Some upgrade questions from VB4 to VB5

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  • PAPPACLART
    Member
    • May 2012
    • 43
    • 4.2.X

    Some upgrade questions from VB4 to VB5

    Hello


    I have a VB 4.2.2 CMS site. I have been reading some terrible things about VB5 in the press! None the less I am familiar with vbulletin and very happy with my VB 4.2.2 board. I had zero experience but built quite a professional looking board all on my own which is a credit to the software.

    At the moment my only reason to upgrade to VB5 is because it has a responsive design and that I only have experience with vbulletin as an Admin. From what I can see VB5 right now does not have the functionality for my users and is very buggy but I would still like to install it and play with it and then migrate over when the software has matured a little more.

    Sorry these are very noob questions.
    • So first off if I want to run a test site with VB5 how do I do it while still having my VB 4.2.2 site live?
    • If I buy a VB5 licence to test which do I buy, the upgrade or the full licence?
    • Based upon the above, if I have a test site running in the background for several months how do I then upgrade my VB4.2.2 site once I am happy to do so?
    I have briefly played with the VB5 demo, but on the 2 occasions I have used it I could not access the Admin CP (install.php not deleted) so I could not check over some of the basic features and admin functions, while I found the site builder clunky.
    • Is it possible to edit the stylevars in the same way as VB4?
    • Are usergroups joinable like in VB4
    • Can I apply different themes to different forums
    • Do user ranks work in the same way
    • My site uses multiple themes for different forums, these themes were largely built using the editable stylevar variables, will my themes be carried over to VB5 if I upgrade. (obviously minus any mods)


    As I am not a programmer, with VB5 will I be able make it look largely similar to my existing site? http://www.gtarena.com



    Thanks in Advance and sorry if this was posted in the wrong place.









    Last edited by PAPPACLART; Tue 4 Feb '14, 7:32pm.
    Gran Turismo Arena The Home For GT5 Clubs & Leagues
  • beishe8
    Senior Member
    • Oct 2005
    • 6782
    • 4.2.X

    #2

    Originally posted by PAPPACLART

    So first off if I want to run a test site with VB5 how do I do it while still having my VB 4.2.2 site live?
    Install it to http://yourdomain.com/testvb and lock public access to it in your control panel with a password.

    If I buy a VB5 licence to test which do I buy, the upgrade or the full licence?
    Whichever you want.
    vB4 and vB5 licence: You still have ticket support for vB4.
    Upgrade your vB4 licence to vB5: You will have 30 days ticket support only.


    vB5 is unequivocally the best forum software, but not yet...

    Comment

    • PAPPACLART
      Member
      • May 2012
      • 43
      • 4.2.X

      #3
      Cool

      Ok thanks for that, much appreciated.

      Does anyone else have any answers to my questions?
      Gran Turismo Arena The Home For GT5 Clubs & Leagues

      Comment

      • BirdOPrey5
        Senior Member
        • Jul 2008
        • 9613
        • 5.6.3

        #4
        As was said, you should keep your VB4 Publish Suite license which has ticket support so buy a new VB5 license rather than upgrading your existing. If you do this you won't even have to worry about running VB5 as a test site- you can run it anywhere you want- no problem putting it in a different directory on your main server.

        There isn't going to be a way to upgrade your 4.2 site into an already setup 5.x site- you will have to do an upgrade which will leave you with a stock VB5 setup. I suppose you could export your style changes from your VB5 test site into your new VB5 live site but settings and such will need to be manually applied.

        The VB5 demo system should be fixed now - you will be able to go to the Admin CP if you create a new demo. (It takes about 5 minutes for the Admin CP to become active)

        Yes there are stylervars like VB4

        Usergroups are not joinable like VB4 usergroups- I think this functionality was kind of moved to social groups.

        Yes you can still override an existing forum with a custom style.

        Ranks work mostly the same way, in the postbit in VB5 they display under the Likes/Reputation Bar, above the Join Date- not under the username like IN VB4. If you use rank images you probably will need to make a copy of the rank images folder in both the main directory and the /core/ directory for rank previews to work.

        No themes (styles) from VB4 will carry over to VB5, nor will any mods.

        Comment

        • PAPPACLART
          Member
          • May 2012
          • 43
          • 4.2.X

          #5
          Thanks Joe.d

          I have just been playing with the demo. Allot of the Admin CP is very similar to VB4 which I am happy about.

          You did mention that usergroups were not joinable but upon creating a usergroup you can make it public/joinable. There is also join request area in the Admin CP though when as a test user I search my user setting to find where to join a usergroup I do not see it? In vb for you find it in settings/permission groups but no such thing in VB5 despite being able to make usergroups joinable? Am I missing something?




          I need this function, as my site has clubs. Each club has it's own usergroup with permissions and each club usergroup has its own user rank image that displays a club logo. Usergroup/clubs are browserble with users being able to browse and join the club that they want.


          With regards to site customization.


          I do not see an option to create drop down menus for the navigation/header bar, only an option for sub bar menus? Will this feature return?

          I do not see any options to customize the site width other then 3 options in the site builder? Will we be be able to change site width like in VB4 from the stylevars?

          Also navbars heights and widths (now called header bar) can not be changed as far as I am aware?

          Looks like many fonts and sizes for many elements can't be changed?






          With the VB5 demo I have tried to customize it to make it look like my VB4 site using the styevars and the site builder. VB5 seems less customizable using the styevars vs VB4?


          First impressions are promising for what I need but the VB5 site even after playing looks generic, plain and a little dated with everything looking chunky.












          Last edited by PAPPACLART; Sun 9 Feb '14, 8:22pm.
          Gran Turismo Arena The Home For GT5 Clubs & Leagues

          Comment

          • BirdOPrey5
            Senior Member
            • Jul 2008
            • 9613
            • 5.6.3

            #6
            Hello,

            Yes it appears those settings were inadvertently left in the Admin CP and will need to be removed in a future version- or perhaps they will add the feature back in. However at this time the joinable usergroups like VB4 had are not available. You're not doing anything wrong.

            VB5 doesn't have drop down menus on the sub-navbar. This may return but there is no expected date, it is not something currently under development.

            The site width can be changed by adding CSS code to additional.css. Pretty much anything that doesn't have a stylevar can be changed by adding custom CSS to the css_additional.css template.

            Comment

            • PAPPACLART
              Member
              • May 2012
              • 43
              • 4.2.X

              #7
              Hey Joe D

              Thanks for the reply.

              Wow that is pretty poor leaving settings in the user CP that have no function. I mean whose call was that? Also no drop down menus? We waited an age for proper working drop down menus in VB 4, then they are taken away?


              Also site width and changing other heights/widths was something very simple to change, now you have to go and edit the css_additional.css template. Why would the VB devs change something that was simple and now make it harder. I mean it is cool for me, but what about the non tech savvy?


              Sorry do not want to turn this into a VB5 bashing thread as there are enough of those but how do you expect people to upgrade to 5 when the parity with 4 is non existent on some key things and admin setting with no function are left (forgotten).


              Gran Turismo Arena The Home For GT5 Clubs & Leagues

              Comment

              • TLMD
                Senior Member
                • Sep 2012
                • 1766
                • 5.6.X

                #8
                I think vB5 wasn't created with vB4-feature-parity in mind. That may be the reason for "missing" features, if you compare vB5 with vB4. I agree though that options, which don't have any effects, should be removed.

                Comment


                • PAPPACLART
                  PAPPACLART commented
                  Editing a comment
                  VB5 clearly was not built from the ground up if defunct VB4 options in the Admin CP are still there. Seems VB5 is a mish mash of the 2.
              • TLMD
                Senior Member
                • Sep 2012
                • 1766
                • 5.6.X

                #9
                I didn't say vB5 was created "from the ground up". I just said I doubt that vB5 was built with vB4-feature-parity in mind...

                Comment


                • PAPPACLART
                  PAPPACLART commented
                  Editing a comment
                  Lol, Ooops. Totally agree with your 1st point and was not saying you did say that. I was just adding that point and opinion to what you said. (sorry came across wrong)
              • BirdOPrey5
                Senior Member
                • Jul 2008
                • 9613
                • 5.6.3

                #10
                I think writing a single line of CSS is easier than tracking down a styevar name and going to a specific editor just for that value. I'd say it's a matter of opinion which is easier.

                Comment

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