INTROduction

• For a live demonstration at the administrative level (level 3) of uniForum, please click on http://www.uniforum.biz/uniforum_demo/ using the following login credentials, username: demome, password: demome. If you see an "Unspecified Error" message, it's because this demo is using MS Access as its backend database, this error is due to the overloading of Access' limit on concurrent connections; so come back and try it a short while later.  Real case implementations can be found at worldX (uniForum's login system is integrated seamlessly into worldX), Right vs. Wrong and Tawarnolds.
   
• uniForum, previously named TWMB, is an internet message board application written in various client and server's languages.  In fact, not just a message board, it's also aimed to provide website owners an online, user-based community where clients and users are able to communicate securely or openly, access [sensitive/selective] resources while having a bona-fide presence on the web.  Furthermore, each registered user has a dedicated guestbook that can be implemented on their own website with a single HTTP link, and along with the private messaging and journal/weblog systems that virtually provide the user a personal space to roam about.
• Recently transformed into the hot and revolutionary .NET platform, uniForum version 4 is now fully implemented with all the advantages of ASP.NET and dozens of new major features.  One protruding advantage is ADO.NET, unlike the original ADO, ADO.NET is operating in multi-threaded apartment (MTA) mode which allows simultaneous, redundant database connections, this increases the overall application performance in a multi-user environment. The second next significant improvement is code compilation, every ASP.NET page is now compiled and running in its true basic machine code; in contrast to the disadvantage of the classic ASP code which has to be interpreted by a parser.
     

• [Registered] users can now subscribe to any board topic that has been enabled for subscription by going directly to that board topic, or through a general manager.
• Buddies list system, an integrated system with 3 functions serving FRIEND, MARKED, and IGNORED types.
• User personal journal system, similar to weblog.
• The toolbar has been revamped.
• Dynamic tagging, much like HTML tags, uniForum now has a built-in tagging language to empower users in creating their content, these tags can be used in but not limited to the followings:
  > Generating secure download links (moderators only).
  > Setting time dependent content (controlling content's visibility on a certain date and time or within a fixed period).
  > Setting content's display status dependent on username or group ID (the content will only display to those who match the specified username or group ID).
  > Displaying current date/time, viewer's name and username (useful for greeting whoever happens to read your message).
  > Generating colorful text string.
  > Including your own webpage as a small window within the message body.
  Since its coding is built with an articulate architecture, future additions will be be easy to accumulate even to novice ASP programmers.
• Simplified topic listing, now, unless viewed by forum, only one selected topic is listed.
• Added significant posting reports for most recent posts, most participated sub-topics, most read posts, and most voted/recommended posts.
• All posting content boxes have been equipped with an advanced HTML editor where users can directly design their message body in HTML format without the knowledge of the HTML language itself.
• The search module has been updated, and added with a new element, search by user, where the results will be returned based on the searching value(s) as well as the author of the content.
• The members listing module has been implemented with a search function, now you can search for a user or users based on what they have entered in their public profile.
• Selectable color themes in query string; since members would want to integrate the guestbook (or journal) from uniForum into their website where forcing them to use the default color theme would be too rigid, now, they have the option to specify a color theme of their choosing by simply placing an additional value in the query string of the HTTP link, and it will persist through all clicks within the guestbook, journal and profile pages.
• Time sorting and layout improvements for users history reporting module, including the option to set the maximum time range for data log.

Administrative Functions:

• Supports input/output of Unicode data (UTF-8).
• Secure downloading, administrator can use dynamic tagging to set what files to be downloaded from within which board topic. Since each board topic has various security controls, this enables file access for targeted groups of users by simply placing download links within their respective board topics. Naturally, this function helps webmasters to securely provide users to protected/sensitive resources.
• Each board topic now can be set to the strictly moderated mode in which every posting must be approved [by an authorized moderator] before its content is visible.
• Each board topic now has a subscription option, enlisting limit and management.
• Board topic alias field.  The older version used the database's table name for board topic's name, which was not ideal for entering Unicode characters, especially for languages other than English; now, using the alias field, you can safely decorate you board topic's name with HTML code and global languages, the alias name can be a lot longer than the limit imposed on database's table naming convention.
• Every significant posting report has a listing setting (as in the number of items per report).
• In the previous version, a generic/anonymous board topic can be accessed even without assigning a forum; now, each board topic has an active status control, a board topic must be set to "active" to make it available to all users, it's like putting a board into service, this setting is independent of forum assignment.
• Board topic settings are now loaded in a separate window and grouped by their forum.
• Supports multiple group IDs per user, and board topic.
• Now, you can dictate how many characters in length your users' username may have by setting the minimum and maximum values.
• Posting interval control (or flood control), administrator can now set the number of seconds before a user can make an additional posting; this feature prevents page refreshing repeatedly that may quickly generate redundantly duplicate posts, or just to simply reduce the amount of postings within a period of time.
• New search interval control, similar to posting control, it is used to space out the interval between search requests.
• More elements and functions have been implemented into the Private Messaging, Guestbook and Journal systems such as: Listing by date, allows the adding of comments to each entry, editing of individual entry, and the parsing of foul words, expression icons, and dynamic tags are now included.
• Added ASP.NET system mail protocol, in addition to the other two.
• Custom page-level style tag, this feature allows administrator to create his/her own HTML style tag which will be automatically implemented to format every viewable page in uniForum.
• A completely new ads/banners XML-based system using the blazingly fast built-in ASP.NET server object; it's clear and advanced so that with a little basic knowledge of XML can move you a long way in taking advantage of the feature.  Besides setting an ad's image source, URL and tooltip, the ads system allows you to set the importance of each ad in numerical standing, the higher the number the more it is likely to surface to the viewers; or you can think of it as the probability of occurrences.
• Adaptive database usage, not only uniForum can be configured to use two databases, one for posting content and one for user profiles; it can also be optionally configured to use just one database by combining the "Admin" table (of user profiles) into the same database that contains posting content.  This greatly simplifies the management of MSSQL server resources for websites living on shared-hosting.
• Link to custom-made user registration's policies and disclaimers page.
• And, of course, various bugs and security issues have been addressed and many more coding details that are too long to be listed.

Go to the Features page for a complete list.

Website initially launched on 5/5/2003 by www.tawarnolds.com.