Brandon Frohs

As many already know, I’m not a fan of limiting an application to be backward compatible. I am, however, a firm believer of forward compatibility. I believe applications (any product actually) should be prepared for the future. Sure, something new and unexpected will inevitably pop up sooner or later, but that isn’t the point. The point is, preparing for the future will make expanding the application in the future a smoother process. This is why many web applications provide some way (however limited) to change the look and feel of the front-end. With Consummo, I’m taking this one step further.

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It’s been nearly a year since I last spoke of Consummo, so I’d like to get rid of any doubts. Consummo is still an active project of mine. Over the past year, work and life in general took prescedence over Consummo and I’d like to apologize for that. I’ve decided to cut down on the amount of hours I work and focus more on Consummo.

Now then, let’s discuss Consummo a bit more in detail. As with any application, Consummo has grown much bigger and more in-depth than ever intended. I originally designed Consummo to simply replace existing forum software, but I’ve come to realize it should be able to do so much more. Since Consummo means to sum up or make perfect, it is only fitting that Consummo offers complete functionality. What do I mean by that? Well, imagine yourself as a web designer or website owner. What functionality might you want? I hope to provide that and more.

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I’ve changed my mind a bit regarding the themes. I was originally going to have the themes set up similarly to other forum software, with a bit more functionality. Today, while working on another website, I came up with another idea. The new idea is similar, but a lot different as well. Other forums separate it like this…

• /cf-themes/[theme-name]/[theme-files]

Consummo will be set up similar to this…

• /cf-templates/[template-files]
• /cf-themes/[theme-name]/images/[image-files]
• /cf-themes/[theme-name]/css/[css-files]
• /cf-themes/[theme-name]/media/[media-files] e.g. Flash

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If you have an answer to any of the questions below, please leave a response and help to add some more competition to the forum sector.

What are some features you couldn’t live without in a forum?

The following features will most likely be available in the application or as an add-on.

• none

What are some features you would like to see, but don’t really need?

The following features will most likely be available as an add-on.

• none

What are some features you don’t see a point in having?

The following features will most not be included in Consummo, but possibly as an add-on.

• none

What are some features you absolutely hate?

The following features will most likely not be included in Consummo.

• none

After much thought, I’ve decided to code the main theme of Consummo in (X)HTML5. Although I have not decided which route I’m going to take when it comes to (X)HTML5 (HTML5 or XHTML5), I am positive I will be using (X)HTML5. HTML 4.01 is too unstructured for my taste, XHTML 1.0 is old, and XHTML 2.0 isn’t friendly at all (to coders or visitors). (X)HTML5 seems like the proper choice, especially since I have been active in the development of it (not so much recently, but I’m getting back into the game slowly). If you want to learn more about (X)HTML5, check out the differences between HTML 4 and 5.

Note

Although Consummo will be released with an (X)HTML5 theme by default, I will release an XHTML 1.0 theme as well (and possibly even an HTML 4.01 theme). It won’t come out right away of course, but I will get around to it.

Have you ever noticed how you have to upload a new display picture for every forum and blog you create an account at? Well, there has been a system in place for a while now to make this no longer a problem. It is called Gravatar (Globally Recognized Avatars). Gravatar allows you to upload a display picture on their site (up to 512×512). This Gravatar is then used on any site that uses the gravatar system (all you have to do is use the same email!). There will also be an option to change the default Gravatar icon to that of Identicons, MonsterIDs, Wavatars, or your own custom image! The Gravatar system also allows each theme to use a different size of display picture without ruining the look of the entire site.

Other Benefits

The use of Gravatars also make the application more secure as there is no need to upload a display picture. All uploads are done on the Gravatar website. There is also less server space taken up as well as less server load (all images hosted, resized, and served up by Gravatar).

I’ve come across a situation where I would like to ask the public for some input. It’s actually quite simple. Just comment on this post (you don’t have to have an account) and let me know which choice you prefer (feel free to come up with one not listed). The choices refer to a template system I’m setting up on Consummo. As for the question/poll, which of the following (please only choose one total) do you believe would be the easiest to use (in terms of reading/recognizing and typing)?

{template-variable} (and all variations) can and will be replaced by other variables ( {error-code} for example)

None

• {templatevariable}
• {templateVariable}
• {TemplateVariable}

Hyphen

• {template-variable}
• {template-Variable}
• {Template-Variable}

Underscore

• {template_variable}
• {template_Variable}
• {Template_Variable}

I’ve been working on a project of my own for quite a while now and I believe it’s about time I officially announce it here… this is an appropriate place to announce it after all.

The Project

Imagine a forum with the customizability of Lussumo Vanilla and the simplicity of a do-it-yourself website service under the GPL 2.0 license. That is Consummo in a nutshell. All that I will require is that you keep the copyright notices intact. And as always, a link back to my website is always appreciated!

I will be releasing more information about Consummo in the near future. For now, just imagine the easiest templating system imaginable mixed with a user-friendly back-end (or front-end rather, depending on the function you want to achieve) on a resource-friendly codebase.