Tested Features - Forum Features

lastnico's picture
By lastnico, June 7, 2006 - 11:39 |

Plugins

Plugins are additional files that webmaster can add to its default forum installation. These plugins (or modifications / mods) adds features that are not supported by default by the forum. For example, it can add image upload to user messages, add administration options,... Some forum software greatly uses the mods architecture by providing a poor featured forum, which can be easily improved by tons of plugins.

Plugins can be really interested if a webmaster would like to improve forum interactivity or integration with its website. Generally, you can find a list of existing plugins on the official website of the forum software.

Themes

Themes are packages, or even simple files that the forum administrator can add to its default forum installation. These themes can then be selected to totally change the layout and the look and feel of the forum.

These features is generally provided in all forum softwares, because it helps webmasters to have a unique skinned website, or make the forum looks like the relative web site.

Some software also allows each registered users to choose the theme he prefers.

Polls creation

This feature allows any forum user to create a poll, enclosed with the new thread he wants to create. Other users can vote on this poll, and then argue about results.

Posts Formats

Here are examples of possible posts formats :

  • Plain
  • HTML
  • Wiki
  • BBCode

Private messages

Private messages are a interested features if you want that users of your forum discuss privately without sharing their email addresses (to avoid Spam bots). The private messages management generally looks like a webmail, and new private messages notifications (this time to the user email) can be activated, to be sure the user will receive and read its messages.

Syndication

The syndication feature is really interested for people who would like to stay informed about any modifications or new posts of a forum, without be connected on it. The syndication uses an XML language to simplify and resume activity and news information on a website.

By adding a syndication file to its agregator software, a user can easily follows hundred of websites from one place. There are a lot of available agregator on the Net, like Feedreader, RSS Bandit, Akregator (Linux only),...

For more information about Syndication, do not hesitate to consult its related Wikipedia Article.

Here are examples of RDF languages :

  • RSS 1.0
  • RSS 2.0
  • ATOM 1.0

User banishment

User banishment is an option that allows administrators remove posting rights to users that do not respect the rules of the community. This is also really useful if you are not sure that a user has only subscribed to promote its own website or spam the users of your community.

User management

Some forum softwares do not have many users management options, and this can really change your decision, because you will need for example multiple administrators access, or dedicated moderators on some parts of the forum.

Here are examples of user management :

  • User groups
  • Restricted access on specifical forums
  • Multiple administrator allowed
  • Moderators on specifical forums
  • Blacklist
  • IP Blocking
  • ACL (Access Control List)

User profile

The user profile allows the user to modify its personal information and even sometimes customize the forum for his account. For example, administrators can activate several themes that users can select to change the look of the forum.