Ok, I'm going to start off by asking a question to OpaQue and the mods here at Trap 17. Before you read this this isn't trying to down this site or trying to tell you guys how to run this. I'm just wondering, however, why the Entertainment forums and sub-forums, and also the Life-Talk forums and sub-forums isn't included in gaining credits, unless I'm mistaken, but if there's no post count then that would mean you don't get credits right? I think that would help the site, because more posts will probably be made, because this gives users deeper things to talk about, please correct me if I am wrong, just a questions though...

My second question is about Fantastico...Using this, so I've heard gives you the ability to install forums and an image gallery, which also means that they are free? I need both of these features for my site, and I wanted to know before I apply so I can search for these things if in fact that it does not...Help is greatly apperciated...

Thanks guys for any feedback...

This post has been edited by DaRealChrono: May 3 2006, 12:27 AM

for the first question, im not a mod so im not going to answer here...but check PM box to see why I think they wont allow it

as for the second one, yes everything in fantastico is free it comes with the hosting, it does give you the option of installing a forum which is PHPBB, but you can always search google for one that you can install by yourself like MyBB or any other ones, and it also offers somthing called SMF which i have neevr used.

as for a gallery manager, it gives you three different ones: 4Images Gallery, Coppermine Photo Gallery, Gallery on the site that i am setting up, i use coppermine.....but nothing is inmy gallerys right now...

hope this helped

For Q1: OpaQue doesn't feel that those sections contribute to the content of the forum significantly, therefore posts do not recieve credit. I don't have any clue as to why OpaQue would think this (hey, The Simpsons is educational ).

For Q2: All of the scripts in Fantastico can be installed for free, and most are open source. As Albus mentioned, you can install SMF, phpBB, or both even. And there are a bunch of gallery scripts to address that question.

Both good answers there, Michael and Albus. And there are many, many more scripts available in the fantastico than what you have mentioned. and, yes, all free for the installing.

There might be a connection between the no-post count topics and the searchability of those topics by the Bots that index the site. I am only guessing here, but I don't think that Opaque neccesarily wants the Bots to index a bunch of middle-school students' problems, so that may be a reason. Of course, use grown-ups have our share of content there as well, but anyway, I think the no-post count for certain topics is a method to possibly minimize the content in those topics so the Forum is searched and reported on other issues, like php coding, and other more techy stuff. Graphics, for instance is a big drawing card for the trap17 forums, for instance, so trying to focus on gfx types is accomodated by using the gfxtrap.com url. etc. See what I mean?

For those forum sections that draws too many spam posts and spammers were picked to have no post count as well. But at the same time, some sections are counted towards hosting credits because our hosted members will take their own time answering questions.

Fastastico is great and it's free.

As for forums which does not count for credits how much of a selection to you need to be satisfied? There are many different forums here that do give credits so for the ones that don't let's not complain to much.

I fully support these forums not having a credit gain simply because of the spam factor previously mentioned. Those forums are just a breeding ground for spam.