What I did over the weekend

[Robert]

Starting about 7pm last Friday, I worked non-stop, except for some sleep, until now. My goal was to get as much of the website transferred to the new server with as many upgrades and new stuff as possible. Although I did not complete everything I had hoped to, I still managed to get quite a bit done.

What I did:

1. A new, more powerful server to which I have root access. I'll have much more flexibility now over the server configuration.
2. A professionally created logo. I wanted something simple and elegant. Hope you guys like it.
3. A new website banner designed by yours truly.
4. A new menu. It requires a flash plug-in but most browsers have that these days.
5. Upgraded vBulletin from 3.0.3 to 3.5.4. This is the latest release and it is designed so that future upgrades are not as disruptive.
6. Installed an upgraded version of the software that controls the layout of the home page. I have more configuration to do here.
7. Installed an upgraded version of the journal software and was able to keep all member's journal entries.
8. Installed a new Link Manager that is completely integrated with vBulletin.
9. Installed a new Photo Gallery that is completely integrated with vBulletin.
10. Removed the WebRing from the home page as this is not the mark of a professional website.
11. Installed an upgraded Article Manager that is integrated with the forums.
12. Added a new support feature where you can go to report website problems, download stuff, read website how-to articles, and troubleshoot your own problem.

What I have left to do:

1. Fix Latex. Worked about 6 hours on this on Sunday and I think I just about have it working. Hopefully ready this week.
2. I still need to add the chat room back.
3. Lots of little tweeks in appearance and layout.
4. Modules on the homepage for latest articles, featured article, and more.
5. Get the current news section working and added to the menu.
6. Add the spell checker back.
7. User and website statistics.
8. Country flags.
9. And a whole lot more!

I'll be implementing all these and more in the coming weeks, but I believe I've got the vital stuff implemented and can open the website. Post here if you see any problems. Or, if you brave, try out the new website support tool. Please be sure not to break anything.

Regards,
--Robert

[harmonygirl]

Thanks Robert, you ROCK!!

[baudrunner]

I like it! The new subdued color scheme works for me.

As for me, I spent the weekend polishing up my LaTeX know-how, and believe me that's a trip too. Most of the stuff on the web is so outdated and you really have to poke around to see what's what, but now I've got the goods to create a very technical .pdf document with embedded links and I've just now started learning about .pdf forms - and it hasn't cost me a cent! Hooray for GNU in its quest for global domination! I know none of this is TOEquest related, maybe a little, and I know I'm only almost having as much fun as you Robert, but that's okay. I've been there, I guess I'm a bit of an old-timer because I remember the good ol' days when having a PC XT with a couple of 360K floppy disk drives meant being at the cutting edge. I took a college course back in '86 and had the privilige of working with an IBM 4341 (or something like that} mainframe with five gigabytes of memory on those massive drums in those large blue cabinets which occupied an air-conditioned room (AC even in winter!). It was adjacent to the computer lab, a large classroom occupied by dumb terminals. The line printer alone wouldn't find space in most apartment sized bedrooms! To think how far we've come! Whatever delays this site endures in order to tweak the last little details are entirely forgiveable. Been there, done that.

I did find that I have to reinput my log-in data when I switched my display mode from explorer to firefox. Just another little bug to fix, one among more than a few no doubt. Whatever..

Keep up the good work.

[Aiya-Oba]

Thanks Mr. Armstrong, your sense of mission is historic.
-Aiya-Oba

[Guille]

Robert, it's strange to get used to the new web but it's great. From now on you are:

Rob-e.r.t. (excelence radical top) 'Omnipotent' Arm-strong!

[David Maes]

Congratulations with the new look; is grate!

[Robert]

You will be happy to know that the chat room is operational again and should work same as before. I've also added the Quiz Feature back and I'm allowing all members to create quizzes. Both can be accessed from the top level menu under the "Community" option. If you don't see Community, you may need to refresh or even restart your browser. Also, if you have any login or logout problems this week, continue to clear cookies and restarting your browser. This should stabilize by next week. I can be reached at arob44@verizon.net if needed.

The chat room should perform better than before but the big performance gain is yet to arrive. Still doing some troubleshooting, but it's coming. Also, the "Who's in chat" message should be back tomorrow. Be nice to Carly. She seemed a little confused last time I spoke to her. It's tough to not exist for a weekend.

[baudrunner]

My apologies to Carly, for I fear that I may have disturbed her once again. It's just that she continues to answer all of my sane and practical questions with more questions and she appears to have no answers. Questions like "Who visited the chatroom today?" should have a practical answer, but no, she insists on toying with me. That's annoying. She should also be able to answer questions like "Where is <member's name> right now?", but just more questions come back. It puzzles me why she acts so philosophical when she is so mindless. Tch..

As for not existing for a weekend, well, I've had weekends like that and I got over them.

[Unreal Zelta]

It's good to hear the improvements on the site! TOEquests is undoubtably becoming more and more popular! I'm loving it!