MyBBGroup

MyCMSBox – Custom MyBB Sidebox and CMS Layout

Xstrike — Sat, 26 Jan 2013 18:20:45 +0000

MyBB sidebox and CMS layout Custom modification code.

A while ago I wrote a tutorial about how to add a custom MyBB sidebox without plugins, and later another tutorial about creating and customizing MyBB into a CMS (content management system) type layout. This tutorial combines both of the previous ones, a modification I like to nickname MyCMSBox.

What is it?

MyCMSBox is a modification to MyBB that creates new content blocks, such as a sidebox, for displaying anything you want. Like your website’s Facebook page, an important thread, featured YouTube video, social sharing buttons, affiliates, etc. This is useful if you have a lot of content you want to display and organize around your forum.

Features (by default):

6 custom content blocks; 1 header block, 1 footer block, 2 left and right sidebox blocks.
Settings to turn them individually on/off.
Settings for allowing them to appear on Index page, Forum Display, Showthread and Member Profile.
Adjust width of left and right sidebox content blocks.
Customizable for you to add more or less content blocks.

MyCMSBox is not a MyBB plugin, and does not require editing core files of MyBB.

———-Important———-

In order for this modification to work, you need to install and activate the Template Conditionals plugin, which allows safe expressions use of PHP inside MyBB templates. Download it here: http://mybbhacks.zingaburga.com/showthread.php?tid=464

———-Important———-

You’ll need to create new settings within MyBB’s Admin CP and edit some templates, this tutorial will walk you through the process.

Step 1: Add new settings group for MyCMSBox

In Admin CP, go to Configuration > Add New Setting Group and add the following:

Title: MyCMSBox
Description: Settings for managing content blocks in MyCMSBox.
Display Order: 0
Identifier: mycmsbox

Insert New Setting Group.

Step 2: Add new settings for managing content blocks

The longest step, you’ll be adding 24 new settings into your MyBB forum. Settings for enabling/disabling content blocks on Index, Forum Display, Showthread and member Profile, settings for left/right content block’s width, and settings for the content blocks themselves.

Go to Add New Setting and add the following for setting 1:

Title: Enable Sidebox Blocks on Index
Description: Choose to enable or disable sidebox blocks on the index page.
Group: MyCMSBox
Display Order: 0
Identifier: sbindex
Type: On / Off Choice
Value: 1

Insert New Setting.

Go to Add New Setting and add the following for setting 2:

Title: Enable Sidebox Blocks on Forum Display
Description: Choose to enable or disable sidebox blocks on Forum Display.
Group: MyCMSBox
Display Order: 1
Identifier: sbforumdisplay
Type: On / Off Choice
Value: 1

Insert New Setting.

Go to Add New Setting and add the following for setting 3:

Title: Enable Sidebox Blocks on Showthread
Description: Choose to enable or disable sidebox blocks on Showthread.
Group: MyCMSBox
Display Order: 2
Identifier: sbshowthread
Type: On / Off Choice
Value: 1

Insert New Setting.

Go to Add New Setting and add the following for setting 4:

Title: Enable Sidebox Blocks on Member Profiles
Description: Choose to enable or disable sidebox blocks on Member Profiles.
Group: MyCMSBox
Display Order: 3
Identifier: sbmemberprofiles
Type: On / Off Choice
Value: 1

Insert New Setting.

Go to Add New Setting and add the following for setting 5:

Title: Left Sidebox Blocks Width
Description: Set the width of the left sidebox blocks.
Group: MyCMSBox
Display Order: 4
Identifier: leftsbwidth
Type: text
Value: 160

Insert New Setting.

Go to Add New Setting and add the following for setting 6:

Title: Right Sidebox Blocks Width
Description: Set the width of the right sidebox blocks.
Group: MyCMSBox
Display Order: 5
Identifier: rightsbwidth
Type: text
Value: 160

Insert New Setting.

Go to Add New Setting and add the following for setting 7:

Title: Enable Header Content Block
Description: Enable or disable the header content block.
Group: MyCMSBox
Display Order: 6
Identifier: hbonoff
Type: On / Off Choice
Value: 1

Insert New Setting.

Go to Add New Setting and add the following for setting 8:

Title: Header Content Block Title
Description: Name of header content block.
Group: MyCMSBox
Display Order: 7
Identifier: hbtitle
Type: Text
Value: (leave as blank)

Insert New Setting.

Go to Add New Setting and add the following for setting 9:

Title: Header Block Content
Description: Enter content of header block here.
Group: MyCMSBox
Display Order: 8
Identifier: hb
Type: Textarea
Value: (leave as blank)

Insert New Setting.

Go to Add New Setting and add the following for setting 10:

Title: Enable Footer Content Block
Description: Enable or disable the footer content block.
Group: MyCMSBox
Display Order: 9
Identifier: fbonoff
Type: On / Off Choice
Value: 1

Insert New Setting.

Go to Add New Setting and add the following for setting 11:

Title: Footer Content Block Title
Description: Name of footer content block.
Group: MyCMSBox
Display Order: 10
Identifier: fbtitle
Type: Text
Value: (leave as blank)

Insert New Setting.

Go to Add New Setting and add the following for setting 12:

Title: Footer Block Content
Description: Enter content of footer block here.
Group: MyCMSBox
Display Order: 11
Identifier: fb
Type: Textarea
Value: (leave as blank)

Insert New Setting.

Go to Add New Setting and add the following for setting 13:

Title: Enable Sidebox 1
Description: Enable or disable Sidebox 1.
Group: MyCMSBox
Display Order: 12
Identifier: sb1onoff
Type: On / Off Choice
Value: 1

Insert New Setting.

Go to Add New Setting and add the following for setting 14:

Title: Sidebox 1 Title
Description: Name of Sidebox 1.
Group: MyCMSBox
Display Order: 13
Identifier: sbtitle1
Type: Text
Value: (leave as blank)

Insert New Setting.

Go to Add New Setting and add the following for setting 15:

Title: Sidebox 1 Content
Description: Enter content of Sidebox 1 here.
Group: MyCMSBox
Display Order: 14
Identifier: sb1
Type: Textarea
Value: (leave as blank)

Insert New Setting.

Go to Add New Setting and add the following for setting 16:

Title: Enable Sidebox 2
Description: Enable or disable Sidebox 2.
Group: MyCMSBox
Display Order: 15
Identifier: sb2onoff
Type: On / Off Choice
Value: 1

Insert New Setting.

Go to Add New Setting and add the following for setting 17:

Title: Sidebox 2 Title
Description: Name of Sidebox 2.
Group: MyCMSBox
Display Order: 16
Identifier: sbtitle2
Type: Text
Value: (leave as blank)

Insert New Setting.

Go to Add New Setting and add the following for setting 18:

Title: Sidebox 2 Content
Description: Enter content of Sidebox 2 here.
Group: MyCMSBox
Display Order: 17
Identifier: sb2
Type: Textarea
Value: (leave as blank)

Insert New Setting.

Go to Add New Setting and add the following for setting 19:

Title: Enable Sidebox 3
Description: Enable or disable Sidebox 3.
Group: MyCMSBox
Display Order: 18
Identifier: sb3onoff
Type: On / Off Choice
Value: 1

Insert New Setting.

Go to Add New Setting and add the following for setting 20:

Title: Sidebox 3 Title
Description: Name of Sidebox 3.
Group: MyCMSBox
Display Order: 19
Identifier: sbtitle3
Type: Text
Value: (leave as blank)

Insert New Setting.

Go to Add New Setting and add the following for setting 21:

Title: Sidebox 3 Content
Description: Enter content of Sidebox 3 here.
Group: MyCMSBox
Display Order: 20
Identifier: sb3
Type: Textarea
Value: (leave as blank)

Insert New Setting.

Go to Add New Setting and add the following for setting 22:

Title: Enable Sidebox 4
Description: Enable or disable Sidebox 4.
Group: MyCMSBox
Display Order: 21
Identifier: sb4onoff
Type: On / Off Choice
Value: 1

Insert New Setting.

Go to Add New Setting and add the following for setting 23:

Title: Sidebox 4 Title
Description: Name of Sidebox 4.
Group: MyCMSBox
Display Order: 22
Identifier: sbtitle4
Type: Text
Value: (leave as blank)

Insert New Setting.

Go to Add New Setting and add the following for setting 24:

Title: Sidebox 4 Content
Description: Enter content of Sidebox 4 here.
Group: MyCMSBox
Display Order: 23
Identifier: sb4
Type: Textarea
Value: (leave as blank)

Insert New Setting.

Step 3: Edit MyBB templates for MyCMSBox

Go to Templates & Style > Templates > (your default templates) > Footer Templates > footer and find the first:

Add below:

settings['fbonoff'] >= 1 then>
{$mybb->settings['fbtitle']}
{$mybb->settings['fb']}

Save and Return to Listing.

Go to Forum Display Templates > forumdisplay and find:

{$moderatedby}
{$usersbrowsing}
{$rules}
{$subforums}
{$threadslist}

Replace with:

settings['sbforumdisplay'] >= 1 then>

settings['sb1onoff'] || $mybb->settings['sb2onoff'] >= 1 then>


settings['sb1onoff'] >= 1 then>{$mybb->settings['sbtitle1']}
{$mybb->settings['sb1']}


settings['sb2onoff'] >= 1 then>{$mybb->settings['sbtitle2']}
{$mybb->settings['sb2']}




 

{$moderatedby}
{$usersbrowsing}
{$rules}
{$subforums}
{$threadslist}




settings['sb3onoff'] || $mybb->settings['sb4onoff'] >= 1 then> 
settings['sb3onoff'] >= 1 then>{$mybb->settings['sbtitle3']}
{$mybb->settings['sb3']}


settings['sb4onoff'] >= 1 then>{$mybb->settings['sbtitle4']}
{$mybb->settings['sb4']}






{$moderatedby}
{$usersbrowsing}
{$rules}
{$subforums}
{$threadslist}

Save and Return to Listing.

Go to Header Templates > header and find:

    
    

    
      {$pm_notice}
      {$bannedwarning}
      {$bbclosedwarning}
      {$unreadreports}
      {$pending_joinrequests}

Add below:

settings['hbonoff'] >= 1 then>
{$mybb->settings['hbtitle']}
{$mybb->settings['hb']}

Save and Return to Listing.

Go to Index Page Templates > index and find:

{$forums}
{$boardstats}

Replace with:

settings['sbindex'] >= 1 then>

settings['sb1onoff'] || $mybb->settings['sb2onoff'] >= 1 then>


settings['sb1onoff'] >= 1 then>{$mybb->settings['sbtitle1']}
{$mybb->settings['sb1']}


settings['sb2onoff'] >= 1 then>{$mybb->settings['sbtitle2']}
{$mybb->settings['sb2']}




 

{$forums}
{$boardstats}




settings['sb3onoff'] || $mybb->settings['sb4onoff'] >= 1 then> 
settings['sb3onoff'] >= 1 then>{$mybb->settings['sbtitle3']}
{$mybb->settings['sb3']}


settings['sb4onoff'] >= 1 then>{$mybb->settings['sbtitle4']}
{$mybb->settings['sb4']}






{$forums}
{$boardstats}

Save and Return to Listing.

Go to Member Templates > member_profile and find:


{$awaybit}




{$formattedname}


({$usertitle})

{$groupimage}
{$userstars}



{$lang->registration_date} {$memregdate}

{$lang->date_of_birth} {$membday} {$membdayage}

{$lang->local_time} {$localtime}

{$lang->postbit_status} {$online_status}

{$avatar}








{$referrals}
{$reputation}
{$warning_level}


{$lang->users_forum_info}


{$lang->joined}
{$memregdate}


{$lang->lastvisit}
{$memlastvisitdate} {$memlastvisittime}


{$lang->total_posts}
{$memprofile['postnum']} ({$lang->ppd_percent_total})
({$lang->find_threads} — {$lang->find_posts})


{$lang->timeonline}
{$timeonline}




{$sendemail}


{$lang->users_contact_details}


{$lang->homepage}
{$website}

{$lang->pm}
{$lang->send_pm}


{$lang->icq_number}
{$memprofile['icq']}


{$lang->aim_screenname}
{$memprofile['aim']}


{$lang->yahoo_id}
{$memprofile['yahoo']}


{$lang->msn}
{$memprofile['msn']}





{$profilefields}
{$signature}
{$modoptions}
{$adminoptions}
{$buddy_options}

Replace with:

settings['sbmemberprofiles'] >= 1 then>

settings['sb1onoff'] || $mybb->settings['sb2onoff'] >= 1 then>


settings['sb1onoff'] >= 1 then>{$mybb->settings['sbtitle1']}
{$mybb->settings['sb1']}


settings['sb2onoff'] >= 1 then>{$mybb->settings['sbtitle2']}
{$mybb->settings['sb2']}




 


{$awaybit}




{$formattedname}


({$usertitle})

{$groupimage}
{$userstars}



{$lang->registration_date} {$memregdate}

{$lang->date_of_birth} {$membday} {$membdayage}

{$lang->local_time} {$localtime}

{$lang->postbit_status} {$online_status}

{$avatar}








{$referrals}
{$reputation}
{$warning_level}


{$lang->users_forum_info}


{$lang->joined}
{$memregdate}


{$lang->lastvisit}
{$memlastvisitdate} {$memlastvisittime}


{$lang->total_posts}
{$memprofile['postnum']} ({$lang->ppd_percent_total})
({$lang->find_threads} — {$lang->find_posts})


{$lang->timeonline}
{$timeonline}




{$sendemail}


{$lang->users_contact_details}


{$lang->homepage}
{$website}

{$lang->pm}
{$lang->send_pm}


{$lang->icq_number}
{$memprofile['icq']}


{$lang->aim_screenname}
{$memprofile['aim']}


{$lang->yahoo_id}
{$memprofile['yahoo']}


{$lang->msn}
{$memprofile['msn']}





{$profilefields}
{$signature}
{$modoptions}
{$adminoptions}
{$buddy_options}







settings['sb3onoff'] || $mybb->settings['sb4onoff'] >= 1 then> 
settings['sb3onoff'] >= 1 then>{$mybb->settings['sbtitle3']}
{$mybb->settings['sb3']}


settings['sb4onoff'] >= 1 then>{$mybb->settings['sbtitle4']}
{$mybb->settings['sb4']}







{$awaybit}




{$formattedname}


({$usertitle})

{$groupimage}
{$userstars}



{$lang->registration_date} {$memregdate}

{$lang->date_of_birth} {$membday} {$membdayage}

{$lang->local_time} {$localtime}

{$lang->postbit_status} {$online_status}

{$avatar}








{$referrals}
{$reputation}
{$warning_level}


{$lang->users_forum_info}


{$lang->joined}
{$memregdate}


{$lang->lastvisit}
{$memlastvisitdate} {$memlastvisittime}


{$lang->total_posts}
{$memprofile['postnum']} ({$lang->ppd_percent_total})
({$lang->find_threads} — {$lang->find_posts})


{$lang->timeonline}
{$timeonline}




{$sendemail}


{$lang->users_contact_details}


{$lang->homepage}
{$website}

{$lang->pm}
{$lang->send_pm}


{$lang->icq_number}
{$memprofile['icq']}


{$lang->aim_screenname}
{$memprofile['aim']}


{$lang->yahoo_id}
{$memprofile['yahoo']}


{$lang->msn}
{$memprofile['msn']}





{$profilefields}
{$signature}
{$modoptions}
{$adminoptions}
{$buddy_options}

Save and Return to Listing.

Go to Show Thread Templates > showthread and find:

  {$pollbox}
  
    {$multipage}

  
  
    {$newreply}
  
  {$ratethread}
  
    
      
    
    {$classic_header}
  
        
          {$lang->threaded} | {$lang->linear}
        
        
          {$thread['threadprefix']}{$thread['subject']}
        
      
  
    {$posts}
  
  
    
      
    
  
        {$search_thread}
        
          « {$lang->next_oldest} | {$lang->next_newest} »
        
      
  
    {$multipage}
  
  
    {$newreply}
  
  

  {$quickreply}
  {$threadexbox}
  {$similarthreads}
  

  
    
      {$lang->view_printable}
      {$lang->send_thread}
      {$add_remove_subscription_text}
    
  

  
    {$moderationoptions}
    {$forumjump}
  
  

  {$usersbrowsing}

Replace with:

settings['sbshowthread'] >= 1 then>

settings['sb1onoff'] || $mybb->settings['sb2onoff'] >= 1 then>


settings['sb1onoff'] >= 1 then>{$mybb->settings['sbtitle1']}
{$mybb->settings['sb1']}


settings['sb2onoff'] >= 1 then>{$mybb->settings['sbtitle2']}
{$mybb->settings['sb2']}




 

  {$pollbox}
  
    {$multipage}

  
  
    {$newreply}
  
  {$ratethread}
  
    
      
    
    {$classic_header}
  
        
          {$lang->threaded} | {$lang->linear}
        
        
          {$thread['threadprefix']}{$thread['subject']}
        
      
  
    {$posts}
  
  
    
      
    
  
        {$search_thread}
        
          « {$lang->next_oldest} | {$lang->next_newest} »
        
      
  
    {$multipage}
  
  
    {$newreply}
  
  

  {$quickreply}
  {$threadexbox}
  {$similarthreads}
  

  
    
      {$lang->view_printable}
      {$lang->send_thread}
      {$add_remove_subscription_text}
    
  

  
    {$moderationoptions}
    {$forumjump}
  
  

  {$usersbrowsing}




settings['sb3onoff'] || $mybb->settings['sb4onoff'] >= 1 then> 
settings['sb3onoff'] >= 1 then>{$mybb->settings['sbtitle3']}
{$mybb->settings['sb3']}


settings['sb4onoff'] >= 1 then>{$mybb->settings['sbtitle4']}
{$mybb->settings['sb4']}






  {$pollbox}
  
    {$multipage}

  
  
    {$newreply}
  
  {$ratethread}
  
    
      
    
    {$classic_header}
  
        
          {$lang->threaded} | {$lang->linear}
        
        
          {$thread['threadprefix']}{$thread['subject']}
        
      
  
    {$posts}
  
  
    
      
    
  
        {$search_thread}
        
          « {$lang->next_oldest} | {$lang->next_newest} »
        
      
  
    {$multipage}
  
  
    {$newreply}
  
  

  {$quickreply}
  {$threadexbox}
  {$similarthreads}
  

  
    
      {$lang->view_printable}
      {$lang->send_thread}
      {$add_remove_subscription_text}
    
  

  
    {$moderationoptions}
    {$forumjump}
  
  

  {$usersbrowsing}

Save and Return to Listing.

That’s it,

You can use your new content blocks in Configuration > MyCMSBox and set them up how you want them, HTML is allowed. Some screenshot examples:

MyBB sidebox with facebook page

MyBB sidebox on left and right sides, with header content block

MyBB sidebox on right side with welcome block

You can use MyCMSBox on your forum in many different ways for different content.

MyBB Plugins Checkbox Validation Review

Xstrike — Sat, 01 Dec 2012 20:12:55 +0000

Checkbox Validation MyBB plugins stops spam.

MyBB Plugins Author: Vernier
Submitted: 28th August 2012
Last Updated: 7th November 2012
MyBB Plugins URL: http://mods.mybb.com/view/checkbox-validation

After a recent bot attack on my forum I was looking for something to stop the bots at the registration page, as even Stopforumspam.com for Spam prevention and Registration Security Question MyBB plugins weren’t helping as much. Among MyBB plugins I came across this simple Checkbox Validation plugin that adds a checkbox with a random number the user needs to click on to continue. If the user fails to click on a number or clicks on the wrong number, a error will occur. This, combined with Registration Security Question MyBB plugins has nearly stopped all bots now.

The Checkbox Validation MyBB plugin comes with a few settings, but the most important one for me is “Enable on the Register page?” which shows Checkbox Validation on the registration page. Other settings enables it to appear on new threads, replies to threads and private messages. I recommend this MyBB plugin due to how simple but effective it is in stopping automated spam bots, as spam software continues to receive updates making bots smarter, useful spam prevention MyBB plugins like Registration Security Question is becoming less effective, as bots can obtain the answers after a human manually completes the questions.

The Checkbox Validation MyBB plugin however puts a stop to spam bots and is a useful tool against the fight on MyBB spam, this plugin along with other methods mentioned in the MyBB Spam Prevention Guide can make it extremely difficult for bots, and more easier for you to enjoy your forum and it’s registered human members.

MyBB Theme of the Month: DarkFusion Review

Xstrike — Fri, 02 Nov 2012 00:40:22 +0000

MyBB theme DarkFusion review.

MyBB Theme Author: Jessie S.
Submitted: 3rd January 2010
Last Updated: 9th April 2011
MyBB Theme URL: http://mods.mybb.com/view/dark-fusion-2

MyBB theme overview

With Halloween being yesterday, I decided to start the new MyBBGroup Theme of the Month series with a dark theme. DarkFusion is a clean black, grey and blue MyBB theme, made for the MyBB 1.6 series. With over 7000 downloads from the MyBB Mods site, it’s certainly one of the oldest themes since the release of MyBB 1.6.

This MyBB theme seems most often used on video game forums. The Welcome Back menu scrolls with you, giving easy access to your control panel. Personally I’m not a fan of those moving menus as they tend to get stuck when used on mobile devices, but nevertheless it adds a nice touch to the theme. the DarkFusion grey font and size seems a bit too small for me, but these can be easily adjusted for those who agree.

This MyBB theme also comes with it’s own icons, as noticed at the bottom of the theme in the footer. The images across the theme itself are high quality, a PSD file is also included with this theme, allowing anyone to customize it further to their liking.

MyBB theme conclusion: If you like a dark MyBB theme on a forum, you won’t be disappointed with this one. It’s customizable and shows a sleek and clean professional look to it.

How to Create a Custom MyBB CMS Forum Layout

Xstrike — Fri, 19 Oct 2012 05:20:38 +0000

Creating a custom MyBB CMS type layout.

Earlier I made a post about creating a custom MyBB sidebox on a forum, this tutorial is a more advanced version of the previous post. This is how to create a MyBB CMS (content management system) type of layout that will allow you to add additional content on your forum Index, Header and Footer areas, like in the screenshot below. No MyBB plugins!

What will be done here is creating 6 new content blocks around your main forum; a header block, a footer block, and 4 sidebox blocks, 2 on each side of the forum. The sidebox blocks will only show on the index page of the forum, while the header and footer blocks will display on every page. The blocks will transform your forum into a MyBB CMS type layout to add extra content, such as affiliates, ads, social sharing, welcome text, etc, almost like a real CMS.

Note that this MyBB CMS setup is somewhat advanced and takes some time and coding, but the end result is worth it.

Step 1: Add new group settings for MyBB CMS layout

You’ll need to create new settings in your Admin CP, go to Configuration > Add New Setting Group and add the following to each field:

Title: Custom MyBB CMS
Description: Settings for Custom MyBB CMS.
Display Order: 0
Identifier: mybbcms

Save settings, here’s the result:

Step 2: Add new settings for content blocks

This is the longest step for this custom MyBB CMS, you’ll need to create 12 settings, 2 for the Header Box, 2 for the Footer Box, and 8 for the four sideboxes to add/remove content. Go to Add New Setting and add the following for setting 1:

Title: HeaderBox Title
Description: Name of HeaderBox.
Group: Custom MyBB CMS
Display Order: 0
Identifier: hbtitle
Type: Text
Value: (leave as blank)

Save settings.

Add New Setting and add the following for setting 2:

Title: HeaderBox Content
Description: Enter content of HeaderBox here.
Group: Custom MyBB CMS
Display Order: 1
Identifier: hb
Type: Textarea
Value: (leave as blank)

Save settings.

Add New Setting and add the following for setting 3:

Title: FooterBox Title
Description: Name of FooterBox.
Group: Custom MyBB CMS
Display Order: 2
Identifier: fbtitle
Type: Text
Value: (leave as blank)

Save settings.

Add New Setting and add the following for setting 4:

Title: FooterBox Content
Description: Enter content of FooterBox here.
Group: Custom MyBB CMS
Display Order: 3
Identifier: fb
Type: Textarea
Value: (leave as blank)

Save settings.

So far, we’ve added settings for two content blocks that will show on every page, one in the header of the forum and one in the footer of the forum. Now let’s add settings for the sideboxes.

Add New Setting and add the following for setting 5:

Title: Sidebox 1 Title
Description: Name of Sidebox 1.
Group: Custom MyBB CMS
Display Order: 4
Identifier: sbtitle1
Type: Text
Value: (leave as blank)

Save settings.

Add New Setting and add the following for setting 6:

Title: Sidebox 1 Content
Description: Enter content of Sidebox 1 here.
Group: Custom MyBB CMS
Display Order: 5
Identifier: sb1
Type: Textarea
Value: (leave as blank)

Save settings.

Add New Setting and add the following for setting 7:

Title: Sidebox 2 Title
Description: Name of Sidebox 2.
Group: Custom MyBB CMS
Display Order: 6
Identifier: sbtitle2
Type: Text
Value: (leave as blank)

Save settings.

Add New Setting and add the following for setting 8:

Title: Sidebox 2 Content
Description: Enter content of Sidebox 2 here.
Group: Custom MyBB CMS
Display Order: 7
Identifier: sb2
Type: Textarea
Value: (leave as blank)

Save settings.

Add New Setting and add the following for setting 9:

Title: Sidebox 3 Title
Description: Name of Sidebox 3.
Group: Custom MyBB CMS
Display Order: 8
Identifier: sbtitle3
Type: Text
Value: (leave as blank)

Save settings.

Add New Setting and add the following for setting 10:

Title: Sidebox 3 Content
Description: Enter content of Sidebox 3 here.
Group: Custom MyBB CMS
Display Order: 9
Identifier: sb3
Type: Textarea
Value: (leave as blank)

Save settings.

Add New Setting and add the following for setting 11:

Title: Sidebox 4 Title
Description: Name of Sidebox 4.
Group: Custom MyBB CMS
Display Order: 10
Identifier: sbtitle4
Type: Text
Value: (leave as blank)

Save settings.

Add New Setting and add the following for setting 12:

Title: Sidebox 4 Content
Description: Enter content of Sidebox 4 here.
Group: Custom MyBB CMS
Display Order: 11
Identifier: sb4
Type: Textarea
Value: (leave as blank)

Save settings, you should now have 12 settings looking similar to this:

Step 3: Now that the settings are in place for the custom MyBB CMS setup, next is to edit the templates to display the new content blocks. Go to Templates & Style > Templates > (your default templates) > Footer Templates > footer.

Find (line 1):

Add below:

{$mybb->settings['fbtitle']}
{$mybb->settings['fb']}

Save settings.

Step 4: Go to Header Templates > header.

Find:

      {$pm_notice}
      {$bannedwarning}
      {$bbclosedwarning}
      {$unreadreports}
      {$pending_joinrequests}

Add below:

{$mybb->settings['hbtitle']}
{$mybb->settings['hb']}

Save settings.

Step 5: Go to Index Page Templates > index.

Find:

{$forums}
{$boardstats}

Replace with:




{$mybb->settings['sbtitle1']}
{$mybb->settings['sb1']}


{$mybb->settings['sbtitle2']}
{$mybb->settings['sb2']}



 

{$forums}
{$boardstats}





{$mybb->settings['sbtitle3']}
{$mybb->settings['sb3']}


{$mybb->settings['sbtitle4']}
{$mybb->settings['sb4']}

Save settings, you’re done!

How it works: Your forum should be showing a bunch of empty boxes, to fill them up with your own content go to Admin CP > Configuration > Custom MyBB CMS.

Here you can add content to your sideboxes and header/footer content blocks, simply fill in the title and add the content you want, you can use HTML in these boxes. Here’s a basic result:

This tutorial for making a custom MyBB CMS is completely customizable, so you can add or remove as many boxes as you want on your forum. You can also use this for adding other kinds of codes such as adding social sharing buttons or placing ads in one of these content blocks too.

MyBB Performance: How to Reduce MyBB Server Load

Xstrike — Fri, 14 Sep 2012 21:54:31 +0000

MyBB performance tips for reducing high MyBB server load.

When running a forum, blog, or any kind of website, watching the server load is important. Server load is the amount of processes running on the server itself, website scripts such as MyBB and many others uses SQL queries which contributes to server load. While MyBB itself does not in any way create high server load, the various plugins and features an administrator decides to add to it can contribute to high MyBB server load.

Many users run their MyBB forums on shared hosting, meaning a server that hosts many other websites. A high server load can be caused by any of these users, so if there ever is a high server load, it may not be coming from your website. Nevertheless, if you’re experiencing high MyBB server load coming from your forum however, then here’s a few tips as a MyBB performance guide that can help reduce it.

1. Don’t use so many MyBB plugins

This is most common, most plugins adds additional SQL queries which adds more to the MyBB server load. Don’t use MyBB plugins you don’t need, you can use simple template edits to MyBB for basic functions such as adding Google Analytics or creating a usergroup legend on your forum.

2. Use MyBB Debug Information to find where the high MyBB server load is

A useful function, debugging your forum is good for finding potential functions that are using many SQL queries that creates a high MyBB server load, usually these are plugins. Find the ones causing this and deactivate them if possible.

3. Adjust configurations for reducing MyBB server load

In admin CP > Configurations > Server and Optimization Options set “Use GZip Page Compression?” to yes and “Enable Forum Jump Menu?” to no. If high MyBB server load is a major issue for you then you can use the *NIX Load Limiting option, but be advised that this can decrease the amount of visitors to your forum depending on what number you set it at.

4. Move to paid hosting or a VPS/dedicated server

A lot of MyBB forums run on free hosting, and those can experience high server load a lot due to the abuse from other users on the servers and slows your forum down in the process, or maybe you have a lot of active users that are contributing to high MyBB server load. If either is the case, then you may need to consider moving to paid hosting, hosts like Hostgator run great with MyBB. They may cost a few dollars a month, but if you’re serious about your forum you’ll make the decision to move to better quality hosting.

Conclusion

Don’t wait until the last minute to do any of these, especially if your forum is the cause of high MyBB server load. Otherwise your webhost may suspend your account for “abusing” their servers. As mentioned before, the MyBB forum software hardly takes up any server load usage, but the various MyBB plugins can. Keep SQL queries low around your forum and that will generally reduce high MyBB server load.