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Hello,
I have launched another forum for Gemini/Titan at
I would welcome feedback and suggestions from people here, especially in regard to display and formatting. My inspiration is a vbulletin-esque Web forum, so hopefully it is interesting in its difference from this board.
It is a work in progress, so there are several features I've not yet added, like PMs and permissions for moderators (separate from normal users or administrators). I hope its basic functionality is OK for now.
If you would like any particular subforum to be created, please let me know!
May 10 · 5 weeks ago · 👍 mozz, mediocregopher, Ruby_Witch, leoperbo, requiem
Hi! I registered. Pretty cool forum! But so far I don't seem to have any permissions to do anything?
Can't register! I clicked on "click here to register", and waited and the page is not loading. Why register anyway -- why not just use my certificate? You can get users on instantly, and later on they can 'register' so they can be on different devices, for instance. But why not make the onboarding instant?
looks cool.
I registered but like stack it tells me on certain pages that I'm not logged in. Does the registration start in the top directory?
also, the titan requirement for signup may limit your user base.
💀 eriounious [OP] · May 11 at 02:26:
requiem: what are you trying to do that you don't have permission for?
stack: that seems strange to me. Would you mind pasting the URL of the page that won't load here? I've been testing the registration myself with various self-created certificates, and I can't reproduce the error, so I'd appreciate any help I could get.
gritty: are you sure that you're using your client certificate on the pages that tell you you aren't logged in? And sure, I suppose I can add an optional "pure" Gemini way of replying, like this board has.
💀 eriounious [OP] · May 11 at 02:32:
As far as "why register:" my thinking was that many people might choose the same certificate name. A registration system would ensure that people choose unique names, and could change usernames easily when they liked instead of having to make a new certificate; additionally, if they did want to use a new certificate, they would be able to keep the same username. I am open to changing this though.
I got to the page requesting Titan stuff. I'm no novice, but I've never had to do that before, have no clue how, and have zero interest in learning how.
Honestly, you lost me.
Why make me jump through hoops upfront, when I haven't even decided if I want to be here? My certificate already has my name, and if I decide to stay I will set my email.
It really seems like you are trying to waste my time!
On a more constructive note, you haee an opportunity to do it right. Analysis: you have an identity (your internal construct) associated with a name, and one or more certificates. During on boarding, use the certif and its name (unless the name collides in which case append a number). Later, the user can change name, add or revoke certificates, add email , etc.
That shows respect for the prospective user while giving you sufficient data to work with.
Don't solve problems that may never come up (name collisions, email etc.) by making the onboarding cumbersome.
🍄 Ruby_Witch · May 11 at 08:18:
Hi @eriounious I'm enjoying the forum idea so far! I did run into an interesting issue though.
I registered with a username with a whitespace in it (Ruby Witch) and the site itself seems to work fine with that "Hello, Ruby Witch!" but when I made a post it says that it's posted by "(null)".
💀 eriounious [OP] · May 11 at 08:30:
@Ruby_Witch, I apologize. That was due to some idiocy on my part (a "clever" way of handling usernames that I must have designed while drunk). That's now fixed. Please let me know if you find any more bugs!
💀 eriounious [OP] · May 11 at 08:41:
"Why make me jump through hoops upfront"
A few reasons.
1) I want users to be familiar with Titan. I do not want the rather small character limitation of Gemini response URLs to be considered the "default." That will affect how users post. Titan's optional token paramater is also very useful for certain interactions.
2) I do not think it's very hard to figure out, especially if one reads the FAQ. Using Lagrange, you can send a Titan upload simply with control-U.
3) I don't want random visitors to the site to take up usernames someone else may want, or generate useless data in my database. A 3-second registration process ensures that usernames are only held by people who exert a little effort.
4) While I don't advocate needless complexity, I don't think that pursuing user convenience at all costs is a worthwhile goal. There is a reason that the quality of discussion on modern social media is so terrible, and it's because such sites encourage the lowest common denominator of man to join and post.
🚲 CitySlicker · May 11 at 13:05:
I am having issues using the forum. I created an account when I return to gemini://maiaforum.net/index.gmi it says
You are not logged in. Please register for full access to this forum.
When I go back to the registration page and try to register again it says
You are already logged in!
💀 eriounious [OP] · May 11 at 14:33:
@CitySlicker
Can you confirm that you are using the client certificate with which you registered on the page which says you aren't logged in? It sounds like you are using your certificate on the registration page, but not on the index.
Hi @eriounious, here's some weirdness on a screen recording:
💀 eriounious [OP] · May 11 at 15:33:
@requiem
Thank you for the recording!
So, the "weirdness" there is caused by your not using the same client certificate on every page you visit. If you take a look at the bar to your left, you can see the text of your certificate change from "Using on this page" to "Used on..."
It is helpful when you create a certificate for the forum to select the option to use it on the entirety of the domain (maiaforum.net). Otherwise you have to manually enable your certificate on every page which requires one.
Though, links to individual posts shouldn't have to require being logged in to see. I'm not sure why I made it that way. I'll change it.
It seem like you are approaching it bass ackwards. Registration is not a goal, but perhaps a necessary formality, but only when absolutely needed. If you are walling off a forum, even the one of your own making... I think I've done all I could here.
Hi,
I am using it on every page, I never asked Lagrange to use the other cert - that one is for a single site. I’ll do some more recordings if you need.
💀 eriounious [OP] · May 12 at 14:10:
@requiem
You aren't: the video you recorded shows this ("used on..." means the cert is NOT being used on the current page). If you created the cert to be used on the entire domain, then it might be a bug with Lagrange. Otherwise, you have to explicitly enable the certificate on every page you visit, even if it's a page on the same domain.
I’ll have a look through it but I find is strange as I never had issues like this before.
🚀 blah_blah_blah · May 13 at 23:44:
@eriounious Tried to register. Setup cert, got the "send a Titan message with your username in it" message. Did so. Then it said I needed a cert. Says I'm not registered.
I'm leaning toward @stack's POV. Your solution is causing a problem. Strongly advise you to streamline the onboarding.
🚀 blah_blah_blah · May 13 at 23:52:
@eriounious Figured it out.
If you insist upon this mode of registration, present the steps more clearly. I had, for example, confused the "token" for the body of the message. And then I failed to select an appropriate certificate. These are not issues I have ever come across when using Titan on BBS (here).
🚀 blah_blah_blah · May 14 at 00:07:
@eriounious Since you use Titan to add replies, and not a "reply" link, you should add a note about this near the bottom of the page
To reply, press ctrl-U to invoke Titan
The layouts are a bit cumbersome. I would look at BBS and Station for guidance on how to format posts. The line needs to go.
Just as Reddit ate up all forums, BBS eats up forums in Geminispace. I'm not sure if a vBBS clone will have legs.
I suggest positioning your project between BBS and Station. I would like to see a Geminispace-native MidnightPub style forum. Basicaly, Titan-powered gemlog capsules that people can reply to. That would provide a unique service, and I would definitely join.