sure what version you're using, but upgrade to the latest, then see what you think of it...
http://www.tinyportal.net/smf/index.php?topic=1840.0
I think 0.8.1 is coming out soon too.
I doubt that he can see that page.... I know that I cannot...
0.8 hasn't been released to us in the general public yet...
Nope, I cannot see that page - I'm not a beta/dev tester here. So am running TP0.75
Yes it's still in pre-beta. I know you guys can taste it because it's so close. :)
Quote from: Cache-man on January 04, 2006, 01:07:44 PM
Nope, I cannot see that page - I'm not a beta/dev tester here. So am running TP0.75
I am in the same boat... The company I work for has 3 different websites, and right now we are using SMF for 1, and Snitz for a second (going to be moving it to SMF at some point in the near future). The third doesn't have a set of forums of its own, but hooks back over to the first site's forums.
I am
anxiously awaiting version 0.8 to be released as it actually adds the core functionality that we will need when we convert the second site from Snitz to SMF. That being, specifically, the articles functionality and the download manager.
We have other future plans for this second site (and the first one as well, but the second site is our testing ground for certain ideas), and several SMF mods (used in conjunction with Tiny Portal) are core to being able to implement these plans....
Quote from: IchBinâ„¢ on January 04, 2006, 01:26:59 PM
Yes it's still in pre-beta. I know you guys can taste it because it's so close. :)
taste??? We are well beyond that.... Think addiction and withdrawal type of symptoms going on here....
[Joking]
Ifn youse guys knows whats good fer youse, youse will hurry up before we send Guido to pays youse a visit... :knuppel2:
[/Joking]
Is there a way to get TP o.7.5 to work with SMF RC2, as it will only work with RC1 at the moment?
It's possible, but you have to know how to manually edit code.
I am able to edit code, just not sure what or where. Could you point me in the general direction please.
Oh. Sorry 'bout that, didn't even think about it.
Quote from: IchBinâââ,¬Å¾Ã,¢ on January 04, 2006, 03:10:33 PM
It's possible, but you have to know how to manually edit code.
Is it just as simple as editing the "package-info.xml" and adding ", 1.1 RC2" whereever I see "1.1 RC1"?
Do I need to alter anymore files?
No, not that simple....
Unfortunately, the entire structure of the index.template.php file changed with the upgrade.
Oh well, I've done what I suggested, and have managed to get TP to install on RC2, although I just cant use the new RC2 default theme. No biggie though, as its just a test site, and I'm trying out the 7dana theme anyway.
Thats correct..it is a easy as to adjust the xml file..but the mod file which searchs for the strings will fail on RC2, since the template changed a lot. The others should be fine though. ( not having tested it)
Cache-man,
I'm also running a Joomla+SMF site and want to convert to TP as soon as TP 0.8.5 is out (or whichever stable version for RC2 Bloc releases). Are you currently using Orstio's bridge? Do you plan on keep the bridge with Joomla in the background, or are you going to completely axe J! and just run TP+SMF?
I've been looking at www.matchbox360.co.uk as inspiration; perhaps keep my SMF forums bridged, but unwrapped with TP sitting on top of it.
Let's share + exchange some ideas :)
I'm considering getting rid of Joomla altogether, although I will probabally leave it untouched in the background for a few months, so that people can still find articles from existing weblinks on the joomla site.
The idea of considering switching from Joomla to TinyPortal, is that the forum integration is much better, and it will make admin of the site much easier, as I will only have to maintain 1 script instead of 2. Also, I will only have to create/edit 1 display template rather than the current 2.
Yes, I'm currently using the Orstio Bridge.
Well, now that 0.8.6 is out, how are you transitioning from Joomla+SMF -> SMF+TP? I'm tempted to just "throw it on", but God knows that's a bad idea ;)
Time to install "JSAS" and see how I can slowly disengage from Joomla...
most of the joomla mods/ideas, are fast becoming a possibility for TP anyway, with the wealth of mods already available.
Hey Kai, I have now tried TPv086 on my test installation of my site www.cache-community.co.uk/tp and I am liking the new features very much. I'm still a litle apprehensive about switching the site fully from joomla to TP, as I still like the content management features of Joomla too much, and am still not too keen on the TP content editor and management of articles. I'm still playing with somw ideas though of how I can successfully manage content with TP. One idea I have is to convert all of my articles into forum threads, and somehow create a menu page for them, so that ALL of the content is based in the forum.
How is your transition going?
hey cache-man, your test site is looking good. how exactly did you create a "test site" off of your main forums - is it as easy as making a copy of my /forums directory and copying the mysql database?
for my site in particular, it became apparent that I should make it forum-focused - SMF did everything I want and more. I found it cumbersome to create articles in Joomla, then go through the (somewhat) painstaking process of creating discussbot links into SMF. This is where the appeal of a portal came in... I have yet to play with TP but my guess is that it would be quite easy to dictate which forum posts can go on the 'front page'. Am I right?
I am thinking of keeping the joomlahacks bridge for maybe 3 months, just in case I want to implement some other Joomla component (was looking at xtdratings before). I want to setup htaccess in such a way that my root directory www.kaitech.hk will bring up TP+SMF. If I need to move Joomla to another directory, I'm okay with doing that... and if it screws up my google links, so be it. <shrug> SMF+TP is the way forward...
PS. I also like MosCE editor of Joomla, and have used it in the past *only* for the HTML code that it generates. I would simply transplant all the code inside
[ html] [/html ] tags.
QuoteOne idea I have is to convert all of my articles into forum threads, and somehow create a menu page for them, so that ALL of the content is based in the forum.
This should work. Are you going to put them all into a dedicated "review" forum?
Hey Kai, to make my test site I just created another directory on my hosting called /tp/ and then installed a fresh installation of SMF, and then TP, and then used a copy of the existing site's database (i did not use the actual database, just in case anything went wrong, but be using a copy you get to see hop SMf+TP looks with your existing content).
I too fing the portal appealing for the same reasons you go on to mention.
From what I can gather so far, you can select a particular board from your forums, and all posts from there will be displayed on your home page (I've yet to investigate further into this to see if you can manually add miscellaneous posts from other boards to the homepage.)
I've yet to get to grips with TP's articles system properly, and am not sure if it is quite up to scratch for my needs yet, but that is kinda expected as SMF+TP is a forum, and not a Content Management System (CMS) like Joomla which is specifically designed for that purpose.
As for the content editor, we might have to ask bloc if there might be a way to implement such a editor (something like mosCE), failing that it might be easier to use 3rd party WYSIWYG program/editor and then just paste the resulting HTML code into TP's editor.
And if I do decide to transfer all the content to the forum, as threads insted of articles, then I would have a dedicated board on the main forums, but I would probabally create a "reviews" link on the menu, linking to a article/contents page which would list all links to each review and section thread. This way reviews cound be found from within the forum, and/or from the reviews link on the TP main menu.
I've still got a lot of playing to do before i make any firm decisions about converting to TP, but I think your right in saying TP is the way forward.
Quote from: Cache-man on February 06, 2006, 04:30:05 PM
Hey Kai, to make my test site I just created another directory on my hosting called /tp/ and then installed a fresh installation of SMF, and then TP, and then used a copy of the existing site's database (i did not use the actual database, just in case anything went wrong, but be using a copy you get to see hop SMf+TP looks with your existing content).
Sounds good - I wouldn't point it direct to the database either. Would be dangerous to do so I think!
QuoteAs for the content editor, we might have to ask bloc if there might be a way to implement such a editor (something like mosCE), failing that it might be easier to use 3rd party WYSIWYG program/editor and then just paste the resulting HTML code into TP's editor.
Exactly my thinking too - having Joomla's MosCE around just for this purpose might not be a bad idea... it's quite powerful for the popup/rollover images, alignments, etc.
QuoteAnd if I do decide to transfer all the content to the forum, as threads insted of articles, then I would have a dedicated board on the main forums, but I would probabally create a "reviews" link on the menu, linking to a article/contents page which would list all links to each review and section thread. This way reviews cound be found from within the forum, and/or from the reviews link on the TP main menu.
This is probably what I'd do as well - would be great if this can be automated somewhat. Perhaps it's already possible, but I have yet to install TP but will try to play around with it later today.
Wonder how simplemachines.org is run, do they have their own "CMS" built on top of SMF? I really like the way the tabs are setup.
As for CMS on top of SMF, there is http://www.subdreamer.com (who advertises on simplemachines.org) but it's US$125 per license :o
I started playing around with TP 0.8.6 on JSAS with an old copy of my site.
It seemed to install via package manager okay, but the database entries were not created for some reason. I had to manually invoke manual_tp_install.php and 1139149106manual_tp_install.php to make sure everything went through (though I did NOT have to do the search & replace as dictated by the text file, as 1139149106manual_tp_install.php added the 6 required smf_tp tables.
Would I have to do this on the live site? I'm not sure... guess will find out when the time comes.
Installed SMF Corporate (http://www.tinyportal.net/smf/index.php?topic=2455.0) as test theme but had to stop there, hopefully will have more time later today to play with TP!
kai920, although the manual_tp_install.php will install required database tables, it will not do the required changes to SMF files. For that you will need to edit them manually.
Regarding WYSIWYG editor...I will have a look at Joomlas editor. One thing I want to avoid though, is a big editor included..for example FCKeditor is a fairly large editor, bigger than TP itself actually.. ::) :)
hey Bloc,
That's the thing, I found that somehow, something did make the changes to the SMF files... I searched through the first and last entries on the "search and replace text file" and the changes were indeed made.
Probably something I did wrong, or maybe it's an isolated & peculiar setup <shrug>...
Quote from: Bloc on February 07, 2006, 08:54:43 AM
Regarding WYSIWYG editor...I will have a look at Joomlas editor. One thing I want to avoid though, is a big editor included..for example FCKeditor is a fairly large editor, bigger than TP itself actually.. ::) :)
Do wysiwyg BBCode editors exist? Something simple that can be used to create and organize posts or articles (stored locally)...
No, not that I know of..and I have been searching for some time.
Quote from: kai920 on February 07, 2006, 05:13:09 PM
Quote from: Bloc on February 07, 2006, 08:54:43 AM
Regarding WYSIWYG editor...I will have a look at Joomlas editor. One thing I want to avoid though, is a big editor included..for example FCKeditor is a fairly large editor, bigger than TP itself actually.. ::) :)
Do wysiwyg BBCode editors exist? Something simple that can be used to create and organize posts or articles (stored locally)...
Well, SMF does have its own WYSIWYG BBC code editor, which does a resonable job of creating the necesarry BBC code. Well, it's not a true WYSIWIG editor, but you can preview your post and then go back to editing.
I think vBulliten has the capability of a better WYSIWYG editor, although it's a while since I looked at vB so I cant remember how advanced it is.
The option of bbcode-based articles is def. interesting. I am not sure when it will be included, but when it does, using SMF own system is of course the way to go.
Have been looking at TinyMCE again, and it does seem like a good choice.
Don't forget MosCE (http://www.cellardoor.za.net/mosce/) which has recently been updated.
I've finally got my site working on JSAS. phew! Even that alone took a good amount of experimenting.
I'm ready to just throw Joomla out the window, so to speak, because I want my frontpage to be Tinyportal. What's the best and/or easiest way to achieve this? Move joomla to another directory (/joomla) and have my root (/) redirect to my SMF forums?
Quote from: Bloc on February 08, 2006, 11:56:26 AM
The option of bbcode-based articles is def. interesting. I am not sure when it will be included, but when it does, using SMF own system is of course the way to go.
Have been looking at TinyMCE again, and it does seem like a good choice.
Hi Bloc
I was going to ask about the possibility of bbcode-based articles, so you've read my mind :). I am much more familiar with writing forum posts than html pages, so I would be really appreciative if this was implemented in the future.
Having just installed TP for the first time I having been spending a bit of time working on my site. My host did a long-overdue server upgrade overnight and now I can't get into SMF at all :(
The error I get is <Unknown column 'a.attachmentType' in 'field list'>.
Looking at the smf database it appears that all the TP tables have "disappeared" - I suspect my host has restored from a backup from last week (i.e. before I installed TP). I'm still waiting a reply from my host to the Support Ticket I raised 6 hours ago :(
Cheers
Gidget
Quote from: Bloc on February 07, 2006, 08:54:43 AM
kai920, although the manual_tp_install.php will install required database tables, it will not do the required changes to SMF files. For that you will need to edit them manually.
Bloc,
I am installing again 0.8.6 on a SMF installation. Again, the package manager seemed to be okay:
Quote from: after package manager installation
Install / Upgrade TinyPortal v0.8.6beta
* Upshrink table created
* Settings table created
* Blocks table created.
o some sample values were added to the blocks table
* Variables table created.
* Articles table created.
* DL manager table created
TinyPortalÂÃ,´s table structure is now installed/updated.
Please restart your forum to see the changes.
However, after I
restarted my forum as suggested, I got this error:
Quote
Database Error
Table 'kaitech_database.smf_tp_settings' doesn't exist
File: W:\www\kaitech.hk\forums\Sources\TPortal.php
Line: 103
Which obviously means the database tables weren't created properly...
So I try to run
manual_tp_install.php manually, and got this error message, it shows up about 100 times (estimated):
Warning: mysql_num_rows(): supplied argument is not a valid MySQL result resource in W:\www\kaitech.hk\forums\manual_tp_install.php on line 134Now starting from line 132, the code is:
foreach($settings_array as $what => $val){
$sjekk=mysql_query("SELECT * FROM {$new_prefix}settings WHERE name='$what'");
if(mysql_num_rows($sjekk)<1){
mysql_query("INSERT INTO {$new_prefix}settings (name,value) VALUES ( '$what', '$val')");
}
elseif(mysql_num_rows($sjekk)>0 && $what=='version'){
mysql_query("UPDATE {$new_prefix}settings SET value='$val' WHERE name='$what'");
echo '<ul><li>Updated version to '.$val.'</li></ul>';
mysql_free_result($sjekk);
}Any ideas what to try at this point?
Quote from: Cache-man on February 06, 2006, 04:30:05 PM
Hey Kai, to make my test site I just created another directory on my hosting called /tp/ and then installed a fresh installation of SMF, and then TP, and then used a copy of the existing site's database (i did not use the actual database, just in case anything went wrong, but be using a copy you get to see hop SMf+TP looks with your existing content).
Cache-man, thanks for posting this because it helped to narrow down the problem in my previous post :)
On a fresh install of RC2 + TP86 the installation via package manager went smoothly. I noticed that my site happened to have the smf tables prefixed with something else, and guess this was causing some issues..
it should not, kai920..as long as the prefix is correct in Settings.php, TP will simply use that to make/update the TP tables. If there aren't any TP tables with SMF prefix and the "old" fixed prefix (tportal_) can't be found either, then new ones will be created.
When I moved the site offline, I ran repair_settings.php to fix up the directories, database passwords, etc. I made sure my forum was functioning correctly before trying to install Tinyportal.
My settings.php:
$db_prefix = '`xxx`.smf_';
It just didn't want to create the smf_tp tables for some reason...
Cache-man,
Any updates from your end? How goes the Joomla -> TP migration?
Quote from: Bloc on February 11, 2006, 04:30:19 PM
it should not, kai920..as long as the prefix is correct in Settings.php, TP will simply use that to make/update the TP tables. If there aren't any TP tables with SMF prefix and the "old" fixed prefix (tportal_) can't be found either, then new ones will be created.
Bloc, just want to confirm that it was indeed the incorrect settings.php causing the problem...
Incorrect settings:Database Name: my_database
Database Tables Prefix: 'my_database'.smf_
Correct settings:Database Name: my_database
Database Tables Prefix:
smf_If I run into this problem on my live site, I know what to do ;) :D