What other methods exist for featuring content in Composr?
Answer
Random Quotes: The quotes feature allows you to display a rotating selection of quotes on your site.
Community Billboard (Requires Addon): The Community Billboard addon provides a dedicated space for displaying important announcements or community messages.
Can I display forum content in a prominent way on my Composr site?
Answer
Absolutely! Composr provides several blocks designed for featuring forum content:
News-Style Blocks: side_forum_news, main_forum_news, and bottom_forum_news display forum topics in a news format, ideal for forums used for news posting.
Topic-Focused Block: main_forum_topics showcases recent topics from specific forums, allowing you to highlight active discussions or important announcements.
What is the difference between using the main_awards block and directly selecting content with the main_content block?
Answer
Both blocks can feature content, but they offer different approaches:
main_awards: Provides a structured system for managing featured content through award assignment, archives, and optional point rewards. Requires active management to update award holders.
main_content: Offers direct control over specific content or allows random selection from chosen categories. May require manual updates or adjustments.
How do I feature specific content items on my Composr site?
Answer
You can feature content using various methods:
Blocks: The main_content block allows you to display specific items by content type and ID or randomize content from selected categories.
Awards: Create awards for different content types and assign them to specific items. You can then use the main_awards block to display current award holders. Awards also integrate with points to credit points to award holders. And you can be reminded on the staff checklist to assign a new award every configurable amount of time.
Advanced Embedding: For greater control, use the main_include_module block to embed entire module screens within other content.
Composr includes a bounce filter tool that helps you remove bounced email addresses from your subscriber list. To use this tool, you'll need:
The PHP IMAP extension enabled on your server.
A dedicated folder on your email server to collect bounced emails.
The bounce filter tool scans the specified folder for bounce messages and lets you remove the corresponding addresses from your newsletter list. Composr will also halt attempts sending e-mails to those addresses to help prevent you from getting listed on spam blocklists.
How can I ensure my newsletters comply with data privacy regulations?
Answer
Composr provides built-in mechanisms for compliance:
Unsubscribe links: Newsletters include an unsubscribe link, allowing recipients to opt out of the newsletters.
Global unsubscribe: All Composr emails include a link to a global unsubscribe page (data/unsubscribe.php), letting users unsubscribe from all site emails.
Many web hosting control panels include built-in backup features that operate at the system level, often offering higher reliability than web-based scripts. Ensure you back up both files and the database.
For database backups, you can use tools like phpMyAdmin, which allows you to export your database as a .sql file.
Composr offers a built-in backup addon accessible from Admin Zone > Tools > Backups. You can choose between full, incremental, and database-only backups.
Full backup: Backs up all files and folders within the Composr installation directory, including the database.
Incremental backup: Backs up only new or changed files since the last backup, resulting in smaller backup files.
Database backup only: Backs up only the database.
The addon allows scheduled backups or manual backup generation. It is recommended to download backups to a location outside your web server for better security.
Note: The Composr backup addon is limited by server-side PHP capabilities and might not always be reliable. Consider using alternative backup strategies offered by your web hosting control panel for increased reliability.
Disasters like hard disk failures, data corruption, and unexpected errors can happen at any time. A good backup strategy helps you recover your website and its data in case of such events. Backups can also help you roll back to a previous state if needed, such as after a failed upgrade or accidental changes.
How can I control the privacy of member profile fields?
Answer
You can control the privacy of member profile fields through the "Member privacy controls" configuration option.
If you enable the "Extended privacy option control", you can fine-tune visibility settings for each field. Otherwise, you can set simple access levels (e.g., not at all, to members, to friends, to everyone) for each field.
What is the difference between a Composr member and an author?
Answer
A member is someone who has created an account on your Composr website and can log in. They have a unique member ID and username, and can interact with the site's features.
An author is someone who creates content for the site. They may or may not be a member. For example, you might have an author who submits articles via email but never actually visits or joins the website.
What advanced techniques are available for dealing with persistent spammers who repeatedly create new accounts?
Answer
Composr's advanced banning features target sophisticated human spammers. Automatic bans can be configured to block users based on specific strings in their posts, while reasoned bans display customized messages to banned users, potentially deterring them. These measures, coupled with the ability to investigate users via IP address analysis, offer robust tools for managing persistent threats.
You can configure advanced banning under Admin Zone > Security > Configure advanced banning.
How does Composr handle user banning and what options are available?
Answer
Composr offers various banning mechanisms. You can ban members by editing their accounts (ban member tick box), preventing logins while still allowing guest access. IP address banning blocks access from specific IP addresses or ranges (Admin Zone > Security > Members > Investigate user to see their IP addresses and flag certain ones for banning). You can also restrict member submissions, or you can effectively "suspend" users by assigning them to a usergroup with minimal privileges (e.g. probation).
What is the "Warn Member" form and how can I use it to handle rule violations?
Answer
The "Warn Member" form provides a centralized interface for addressing user misconduct. You can issue formal or off-the-book warnings, apply punitive actions like IP bans, usergroup changes, or probation, and even delete content or charge points. This form allows you to document reasons for actions, improving transparency and consistency in moderation.
This tool can be accessed on a member's profile as staff, under Audit > Warn member. You can also review their warnings history on their "Standing" tab.
Composr logs IP addresses for various actions like guest posting, page views, and content submissions. This data helps identify potential spammers and track user behavior. The "Investigate user" module provides tools to analyze IP addresses and gather additional information about suspicious activity.
