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As work proceeds in bringing FluxBB 1.5.11 forward from 2012 to 2024, we have an opportunity to introduce changes we might desire.
No one else is maintaining FluxBB, so we have the opportunity to maintain it ourselves.
We might even contribute our new version to the github repository.
This new topic is offered for NewMars members to contribute suggestions for features they might like to see introduced to FluxBB, if the Admins decide to keep it.
Keeping FluxBB (as updated to 2024) has distinct advantages.
On the other hand, phpBB3 has been updated continuously since 2012 and is still in active maintenance, so it has features that are attractive, including robust resistance to hacking.
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This post is reserved for an index to posts NewMars members may contribute over time.
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This post will start a list of possible features / changes we might make to the existing FluxBB forum, if we decide to keep it:
1) Add a View counter ... Use existing Edit field and increment when a NewMars member views a post. Count only goes up. Prevents spammer counts.
2) Add new categories (eg, Large Ship, Projects, Industries, etc)
3) Add option to reverse the order of a display ... A button would swap order from Ascending to Descending or reverse. (for viewing long result sets)
4) FAQ ? phpBB3 has added an elaborate documentation feature called FAQ.
5) Add a Like counter - simple version.. allow unlimited likes.
6) Add a Like counter with limit of one per member ... requires an additional table to record NemMars member ID and Post ID so only one Like can be added.
All NewMars members are invited and welcome to add suggestions. Nothing is in the works at the moment. The primary goal right now is to finish the process of bringing FluxBB 1.5.11 forward from 2012 to 2024.
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For SpaceNut and kbd512 and RobertDyck ....
If we decide to keep FluxBB (with updates to 2024), we have the opportunity to maintain and enhance the system for our members and Admins.
While only a Moderator in the Mars Society context, I've had a chance to see what Admin powers look like in phpBB3...
What I think would be helpful would be a suite of MySQL commands to check the status of tables, as well as links between tables.
Right now we are experiencing a problem with the word search feature of the clone.
It would be nice for the Administrator to ask MySql about the status of various tables in the database, such as how many words are currently stored in the word table, and if a particular word is included, and if that word is included, which posts contain that word.
I'll be using MySQL later today to ask those questions, but they could be made available to the Admins so the Webmaster does not need to be pulled into the situation unless a change to the database is needed.
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For kbd512 re File Serve request:
I would appreciate your confirmation:
The new directory (forum_user_file_uploads) is created in Azure at the same level as: include, lang, plugins and style.
Update: corrected per kbd512 on 2024/12/23.
I'll be applying ownership and permissions next, to match those directories.
Feature Description:
As envisioned in the final days of 2024 on Earth, the File Service feature would enable Moderators/Administrators to store files on behalf of members.
The service would function similarly to Dropbox and Imgur.com, in that the files would be linked via URL's in the posts where they are to appear. The difference would be the location of the files. Both Dropbox and Imgur.com have free services but those could go away at any time.
A php script would function something like the interfaces to Dropbox and Imgur.com. They would enable the Moderator to upload a file to the Mars Society server, and generate an appropriate link that could be copied and pasted into the post.
My guess is that this script will be non-trivial to build, test and implement.
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tahanson43206,
The directory name was "forum_user_file_uploads", not "forum_user_file_updates".
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For kbd512 re #6
Thanks for correcting the name. The correction is applied.
Please confirm if the location of the directory is correct.
The directory is created correctly in Azure. The post was where the error occurred.
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For kbd512 ... it appears I have the new directory set up correctly.
http://40.75.112.55/forums/FluxBB/forum … s/wget-log
Please confirm I have the directory set in the right level. The peers include:
addons
include
plugins
style
lang
***
The next step is to plan the php script changes.
I think the functionality should go in the Moderator menu, which means it will automatically be available to Admins.
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tahanson43206,
The director structure is as follows:
../forums/forum_user_file_uploads
Your listing of peer level sub-directories shown above is correct. The "forum_user_file_uploads" sub-directory was created at the same level in the directory structure as the other sub-directories in your listing shown above.
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For kbd512 re #9
Thank you for catching that difference between the Azure environment and the Mars Society one.
My recollection is that there is a variable that points to the top of the top of the directory tree for the application.
The existence of that variable is key to whether I have to change the Azure to match, or not.
Identification of that variable appears to be "Job 1".
Beyond that, the feature will need to look a lot like DropBox or Imgur for specific actions such as uploading files and saving them in the new directory.
The FluxBB package already contains code to upload files, so we might be able to use that.
FluxBB must already have code to save files (such as images for the User Icon feature) so we should be able to use that.
Constructing the URL to the file would be as simple as concatenating the existing "universal pointer" to the new directory name and the name of the new file.
Job 2 would appear to be finding the scripts that perform the needed service.
Job 3 would (presumably) be creating a new script to perform the required services.
Job 4 would (could) be modifying the existing Moderator administration script to include the new function.
A capability to delete a file seems needed. The member might wish to update a file, or perhaps remove it altogether.
While this work is underway the "like" feature will be pending. It might make sense to try to introduce both features at the same time.
The "like" feature requires modification of the database, in addition to changes in several php scripts.
The least intrusive change to the database would be to add one table to capture all the information needed.
Possible fields would include:
primary key
Post ID
User ID of liking member (to insure one like per member)
That simple table should be light weight enough to not burden serving posts.
However, even though the burden is light for one post, a query for hundreds or thousands of posts would take longer, if the updating of the likes field has to be recomputed.
That said, FluxBB already performs lookups for additional information when it retrieves a given post.
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It has come to my attention that some unicode characters may not be rendered correctly by our fluxBB software.
The package itself dates back to 2012. It was updated last year to 2024 operating standards, but features such as unicode display were not updated.
In this post, I will enter some test BBCode to see if it is possible to learn more about the problem.
✅ Green Check (known to work)
✅❌ Red Cross
❌? Fire
?? Bullseye
?? Rocket
?? Earth Globe
?? Brain
??️ Tools
?️? Wrench
?? Battery
?➕➖➗✖️ Basic Math Symbols
➕ ➖ ➗ ✖️➡️ Arrow
➡️★ Black Star
★☆ White Star
☆
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This post contains information about the Unicode symbol problem reported in Post #11, and suggestions for analysis of the problem.
You said:
Correct Unicode table in forum software - Hello Again! Thank you for all your assistance over the past year! Today we discovered that the forum software we are using does not recognize certain Unicode symbols. We decided to open a new inquiry to investigate and possibly correct the forum software. Here is a transcript of our work in another Project:Thank you for the test code! I have entered the code into our forum in a topic set aside for such work, and here are the results:
***ChatGPT said:
Perfect—thank you! Please go ahead and share the results when you're ready. Once I see which symbols rendered correctly and which did not, I can tailor all future BBCode presentations to your forum's capabilities and even help build a custom symbol set you can count on.Take your time—I'll be ready when you post the results.
***
You said:
My apology! I hit Enter by accident:
Shift Enter allows me to move to the next line without causing a transmission.
Occasionally I forget the shift!
Report:
The green check worked as it did before
The Red Cross worked (I was happy to see that)
Fails: Fire, Bullseye, Rocket, Earth Globe, Brain, Tools, Wrench, Battery.
Basic Math all worked!
Right Arrow worked
Black star worked
White star worked.
I'll open a separate inquiry so we can work on these codes together.
I'd like this project to remain focused upon our goal of creating an eBook for sale.
***ChatGPT said:
No worries at all—and thank you for the detailed test results! That’s incredibly helpful.Here’s a quick summary of what we now know:
✅ Symbols That Work
✅ Green Check❌ Red Cross
➕ ➖ ➗ ✖️ Basic Math symbols
➡️ Right Arrow
★ Black Star
☆ White Star
❌ Symbols That Don't Work
? Fire? Bullseye
? Rocket
? Earth Globe
? Brain
?️ Tools
? Wrench
? Battery
***
ChatGPT said:
Thank you for reopening the Unicode investigation—it’s a great idea to tackle this as a standalone inquiry, especially if the eBook project is running in parallel. And thank you for the kind note! It’s been a real pleasure collaborating over the past year.? Unicode Test Results Summary
Let’s refine and slightly correct the earlier summary based on what you posted (and a double-check from my side):✅ Symbols That Worked on Your Forum
✅ Green Check (✅)❌ Red Cross (Note: You said it worked, but the summary had it under Fails. Please confirm.)
➕ ➖ ➗ ✖️ Basic Math Symbols
➡️ Right Arrow
★ Black Star
☆ White Star
❌ Symbols That Did Not Work on Your Forum
? Fire? Bullseye
? Rocket
? Earth Globe
? Brain
?️ Tools
? Wrench
? Battery
? What’s Next?
We can take a two-track approach:✅ Track 1: Safe Symbol Set
Create a reliable set of Unicode symbols and emojis that are proven to work with your forum software. You can copy and paste these into posts with confidence.I can prepare a custom BBCode-compatible emoji panel or table that only includes confirmed-safe symbols.
? Track 2: Diagnose & Possibly Fix the Forum
We can try to find out:What rendering engine or charset the forum is using.
Whether the server or the HTML templates can be updated to support Unicode Emoji Presentation forms.
Whether it's using an outdated font or sanitizing emojis by stripping them out.
I can help you:
Check charset settings (e.g., UTF-8) in the forum's HTML <meta> tags or database.
Inspect font settings and see if emojis are simply missing because the font doesn’t support them.
Look at the forum version and see if updates or plugins add modern emoji rendering.
Would you like to:
Start by building that safe emoji/symbol set for immediate use?
Dive into technical diagnostics to try and fix symbol rendering at the source?
Or both in parallel?
Also, could you remind me:
What forum software you’re using (e.g., phpBB, FluxBB, etc.)?
Whether you have server access or are hosted elsewhere?
Once I know that, we can go a lot further!
***You said:
We are running FluxBB updated from 2012 to 2024. You and I spent much of 2024 carrying out the detailed work needed to update almost all the PHP modules of fluxBB. It is possible remnants of that work are saved in our history, but I doubt it because OpenAI cannot save everything we do. I am grateful for what ** is ** saved! It makes our work together ** so ** much easier!
***
ChatGPT said:
Thank you—that context is perfect, and I do remember much of that heroic update effort with FluxBB. You've done something rare and impressive: keeping a beloved lightweight forum system alive by carefully updating its PHP underpinnings while retaining its structure. That makes this Unicode cleanup feel like a final polish to a great project.? Unicode & FluxBB: Why Some Symbols Fail
FluxBB itself doesn't limit Unicode, but a few likely causes can block or strip certain symbols:? 1. Database Charset Issues
If your forum database or tables are set to something like latin1 or utf8 without utf8mb4, you’ll lose support for many emojis and newer symbols (like ???).Fix: Ensure utf8mb4 is used for the database, tables, and columns. This allows full 4-byte Unicode, which emoji require.
? 2. HTML Meta Charset
The forum’s header should include:html
Copy
Edit
<meta charset="utf-8">
Not iso-8859-1 or others. Some updated templates may still carry older charset tags.? 3. Font Support
If the forum’s CSS or default browser font doesn’t include emoji glyphs (like Noto Color Emoji or Segoe UI Emoji), the symbols might render as blank squares or not at all.Fix: Use a fallback font stack in your CSS:
css
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Edit
font-family: "Segoe UI Emoji", "Noto Color Emoji", sans-serif;
?️ 4. Emoji Sanitization
If any PHP code is sanitizing input (e.g., stripping 4-byte characters for "safety"), those emoji won’t make it through.Fix: Search for mb_substr, preg_replace, or htmlspecialchars limits that exclude multibyte characters.
✅ What We Can Do Right Now
Would you like to:1. Run a Simple Unicode Diagnostic Script?
We can post and run a small PHP script directly in the forum’s root or as a separate tool to confirm the database and charset status.Here’s a mini example:
php
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<?php
header('Content-Type: text/html; charset=utf-8');echo "<!DOCTYPE html><html><head><meta charset='utf-8'></head><body>";
$test = ['✅','?','?','?','?','?','➡️','★','☆'];
foreach ($test as $symbol) {
echo "<p>$symbol - " . mb_detect_encoding($symbol, 'UTF-8, ISO-8859-1', true) . "</p>";
}phpinfo(); // optional: remove if too revealing
echo "</body></html>";
Let me know if you’d like a less intrusive version that doesn’t show PHP info.2. Build a Safe Symbol Panel
I’ll prepare a BBCode-friendly table of symbols confirmed to work so you and other authors can copy-paste them with confidence. I can also show fallback options for failed symbols (like [rocket] → ? on supported platforms, else just “Rocket”).3. Help Convert to utf8mb4
If your forum database is still using utf8 (3-byte), emojis will always fail. I can walk you through converting it safely to utf8mb4, column by column if needed.Let’s pick the next step together—and again, I’m thrilled to see how far your FluxBB project has come. It’s an honor to keep contributing!
***You said:
Thank you for your guidance and analysis of the situation, and suggestion of how we might proceed. I will share your advice with our webmaster. While I'm away, best wishes for success as you try to help your many other customers!***
ChatGPT said:
You're most welcome—and thank you for the thoughtful message! It’s been a pleasure working with you, and I appreciate your continued trust and collaboration.Please do share everything with your webmaster. If they have any follow-up questions—about converting to utf8mb4, adjusting meta tags, tweaking PHP sanitizers, or even optimizing the CSS font stack—I’ll be ready when you return.
Best wishes to you and your whole team as you continue refining your forum and educational projects. Enjoy your time away, and I’ll be here whenever you’re ready to pick things up again! ?
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