BuddyPress.org

correct trac ticket (one listed above was for activity time_since)
https://trac.buddypress.org/ticket/2504

confirmed – i have the same issue now (7 hours ago)

messages_new_message uses ‘date_sent’ => time() instead of gmdate since the templatetag uses bp_core_time_since

actually a few other oddities where notices use time() as well. (but that actually calls bp_format_time in the templatetag)

@Pisanojm @paulhastings0 I’m getting the same thing. Wp 3.0 BP 1.2.5

It is – in the admin backend, you can choose whether or not each component is enabled.

@pisanojm, Yes, since upgrading to WP 3.0 the 5 hour time-lag issue reappeared. Since that time we’ve also upgraded BP to 1.2.5 and we still have the issue.

@pisanojm I have just updated to BP 1.2.5.2 and although I don’t get a 4 or 5 hours issue I do get a general, ‘sent sometime ago’ time on PM’s that I have only just sent. The time stamp is correct on my inbox page but when i open the message it just states, ‘sent sometime ago’.

Anyone else getting this?

Depending on whether you’ve turned on the components at Dashboard > BuddyPress > Component Setup, BP provides extended user profiles, an interactive activity stream, private messaging, user-creatable groups (with integrated activity streams, forums, and other functionality available via plugins), blog tracking, friend connections, and member/group directories. The toolbar at the top of the screen is one of the methods built into the UI for accessing these features. If you’re using a BP-compatible theme like the bundled bp-default, then you should also see tabs for Members, Groups, Forums etc near the top of your screen.

testbp.org is one place to see BP being used (for test purposes, obviously, but you can get a sense of the organization).

is_feed() is what you’re looking for. However, I would use travel-junkie’s code as it’s cleaner:
https://buddypress.org/community/groups/how-to-and-troubleshooting/forum/topic/how-to-make-a-private-community/?topic_page=2&num=15#post-44616

Modify this line:
if( bp_is_register_page() || bp_is_activation_page() )

with:
if( bp_is_register_page() || bp_is_activation_page() || is_feed() )

Seems like I could have added some kind of IF ~whatever the FEED function~ RETURN to the Registered Users Only 2 plugin and achieved the same thing… but I don’t know what the “whatever the FEED function” is to add… @r-a-y

@r-a-y I used your code suggestion and some that I found in Restrict User 2 With Viper’s original Restrict User Plugin
Found here http://www.viper007bond.com/wordpress-plugins/registered-users-only/
because I wanted the site to be restricted to registered users only… still allow access to the login/activiate page and ALSO allow access to the feeds…

I ended up with this.
// Depending on conditions, run an authentication check
function MaybeRedirect() {
// If the user is logged in, then abort
if ( current_user_can(‘read’) ) return;

$this->exclusions = array(
‘wp-login.php’,
‘wp-signup.php’,
‘wp-register.php’,
‘wp-activate.php’,
‘wp-cron.php’, // Just incase
‘wp-trackback.php’,
‘wp-app.php’,
‘xmlrpc.php’,
);


It appears to be working… Do you have any thoughts on the above? Thanks

All forum postings — except those from private groups, are displayed in the site wide forum stream. So, your posting was visible for awhile. It just gets pushed down if there are no replies. I suggest keeping your discussions within that group’s forum.

just look at the core files bp-groups.php and the function groups_setup_nav()

from there you’ll see how bp sets the current access for most subnav items
look for this line -> // If this is a private or hidden group, does the user have access?

which is referenced on line 206/7 for the Forums subnav. What you can do is remove the subnav ( bp_core_remove_subnav_item ) then re-add with the param user_has_access calling some function to determine the access level for your given requirements. (hook your remove/re-add on the action groups_setup_nav )

“You can only update the groups you’re a member of.”
That’s the idea, one way to prevent spammers from messing with your group.

Do you mean you want to allow anyone to post status updates even in private (by invitation only) groups or only in public groups?

Code in functions.php only runs on the blog in question.

If you have BP activated sitewide, put the code in /wp-content/bp-custom.php as that will run throughout your install.

@Travel-Junkie: Your code below works great for WordPress 3 and Buddypress but not for multisite sub blogs? I need to stop access to sub blogs as well if users are not logged in. If i type in the url of my sub blogs then they show up. Is there anyway to stop this?

tks
james

function sh_walled_garden()
{
global $bp;

if( bp_is_register_page() || bp_is_activation_page() )
return;

if( ! is_user_logged_in() )
bp_core_redirect( $bp->root_domain .’/’. BP_REGISTER_SLUG );
}
add_action( ‘get_header’, ‘sh_walled_garden’ );

@crashutah – I actually prefer travel-junkie’s method; it’s cleaner:
https://buddypress.org/community/groups/how-to-and-troubleshooting/forum/topic/how-to-make-a-private-community/?topic_page=2&num=15#post-44616

@peterverkooijen; Good points about the focus of a social network being on the member, while a forum is focussed more around the information. I think @alanchrishughes has a point too though, about non-techies being put off by having to register.many people are still terrified that if they enter their name and email address then you’ll have access to their bank account – seriously!

I’ve built a number of sites in Drupal, which is very powerful indeed, and doesn’t suffer so much from update issues. It gives such fine control of everything that it’s amazing, and for those who haven’t tried it, you can basically build your own custom CMS with it. It takes so long to do though. We tried Elgg, which is kinda cool out of the box, and does a lot of social network things really well. However, its interface is naff (in my opinion) and theming is not easy. Worse still, adding extra pages to build a custom site means lots of coding, instead of WP’s simple click-to-add. We’re going to need that for custom background (paying) advert pages, and hopefully a lot of them as time goes on. Also, Elgg has almost no member control, roles, etc., and wile the Elgg team feel that’s not important, we strongly disagree. People do not behave nicely just because they signed up to a social network!

Personally, I see nothing wrong with a social network which allows unregistered users to comment with CAPTCHA, along with well defined and easy to use groups for members to join, and good role management and strong privacy for those who require it. That way, just as in the real world, you can have private places and high streets, with members themselves controlling who does what. For me, at least, that’s all a social network need be.

@peterverkooijen said; “There is also zero privacy/security in Buddypress”. Care to expand upon that Peter? Our site isn’t ‘open for business’ yet, but when it is our members will expect some privacy, ie., profile stuff set to private and private group posts actually being private. Are you saying it can’t/won’t be properly private?

@alanchrishughes; What we’ve done – and it’s making sense to a few testers so far – is to ditch the forums and just use groups. So people know, for example, that they can create a cycling group, or a business group, or a flower arranging group. They understand that they can post messages in their group, and invite others to join in, accept new members, etc., and also that if they want things in the group to remain only there then they can make it private.

Apart from the varying negative reactions I see from people regarding forums and blogs, one of the things which puts people off with forums is the layout style. They don’t want to ‘go into’ a new area and then have to sub-navigate, as they frequently become lost and end up hitting the Home button and starting again. Or worse still, the browser’s Close button, because it’s just another minor stress in life they can do without. Seeing an activity stream, and then entering a group knowing that it’s much the same thing, but either publicly displayed or kept private, they can handle. (Funnily enough, one tester said today when looking at the activity stream, “This is a really great idea…a local forum”).

Personally, I’m very much pulling away from all the “Oh how cool is this?!” side of technology, as you may notice from other posts I’ve made. It’s not because I’m ready for pipe and slippers yet, nor because I don’t like it all, but simply because those who are or become site and software developers are usually far removed from those they’re developing for, yet they don’t realise it. ‘Screen blindness’, perhaps. Developers are producing highly complex helicopters, while what most people really want are bog-standard 4-gear cars. Some are even happy with a horse and cart! (Afterthought; I guess the trick is to produce the complex helicopter, but make it so simple to fly that all you need is a steering wheel and 4 gears. I know; the analogy falls down hard if stretched further!)

@alanchrishughes said: “What is the idea even behind this “groups” concept? I have been trying to understand it and figure out a way to just work with it, but it just doesn’t make sense, it’s backwards.”

Just waking up Alan, so I hope I haven’t completely misunderstood. Personally, I’ve always been interested in how people respond to software systems. I think one of the main problems these days is that techies are so into, and used to, all things forum-ish, etc., that it’s second nature. People who get into systems like WordPress and BuddyPress quickly become techies, often without realising it, and take up the common language and perspectives of the software system they’re using. However, from the average user’s point of view, everything is very different.

We’ve done a lot of research with local people regarding using community websites. They know what a community is, and they know what a group is, at least in the real world. But mention a forum or a blog and we hear, “A what?! Oh, don’t give me all that computer-speak, and *don’t* try to make me understand all that rubbish”. This from some young people as well as older ones not so used to technology.

In building a social network as we are right now, forums are pretty much useless, and so are blogs. Why? Generally speaking, because in community organisations a forum is a face-to-face meeting of different service providers, and in business an online forum is seen as a bunch of people talking constantly about nothing on the Internet, ie., not much real use in terms of serious networking and increasing profits. Blogs are perceived as even worse: people blathering on and on about nothing of much interest to the world because they haven’t anything better to do, and love to see themselves racking up the page count and traffic day by day. This is our experience here in the UK, at least in our locality.

Groups, on the other hand, everyone can relate to. People form groups in real life, and the word ‘group’ is one everyone readily understands. Consequently, if I tell a local voluntary group that they can have their own online group, and even keep it private if they wish, they respond positively and grasp the idea of posting messages in a group. That’s all a group need be: forums and blogs don’t come into it. The response I’ve personally had to the question of whether someone would like a blog is, “Why?” and to the question of whether they’d like a very useful online forum it’s almost always, “But we already have a forum, twice a month”!

Whether the take-up on our site is good once it’s completed and advertised is dependent upon many factors. One thing I’ve learned to do over the past few years though, is switch off from the latest cool thing like forums within blogs within groups within posts related to other blogs which pull in every social network on the planet because you typed a certain key phrase. OMG yes it’s all so cool, but OMG do you end up with only users who also think it’s cool. The rest of the world don’t flaming well care, and the rest of the world IS the world.

Just my two-pence worth as they say here, but I’d look at what your users will find useful, and how what you’re building will make sense to them in terms they currently understand. In the recent past I’ve tried to enthuse people about all the cool stuff we have available, but unless it relates quickly and simply to their real world tasks it’s a waste of time and effort.

Groups are cool and useful because they reflect simple public/private real world entities.