Just a heads up to let everyone know where we stand.
The server just arrived here a few moments ago. A shaky UPS guy saw two shepherds peering out from the glass around the front door, and asked if he could drop it off in the garage. It's since been moved into the house, and while I've not yet been able to open it up, the box is in good condition.
The current plan is that I get it out and set up tonight. I've got to make sure I've got a monitor that will work around here. I have an LCD and it should, but if not we may have to borrow one. After the lightning strike, we lost all our desktops (3) and are down to the two laptops. :) I really don't see this being a problem. Anyway, I'll fire it up and start poking around.
Jelsoft is on the verge of releasing vBulletin 3.5, a new major release version. This generation totally rewrites how hacks/mods are handled, which is music to my ears. They're now handled as plug-in modules, whereas before I had to go in and cut new code into the original myself, for each modification. We have, I'd guess, around 25-30 modifications to the original software. Many as developed by active people in the vBulletin community, several that are custom and unique to BP. The problem with upgrading vB versions in the past has been that it meant reapplying every single hack. A process that, the last time I did it going from 3.0.0 to 3.0.1, took nearly 8 hours. The new structure with 3.5.0 makes that unnecessary. As the original forum code is left untouched when add-ons are applied via the new hook system, you can upgrade to new versions of the core software quickly and easily, without touching any of the add-ons. Additionally, it means that updating the add-ons will be a breeze as well.
What does this mean to all of you? Lol, not just a whole hell of a lot. But it's a boon to me. Joking aside, it does mean that the 'hacks' we use will have to all be upgraded/recoded to work within the new structure, which means you will see some features missing when the site first comes online with the new machine. As they become available in the new format, they will come back online here. Most, I suspect, will be ready to go when 3.5.0 is (today, tomorrow, this week, something like that), so the bottom line is that it's really not going to be a big deal
There are new user-side features for 3.5.0. Mods and admins will be happy to hear inline moderation and editing is coming. Rather than explain what that is, I'll just wait and show you, and let you bask in the convenience that will provide. Users are going to discover that doubleclicking on any of their posts will instantly allow them to edit what they've said. This is a convenience issue, and another step towards websites operating more like our local machines and resources do. Quick replies work better now. The site will actually track not just total users, or users online, but *active* users. An interesting stat that I'm looking forward to seeing. There's more, too much for me to cover here and now.
What does the new server mean to the user? Well, the site is going to be faster. Much faster. We're going to be able to handle a much greater load, meaning next NLOID, we won't have to close off to the public just to keep the site alive.
More than all that though. BP is going to expand on its services a bit. We can start hosting/serving more videos and images. Combined with potential mirroring from other locations provided by our own userbase, we're going to be able to become a real nexus for Buckeye media. Some users are going to be bumped up in terms of their roles and [strike]accept[/strike] access, commensurate with their level of involvement with the site, and how they represent BP as a community. We're going to launch a beta of the stats engine towards the end of the summer and finally get that online. We're going to have room to grow in terms of the userbase. We're going to sift through the 'terrible twos' thread and improve where we're lacking, and improve where we're succeeding. All in all, we're going to maintain the level of perpetual evolution that allows us to best meet the needs of our community.
There's more, but mostly I just wanted to say "the machine is here!" We're one step closer to it being online. The obvious question is going to be, "when will that be?" I don't have a firm timetable yet, but when I do, I will post it here.