Major Announcement: APUG future development plans

[Sean]

update:

Things are moving much faster now. We're at the 75% completed mark. Everything is exceeding expectations and I'm looking forward to running a closed beta soon that all members can login to and provide feedback.

 

[Sean]

update:

More solid progress thanks to my coder being available. I intend to post several detailed screenshots of the dev environment this week and explain in more detail how the system handles data throughout the site. The good news is that the concept of unifying APUG/Hybrid/DPUG back ends with a single user login, yet allowing for complete control of the content per user preference WORKS. It not only works but is effortless and "1-click". For example, the three workflow content areas: Analog Hybrid Digital, can be enabled/disabled from the site header in real time with 1-click (options seen in the image below).

If Hybrid & Digital are un-checked all hybrid & digital content in all areas of the site literally vanish, resulting in what is essentially making the entire site analog/APUG. For those who enable all 3 areas, you have the expanded content. The custom system we developed is linked to every aspect of the site wide content. We also have some solutions for "thread drift" when threads that take on multiple content types as well as a way to use certain forums for all content types (for example we do not need 3 forums for Classified WTB for each workflow, we do not need 3 Standard Galleries for each workflow. Multi-use areas and other content areas will still fall under the top level control of user workflow preference. If you only have "analog" enabled then your Classified WTB forum only shows analog WTB ads, if someone else has all areas enabled then their WTB forum shows ads for analog, hybrid, digital. It also does so with a bit of visual indication in the thread lists of what content type individual threads are. This will be easier to understand when I post some screenshots soon. Also, search result pages fall under the global workflow preference you set, everything is tied to the three check boxes in the header next to the logo, even the types of ads shown are linked to the individual workflow areas so that the analog areas promote only analog businesses yet digital areas show relevant ads. Speaking of ads they are still very low key and non-invasive (no pop-ups, no splash pages, etc basically the same as APUG is right now).

More soon, thanks! Sean

 

[Sean]

update:

As promised a few teasers of the current development environment. These are not mockups, this is a working environment. If you'd like to provide any feedback feel free to contact me via PM or email: sean@photrio.com

There is still a fair bit of work to do, and most importantly extensive full blown testing by the membership. I've seen rollouts go horribly wrong and want to involve the community 100% with the proposed changes. I want members to feel excited about the potential, especially for analog photography/APUG to step out of a niche and reach a much larger global audience.

Screenshot 1:

Things to note:

-The workflow/content selector next to the photrio logo. This works in real time to enable/disable vast amounts of content site wide. Your choice is stored and remembered, so you only need to select the options once, but you can change your choice at any time.

-The user login area, top right. This data was moved out of the main site menu bar, which will allow us more flexibility for mobile formats and extra menu items.

-Dynamic header capabilities. The header consists of an information box and banner ad, both which will change depending on where you are on the site. The header in the screenshot is currently the "default" site header.

-Overall site formatting. From the header down, most if not all of the site is the same as we have now on APUG. It is built off of the current APUG style. There will be no re-learning, misplaced items or confusion.

Screenshot 2:

Things to note:

As mentioned previously, this is a method currently employed to ensure we do not unnecessarily triple up on various content areas. The idea being we do not need 3 individual forums:

Analog Classifieds WTB
Hybrid Classifieds WTB
Digital Classifieds WTB

All we need is a single "Classifieds WTB" forum. When placing an ad the relevant workflow(s) are selected during thread creation. This is then tied to your overall site preference selected in the site header. If all you have selected in the site header is "Analog" then you will not see "Hybrid" or "Digital" ads in the "Classifieds WTB" forum, only Analog ads. For those viewing all workflow types, I have added small icons so at a glance you can see which threads relate to which workflow(s). Notice one ad contains all three. A user option exists to hide these identifier icons if you wish.

Screenshot 3:

Things to note:

The visual indicators also appear in search results as seen below. When viewing "new posts" you can easily pick out which workflows are being discussed. A user option exists to hide these identifier icons if you wish.

Ok, so there is a sneak peek of the current work in progress. The three workflows at your fingertips, a single click to enable or disable any combination of the three. One unified single login framework, maximum user content choice for all those in the various "camps". It's not so much about ignoring what others are doing, it's about focusing on what works for you and sharing in that with others. There are posts I made more than 5+yrs ago wishing for the technology to give us such a system, so I am pretty excited. For those firmly in the APUG camp you will have the same system as always should you disable "hybrid" and "digital", those who use APUG and have always wanted more expanded areas throughout APUG, you can now have that by enabling "hybrid" and "digital".

Thanks for having a look, and feel free to contact me via PM or sean@photrio.com

more to come...

 

[Sean]

update:

Sorry for the delay in updates it's been a hectic month. I had a lot of tax work to get through for the NZ tax year ending in March, then I got the flu, then right after the flu cleared I had to have abdominal surgery to repair a hernia. Still recovering from that (day 6) and now getting back into things. My complete recovery is 6-8weeks (( Quick word of advice, do not over strain when lifting something heavy as this can cause a tear in the abdominal wall leading to hernia. I was installing a somewhat heavy shelf above my head and stretched out holding the shelf in place while screwing it in. I didn't really know what a hernia was until this and wish I was more aware of the potential of them (hopefully this post saves someone the agony). I opted for a mesh free open repair which is a tougher recovery than laparoscopic, but less complications down the road. So, if something is heavy, get help! NOT worth it as the only way to repair hernia is with surgery. )). Big thanks to my mod and council for holding down the fort while I was recovering!

Photrio dev will pick up next week full bore with nothing standing in the way. Thanks!

 

[Sean]

update:

Currently waiting for my freelance coder to have some more availability, we should be able to get a lot done this weekend. Some delays due to funding this. Other than that, officially formed the new LTD this week. Photrio Limited is now a registered New Zealand company.

 

[Sean]

update:

We're inching closer, now feeling like we're at the 95% complete stage yet the last 5% could be the most difficult. Things have been held up for a few reasons.. -funding -freelancer availability -legals -branding/design delays but we're through most of this. This coming week will be all about preparing the photrio dev environment for user testing. It's time to bring some of you in to kick the tires and provide feedback.

The final rollout of photrio will be challenging and could see us down for several days. For those interested, the rollout will consist of these main actions:

-complete on-site and off-site backups will be taken before work commences
-a full backup copy of production apug.org placed on our development server, dns updated and that copy becoming the live apug.org site
-apug.org will then remain locked down (aside from the chatroom and one forum for all discussions while we're closed)
-the original copy of apug residing on the production server then goes through the process of becoming photrio (1-3 days work here to implement all code changes, stylings, database queries, redirections, and testing the finished site)
-importing of DPUG.ORG to photrio, dpug.org redirects, reconciling any duplicate names, etc
-photrio goes live

Backout plan: The backup of apug is simply re-instated by re-opening apug. At no point is the original version of APUG at risk, there will actually be 4 backups + the copy on dev.

I'm looking forward to the user testing soon. I hate that this is taking so long but prefer this goes as smoothly as possible. Thanks!

 

[Sean]

Hi All,

Here is a new sneak peek of the current Photrio.com progress, the 'branding' and styling have been implemented. The logo has been designed with an influence of our three previous communities and workflows. The "I" in TRIO has been segmented x3 as a play on 'trio' and to highlight the three workflow areas.

These screenshots are not mockups, this is our live dev environment. I'm hoping to have the APUG/DPUG community testing this environment early next week and providing feedback.

click thumbnails to enlarge (quality may vary, these screens come from a retina display):

1st image, the logo and variations

2nd image, the current photrio header and navigation. The space to the left of the banner advertisement will contain a variety of relevant/live information depending on the workflow/forum area. For example, in a thread discussing a postcard exchange, there could be a signup banner for the exchange in that space.

3rd image, content 'workflow indicators' for those who decide to activate all areas, the indicators allow you to quickly see which workflows are being discussed (they are influenced by colors of our previous sites and the logo).



I'm always available for comment, feel free to PM or email sean@photrio.com

Thanks!
Sean

 

[Sean]

Hi All,

Sorry for the lack of updates, things have been a bit hectic. Some may know I'm part of a small Dunedin company making flatpack standing desk solutions: https://goo.gl/PVzVyk

We've had another production run and are dealing with that and working on distribution/shipping issues, plus getting out a lot of pre-orders. This has taken a huge amount of time the past 2 weeks. This is starting to settle down and I'll be back into Photrio development as soon as possible.

Thanks,
Sean

 

[Sean]

Hi All, just another update.

I'm hoping to get the migration underway weekend of the 12th if we can. I'll be sending out some mass PMs soon, probably a series of 3 mass PMs to keep everyone informed as we approach the date. With limited resources it's going to be tough to get a 'perfect' development environment, so we're going to get to a level we feel it is close enough, then handle any post-migration issues on the fly.

More soon!
Thanks,
Sean

 

[Sean]

Hi All,

A small update. We are working hard to prep for the upcoming migration. I'll send a mass PM later today with more details.

One bit of recent news is that Photrio will have a dedicated free mobile APP for IOS and ANDROID. This requires an Apple developer ID, a bit of approval and implementation but I have trialed the app and think it will prove useful to many of you. It should be ready shortly after the site opens.

Thanks,
Sean