Hi!

Very new to BuddyPress and have just set up my site using it. I am now trying to add functionality to get something similar to what I had on the NING platform.

I have spent some time tonight trying to figure out this forum system for BP. I have installed bbPress, but I don’t think this is what I was looking for (or I didn’t install it right?). I noticed when I tested this out by creating a group and then attempting to create a forum post, when I click to create the post the entire post disappears and nothing gets posted. It’s very strange! I basically am not able to create any forum posts.

I really just want a forum with categories. It seems that in the native BP settings you have to create a Group first, which then gets its own forum? Is this correct?

I think this will be super confusing for my community members. Most are not super web/tech savvy. I’d like to present something much simpler for them.

So I am wondering how can I create something more simple as far as forums go where they click the Forum link and then there are categories listed such as:

General
Music
Film
Etc

And they click on a link that goes to that Forum category and they can post an entry there? I also need it so that they can subscribe to be notified when someone posts a reply to a discussion they started or have chosen to follow.

Or, how do I get something similar to what BuddyPress.org has? I notice that at the bottom of the forum topic listing, it says: “You will auto join this group when you start a new topic.” How did u get that functionality?

Any solutions for this?

Livesite is at: http://www.natfriends.com

Thanks!

[@r-a-y Keymaster 15 years, 3 months ago]

I really just want a forum with categories. It seems that in the native BP settings you have to create a Group first, which then gets its own forum? Is this correct?

Yes, you have to create a group first. Think of Facebook’s fan page / group discussions page. That’s what it is modeled after (I believe!).

If you want a forum with categories, I would suggest installing a WordPress forum plugin like Simple:Press or Mingle Forum.

If you’re comfortable working with another forum script, you can try installing the standalone version of bbPress and integrating WordPress and bbPress together. I list this as another option.

—

Or, how do I get something similar to what BuddyPress.org has? I notice that at the bottom of the forum topic listing, it says: “You will auto join this group when you start a new topic.” How did u get that functionality?

The auto-joining is default with BuddyPress. When you’re logged in and you are on a forum post that you are not a group member of, that message will be displayed. Visit the test install of BP – http://testbp.org – for an example.

[@webgyrl Member 15 years, 3 months ago]

Hi Ray!

Thanks for your answer. I am thinking many of my troubles are caused by the theme i was using. I have switched to BP default for now.

I am honestly not comfortable working with any sort of script as I am not a developer at all. I was wondering, once I have installed bbPress (which I did), can I uninstall it. I’m not sure it’s even working.

I can’t even post a forum topic whatsoever. I will go to post a topic and enter the info and the entire posting screen disappears and nothing posts. Is this a bug in BP do you think? It’s baffling me.

Thank you for clarifying the auto group join. That’s really handy.

So I guess my main questions is why aren’t posts working? I switched the theme to see if that was the culprit, but it does not seem so. Are there any settings I should check? So far I’m the only member and I am Admin.

Thanks so much!

[@cyndiseidler Participant 15 years ago]

I’m having a similar issue with the Forum except there isn’t even an option to Post a Topic! What the heck??!! Same with Groups – can’t post to it!