Just ideas and some tips :D

[dthiago]

ASB is awesome but some new features on Modules like Who has been online today CloudTag, Custom Status, Thank You (Who gaves,who receive) MyAlerts Donate Status

And PLZ ..i don´t understand about CSS/HTML but can be more beauty like this?

[WildcardSearch]

ASB is awesome but some new features on Modules like Who has been online today

Do you mean a list of all the people that have visited in the last 24 hours as a side box?

That could be done by adding an optional setting to the existing WOL box.

CloudTag,

?

Custom Status,

You want me to make a status plugin within ASB or do you mean tie into an existing plugin?

Thank You (Who gaves,who receive) MyAlerts

I said from the beginning that I wouldn't create third-party add-ons for the core. The reasoning is that changes in the external plugin could affect modules, which might break affecting ASB core. I might actually do something unofficial, but just out of curiosity, what MyAlerts stuff would you want? Just the latest alerts? Doesn't that seem redundant given there is the drop-down?

Donate Status

This sounds like something that is specific to your site. Am I wrong?

And PLZ ..i don´t understand about CSS/HTML but can be more beauty like this?

ASB doesn't attempt to style anything. It simply tries to match your existing forum style.

The facility to modify side box's look and feel has been given in the form of editing templates on a per theme basis for both modules and core templates. If you anyone can show me ways to make it easier to customize the style of the side boxes, I would gladly listen. :smile:

Thanks for the comments and thanks for using ASB.

[Destroy666x]

I think he asks you to create custom modules for ASB because custom plugin variables don't work in custom boxes.

Tag Cloud: http://mods.mybb.com/view/tag-system http://mods.mybb.com/uploads/previews/25549-1330655523-8.png

MyStatus: http://mods.mybb.com/view/mystatus http://mods.mybb.com/uploads/previews/21114-1327264687-Preview-1.png etc. (everything doable with plugins)

But even if you reenable custom variables, he'll still need to edit hooks in these plugins to work globally, unless he wants them in specific places only.

[WildcardSearch]

But even if you reenable custom variables, he'll still need to edit hooks in these plugins to work globally

That is true. In fact, the only real solution to offering side box modules for third-party plugins is to convince the owner of the TPP to develop and maintain one-- OR some volunteer (including myself) to create and maintain it.

I have tried to cheer-lead this idea to other developers with no luck. Thankfully @tanweth has started things off by integrated two plugins with ASB. I hope that will encourage others to do the same.

Back to the question at hand, I can understand how MyStatus would integrate-- I can get how the tag cloud would work, but I still can't understand the MyAlerts integration? How would it be beneficial to have alerts in a side box? Wouldn't that create a sort of privacy concern? (over-the-shoulder)

[Tanweth]

Yeah adding modules that work with other plugins is tricky. It's certainly best not to include them in the core, but even as an unofficial volunteer effort it has the annoyance of having to keep up with someone else's code. It's pretty easy for me to maintain my modules since I know what changes I'm making to my own plugins as I'm making them. I definitely think that if ASB users feel that another plugin would benefit from having ASB integration, and the author still actively develops the plugin, it doesn't hurt to ask for integration. The plugin author is more likely to put in the effort if he knows that there is demand. Many probably haven't even given consideration to how it would work, or think that it'd be a lot harder to develop than it actually is. Since few plugins are as modular, I think most authors wouldn't expect it to be as simple as it is. But developing sideboxes for many other systems (like WordPress) is second nature since it's in the core, and the great thing about ASB is it allows you to do that with MyBB. But since it isn't in the core, it isn't immediately intuitive to plugin authors.

[WildcardSearch]

^good stuff

It is also worth mentioning that for me to create and maintain bridge addons for other plugins is to pull me away from developing this plugin and its existing modules. I am already strapped for time which is why you see me idle for two weeks and then pushing three commits per day for four days to get done.

I have a lot of other improvements in mind now that we have conquered the global availability issues and I think that focusing on 3rd-party plugins would distract me from that.

[WildcardSearch]

@dthiago did we scare you away?

I'm going to close this as we are nearing release for 2.1 and I'm tracking these issues.