Another Site Update - pretty big one

Time for the new operating system update soon. I've been following the new version and all the software, extensions, modules, plugins, themes, etc that goes along with it for most of this year on and off. It's a pretty big transition and almost everything on the site has to be updated or redone along with it so I'm sure a lot of things will go a little weird as it all gets done. Most of the bugs are worked out with a lot of the extensions on the site so it won't be as bad as jumping into it when it first came out, that's why I waited and watched for so long. Think of it like when Windows 7 came out and nothing much from Windows XP would natively work with it.

I'm going to clone this site to the WHS test site, make a backup, then start all of my playing around over there. I'll get most of the bugs worked out over there so when the main site gets updated it won't be as noticeable. Hopefully that will result in this site not going to crazy, but no promises...

It's gonna be pretty cold starting tomorrow so I figured I would close up the shop and just buckle down in my new cozy warm computer spot in the house the rest of the week and get it underway. It will also go a lot better and faster if I'm out of the shop and undisturbed.

I'll keep this post updated as things happen. Also, as usual, if anyone sees anything weird going on let me know.

Well... The new update has a lot of peeps going a little crazy including me. It's good for a site that doesn't have a lot of things going on (unlike this one), but those few of us that have a lot of templates, modules, plugins, and such it's proving to be a lot more difficult. I crashed and reloaded the testsite 3 or 4 times the other day so now I'm doing a little more homework to find the solutions. Good thing is I know a lot of things that will not work, and a few things that make it sorta work so that is still progress to me. The biggest challenge is the move to the newest Bootstrap 5 portion of the new system, it's the fastest thing on the planet as of now but making other things work with it that really aren't ready for that is gonna be tough. I've spent a lot of time reading here lately and trying to figure out a lot on my own that others have given up on, but as you all know I don't give up easily...

It will take a little longer than expected but I'll get it. I may have to redo a few things for a bit and it may get a little ugly but I will win lol.

Success=determination and ability having a head on collision! :dalek

Well the downloads section we have now is not compatible with the new operating system version so it will have to be redone, so will some of the templates. Never fear, I've already found new download software that I like even better that is compatible, and I can make my own templates. I've learned a lot in the past 8 or more years since the beginning of building this site from scratch so things will only get better, easier and fancier.

There will prob be a lot of things redone but it's also good to know who is gonna keep up with the operating system and who is not so I can switch to peeps who more keep up with the operating system now, and not have to run into this again. I'm not at all interested in 2nd best which would be the WordPress setup. That setup is easier but much less secure and featureless, it's sort of web design for dummies lol It's more for simpler sites and can't expand to where this site is now even with this version we are on now, let alone the new one...

I know I've been quiet lately but I've been putting all of my spare time and effort into the upgrade as the system we are on now is already in security updates only until August 2023 when it will no longer be updated, so this really needs to be done. I also always tend to do this type of thing when the weather gets colder with shorter daylight days because I can't do as much outside...

On a better note the changes to the test site lately haven't crashed it again so that's nice.

Been working on it all day and it's bedtime now. Most of the time spent was on the forum + templates, the one we have now isn't gonna work but I at least have a solution that should work with the update. The front forum page needs a lot more customizing but is clean and shows more info, the posts and post screen is fancier with a nice look and a lot more options.

Some sneak peeks below.

I've never had this much trouble with an update but the more I read, everyone else says the same unless it's on a new site using the new version instead of upgrading unless it's a very basic and simple site... I swear I'm gonna go nuts before this is over lol.

I lunched the test site twice today after everything on the pre-update tool said it was all good. Methinks something is also wrong with the pre-update check tool as well. :waiting

I could have started from scratch and been done by now and I would have if it weren't for all the 14609 posts still on the forum that the stats say at the bottom of the forum page.

Even after the new system is in, there are new forum, shoutbox, templates, among other module updates and lots of other things that work with the new system that are NOT backwards compatible. That is really the problem with this whole ordeal in the first place, someone took way too big a leap at once...

There may be another way that I've been thinking about... I may try making another testsite and installing a clean install with the new system and go from there to see what happens. If I can move the categories and or posts from here to there into the newer forum update that would be the way to go in any circumstance, I can always redo all the other pages without a lot of trouble...

Post screen and toolbars are back in the post screen and looks better than ever with a lot of new options.  Clicking on profile pic in menu bar works, color for shoutbox button works, action buttons for reply etc work, and a few other buttons work now too.  Problem was 1 file directing things to Bootstrap 5 that isn't used anywhere yet, renaming that 1 file fixed all of this...  5 hours to find, 1 min to fix...  

It seems like peeps thinking a little too far ahead are causing ALL of these problems.  I wish more of these cutting edge peeps would actually test this stuff before releasing it.  It's sorta like all the mechanics saying things are fixed without checking their work.  

Each blames the other but I found the fix, and with all the time involved to fix all this stuff I'm not telling them.  They'll prob just argue about it and start the blame game again but the proof is right here in this post. 

Too many new things to list but just play with the stuff.  After selecting a smiley you can click on it, a box will appear around it, then delete or even resize it on the fly.  You can also select colors by a large pallet on the more colors button, or input the 6 digit color code giving you access to the 16 million color pallet. 

** Now I'm on to why some of the links disappear after you hover the mouse on them, another common problem peeps are having...  

Almost forgot, the banner and menu drops now like on other pages so it is always in reach, and the shoutbox is only on the main forum pages, not in the recent topics, my topics, profile or search.  I did those this morning.  I've wanted it that way for a long time but the new template and mods made it happen now.  

Still some button issues but the button and link disappearing act issues are fixed.  

Not as bad as the past few nights but it's past bedtime again, 4:30 comes early ya know... 

Someone asked why are you working on the main site instead of the test site...  Well, the truth is I lunched the testsite so badly that even the quick backup wouldn't fix it so I had enough info from what I learned over there that did work to apply a lot of it here before I forgot it all.     I had planned on looking at the backend of the testsite and just copying those settings here but after trying to update the operating system on the test site the backend was totally gone, oops lol.  

Anyway,,, the main site is now 95% where I had the testsite before it went south so I went on and cloned the main site to the testsite a few minutes ago and now the testsite is back up.  Now I guess I can back it up, then go over there and see if I can blow it up again...