Adding Forums and Categories
Submitted Collin S. , Mar 19 2011 12:44 PM | Last updated Aug 11 2011 10:12 AM
The forums are the central focus of most communities and allow users to create topics for discussions.
Adding Categories and Forums
Categories can be setup via the "Manage Forums" section of the "Forums" tab, via the ACP. This is also where you can manage and setup your forums.
You can add a new category or forum using the buttons at the top of the page.
To rearrange categories or forums, click and drag the handle
next to the forums up or down. The page will automaticaly save your new positioning.
Creating a Category
Because a category is simply a container to hold and organize various forums, creating a category is very simple.
Simply enter the name of the catagory for step 1. For step 2, it is safe to check the "Global Permissions" checkbox, as no posts or topics are contained within a catagory. If a user does not have permission to view any forums in the catagory, they will not see it.
Creating a Forum
For Step 1, you will choose the "Type of Forum". There are 3 different types:
*Standard forum: Does what you would expect, it's a forum, with topics, posts, and sub-forums.
*Container forum: Users are not able to directly post into this type of forum. Instead, they will need to select a sub-forum for their posts.
*Redirect forum: A forum that redirects users somewhere else, such as a registration page.
Additionally, you will configure a Forum Parent - This is the category which the forum should show under. Also note that any forum can also hold subforums so you can create multiple levels of forums on your community. If you wish to create a sub-forum, simply set the "parent" of this forum as the forum you wish for it to be under.
On the next page, you will be able to configure forum permissions.
Postable Forum Settings: Options
HTML / BBCode Posting - BBCode are the special tags used in most community software such as [ b ][ /b ] (for bold) to format a members post. HTML posting can also be enabled here if you want members, who have permission, to be able to post full HTML.
Topic Ratings - A member can optionally rate a topic 1 - 5 stars and the average of those ratings are displayed on the topic listing.
Post Count Incrementation - If disabled, posts in this forum will not add to the member's post count. This is useful for test forums or other areas where you would not want posts to count toward a member's overall post count.
Minimum posts to post/view - You can set a forum to require that a member's post-count is over a certain number to be able to view the forum or post within the forum. Leave this setting blank for no restriction.
View other member's topics - By selecting this option only the original started of a topic and moderators/administrators can see the topics in this forum. You would enable this option if a forum is to be a place for private discussion between the community staff and the member.
Enable Posting Moderation - Moderated posts are visible to moderators/administrators but are hidden to all other members until approved and set visible by the moderators. You can also enter an email (or multiple emails separated by commas) for moderators to be notified if a new topic is pending approval.
Forum Password - Setting a password for a forum requires that all members (except those selected as exempt groups) enter the password to that forum before accessing it. IPS generally suggests using the permission system rather than password-protected forums to control access for ease of management and security.
Tag Settings - Configuring the tag settings by allowing or disallowing tags and prefixes to be used in this forum. You can over-ride the default list of tags by adding pre-defined tags as well, from which members will choose from when posting a topic.
Permission Matrix
For more information on setting up forum permissions, please see this article.
Adding Categories and Forums
Categories can be setup via the "Manage Forums" section of the "Forums" tab, via the ACP. This is also where you can manage and setup your forums.
You can add a new category or forum using the buttons at the top of the page.
To rearrange categories or forums, click and drag the handle
next to the forums up or down. The page will automaticaly save your new positioning.Creating a Category
Because a category is simply a container to hold and organize various forums, creating a category is very simple.
Simply enter the name of the catagory for step 1. For step 2, it is safe to check the "Global Permissions" checkbox, as no posts or topics are contained within a catagory. If a user does not have permission to view any forums in the catagory, they will not see it.
Creating a Forum
For Step 1, you will choose the "Type of Forum". There are 3 different types:
*Standard forum: Does what you would expect, it's a forum, with topics, posts, and sub-forums.
*Container forum: Users are not able to directly post into this type of forum. Instead, they will need to select a sub-forum for their posts.
*Redirect forum: A forum that redirects users somewhere else, such as a registration page.
Additionally, you will configure a Forum Parent - This is the category which the forum should show under. Also note that any forum can also hold subforums so you can create multiple levels of forums on your community. If you wish to create a sub-forum, simply set the "parent" of this forum as the forum you wish for it to be under.
On the next page, you will be able to configure forum permissions.
Postable Forum Settings: Options
Note: any settings in this section which mention they are subject to group permissions means that both the member's group settings and the forum setting must be enabled to access any specific setting.
HTML / BBCode Posting - BBCode are the special tags used in most community software such as [ b ][ /b ] (for bold) to format a members post. HTML posting can also be enabled here if you want members, who have permission, to be able to post full HTML.
It is a security risk to enable HTML posting. Do not enable HTML posting for members in a user group with HTML permission unless you 100% trust those members. IPB cannot protect the security of your community if HTML posting is enabled as all protections to filter post content are unavailable with this option enabled.
Topic Ratings - A member can optionally rate a topic 1 - 5 stars and the average of those ratings are displayed on the topic listing.
Post Count Incrementation - If disabled, posts in this forum will not add to the member's post count. This is useful for test forums or other areas where you would not want posts to count toward a member's overall post count.
Minimum posts to post/view - You can set a forum to require that a member's post-count is over a certain number to be able to view the forum or post within the forum. Leave this setting blank for no restriction.
View other member's topics - By selecting this option only the original started of a topic and moderators/administrators can see the topics in this forum. You would enable this option if a forum is to be a place for private discussion between the community staff and the member.
Enable Posting Moderation - Moderated posts are visible to moderators/administrators but are hidden to all other members until approved and set visible by the moderators. You can also enter an email (or multiple emails separated by commas) for moderators to be notified if a new topic is pending approval.
Forum Password - Setting a password for a forum requires that all members (except those selected as exempt groups) enter the password to that forum before accessing it. IPS generally suggests using the permission system rather than password-protected forums to control access for ease of management and security.
Tag Settings - Configuring the tag settings by allowing or disallowing tags and prefixes to be used in this forum. You can over-ride the default list of tags by adding pre-defined tags as well, from which members will choose from when posting a topic.
Permission Matrix
For more information on setting up forum permissions, please see this article.
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