edit: Welcome to the new digs! You're now looking at the new system!
As a necessary part of keeping the forum going, I'm going to install a new system. There are numerous reasons behind the necessity of this change, and if anybody would like the laundry list of why, I'd be happy to vent, but as it is mostly sysadmin-type venom (curse you, vBulletin!), I don't think it matters so much as the change itself.
First off, the new system is going to look a bit different, and no doubt daunting to anyone who hasn't used a forum with XenForo on it. This is a little scary sometimes. I know exactly how annoying it is to be almost used to the way something works and then it changes all of a sudden (believe me, I have that problem all the time trying to get my stuff to work with Apple's new stuff and keep it working with older Apple stuff!).
Everything should work the same or better, we will have access to cool new features, and, aside from the initial learning curve, it should be faster and easier to use. Kinks that I haven't anticipated will be ironed out on the fly, and your feedback is welcomed and appreciated. You are, after all, why the site is still around.
So, here's how it's going to go down.
Early on Saturday, the site will be taken offline to perform the upgrade. When exactly depends on when I wake up, because I have a tendency to stay awake way too late (like right now). An ample 30-60 minutes of notice will be given just before the board is switched off, as I'll need to prepare a few things before the upgrade, so you won't lose any posts or anything like that. I'll make it pretty clear when things are minutes away from being shut down so that you won't be in the middle of something when the switch is flipped. Just watch for that big black and white notice you just saw at the top to turn to bold red and big, and if you're working on posting something big, save it on your computer to post later.
The upgrade itself will probably take a couple of hours. During that time, I'll be converting all of the users, posts, and shouts, installing the new Racing Forums-themed styles that go with the new system, adding plug-ins that give us smartphone users some goodies, and probably running around like a chicken with my head cut off for a short time, before finally flipping the switch back on. Did you catch all that? No, neither did I...But anyways, yeah.
After the upgrade is complete and the board is turned back on, you will have to log in again, but all of your stuff will have been carried over to the new system automatically, so you won't have to redo a bunch of stuff or change your bookmarks--hopefully, anyways. If any links you use don't work, I'm sure you will let me know!
Once you're on, you will find a very prominent link to a tour that walks you through the basic differences and introduces some of the new stuff that comes with it. Most of the stuff is gonna be pretty much the same - the new thread button will be on the right instead of the left, but the forums will all still be in the same order, you'll still have the same reply box at the bottom of the thread, and you'll still find your messaging and profile controls at the top right.
All goes well, it'll be up with plenty of time to spare before the Rolex 24. (and there's no reason it shouldn't go well, the test run I just did a few days ago went flawlessly)
It's a lot of change at once, but I've been putting it all off for far too long, neglecting my duties, and putting the site at risk. I should stop doing that.
The test run of this conversion is here: http://racing-forums.com/test/
You can browse around it and get a general feel for how it works if you would like to get a preview. It is a temporary copy of the site (like I said, from a few days ago) that will be deleted this weekend, so don't put your best prose on it.
Between now and the weekend, I am working on the tour as we speak, so definitely let me know anything you would specifically prefer to see explained.
I'm sure I will miss something in the tour, or have left out some important detail in my communication to you. I don't have all the answers already, because I'm not smart enough think up all the questions myself! So, please feel free to ask questions now and any time after now about what to expect, how to do something in the new system, and why the sky is blue, and I'll do my best to answer.
As a necessary part of keeping the forum going, I'm going to install a new system. There are numerous reasons behind the necessity of this change, and if anybody would like the laundry list of why, I'd be happy to vent, but as it is mostly sysadmin-type venom (curse you, vBulletin!), I don't think it matters so much as the change itself.
First off, the new system is going to look a bit different, and no doubt daunting to anyone who hasn't used a forum with XenForo on it. This is a little scary sometimes. I know exactly how annoying it is to be almost used to the way something works and then it changes all of a sudden (believe me, I have that problem all the time trying to get my stuff to work with Apple's new stuff and keep it working with older Apple stuff!).
Everything should work the same or better, we will have access to cool new features, and, aside from the initial learning curve, it should be faster and easier to use. Kinks that I haven't anticipated will be ironed out on the fly, and your feedback is welcomed and appreciated. You are, after all, why the site is still around.
So, here's how it's going to go down.
Early on Saturday, the site will be taken offline to perform the upgrade. When exactly depends on when I wake up, because I have a tendency to stay awake way too late (like right now).
An ample 30-60 minutes of notice will be given just before the board is switched off, as I'll need to prepare a few things before the upgrade, so you won't lose any posts or anything like that. I'll make it pretty clear when things are minutes away from being shut down so that you won't be in the middle of something when the switch is flipped. Just watch for that big black and white notice you just saw at the top to turn to bold red and big, and if you're working on posting something big, save it on your computer to post later.The upgrade itself will probably take a couple of hours. During that time, I'll be converting all of the users, posts, and shouts, installing the new Racing Forums-themed styles that go with the new system, adding plug-ins that give us smartphone users some goodies, and probably running around like a chicken with my head cut off for a short time, before finally flipping the switch back on. Did you catch all that? No, neither did I...But anyways, yeah.
After the upgrade is complete and the board is turned back on, you will have to log in again, but all of your stuff will have been carried over to the new system automatically, so you won't have to redo a bunch of stuff or change your bookmarks--hopefully, anyways. If any links you use don't work, I'm sure you will let me know!
Once you're on, you will find a very prominent link to a tour that walks you through the basic differences and introduces some of the new stuff that comes with it. Most of the stuff is gonna be pretty much the same - the new thread button will be on the right instead of the left, but the forums will all still be in the same order, you'll still have the same reply box at the bottom of the thread, and you'll still find your messaging and profile controls at the top right.
All goes well, it'll be up with plenty of time to spare before the Rolex 24. (and there's no reason it shouldn't go well, the test run I just did a few days ago went flawlessly)
It's a lot of change at once, but I've been putting it all off for far too long, neglecting my duties, and putting the site at risk. I should stop doing that.
The test run of this conversion is here: http://racing-forums.com/test/
You can browse around it and get a general feel for how it works if you would like to get a preview. It is a temporary copy of the site (like I said, from a few days ago) that will be deleted this weekend, so don't put your best prose on it.
Between now and the weekend, I am working on the tour as we speak, so definitely let me know anything you would specifically prefer to see explained.
I'm sure I will miss something in the tour, or have left out some important detail in my communication to you. I don't have all the answers already, because I'm not smart enough think up all the questions myself! So, please feel free to ask questions now and any time after now about what to expect, how to do something in the new system, and why the sky is blue, and I'll do my best to answer.
